Karina Ramírez

Frustrated with the inconvenience of heavy chairs, a Denton resident designed one of his own.

Fred Hensley, president of Festino Corp. of Denton, said the idea emerged in 2007.

“I’m partly disabled, I can’t walk or stand well and I have difficulty doing things outdoors, so I tried to find something I could do easily,” said Hensley, 49.

After designing three prototypes, Hensley came up with a chair that can be set up and folded easily and requires little space for storage. It weighs 5 pounds and, once folded, is just 3 inches thick and can be carried like a backpack. The chair includes a drink holder and a pouch for portable items.

Hensley said he named his new product the Sherpa Chair after the mountaineers who lead expeditions through the Himalayas.

“They are called sherpas,” he said.

Hensley will debut his new chair, which comes in red, forest green or camouflage, at the Outdoor Retailer Summer Market in Salt Lake City next month.

For now, the chair may be purchased online at www.sherpachair.com.

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Earlier this week, we learned the Brookshire Grocery Co., with headquarters in Tyler, joined YouTube and Facebook as a way to reach more customers.

The company’s YouTube page features two short videos that include animated containers of its award-winning Food Club milk and yogurt, while the Facebook page — with 370 fans — provides discounts, event listings and other offers.

“These are creative ways to reach more people and promote products and services,” said CEO Rick Rayford in a news release.

To join either networking site, visit www.brookshires.com.

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Rooster’s Roadhouse will be featured in the July 2009 edition of Cowboys & Indians magazine. Ellise Pierce, also known as Cowgirl Chef and regular contributor to the magazine, wrote about a new restaurant on Industrial Street in Denton run by her brother, Alan Pierce.

“Every day at Rooster’s, the massive smack-down-size J&R smoker slow-cooks up to 600 pounds of brisket, spareribs, pork shoulder, turkey breast, boneless ham and sausage,” Pierce wrote. “Once suitably smoked, the barbecue is made up into some of the tastiest sandwiches on the dusty side of the Mississippi.”

Pierce also writes about how she came to love barbecue dishes and provides a recipe for her brother’s pulled pork nachos.

We came to learn about the article from Corinth resident Kathleen Rhodes, who was surprised to find an article mentioning Denton in the contributor list of the magazine.

“I got an advertisement for a magazine and I sent in a trial subscription,” Rhodes said. “I was reading the contributors section and I had to see why Denton made the list.”

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Another magazine highlight includes the community of Robson Ranch, which made the list of the Top 100 American Best Master-Planned Communities for individuals planning to retire.

The list will be featured in the July/August issue of Where to Retire magazine, which looked at developments located in 29 states and ranked them according to cost, location and lifestyle amenities.

“Developments are getting greener — setting aside acreage for preserves and parks, and more commonly offering energy-saving features in homes,” according to a news release.

Of the 100 communities featured, Robson Ranch Resort Community was No. 87. Also making the list were four other Texas communities, located in Boerne, Georgetown, Kerrville and Laguna Vista.

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On June 18, Travelers Insurance Company brought its mobile claims unit to Denton and gave several local agencies a tour.

“This is an impressive thing in the insurance industry,” said Jason HeLal, president of the company. The vehicle features four workstations, mobile Wi-Fi, satellite telephone and television, as well as computers and printers.

“It allows Travelers’ adjusters to roll into a neighborhood and handle dozens of claims per day, and thus hundreds in a week. It also enables them to roll into a tornado- or hurricane-affected area even when electricity, Internet and plumbing are unavailable,” he said.

For more information, visit www.ciaauto.com.

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In order to help reduce the amount of plastic bags clogging landfills, P.J.’s Party Supply launched its new green program this week. For $2.99, customers can buy a reusable red cloth bag.

Once the bag is filled, shoppers will receive up to 5 percent off their purchase.

June Schiada, owner of the party store located at 5800 N. Interstate 35E, said the idea emerged last year.

“We started seeing them at Kroger and all over the place, so we thought we could do it too,” she said.

Schiada said the discount could not be combined with any other offer.

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A new shop opened at the Denton Square earlier this month.

Located at 229 W. Hickory St. next door to Natalie’s Hookah Lounge, High Times Lifestyle features tobacco products, body jewelry and other items. Store hours are noon to 10 p.m. daily.

For more information, call 940-442-6531.

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It appears more people will come out to celebrate the Fourth of July.

According to the National Retail Federation 2009 Independence Day Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey, more people are planning to celebrate and will attend a cookout, barbecue or picnic.

One reason people are looking forward to the celebration is the recent increase in gas prices.

“Though gas prices are still far below last year’s levels, a recent uptick in costs is causing some Americans to reconsider their plans,” said the report of the close to 44.5 percent of Americans who have already changed their plans.

According to the survey, conducted by BIGresearch, 144 million people are getting ready to celebrate (62.6 percent), and of those, 42.7 percent will attend local fireworks events instead of traveling outside their city.

July 4 falls on a Saturday this year.

Coming Up

Leadership Denton will celebrate its 25th anniversary and introduce the members of its 2009-10 leadership class on Aug. 6.

The celebration will take place at Fremaux’s Metropolitan Catering from 6 to 8 p.m.