LOCAL STACK: You see stacked stones often along the ocean, and last year we saw lots of stacked stone around the shores of Mackinac Island. You also see them along trails in the mountains. But here is a stack stone pile in Gwinnett, at the corner of Park Drive and Barton Street in Norcross. Homeowner Buck Moore took the effort and patience to achieve this stack.
IN THIS EDITIONTODAY’S FOCUS: Loganville Couple Start Program Helping Latinos Graduate from School
EEB PERSPECTIVE: Oh, the Fun of Re-Reading To A Really Good Author’s Book
SPOTLIGHT: Howard Brothers
UPCOMING: Minority Groups File Suit Against County for Voting Right Violations
NOTABLE: Sugar Hill and Chamber To Partner on Business Resources
GEORGIA TIDBIT: Twenty Years Later, Looking at the Centennial Olympics in Atlanta
CALENDAR: Cookbook Swap
TODAY’S QUOTE: Watch Out for That Mob Merriment, Noise and Nodding Acquaintances
MYSTERY PHOTO: Patriotic Photograph Commemorates Specific Story
LAGNIAPPE: Tiny House Exhibit Proves To Be Quite Popular
TODAY’S FOCUSLoganville couple starts program helping Latinos graduate from school
(Editor’s Note: the following comes from The Path Project. Melinda is a graduate of Shiloh High while Jim Hollandsworth graduated from South Gwinnett High. Both are graduates of the University of Georgia. She taught for nine years at Pharr Elementary School. They live in Loganville.)–eeb
By Melinda and Jim Hollandsworth, founders, The Path Project | In 2008 my wife Melinda and I drove into a mobile home park in Loganville to deliver Christmas presents through our church. This neighborhood is home to mostly first and second generation Mexican immigrant families.
The Hollandsworths
One day one of the children in that family asked us to help her and her siblings with their homework. This resonated with us because Melinda had been a public school teacher for nine years and Jim was on staff at Graystone Church as the Missions/Outreach pastor. We started a once/week homework program that over time grew into what is now The Path Project.
One of the children we met was a sixth grader. She asked Melinda a question, one that made us stop and think: “Mrs. Melinda, when are you guys going to leave? That’s what churches have always done here. They come and only stay for a while and then they leave.” Melinda told her, “I’ll be here when you graduate high school and I’m coming to your graduation!”
Since then we have created a model that empowers Latino youth living in at-risk mobile home communities to graduate from high school with a plan for their future. To do this we go into mobile home parks and open a community center, where teachers lead pre-school, literacy, homework, mentoring and leadership programs for children and teenagers.
Our staff consistently tracks the progress of our students on their path to graduation. Compare the graduation rate of the kids who commit to our programs with the graduation rate of kids who are not in our program but are living in the same neighborhood. This year 88 percent in our program graduated from high school. They all have a college or career plan in place. Only 33 percent of kids living in this same neighborhood who were not part of the Path Project graduated from high school.
We are currently working in six mobile home parks – four of them in Gwinnett. Our vision is to reach more kids in more mobile home parks with our programs in order to help thousands of kids growing up in at-risk communities graduate high school with a plan for their future!
Beginning this school year, we will partner with Buford City Schools to offer literacy and homework programs for students who live in the Countryside Village Mobile Home Park and attend Buford Elementary and Buford Academy.
We have a former Buford Academy teacher, Katie Hove, who will be working as the Path Project community director and leading the programs in this mobile home park. She will work alongside the teachers and schools to provide additional after-school programs geared at helping these children succeed academically.
Our programs in Buford will start as two afternoons/week. We will tutor in a community center that the children will be able to walk to. The programs will be focused on reading and homework. We will also be partnering with FCA Soccer of Gwinnett to offer soccer teams for children living in this mobile home park.
- Let me invite anyone interested to The Vision Dinner on August 28 at 5 p.m. at the Buford Community Center. If interested, RSVP to info@path-project.org.
Oh, the fun of re-reading a really good author’s book
By Elliott Brack, editor and publisher | There is nothing more satisfying to me, on lazy days, than to return to a book you have enjoyed previously. One I pulled down from the bookshelf the other day was The Wines of Pentagoet by John Gould.
Now understand, the late John Gould was my favorite author, having read him for more than 40 years through his weekly wry and colorful columns in The Christian Science Monitor. John was a thorough down-easter Mainer, that is, from the State of Maine.
He was born in (1908), the son of a Maine farm boy, slept 85 years of his life in Maine (with the window cracked even during winter), went to college in Maine (Bowdoin), published his weekly newspapers in Maine (Lisbon Falls), and collected and told Maine stories better than anybody. His terse and beautifully constructed dispatches (as he called ‘em) have been collected in 30 books. (Got 18, wish I had them all.) The yarns came mostly from his weekly columns, all delightful.
His writing made me want to see Maine, and we did on several occasions. We corresponded with Mr. Gould for years, and eventually went to Maine in 2002 especially to meet him. Back then, when WTBS was first broadcasting nationally, John quickly became an Atlanta Braves fan. We have a photo of him wearing a Braves’ hat, which I hauled up to him. He later wrote back: “”The cap didn’t work. The Braves lost the next two.”
Maine, of course, remains the same as it always has been, that is, sparsely inhabited, with Gould suggesting that it was perhaps settled even before St. Augustine in Florida. After all, Gould relates people wearing European clothes were found on Monhegan Island (off Maine) when in 1534 when Sailor Andre Thevet visited. (St. Augustine was settled in 1565.)
Maine remains the same: cold as the dickens in the winter, cool there in the short summer growing season, and full of “summercaters” from New York and Boston during the warmer months. The summer people apparently mostly leave Labor Day, and Maine returns to normal.
Johns wrote three novels after his wife became concerned about the lack of “decent books” of American fiction and suggested he try his hand. In one dispatch, he wrote: “I thought about it long and well. I am not a novelist and my short essays are no aid in trying to be. But I have read The Moonstone, Moby Dick, Robinson Crusoe, and the like, and I consider Aristotle important. I think a novel should have substance and dignity. It should have an acceptable theme and carry a message. Its content should be important and the revelation lofty. Most of all, it should have pleasing language and be reasonable amusing. I set to work.”
His one novel became a trilogy, centered on a strong woman named Elzada, a name we’d not seen before. The first of the trilogy is entitled No Place Like Home. If you get hooked on that one, you’ll find the other two.
Now here, all these years later, John Gould has returned front and center to me. What a wonderful memory he is, all because of my initial reading in The Christian Science Monitor.
Oh! How the work of reading opens up new wonders to us all!
IN THE SPOTLIGHTHoward Brothers
The public spiritedness of our underwriters allows us to bring GwinnettForum.com to you at no cost to readers. Today’s sponsor is Howard Brothers, which has retail stores in Alpharetta, Doraville, Duluth and Oakwood. John and Doug Howard are the ‘brothers’ in Howard Brothers. This family owned business was started by their dad, and continues to specialize in hardware, outdoor power equipment and parts and service. Howard Brothers are authorized dealers of STIHL, Exmark, Honda and Echo outdoor power equipment. They are authorized Big Green Egg, Traeger Grill and YETI Cooler dealers.
- Visit their web site www.howardbrothers.com.
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UPCOMINGMinority groups file suit against county over voting rights
Three minority groups are suing Gwinnett County for alleged violation of voting rights. The groups include the Georgia National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), The Georgia Association of Latino Elected Officials (GALEO) and the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. These groups filed a lawsuit in the Northern District Court of Georgia.
Francys Johnson, Statesboro civil rights attorney and Georgia NAACP state president, says: “This is a part of our ongoing post-Shelby election administration monitoring across Georgia and is illustrious of the fact that freedom is a constant struggle.”
The complaint, filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, alleges that the current district maps for the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners and Board of Education violate Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act by diluting the voting strength of minority voters, and coupled with a pattern of racially polarized voting, deprive African American, Latino and Asian American voters of a fair opportunity to elect candidates of their choice.
Kristen Clarke, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee says: “Gwinnett County is the most racially diverse county in the Southeastern United States, with African American, Latino and Asian American voters comprising approximately 43 percent of the voting age population, yet no minority candidate has ever won election to the County Board of Commissioners or Board of Education. We believe that the lack of diversity on these Boards is attributable to the current district maps which dilute minority voting strength by packing and fragmenting the minority population, combined with a pattern of racially polarized voting in which white voters typically vote as a bloc to prevent minority preferred candidates from winning elections.”
The current Board of Education district map packs approximately 74.4 percent of the African American, Latino, and Asian American voters into District 5 and splits the balance of the minority population across the other four districts where African Americans, Latinos and Asian Americans do not constitute a majority of the population. The complaint alleges that the Board of Education districts should be redrawn to include a second majority-minority district so that minority voters have a fair opportunity to elect candidates of their choice to the Gwinnett County Board of Education.
Back-to-school STEAM event coming to Heritage Center on Aug. 13
Summer vacation has come to an end, and area students are returning to class. The Environmental and Heritage Center (EHC) encourages everyone to get a head start on a great school year and enjoy fun activities connected to Science-Technology-Engineering-Arts-Math (STEAM) at its third annual Back To School STEAM event on Saturday, August 13, from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m.
The event will feature a number of STEAM focused activities highlighting the science behind music as well as the engineering and design of musical instruments. The Mountain View High School Black and Gold Brigade will demonstrate the pitch and amplification of various instruments that comprise a marching band as well as provide guests with a musical preview of its 2016 show and stand tunes. Performances are scheduled for 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. The band will provide instrument demonstrations between noon and 1 p.m. as well.
Participants will also get a chance to make their own musical instruments utilizing natural and recycled materials, make musical chords with LEGO bricks, discover some of the most famous musical composers from the past four centuries, utilize LEGO EV3 robots to explore musical concepts and experience science, math and art in action at various stations throughout the building and the EHC lab.
In addition to seeing the musical connections between science and engineering, guests will also see how music impacted the 1996 Olympic Games by viewing the EHC’s summer exhibition. The exhibit celebrates the 20th anniversary of the Atlanta games and features various artifacts and memorabilia including items from the Centennial Olympic Band.
- Program fees for the event are $8 per person. EHC members and children age 2 and under are free. For more information, visit www.gwinnettEHC.org.
Community Foundation plans Good2GiveGala in Duluth on Aug. 20
Somewhere in Gwinnett there’s a little boy wondering if he’s going to eat tomorrow. A mom sobbing as she watches her children sleeping in the back seat of her car, again. A middle-aged man who longs for people to see past his disability and recognize his talents.
On August 20, the Community Foundation for Northeast Georgia is showcasing stories like these at the inaugural Good2Give Gala, starting at 6 p.m. in the Infinite Energy Center’s Grand Ballroom. It’s the only event of its kind in Gwinnett – an entire evening dedicated to celebrating the work nonprofits do and the fund holders that support them.
Through the magic of music, stories and video, the evening’s crowd will experience a glimpse of the incredible impact nonprofits are making on the community, as the Good2Give Gala highlights what’s happening in the arts, education, community, health care and human services sectors.
Hosted by none other than WSB Radio’s Scott Slade, the Good2Give Gala features musician and Georgia native James Casto of Home By Dark; Annandale Village’s choir; and food by Proof of the Pudding and more, including a few surprises!
- For more information or to purchase a table or tickets, visit www.cfneg.org/good2givegala.
22nd semi-annual Snellville Police Academy seeking applicants
Applications are currently being accepted for the 22nd session of the Snellville Citizens Police Academy. The first meeting of the 12-week class will take place at 6 p.m. September 1 at the Police Department, 2315 Wisteria Drive.
The Snellville Citizens Police Academy was founded in 2003 and has spring and fall sessions. It is designed to educate the public about the operation of the police department and how the involvement of the community can help to deter crime.
Law enforcement topics are discussed and members engage in practical exercises with Snellville police officers. Topics include domestic violence, drug awareness, traffic stops, firearms training and crime scene processing. Participants will take a tour of the Gwinnett County Jail and will have a graduation dinner provided at the last session of the Academy.
This program is open to all Snellville and Gwinnett residents, 18 years and older. There is no charge for attending and you do not have to live in the city limits to participate. Applications can be picked up at the police department. A background investigation will be conducted on all applicants prior to acceptance in the Academy.
- For more information, contact Lt. Robert Pendleton at 770-985-3555 or rpendleton@snellville.org.
New group, I-PAC Georgia, plans inaugural event on Aug. 21
I-PAC Georgia, non-partisan political action committee, is planning its Inaugural Signature event on Sunday, August 21.The event will be at the Opal Event Hall,1848 Old Norcross Road in Lawrenceville at 6 p.m. Dinner will be served at 7:30 p.m.
I-PACs primary objectives are to educate and empower under-represented citizens, increase the civic involvement of minority communities, and present the needs of minority communities to law makers. I-PAC plans to outreach to the Asian American, Latino American, and American Muslim Community in Georgia. These groups are primarily composed of Southeast Asian, African American, Arab, and Turkish ethnicities, among others. Their agenda includes voter education and encouraging voters to candidates who believe in inclusion.
At this event, I-PAC Georgia will speak against Islamophobic rhetoric and anti-Muslim sentiment that is part of certain candidates’ platform. I-PAC feels that disparaging any segment of American citizenry is un-American and contrary to the principle of “freedom; liberty and justice for all.”
Lilburn Daze Arts and Crafts Festival scheduled for Oct. 8
The Lilburn Daze Arts and Crafts Festival is right around the corner. This year’s event will be held on October 8 at The Lilburn City Park. A Lilburn tradition for over 40 years, Lilburn Daze features more than 150 arts and crafts vendors, a variety of food vendors and a kid zone featuring free art activities, a train ride, pony rides and lots of other fun for the children. The event is hosted by the Lilburn Woman’s Club and co-sponsored by the City of Lilburn. Visit www.lilburndaze.org for more information.
NOTABLESugar Hill, Chamber to partner on business resources
The Gwinnett Chamber and the City of Sugar Hill have announced a partnership that will provide new business resources to the community. In an effort to enable its small business resource efforts to be more accessible to the business community, the Chamber will begin to work with the Suite Spot, a business incubator in downtown Sugar Hill.
This service is offered to provide goodwill, community involvement, and support for the community. The city approached the Chamber with the idea earlier this year. Sugar Hill hopes to foster economic development in the area by providing all the necessary resources for businesses to scale.
Vince DeSilva, senior vice president for membership services, says: “The Gwinnett Chamber believes portability is a key aspect of disseminating the resources and assistance available to our starting and growing businesses. Working from the Sugar Hill Suite Spot location will enable our businesses to receive the assistance they require within a more convenient distance. This allows us to provide assistance to even more entrepreneurs without pulling them from their businesses for a long period of time.”
The Chamber plans to host bi-monthly consultations, monthly workshops and group discussions with business owners, mentors and local entrepreneurs at the Sugar Hill location.
Suite Spot business incubator is currently home to SCORE, which is a network of entrepreneurial mentors; and SBDC, the University Of Georgia’s Small Business Development Center. All of these resources, including the community connection partnership with the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce, are available free-of-charge at the facility. The Suite Spot boasts several dedicated work spaces, available with a post office box for $100 per month. There is also private office space for lease and a co-work space with 24-hour access and high speed WiFi for $50 per month.
- For information on the program, contact Scott Andrews at sandrews@cityofsugarhill.com.
OTC Comedy Troupe plans show to honor Robin Williams Aug. 20
Help the OTC Comedy Troupe honor Robin Williams in a benefit for National Parkinson’s Foundation at Lionheart Theatre on Saturday, August 20 at 8p.m. Tickets are $10 per person.
The OTC show uses the art of comedy improvisation and audience suggestions to help the actors create scenes on the spot and allow the audience a chance to be the star of the show. Each show is new and different and no performance is exactly the same. The show will include OTC signature pieces such as 1940’s Radio Hour, Half Life and ABC News. This show is a fundraiser and the proceeds will be donated to the National Parkinson10 College Street’s Foundation in memory of the late Robin Williams.
Explains Kelley Cody-Grimm, the OTC artistic director: “This is our third annual Pie it Forward Comedy Show and our goal is to raise $1,000 as well as awareness. Over 1,000,000 people are affected by this disease in the US including my mother. One of our other players Michael Parker also has a family member who is impacted by this disease – so it’s personal. We just want to offer support to families that are facing this disease with a loved one.”
- Lionheart Theatre is located at 10 College St., Norcross. To reserve tickets go to: www.lionhearttheatre.org or call: 770-885-0425. For more information on the OTC Comedy Troupe including upcoming performances, corporate trainings, special events and upcoming workshops or to donate to the National Parkinson’s Foundation go to: www.otccomedytroupe.com.
Twenty years later, looking at the Centennial Olympics in Atlanta
From July 19 until August 4, 1996, Atlanta hosted the Centennial Summer Olympic Games, the largest event in the city’s history. Local leaders hoped to use the publicity to promote Atlanta’s image as an international city ready to play an important role in global commerce.
In 1987, an Atlanta attorney and former football player at the University of Georgia, Billy Payne, conceived the idea of hosting the 1996 Summer Olympic Games. Atlanta mayor Andrew Young was among the first to join Payne in the quest to develop a bid and sell the proposal, first to local business leaders, then to the U.S. Olympic Committee, and finally to the members of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
Atlanta competed against five other cities for the right to host the 1996 Olympics: Athens, Greece; Belgrade, Yugoslavia; Manchester, England; Melbourne, Australia; and Toronto, Canada. Payne, Young, and other volunteers traveled around the world promoting the city’s bid to IOC delegates.
The Games brought the number of hotel rooms in the Atlanta area to more than 60,000. The federal government spent millions of dollars on replacing sidewalks, posting pedestrian signs, planting trees, installing new lighting, and displaying public art.
The opening ceremony on July 19 attracted a capacity crowd of 83,000 to the Olympic Stadium for a display honoring southern culture and the 100th anniversary of the modern Olympic movement.
Those who came to watch the athletes were not disappointed by the 10,318 competitors representing 197 nations in 26 sports. Other visitors came to Atlanta just to be a part of the huge event, creating a lively crowd enjoying free concerts in Centennial Olympic Park and other activities downtown.
The pleasant mood of the Olympics changed suddenly in the early morning of July 27, when a pipe bomb exploded in Centennial Olympic Park during a concert, causing two deaths and more than 100 injuries. While the athletic competition continued, security became tighter for subsequent Olympic events.
(To be continued)
- To view the Georgia Encyclopedia online, go to http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org
Patriotic photograph has specific story
This patriotic outcropping has quite a story. The name of the town may give away the story. Give us the synopsis, if you can and Send in your thoughts to elliott@gwinnettforum.com and be sure to include your hometown.
That truck in the sky didn’t fool a few GwinnettForum readers, as they spotted the advertisement for Mellow Mushroom pizza emporium at 1167 Broad Street in Augusta. The photo was sent in by Lou Camerio of Lilburn.
One of the first in was from reliable George Graf of Palmyra, Va., telling us: “Mellow Mushroom is a pizzeria that was established in Atlanta, in 1974 and operates as a restaurant franchise with over 150 locations.”
Other recognizing the photograph included Rob Keith, Peachtree Corners; Ruthie Lachman Paul, Norcross; Michael Wood, Peachtree Corners; and Bobbie Tkacik, Lilburn.
LAGNIAPPETiny house exhibit proves to be quite popular
Recently, Roving Photographer Frank Sharp visited the sold-out Tiny House Festival in Decatur. Some 20,000 people attended. Frank says: “So we walked around the fence and got these photos from our walk.” Officials said this was the first Tiny House Event and they plan to have another one.
CALENDAR
(NEW) COOKBOOK SWAP: Participate in a version of the Little Free Library with a one day Cookbook Swap at the August 13 Norcross Community Market from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Webb Park, 5 College St., Norcross. Sponsored by Sustainable Norcross, shoppers are invited to bring their under used cookbooks, diet, nutrition, gardening and foodie books and magazines to swap for free. Items remaining at the end of the farmers market will be donated. For more details, visit info@sustainablenorcross.net.
Fourth Annual Light Up The Corners Glow Run, will be Saturday, August 13 at The Forum in Peachtree Corners, which is the sponsor for the race. There will be a Twilight Trot at 8:30, followed by a 9 p.m. four-mile Glow Run. Runners are asked to dress in “glow” attire for a chance to win “glowiest” prizes. For details, visitwww.runthecorners.com.
(NEW) Comedy benefit for the National Parkinson’s Foundation, Saturday, August 20 at 8 p.m. at the Lionheart Theatre, 10 College Street, Norcross. Staged by the OTC Comedy Troup, the benefit will memorialize the late actor Robin Williams. Tickets are $10 per person. To reserve tickets go to: www.lionhearttheatre.org or call: 770-885-0425.
(NEW) Restoring Hope Partner’s meeting and breakfast, Thursday, September 15 at 7:30 a.m. at the Norcross First United Methodist Church, 2500 Beaver Ruin Road. Restoring Hope is the campaign to engage, encourage and empower the Norcross Community Ministry. Those wanting to attend should RSVP by August 22 to kyra@norcrossco-op.org or call 770 263-0013.
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