COMING ALIVE: The campus of Georgia Gwinnett College (GGC) came alive this week as nearly 13,000 students arrived for the first day of fall semester classes. The incoming class of new students is one of GGC’s largest, and numbers about 500 more than fall 2018’s new students.
Editor’s Note: Certain subscribers, those who have Comcast as their Internet provider, have recently had trouble getting these issues. We regret this. We understand that Comcast no longer is blocking emails from our site, and thank you for your patience. –eeb
TODAY’S FOCUS: GMC-Duluth’s Concussion Institute To Give Ware County Students Care
EEB PERSPECTIVE: Gwinnett’s Governments Provide Us with Many Wonderful Amenities
ANOTHER VIEW: New Kudzu Art Zone Show Puts Spotlight on Six Artists
SPOTLIGHT: Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce
FEEDBACK: Remembering What Thomas Jefferson Gave This Country
UPCOMING: GMC-Duluth’s Concussion Institute To Give Ware County Students Care
NOTABLE: Glitch Causes Some Snellville Citizens To Get Corrected Tax Bill
RECOMMENDED: Silence is Not the Answer by George S. Johnson
GEORGIA TIDBIT: Famous American Artists Have Produced Works in Georgia
MYSTERY PHOTO: Your Job Is To Tell Us Where This Beautiful Old Church Is Located
CALENDAR: Join the Georgia Pollinator Force To Help Count These Creatures
GMC-Duluth’s Concussion Institute to give Ware County students care
By Kelsey Weiss
DULUTH, Ga. | Gwinnett Medical Center (GMC)-Duluth has announced that its Concussion Institute has partnered with Ware County Schools of Waycross to provide concussion care, for potentially 6,000 students and athletes via telemedicine. Through this partnership, GMC-Duluth will be the first hospital in Georgia to offer school-based concussion care through telemedicine, broadening area students’ access to critical, specialty care with the convenience of virtual appointments
Once a concussion is suspected, experts at the Concussion Institute will work directly with the county’s nurses and athletic staff to conduct appointments in the schools’ clinics through the Global Partnership for Telehealth’s web-based telehealth platform, Pathways. With access to this platform, students will have same-day or next-day contact with the appropriate GMC specialists, which is critical to proper concussion diagnosis, treatment and management.
Millie Thrift, telemedicine coordinator for Ware County Schools, says: “We selected the GMC team because of their exceptional expertise in the field of concussion care. Ware County has historically been on the forefront of providing specialty services via telemedicine, and the expansion to concussion care strengthens our pediatric offerings and helps us provide the best possible care for students.”
GMC will also help facilitate baseline ImPACT (Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing) for Ware County high school athletes, with intent to expand baseline testing to middle school athletes in the county. Such evaluations are critical in the management of concussions and determining typical brain functions on a normal day. They help doctors better diagnose and treat individuals who sustain head injuries that may result in a concussion.
In addition to medical appointments, the GMC team will work with educators to determine an academic plan for students so they can return to the classroom and extracurricular activities when appropriate. GMC will also educate teachers and parents about symptoms, proper care and more.
Nish Patel, vice president of operations at GMC-Duluth, says: “The partnership with Ware County is yet another way we are able to fulfill our mission of providing quality healthcare to rural communities. We recognize that appropriate medical staffing is critical to concussion care of athletes and non-athletes alike, and we are excited for the opportunity to expand into Ware County.”
Georgia has one of the most comprehensive public health telemedicine networks in the nation, offering statewide access to specialty care. Telemedicine enables healthcare providers to evaluate, diagnose and treat patients remotely, therefore helping reduce healthcare access gaps.
- Have a comment? Send to: elliott@brack.net
Gwinnett’s governments provide us with many wonderful amenities
By Elliott Brack
Editor and Publisher, GwinnettForum
AUG. 16, 2019 | A local resident had just returned from visiting with friends in California.
They had been in a town that was established in the 1850 era. Today, its population is 200,000. However, she was appalled at the lack of amenities in that town that we in Gwinnett take for granted.
A mid-sized city, it had only two libraries. And pocket parks and recreational facilities were sorely lacking. California was once high-flying, but in recent years it has had a bundle of financial problems.
It made me stop and think about the many services we get from our governments in Gwinnett. It’s something that we enjoy almost without thinking about. But…we find that so many other communities do not have the amenities that we have in Gwinnett.
In a way, it’s part of something we often complain about: growth. The many people moving into Gwinnett County are the reason we have the good facilities. Some amenities came from people demanding them. Others have come because our leaders have recognized the need for them.
Now this isn’t a campaign boost for anyone running for office, or even to commend those now in office. These leaders in office have had the foresight to figure out what’s needed, and have had the guts to fund them, even if it means higher taxes. After all, if we want good services, we must pay for them. We get a lot for our tax dollars.
Now, what are some of these good facilities we have. We’ll merely list them, and you can add other services that we don’t cover.
- Excellent protective services, fire, police, emergency medical, hospitals, which gives us safe and relaxed communities.
- Top notch medical specialists (Some of us remember when we had few).
- Major care centers for the dying in our hospices.
- Great services from libraries, adequately placed around the county.
- Major employment companies providing good jobs near people’s homes.
- Terrific schools, with achieving students.
- A four year college, something people worked long and hard for.
- A world class water system, even now conserving through re-use.
- Smooth highways, with constant upkeep, though often crowded.
- Nationally-recognized recreation system.
- Amazing parklands, now totaling some 10,000 acres. Not many communities can claim that much parkland, varied in scope and size.
- A people who recognize that pay-as-you go SPLOST funds are working.
- Distinctive communities in the 16 cities of the county, all with their own individual characteristics that makes them enjoyable and unique.
- A greatly-diverse population, in some ways the envy of many other areas.
- Open and efficient elections.
- Great food. You name it, there’s probably a restaurant serving that type of food in Gwinnett.
- Top major sporting teams nearby.
- More than adequate shopping in malls, or chain stores, and individual shops.
- Just as diverse as Gwinnett’s people are the diverse religious congregations.
- A growing entertainment community, with more on the horizon.
- A vibrant arts and theatre community, in almost every segment of the county.
- A growing number of senior housing and retirement communities.
- A transit system which will grow to serve more areas, we hope, relatively soon.
- Major non-profits who are helping the unfortunate among us.
As said above, each of you might add something to this list. Just recognize that those of us lucky enough to live in Gwinnett County today have better services and facilities than ever. It will be even better in the future. We will elect the far-sighted leaders who will insure that.
- Have a comment? Send to: elliott@brack.net
New Kudzu Art Zone show puts spotlight on six artists
John Fronza’s Spinnaker is one of the painting on display at Kudzu Art Zone.
By Lucy Brady
NORCROSS, Ga. | Kudzu Art Zone in Norcross has done it again with an exceptional new exhibit called “Spotlight on Artists: Group 6,” including two artists who haven’t shown work previously.
The Exhibit at Kudzu Art Zone runs continues through September 7. A closing reception will be held on September 7 from 4-7 p.m. Kudzu Art Zone Galleries are open Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and are located at 116 Carlyle Street in Norcross. For additional information call 770-840-9844 or visit the website: kudzuartzone.org.
Anne Labaire is a participating artist who first held a crayon in her toddler fist. She joined husband Ron, opening a pottery and gift shop in Norcross. After closing the store, Anne began painting and quickly outshone competition in that as well. Her sense of design and color harmony dominate all her work. One of her works (at right) is titled Karama (Swahili, “generous gift”), depicting a statuesque beauty with her child near acacia trees. The setting is Africa and the mother’s love, child, trees, friends, earth and sky are gifts indeed!
Carole Chalmers studied at the Atlanta College of Art at the High Museum (now SCAD), the Art Students’ League of New York and others, and was a founding patron of the Portrait Society of America. Her Autumn Aspens was inspired by a love for these trees – in the fall, entire mountain sides are covered by them in a sea of yellow gold.
Brenda Ehly is a multi-talented artist of music and visual arts, who taught instrumental music for 16 years and then began painting. Her painting, On Board was inspired by a childhood chess set. The chess pieces seem to glow out of the depths of the canvas and were designed by a Russian American sculptor, better known as the creator of the rubber ducky. Viola deBraccio (at left) is the artist’s personal viola and this painting portrays the exquisite beauty of the instrument.
John Fronza, a former Addy Award-winning art and creative director and Vietnam Navy veteran, shows his pride of the Navy and naval heroes in his work, along with superb craftsmanship. Spinnaker was inspired by his days of crewing on racing boats in Florida. Another painting, USS George Washington, pays tribute to this ship which was stationed in New York Harbor after 9/11 to provide support to fighter squadrons if necessary; the flags proclaim “Never Forget” and the beams of light in the background represent the ghosts of the twin towers.
A Naval Academy graduate and engineer inspecting power plants, Paul DiRito was attracted to art by his children, a fashion designer and an architect. He is largely self-taught and uses a limited palette to produce his diverse subjects in paint. His admiration of the work of Vincent Van Gogh shows in the large oil painting Irises two Gogh, a joyful work. A different, lively style is TaQuon Five (at right) which he says is his fifth study of Georgia Tech quarterback TaQuon Marshall.
Sharon Boudreaux could be described as an earthbound faerie princess and her work reflects a truly playful imagination. A lifelong creative spirit, she learned piano at age 6, the heritage art of crochet at age 8, participated in Drum Line and Theater in high-school; began making magical 3-D objet-d’art as a young adult, and now revels in traditional visual arts, too. Her works here include a seasonally-embellished mask with horns, Adoration of the Autumnal Equinox, a reminder that the coming Equinox is a time of transition.
- Have a comment? Send to: elliott@brack.net
Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce
The public spiritedness of our sponsors allows us to bring GwinnettForum.com to you at no cost to readers. Today’s sponsor is the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce. The Gwinnett Chamber is the forum for business, government, education, healthcare, arts/culture/entertainment, and philanthropic and public-service communities to come together to advance our region’s economy and enrich Gwinnett’s quality of life. The Gwinnett Chamber strengthens existing businesses, facilitates the growth of quality job opportunities and ensures success continues to live here.
- For more details, go to www.gwinnettchamber.org.
- For a list of other sponsors of this forum, click here.
Remembering what Thomas Jefferson gave this country
Editor, the Forum:
Over the years, I have studied Jefferson as a philosopher. I always wondered how Democrats claim him. They claim Locke as a founder of liberalism. I was hit flatfooted with no quick answer. Never really put him in party columns.
I suppose I could make a strong argument for his being a far right, wanting small government, individual responsibility, and an individual freedom advocate, who saw central government as a necessary evil that someday would return all power to local governments. Both Jefferson and Locke used used life, liberty, and the pursuit of private property. Franklin got Jefferson to make the edits to happiness. Slavery would have risen in debate without that edit.
Jefferson believed in meritocracy. He called it the natural aristocracy. Of course, this was arguing against monarchs that achieved their positions by bloodline, and therefore the unnatural aristocracy. He wanted the cream to rise to the top.
Jefferson was strongly a state’s rights advocate and wanted the least amount of government, yet was strong on international relations and military strength.
— Bryan Gilbert, Duluth
Dear Bryan: Jefferson was quite the guy, yet always did not get along with people in his own party. But his overall direction was positive for our country. And remember, he was the guy who essentially gave us Lewis and Clark.–eeb
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Give back to Gwinnett Parks in Park’Nership Work Day Aug. 17
Through the Gwinnett Parks Foundation, Gwinnett residents can give back to the community by helping with maintenance at Collins Hill Park on Park’Nership Work Day, August 17. They can also treat themselves to a free movie under the stars.
The clean-up and maintenance initiative sponsored by the Gwinnett Parks Foundation, runs from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. and is open to families, individuals, corporations, non-profit and faith-based organizations. Volunteers help with park maintenance, streambank stabilization and habitat creation, providing needed manpower, saving tax dollars and promoting a sense of community.
After the work is done, folks can kick back and watch the movie “Dumbo” presented by B98.5 and Live Healthy Gwinnett. There will also be games and concessions starting at 7:30 p.m. The movie starts at dusk.
Park’Nership is a rain or shine event. Participants should have work gloves, closed-toe shoes and bring a water bottle. Collins Hill Park is located at 2225 Collins Hill Road in Lawrenceville.
To register for Park’Nership Work Day, visit www.VolunteerGwinnett.net, complete the volunteer waiver and release form, and bring a hard copy to the registration. A parent or guardian must sign all forms for minors participating.
Glitch causes some Snellville citizens to get corrected tax bill
About half of the residents in Snellville will be receiving a corrected tax bill soon, the Tax Commissioner’s Office has advised.
The City of Snellville said a technical glitch caused some stormwater assessments to have incorrect amounts, either higher or lower. The second bills will be mailed later this week to approximately 4,000 residents whose storm water charges are incorrect. The bills will include a letter that explains the error.
Property owners can identify the corrected bills by their black ink vs. the blue ink of the originals. The due date remains October 15 for the corrected bills; otherwise penalties/interest may apply.
- Property owners who have questions or need assistance may contact the Tax Commissioner’s Office at Tax@GwinnettCounty.com or (770) 822-8800.
Heaviest demand in last 10 years on Tuesday for Jackson EMC
Jackson EMC experienced its highest summer demand for electricity in 10 years on Tuesday, setting a peak demand record between 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. The new record came as the heat index climbed above 100 degrees in recent days and more people turned to air conditioning for relief, which increases the demand for electricity.
To best manage the additional energy needs caused by higher temperatures and humidity, Jackson EMC takes steps to reduce the cooperative’s electric demand and encourages members to do the same.
Through its load management program, Jackson EMC helps decrease its peak demands on the hottest days. The load management program is a voluntary program that briefly cycles off residential and commercial members’ equipment, such as air conditioners and heat pumps, in order to help control peak electrical demand. Load management helps reduce the overall highest electricity demand when temperatures are extremely high.
Because of higher than normal summer temperatures, so far this year the cooperative has run load management 13 times. By this time last year, load management had run only five times. As Jackson EMC manages demand, members can also take steps to reduce their energy use. Managing energy use will reduce demand and may reduce members’ bills.
Duluth mayor announces plan to be candidate for 4th term
Harris
“Keeping the momentum going” is one of the reasons Nancy Harris is seeking a fourth term as mayor of Duluth on the city ballot in November. She says she feels passionate about keeping the statement “Local is Good” true to the citizens. Ms. Harris has been mayor of Duluth since first being elected in 2008.
Under the leadership of Mayor Harris, the city is changing from a sleepy historic downtown to a new destination for entertainment, retail and dining. Several projects are underway throughout the city limits because of the popularity of the historic downtown district. A strong city council, historical preservation, redevelopment and new development, place-keeping and incorporating the arts into the schematic vision are part of her plans for the city.
Silence is Not the Answer by George S. Johnson
From Ashley Herndon, Oceanside, Calif.: In 1954 Ralph McGill, former Editor and Publisher of the Atlanta Constitution, published, The Fleas Come with The Dog (Abingdon Press). That was true of the politics then and is most assuredly true of the politics in this Good Old US of A … today. George S. Johnson, retired Evangelical Lutheran pastor/leader has published his latest and probably last book, Silence is Not the Answer, (Summit Run Press). Never in the history of man has a successful revolution been silent. So, George spent considerable time and energy compiling the truth that silence is not the answer. He and his contributors have defined the reasons, whys, and ways to Speak Out and Act Out for justice. Gandhi, Bonhoeffer, and King showed us how to use non-violence and soul force (Satyagraha), to create positive change and halt viral movements, whether they be empires or power brokers. Please read and then act.
- An invitation: what books, restaurants, movies or web sites have you enjoyed recently? Send us your recent selection, along with a short paragraph (100 words) as to why you liked this, plus what you plan to visit or read next. Send to: elliott@brack.net
Famous American artists have produced works in Georgia
(Continued from previous edition.)
At the end of the 19th century, American painters were greatly influenced by the aesthetics of both French Barbizon art and French impressionism. Some American artists, like William de Leftwich Dodge, invested scenes with personal moods, as did their French Barbizon counterparts, while others used bright, impressionist color and noticeable brush strokes.
Born in Virginia, Dodge was raised in Europe, where his mother had moved to study painting in 1879. He studied art in Paris, France, and settled in New York City as a painter of murals and landscapes. Dodge spent several summers at Giverny in France, where he created art in the town of the French master Claude Monet. In the United States, Dodge made several trips to Georgia, producing images like Summer Day under Spanish Moss (1910), which is housed at the Greenville County Museum of Art in Greenville, S.C.
Renowned landscape painter George Inness initially worked in the meticulous style of the Hudson River School. Inness later became known for his spiritual canvases with subdued tonality and ethereal lighting. He traveled to Europe while still in his 20s and was exposed to the old masters, the French Barbizon landscape painters, and the clear, fresh light of Italy. Influenced by the writings of Emanuel Swedenborg, a Swedish scientist-mystic who interpreted the spiritual realm in terms of the material world, and the American poet Ralph Waldo Emerson, Inness created misty scenes of the American landscape.
He remarked that he was interested in capturing the spiritual impression of nature rather than the visual details of natural objects. As part of his many sojourns, Inness made trips through Georgia for extended stays in Florida during the 1880s. Paintings like Georgia Pines, Afternoon (1886), in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Mass., and Georgia Pines (1890), housed at the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C., typify Inness’s technical interest in color, composition, and brushwork. His paintings of the Georgia landscape parallel his other images of American locales in their symbolic mode of expression derived from a spiritual understanding of nature. George Inness Jr., his son, made the trips with his father and executed poetic landscapes of Georgia as well.
Born in Pittsburgh, Penn., Henry Ossawa Tanner, arguably America’s premier African American artist at the turn of the century, lived for a time in Georgia. Tanner studied with renowned American painter Thomas Eakins at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia. In 1888 Tanner moved to Atlanta, where he opened a photography studio. Although his photography venture failed, Tanner remained in Atlanta through 1890, teaching drawing to faculty members and painting portraits at Clark University (later Clark Atlanta University). Georgia Landscape (ca. 1889), in the collection of the Morris Museum of Art in Augusta, was likely painted during the time Tanner spent in and around Atlanta and features the muddy palette and broad brushstrokes typical of the French Barbizon influence on American art. Tanner, Dodge, and other turn-of-the-century American painters created works with a style of intimacy and expressiveness, employing delicate effects of light to create poetic images.
As the 19th century drew to a close, early-20th-century artists from, relocating to, or visiting Georgia would play vital roles in the history of American impressionism, modernism, and American scene painting.
- To view the Georgia Encyclopedia online, go to http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org
Your job is to tell us where this beautiful old church is located
Today’s Mystery Photo is no doubt a Catholic church. . Your job is to figure out where it is located, and tell us about it. Send your answers to elliott@brack.net, including your hometown.
The most recent Mystery Photo proved difficult, as only two experts, Allan Peel of San Antonio, Tex., and George Graf of Palmyra, Va. were alert to where it was taken. It was sent in by Susan McBrayer of Sugar Hill, who got it from Barbara Padula. She is originally from Atlanta and now lives in Chieri, village outside of Turin, Italy, where she teaches at The International School of Turin.
Peel says: “Today’s mystery photo is an elevated view of the town of Merano, Italy, and was shot from the Tappeiner Promenade in the South Tyrol region of northern Italy in the Italian Alps.The dominant feature of the photo is the Church of St. Nicholas, the patron Saint of the town. Construction of the church began in 1220 and was expanded over time in the 14th century before being completed into its final gothic shape and architecture in 1465. The Tappeiner Promenade, from which the photo was taken, offers the hiker a healthy, somewhat strenuous climb up the valley initially, but then flattens out and offers gorgeous views of the town of Merano and the surrounding hillsides.”
George Graf wrote: “My wife and I spent an Easter holiday in Merano. I took the photo of the painted trees in a small park off of Via Roma in the city. Besides these unusual trees, I remember the Summer Promenade and the Winter Promenade in the city. The former winds beneath gigantic shade trees, and the latter leads past a covered Art Déco portico lined with original paintings and ends up at the feet of an ancient castle, where you can admire a rock garden, waterfalls, ponds and streams. Merano also hosts an annual International Wine Festival, has many spas, botanical gardens, vineyards, and a concert hall. It was a really relaxing town with most sites an easy walking distance on vehicle free routes. I believe it also is nicknamed The City of Flowers in the Dolomites.
The Piccadilly Puppets, a non-profit touring puppet theater, will be at the Lilburn Farmers Market on Friday, August 16 from 4 to 8 p.m. Bring kids of all ages to enjoy short stories and songs performed from the back of their ‘Puppet Van’ and march in a ‘Puppet Parade’ with a simple rod puppet that you will have created. The performance is free but donations will be accepted. The Lilburn Farmers Market is located at 1400 Killian Hill Road, Lilburn.
Great Georgia Pollinator Census is a citizen science initiative on August 23 and 24. Residents across the state can volunteer to count and record pollinators like bees, wasps, and flies. This project is perfect for schools doing STEM work, homeowners associations, community gardens, and more! Register now at the event website, Great Georgia Pollinator Census. To schedule a training event for your group, contact Kim Fritz at kim.fritz@gwinnettcounty.com, or 678-377-4010.
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