THE NORTH ATLANTA HOME SHOW will return to the Infinite Energy Center on February 7-9, 2020. More than 180 home remodeling professionals will be on hand for the show, the largest ever, at 6400 Sugarloaf Parkway in Duluth. Look for more details on the show in the next issue of GwinnettForum.
TODAY’S FOCUS: Why She Belongs to the Daughters of the American Revolution
EEB PERSPECTIVE: Gwinnett Community Shocked at Tragic Death of Emily Powell
SPOTLIGHT: PCOM Georgia
FEEDBACK: Will Someone at Democratic Convention Get for an Ovation Nomination?
UPCOMING: Two Spearhead Efforts To Improve Census Results in Norcross
NOTABLE: Hudgens Board Picks Awtrey as Youngest Chair
RECOMMENDED: BurgerIM, Peachtree Corners
GEORGIA TIDBIT: Charles Cotesworth Pinckney Trained in the Law in London
MYSTERY PHOTO: Take a Gander at the Clues and Identify This Mystery Photo
CALENDAR: MLK Great Day of Service Will Be at Two Locations
Why she belongs to Daughters of the American Revolution
(Editor’s Note: The author, a native of the State of Maine, is Second Vice Regent of the Philadelphia Winn Chapter of the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution. There are two more DAR chapters in Gwinnett, the William Day chapter, which meets in Duluth, and the Suwanee Creek chapter, which meets in Suwanee.—eeb)
By Lynn Baxter Jacques
SNELLVILLE, Ga. | One of my friends recently asked me “Why are you a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR)?” For those not familiar with the DAR, we are often thought of as a genealogy-related organization.
Jacques
One requirement to join is proving your lineage back to an American Revolutionary War patriot. Although it is our patriots that initially provide our members with a shared interest in the DAR, there is so much more to this women’s organization. The DAR is a community service organization with objectives that have remained steady since our founding in 1890. We promote and support historic preservation, education, and patriotism through participation in over 50 committees. There is something for everyone!
Why did I become a DAR member? My father had begun researching our ancestry for years before there were computers, ancestry software, or DNA tests. He did this by utilizing old family documents and physically searching through cemeteries in northern New England and the Maritime Provinces.
My husband, who is my genealogist, was able to continue my father’s research and make the necessary family link to Benjamin Fox Baxter, a Revolutionary War soldier who was wounded by a bayonet in the side during the Battle of Bunker Hill. As a member of the Button Gwinnett Sons of the American Revolution (SAR), it was my husband that encouraged me to join the DAR. As I knew very little about the DAR, I searched the various Chapters in Gwinnett County and selected a meeting based on a convenient location and time.
My first DAR meeting was with the Philadelphia Winn Chapter in Lawrenceville. There was something that happened during that initial meeting that had become foreign to me. We all stood up, put our right hand over our heart, turned to face the American flag, and recited the Pledge of Allegiance.
I could not remember the last time that I had attended an event where The Pledge of Allegiance was spoken. It felt AMAZING! Although I did not realize this prior to attending the meeting, my patriotism had been hibernating within myself! It wasn’t that I was unpatriotic, however I apparently was not attending events that included patriotic moments.
The Philadelphia Winn Chapter DAR “daughters” are a diverse group of women from many backgrounds. We not only all have ancestors that fought side by side for independence, but together we are supporting our communities through volunteer activities. Whether we are sending care packages to our military abroad, holding ESL classes, preparing meals for the elderly, sewing Quilts of Valor, or delivering cases of water to V.A. Clinics, we do it for the love of our community. It is important that we continue the work that the DAR established 129 years ago.
The Philadelphia Winn chapter meets the third Sunday of each month at 2 p.m. at the Bethesda ParkSenior Center off Ronald Reagan Parkway, though we don’t meet in summer.
With over one million DAR members, we are all “one-in-a-million” in our own way. We have the opportunity to teach the next generation the importance of preserving history, supporting education, honoring our country and our ancestors, remembering the sacrifices of our veterans, and giving back to our communities. This is why I proudly devote my time to the Daughters of the American Revolution.
- Have a comment? Send to: elliott@brack.net
Gwinnett community shocked at tragic death of Emily Powell
By Elliott Brack
Editor and Publisher,GwinnettForum
JAN. 10, 2020 | The wider Gwinnett County is shocked and mourns the tragic death of Emily Powell, a senior magistrate judge. A freak auto accident caused her eventual death.
Emily was such an open and happy person, with a personality that attracted people. I first remember her from her being in the first class of Leadership Gwinnett. She was so outgoing, never flinching at tackling obstacles, and always smiling. She was an obvious leader from the very start, and showed this in her being among the first of the magistrate judges. She never lost her love for the court, continuing to serve after being with her children in their formative years.
We talked to people, like Emily, who were in the first class of Leadership Gwinnett.
Peter Boyce of Dacula remembers her as “someone who was easy to talk to, someone with a sense of humor, someone who cared for others. Emily had a quick wit and very bright and cared very much for the Gwinnett community.”
Powell
Attorney Lee Thompson went back a long way with Emily. “I attended her wedding in Montreat N.C. She was marrying my friend and former roommate, Tony Powell. I remember Emily as an intelligent and bold attorney. She started practicing in Gwinnett in the early 1980s when there were only a few women with their law practice based in Gwinnett. As a young attorney, she became a Magistrate Judge and helped transition Gwinnett County from the Justice of the Peace system that existed in most of rural Georgia to a modern, efficient Magistrate Court. The City of Lawrenceville and Gwinnett County are better places because Emily passed through and shared her time and talents with us.”
Gwinnett County Schools Superintendent added: ““Emily always had a big, welcoming smile that defined her positive attitude and good will to all she met.”
Her memorial service will be held on January 18 at 4 p.m. at the Buford Church of God.
Emily Powell: 1955-2019: may you rest in peace.
SOME PEOPLE WERE UPSET that Atlanta did not have its Peach Drop to mark the arrival of the New Year. It is interesting to see that many other cities have their unique way to celebrate New Year’s with their own item being dropped.
Eastport, Maine, drops a sardine. Ocean City, Maryland, drops a beach ball, and Mobile, Ala., drops a 600-pound electric Moon Pie. In Tempe, Arizona, a giant tortilla chip descends into a massive bowl of salsa. Brasstown, North Carolina, drops a Plexiglas pyramid containing a live possum; and Key West, Florida, drops an enormous ruby slipper with a drag queen inside it.
Since the Atlanta Peach Drop went bust, perhaps we should enlist the corporate world. It would be a not-unexpected event if the Coca-Cola Company and the Varsity got together and dropped a Varsity chili dog, Coke and fries! Bet someone at the bottom would try to catch ‘em and eat ‘em! What more for Atlanta?
AUTHORS FEEL they have arrived when they can say: “My book is on Amazon!” That’s what we hear from former Lilburn resident Susan Larson. Entitled, “A Word’s Worth,” was previously mentioned here, and is a compilation of many of her columns, which often featured Gwinnett residents.
POPULATION GROWTH: Gwinnett is hard on the heels of Fulton County when it comes to net growth in population in the nine year period from 2010 to 2019. Fulton has gained 113,087 residents, while Gwinnett saw 109,899 new arrivals. These details are from the 2010 Census and the 2019 Census Estimates. Gwinnett has gained 13.6 percent since 2010, while Fulton, with a larger population, saw 12.26 percent growth.
Cobb County was third in Metro Atlanta in new residents, with 63,188, or 9.16 percent.
The county with the largest percent growth was Forsyth, at 29.3 percent, or 51,821 new residents. Forsyth was recently named the county which is now the richest in Georgia, with a median household income of $85,569. Telfair County in Southeast Georgia is the poorest county, with a median household income of $26,634.
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PCOM Georgia
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Will someone at Dem convention get ovation nomination?
Editor, the Forum:
It’s still only the warm up, but the starter is loading the blank in the gun as the Democratic survivors approach the starting line. The Democrats will begin the bloodletting to yield the lucky person to face the quasi-impeached Trump. Can the process produce a champion, a shiny penny?
It seems likely that many will show up with chunks of support, but no clear champion will rise above the fray. I wonder if odds are being set on a negated convention with a surprise appearance of one or more personalities to be nominated by ovation.
Of course, Hillary comes to mind, but Michelle Obama, or Nancy Pelosi stand for consideration. It seems to be a year that women want a woman, but women aren’t doing well. Will Democrats decide to nominate by ovation? Do you want another old white man to be president? The Democrats want to know.
— Byron Gilbert, Duluth
Dear Byron: While women are getting more attention, none you mention seems willing this time. Then there’s another factor: money. You wonder can Mike Bloomberg throw enough dough in the early states to get a footing to be considered in Milwaukee in July?—eeb
Some public officials can remain in office far too long
Editor, the Forum:
While I don’t necessarily agree with Joe Briggs (“Maintains that leaders should ‘hurt to serve’ fellow mankind”, Forum. 1-7-20) I can see his point.
I don’t think that it should be painful, physically or fiscally, for a person to serve in elected office. I do, however, think that if they remain too long in that office, they can become complacent and unresponsive to their constituents’ needs and desires. (witness the horrific traffic and over-development that has plagued Gwinnett County for decades.)
On that point, Mr. Briggs and I are in agreement.
— Robert H. Hanson, Loganville
Send us your thoughts: We encourage you to send us your letters and thoughts on issues raised in GwinnettForum. Please limit comments to 300 words. We reserve the right to edit for clarity and length. Send feedback and letters to: elliott@brack.net
Two spearhead efforts to improve census results in Norcross
Two women in the Norcross area are co-chairing an effort to insure a higher census count. They are Terry Hoye and Kathleen Allen. The ladies are partnering with Norcross High School students, who are bilingual or take upper level Spanish language classes, to canvass the two census tracts in Norcross that had the lowest response rate to the last census, those east of Buford Highway. They will be walking with neighbors, handing out Census flyers in English/Spanish at each residence, and encouraging Norcross neighbors to welcome the census. They will also answer citizen questions, with translation help, if needed, from Norcross High students!
Canvassing session will begin Sunday, January 12 at 2:00 p.m. in the Sheffield Forest neighborhood off North Norcross Tucker Road between Buford Highway and Jimmy Carter Boulevard. More sessions are planned in successive weekends.
There will be LIVE Norcross t-shirts for adult volunteers, and raffle tickets for students for each canvassing session they complete, for a chance to win prizes after we’ve completed all our canvassing sessions. We’re using SignUp.com to organize our Norcross neighborhood canvassing sessions.
Hudgens board picks Awtrey as its youngest chair
Awtrey
Kate Awtrey, owner of Gwinnett Event Photography, has become chair of the Hudgens Center for Art and Learning in Duluth. Her two-year term began on January 1, 2020.
Ms. Awtrey, 34, is the youngest chair in the history of the Hudgens Center. She has been a member of the Hudgens Center’s board of directors since 2017 and has served the last two years as vice chair.
She says: “I’m excited to get to work and move the Hudgens forward. The staff is always willing to roll up their sleeves and pitch in to make the Hudgens a household name.”
Ms. Awtrey is a graduate of the Savannah College of Art and Design (Class of 2010). She is founder of Gwinnett Event Photography and Atlanta Convention Photography, which specializes in corporate and event photography for clients throughout the United States and Canada. She also owns Flippity Doo Da Flipbooks, a photo booth company.
Ms. Awtrey is a member of the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce, the Atlanta Convention and Business Bureau and the National Press Photographers Association. She has been a finalist for the 2018 Impact Regional Business Award (service industry division) and the 2019 Gwinnett Chamber’s Small Business Award for Emerging Entrepreneurs. Her photography has earned awards through the NPPA.
The Hudgens Center for Art and Learning is a non-profit association created to spread the love of art and learning throughout Gwinnett County. The facility helps adults and children discover the power of imagination with fine art exhibitions, art enrichment classes, self-guided tours and community outreach programs.
GGC names Rosemond as charter VP for student success
When Michelle Rosemond was 10, her dad, a student at the City College of New York, engaged her in his class project testing the games they created for school-age children. “I had the best time,” said Rosemond. “I received so much special attention from his classmates, faculty and staff. From that day on, I knew I was going to college.”
Rosemund
She not only completed college, but she subsequently earned her master’s degree, her doctorate and has spent 20 years in higher education inspiring students to overcome challenges and pave their way to success.
Georgia Gwinnett College (GGC) has named Dr. Michelle Rosemond as its charter vice president for student engagement and success.
In her new role, Rosemond will lead and oversee student success initiatives, engagement and related reporting, oversee the strategic planning, development and management of comprehensive academic advising, mentoring and academic support resources. Additionally, she will lead the student-centered campus environment to support engagement and collaborate on high-impact college advising practices to improve academic student success, retention, persistence and graduation goals.
Rosemond is currently the assistant vice chancellor for academic affairs and the executive director for retention initiatives and campus-wide advising for Indiana University South Bend (IUSB) in South Bend, Indiana.
She spent a year as a New Leadership Academy Fellow at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. She earned her bachelor’s degree at the University of Florida. She earned both her master’s and doctorate at Eastern Michigan University. She was born and raised in New York City.
An avid recreational athlete who enjoys traveling, Rosemond has a son, Jaleel. She begins her new role January 13.
Suwanee seeking proposals for Art-on-a-Limb tradition
The City of Suwanee is seeking proposals and samples from artists willing to go out on a limb for the city’s finders-keepers art-in-nature program.
A long Suwanee tradition, Art on a Limb is an award-winning, month-long program designed to celebrate and bring attention to the arts, as well as the natural beauty of the Suwanee parks and greenways. Since 2005, the city has hidden two pieces of artwork – created especially for the City of Suwanee – daily throughout the month of May within city parks and along the greenway; those who find the trail treasures get to keep them.
Past Art on a Limb pieces have included fairy doors, clay birds and orbs, small paintings on canvas, pieces of the city’s old water tower, magnets, gourds painted to look like birds, the Suwanee S shaped from metal, and pottery pieces. This year, we’re looking for something new, unique, and fun!
Artistic proposals for this year’s program will be accepted through January 31. Guidelines and an application are available at suwanee.com.
BurgerIM, Peachtree Corners
From Cindy Evans, Duluth: My husband and I just ate at the brand new restaurant, BurgerIM at the Forum on Peachtree Parkway.. They had a lot of good choices and I enjoyed the Greek Lamb Burger ($7.99) that I selected, although I almost got the Hawaiian Salmon burger. My husband had the Angus Beef Burger ($6.99) which he liked. He considered getting one of the milkshakes, too. You can get any burger with a lettuce wrap or gluten free bun. The staff was very friendly also and they have a freestyle machine with Coca Cola drink choices. BurgerIM is located at 5135 Peachtree Parkway, Suite 925, Peachtree Corners.
- 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
Charles Cotesworth Pinckney was trained in law in London
(Editor’s Note: Where did the name of the Gwinnett County area of Pinckneyville come from? It came from one of two Pinckney cousins of Chaleston, S.C. Previously, we have run a three-part profile of Charles Pinckney from the South Carolina Encyclopedia. Today we begin a two-part profile of his cousin, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney. We’re publishing this since no one is quite sure which of the two Pinckneys made the investment on the 1800s frontier in Gwinnett County.—eeb)
Patriot Charles Cotesworth Pinckney was born in Charleston, S.C. on February 14, 1746, to Charles Pinckney, a lawyer and member of the provincial council, and Elizabeth Lucas, who helped introduce indigo cultivation in South Carolina.
Another Charles Pinckney was his cousin.
Charles Cotesworth Pinckney
In 1753 Charles Cotesworth Pinckney accompanied his family to London, where his father served as the colony’s agent until 1758. Young Pinckney received private tutoring before entering the prestigious Westminster School in 1761. Three years later he matriculated at both Christ Church College, Oxford, and at the Middle Temple, the London legal training ground.
While at Oxford he attended lectures by the famed legal scholar Sir William Blackstone and listened to debates in the House of Commons pertaining to the American colonies. Pinckney was admitted to the English Bar in January 1769. Following a tour of Europe, he returned to South Carolina, where he began a successful legal practice.
Pinckney entered public service in 1769 with election to the Commons House of Assembly, where he represented St. John’s Colleton Parish during the remainder of royal rule. Pinckney also served in the local militia, eventually attaining the rank of colonel. In 1773 he was made attorney general for the judicial districts of Camden, Cheraws, and Georgetown.
That same year, on September 28, he married Sarah Middleton, daughter of the wealthy and well-connected Henry Middleton. The marriage produced four children.
Through this marriage Pinckney became closely affiliated with some of the province’s leading radicals in America’s contest with Great Britain, such as Arthur Middleton, Edward Rutledge, and William Henry Drayton. By early 1775 Pinckney was a member of all the important revolutionary committees, from which he advocated aggressive measures, including stealing royal arms from the Statehouse, penning inflammatory epistles to backcountry inhabitants, and planning the defense of Charleston against a possible British attack. At the same time, Pinckney served in the extralegal Provincial Congress, where he assisted in creating and training a rebel army and chaired the committee responsible for drafting a temporary frame of government for the province.
Once hostilities erupted with Britain, Pinckney switched his role as a politician to that of a soldier. Appointed commander of the First Regiment of South Carolina troops, he assisted in the successful defense of Charleston at the Battle of Sullivan’s Island in June 1776. When the British moved north following this defeat, Pinckney followed to serve as an aide-de-camp to General George Washington. He participated in the battles of Brandywine and Germantown before rejoining the southern army to command a regiment in the expedition to East Florida and at the siege of Savannah.
(To be continued)
- To view the South Carolina Encyclopedia article online, go: www.SCEncyclopedia.org.
Take a gander at clues and identify this Mystery Photo
You may not readily recognize them, but there are several clues to guide you in figuring out this Mystery Photo. Take your time, use clue-by-clue, and give us details of what you think you see. Send your answer to elliott@brack.net, including your hometown.
Lilburn attorney David Will has set his own record by getting the last three Mystery Photos in a row. He was the first to identify O’Neill’s Pub in Dublin, Ireland. The photo was taken by your editor during a visit in 2016.
This photo proved to be particularly easy, as many Gwinnettians remember visiting the establishment on a trip to Ireland. Among those identifying it were Jim Savadelis, Duluth; Kay Everett, Lawrenceville; Lou Camerio, Lilburn; Hoyt Tuggle, Buford; Sandy Chapman, Norcross; Holly Moore, Suwanee; and Susan McBrayer, Sugar Hill;
George Graf of Palmyra, Va. wrote: “ The pub stands guard over the Molly Malone statue outside St. Andrew’s church and is a favorite of tourists. From the outside, it doesn’t look like a gigantic watering hole but with all its different areas and bars inside, it’s like four or five pubs amalgamated together. They have as many craft beers on their list as normal drinks and they also have a sign on the wall promoting a new beer, Dublin Pils.”
Jo Shrader of Suwanee added: “The corner structure is a four-story, vaguely of the Arts and Crafts Movement, red-brick and early 20th century, with Tudor-style projecting bay windows. There is a decorated iron three-dials clock on the Suffolk Street frontage. The building is protected and in a conservation area. The original structure was divided into definite areas: a ‘cocktail bar’ in the corner for the gentry, a public bar off Suffolk Street, and a back bar. In recent years the next-door premises in Church Lane have been added, as a carvery, and the interior has been opened up. JimSavadelis: “Dublin, Ireland. If I’m not mistaken O’Neill’s is on the pub crawl circuit. Went to Dublin in 2014.”
Allan Peel, San Antonio, Tex. “Today’s mystery photo is a picture of O’Neill’s Pub and Kitchen, a traditional Old Irish pub located at the corner of a three-way intersection of Suffolk Street, Church Lane., and St. Andrew’s Street in the heart of Dublin, Ireland. While O’Neill’s has existed as a licensed establishment for over 300 years, the area around the pub has over 1000 years of history associated with the administrative, commercial and cultural role of Dublin. During the same time that the republican newspapers were being printed, the Coleman family also operated a licensed grocery, tea, wine and spirits shop at this location from 1755 to 1875. Later in 1889 a hotel, restaurant and pub was established here, but it was not until 1927 that the premises became known as “O’Neill’s Pub” when the O’Neill family purchased the property.”
MLK Great Day of Service will be at two locations
Author Brad Taylor will speak Saturday, January 11 at 7 p.m. at the Peachtree Corners Branch Library. 5570 Spalding Drive. He has sold more than two million books, with his Pike Logan series consistently hitting the best-seller lists. He is a 21 year veteran of the U.S. Army, retiring as a lieutenant colonel. Books will be available for purchase and signing.
Side by Side Concert by the Gwinnett Youth Orchestra and the Gwinnett Symphony Chamber Orchestra will be Monday, January 13, at 7 p.m. at Discovery High School. Hear the music of Richard Strauss, Tchaikovsky, Elgar and more. Tickets are $10. Details: www.gwinnettsymphony.org.
J.T. Ellison is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than 20 critically acclaimed novels. Her latest novel, Good Girls Lie, examines the bonds of friendship, the power of lies, and the desperate lengths people will go to to protect their secrets. Join Gwinnett County Public Library for this conversational discussion between authors Kimberly Belle and J.T. Ellison on Tuesday, January 14 at 7 p.m. at the Peachtree Corners City Hall Community Chest Room, 310 Technology Parkway. Free and open to the public. Books will be available for purchase and signing. Complimentary refreshments and auction items courtesy of the Friends of the Library.
Harriet Tubman One-Woman Show will be at the Bethesda Park Senior Center Ballroom on January 17 at 10 a.m. Christine Dixon performs as Harriet Tubman, the famed underground railroad conductor who helped people escape slavery. Preregister online with BEP11905 by January 10. For adults 50 years and older. Cost: $11 per person
McMahon
“Plan Exploration with a Purpose” is the subject of the Gwinnett Master Gardeners meeting on January 20 at noon at The Bethesda Senior Center, 225 Bethesda Church Road, Lawrenceville. The event is free and open to the public. Speaker will be Scott McMahon, manager of International Plant Exploration at the Atlanta Botanical Garden.
MLK Day of Service: Cemetery Field or Peachtree Ridge Park will be January 20 from 9 a.m. to noon. Begin 2020 with service to the community by joining at either of two park locations. Families, service organizations, and scout groups are welcome. Wear pants and closed-toe shoes, and bring gloves i. Tools, water, and snacks will be provided. Call 678-277-0905 for more information. Register online for Cemetery Field or Peachtree Ridge Park. Cemetery Field is at 211 Street, Norcross. Peachtree Ridge Park is at 1555 Old Peachtree Road, Suwanee.
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