GwinnettForum | Number 22.34 | May 12, 2023
ABOUT TO GRADUATE: Leading Gwinnett Tech students to graduation ceremonies at Gas South Arena are Dr. Cicily Mapp, executive director of Academic Affairs; Dr. Joe Hutto, executive director of Recruitment; and Dannon Dastugue, program director for speech and communication. A record number were graduates of Gwinnett Tech Tuesday. For more details, go to Lagniappe below.
TODAY’S FOCUS: Local tribute to Jimmy Carter will be in Norcross on May 23
EEB PERSPECTIVE: Instituting a gun buy-back program can reduce the shootings
SPOTLIGHT: Law Office of J. Michael Levengood, LLC
ANOTHER VIEW: This account could get you to the thinking stage
FEEDBACK: Appalled at recent shootings; Vietnam vets deserve gratitude
UPCOMING: Memorial service for body donors is May 13 at PCOM
NOTABLE: 72 year old Lawrenceville man to be college graduate
RECOMMENDED: Trust by Hernan Diaz
GEORGIA TIDBIT: Much of South Georgia known as “wiregrass country”
MYSTERY PHOTO: Name this island with few distinguishing features
LAGNIAPPE: Record number of graduates complete Gwinnett Tech
CALENDAR: Wayne Sikes to speak to Gwinnett Historical Society on Monday
Local tribute to Jimmy Carter will be in Norcross on May 23
By Amanda Brown Olmstead
NORCROSS, Ga., May 12, 2023 | Local business and civic leaders will pay tribute to President Jimmy Carter by staging an exhibition of the new honorary banners that line a two-mile stretch of Jimmy Carter Boulevard. The event will be on May 23 at 10 a.m. at the parking lot of Global Mall in Norcross, right on the street named for the 39th president of the United States, the only one from Georgia.
Among the dignitaries who will be on the program will be Andrew Young, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations; Jason Carter, chair of the Carter Center Board of Trustees and grandson of the president; Jonathan Reckford, president of Habitat for Humanity; and Nicole Love Hendrickson, chair of the Gwinnett County Commission. They will join Emory Morsberger, executive director of Gateway85 Community Improvement District and Shiv Aggarwal, chairman of that Board, to pay tribute to President Carter by staging the exhibition of the new honorary banners on Jimmy Carter Boulevard.
Originally called the Norcross-Tucker Highway and Rockbridge Road, Jimmy Carter Boulevard has become a major hub for economic prosperity and cultural diversity for Metro Atlanta and Gwinnett County —the most diverse county in the state. As were many roads in Gwinnett up until after World War II, this byway was once a dirt road. Now this gateway to Gwinnett at Interstate 85 has become a four-lane thoroughfare.
This event will honor President Carter and will reflect how concerted development efforts have made Jimmy Carter Boulevard a “Gateway to Commerce and Culture,” bolstering the county’s economic stature. There will be comments from Gateway85 CID leadership explaining the significance of Jimmy Carter Boulevard’s contributions to Gwinnett County’s economic, cultural, and social vibrancy. In addition to the history of Jimmy Carter Boulevard, representatives will talk about the impact the area has had on technology companies locating there – beginning with Western Electric opening their facility in the early 1970s.
Jimmy Carter Boulevard, the most significant of the eight streets around the world named for President Carter, stands as a touchstone in Carter’s legacy of championing human rights across the globe. The other streets named for President Carter are in Mila Doce, Tex., Knoxville, Tenn., Raleigh, N.C., Cuthbert, Valdosta and Plains, Ga., and in Abuja, Nigeria.
The eclectic workforce along Jimmy Carter Boulevard and in the Gateway 85 CID have over 3,000 businesses that employ more than 47,000 people – representing 16 per cent of Gwinnett County’s job force.
The banners are Gateway85 CID’s latest activation meant to highlight the corridor’s financial stability and range in services and business, from logistics centers and restaurants to tech companies and retail stores. Persons interested in learning more about the area and Gateway85 should call 770-409-8100.
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Instituting a gun buy-back program can reduce the shootings
Via Pixabay
By Elliott Brack
Editor and Publisher, GwinnettForum
MAY 12, 2023 | When people start to think that it’s unsafe to be in a particular place, it’s time for action.
Metro Atlanta has been plagued in recent weeks with an unusual outcropping of shootings, taking place in the city, but also in suburbs around the city. So far, little has been advanced as a formula to halt this menace for Metro Atlanta.
If we continue to do little about it, the city, Metro Atlanta and the entire state will suffer more. Should these random shootings continue, eventually the area will see less commerce, fewer visitors and an overall downturn of business.
That makes it essential for our governments to take positive action immediately to curtail this continuing violence, centered around guns.
The unusual aspect of recent shootings is that many of them are committed not by hardened criminals, but by the youth (boys and girls). How they get these guns is questionable. But guns are in the hands of the young, who often shoot up a neighborhood, not maybe for criminal activities, but for what often are petty reasons.
Our Georgia Legislature has taken no action on this problem so far. However, this week there was a turning point, in that Democratic members called for a special session of the Legislature to tackle the problem. If even the Legislature of Texas can consider limiting guns, certainly the Georgia Legislature, and the Republican leadership which controls it, should consider this possibility.
What would it take to reduce the shootings? The City of Spartanburg, S.C. has initiated a gun buy-back program. Participants will receive $100 in VISA gift cards for handguns or long guns and $150 for high-powered weapons. The city said the money is coming from the city’s budget and businesses and community members who volunteered to donate.
Spartanburg Chief Alonzo Thompson says: “Thus far this year we’ve already had over 40 guns stolen from or taken with vehicles that were taken and this is putting guns out of the hands of folks who are suicidal or kids playing and accidentally shooting someone. Or you have people who will get the guns and use them for some kind of criminal means.”
Why not initiate such a program in Georgia? The money for the program could come from the state, since it has a surplus enough to give its taxpayers a rebate for 2022. Most of us would prefer reducing the shooting and killings by paying people to turn in their guns rather than get a rebate check, since it could make our communities safer. Perhaps the buy-back program could offer youth (payable to their parents) double the amount of rebates, since this might help move more guns off the street.
One thing for certain: our state, and in particular Metro Atlanta, must step forward with bold measures to reduce the all-too-often shootings. To do nothing is for our community to suffer more.
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Law Office of J. Michael Levengood, LLC
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This account could get you to the thinking stage
By David Simmons
NORCROSS, Ga. | In fall of 1988 I ended up in Washington, D.C., living in a nine-story apartment building across from the Department of Transportation. I walked to my work.
Simmons
It was a snowy winter in our Nation’s Capitol, and to fit in I bought a gray trench coat to go along with my Bear Bryant/Archie Bunker hat, (Brim curled up for Archie, brim turned down for Bear). On my walk to and from work, there were six or eight traffic lights along the way, and just for fun, I took to walking up and standing back to back to people. Then in my most covert whisper I would say, “The Yellow Canary flies at midnight,” and then walk away. I must have done it 200-300 times over the course of that winter. People play spies on television, why not me?
Fifteen years later, I was at a barbecue/cookout with my girl friend Linda at Joe, the plumber’s, house. Joe is a big storyteller, and for entertainment he suggested and started a game where each person would tell their most unusual true story, or conversely totally fabricate a tall tale. At the end of the story all the others at the cookout would vote whether they thought the story was true or false.
When it came my turn, I told the beginning of the story that I have told many times and that you just read. I told the rest of the story for the very first time that night, and I have never, ever told it again until now. I told of the snow, and the traffic lights, the trench coat and hat. And “The Yellow Canary flies at midnight.”
The part of the story that I have always kept secret is that one Friday night, at the end of the work week, I stopped off at a local pub for a couple of beers on the way home. Afterward about 10 p.m., I was walking towards the Metro station, when a white cargo van, a Ford Econoline, I think, swerved over close to the sidewalk, and the sliding cargo door slid open. Just as it came to a stop, I was slammed from behind and knocked forward into the van. As I landed in the van, I felt a pricking sensation on the back of my neck. That is the last thing I remember. I went out like a light.
I came to, groggy, disoriented, on a bus stop bench on Constitution Avenue, Saturday morning, about 9 a.m. Not knowing what to do, I just sat for a while, thinking. Finally, I walked to the Metro station to head home. When I got home, I found everything normal, except I had a bruise on both shins, just below my knees, and there was a pinprick and bruise on the big vein on my left elbow like when you get an IV.
Truth serum? Who knows? I was pretty scared for a while there. But finally, I decided that whoever it was, got what they were after, and that it was over. So I never went to the police, never told anyone,
Those at the party were split. Nobody could be really sure either way. Joe just kept saying, “Nahhhhh, David, come on?”
As a group, they couldn’t decide if it was a true story or not. They did decide that it was the best story of the night. What do you think? Truth or fiction?
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Appalled a recent shootings; Vietnam vets deserve gratitude
Editor, the Forum:
Yes, I too, am appalled at the recent “mass” shootings and see your point about the fact there is no widespread concern or effort to address them. I don’t have a solution but I do believe swift apprehension by law enforcement is one answer and also public reports of such might serve as some deterrent.
Current gun laws are being changed in some jurisdictions but frankly these type killings are not the “norm.” I support the Second Amendment but also support swift and harsh punishment when firearms are involved in any crime .
Your comment about Vietnam being described as “16 one year wars” is appropriate. When a person arrived, they were the “new guy” and when you were scheduled to leave, you were considered “short.” Most of us remember when we were “short and extremely cautious when we got to that point.”
A lot of brave soldiers died in Vietnam and frankly, they have never been given the respect they deserved. Some of the men who made it home never got over the time they served. Some days were just too brutal to describe. Any veteran, in any conflict, deserves our gratitude.
– John Moore, Sr., Duluth
As we approach Mother’s Day, let’s remember when
Editor, the Forum:
Remember when?
The clash, clatter, smoke, stench, and fear generated by automatic weapons was limited to the fields of War?
Now: these horrors are around us all. Go to your local supermarket, mall, or church for confirmation.
Make sure to remember that the National Rifle Associaation and its bought elected officials at the local, state, and national levels on this coming Mother’s Day.
Let us pray that we will make it through at least one weekend without slaughter.
– Ashley Herndon, Oceanside, Calif.
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Memorial service for body donors is May 13 at PCOM
Kelsey Martin (DO ’23) presents a rose to a relative of a body donor program.
Medical students at PCOM Georgia are learning about the intricacies of the human body firsthand, through the College’s body donation program. PCOM is one of three medical schools in the state that operates a full-time, 24/7 program of this nature. The service is Saturday, May 13 in the Atrium at PCOM Georgia, 625 Old Peachtree Road in Suwanee.
Those who donate their remains to science make a tremendous contribution to the knowledge of future physicians and healthcare providers.
Elizabeth Martin (DO ’25), a second-year Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine student, shares as she reflects on the school’s body donation program. “There are so many things you can’t learn from a textbook. You learn how to actually orient yourself, the true locations of important organs, and how each human being can be uniquely different.”
Martin’s medical training is based on a holistic approach to medical care: treating the entire person—mind, body, and spirit—rather than merely addressing symptoms.
This philosophy carries over into care after death and informs PCOM Georgia’s operation of the body donor program. Families receive no-cost transportation for their family member’s remains, which are cremated at the program’s expense upon completion of all anatomical studies, research and medical training.
Students and faculty take special pride each year in recognizing the families of donors who committed their bodies to science through a memorial service. The service takes place annually on the Saturday before Mother’s Day—and this year’s will be held on Saturday, May 13. During this service, students share their appreciation and families receive the remains of their relative.
Jeffrey Seiple, director of anatomical donor services, says: “We pride ourselves on the ability to work closely with families during the donation process. That continues after training is completed with our special memorial service. This remembrance event offers the opportunity for families to connect with our students and learn about the impact they’ve made. It also allows us to show our utmost gratitude for their contributions.”
Body donations are critical to the training medical students receive, and ultimately the quality of care they are able to provide. This hands-on training is important in that it aids many students as they go on to practice medicine in various communities throughout Georgia.
Seiple adds: “We are in a unique and special position here at PCOM Georgia in that we have full-time licensed funeral directors on staff to assist families throughout the entire donation process including the return of their loved one’s cremains back to their families. It is vital for us to provide our students with resources they need to excel in the future as physicians. Our body donor program is designed to do that and more.”
Mary Warren chose to honor her husband, a Georgia Tech engineer, by donating his body to PCOM following his passing.“This is where Ken, had he made the decision, would have wanted to be,” Mary says. “The students have great respect, and they learn to love their person, and they want to honor that person and show respect to the family for what they’ve done.”
72-year-old Lawrenceville man to be college graduate
Kaplan
Sam Kaplan, 72, of Lawrenceville, has added many items to his resume over the years. Thursday, May 11, he will have added another addition. He will be a college graduate.
“This is my first undergraduate degree,” says Kaplan. “I’m the first of my seven siblings to earn a degree.”
Kaplan, who graduated fromSavannah High school in 1969, had not considered college. He worked in various roles. He ran a cleaning service and then a telemarketing company. He worked in customer service for a wholesale distributer of electronics. He even drove a taxi part time, and came to the Atlanta area about 20 years ago.
At 68 years old, he decided to go back to school, the beginning of a rewarding journey.
“I was riding down Georgia Highway 316 and heard on the radio that Georgia Gwinnett College was offering a degree that involved script writing,” Kaplan explains. “My car seemed to have developed automatic steering and I pulled off on Collins Hill Road. Five minutes later, I was registering for the fall semester.”
His journey wasn’t easy. He hadn’t been to school in 50 years. He had to relearn how to study. While the father of five had experience in raising children, Kaplan said he was nervous about taking classes and fitting in with students who were 50 years younger than him.
So, he made a personal goal to talk to one student a day and ask questions about their studies, their hopes and their dreams. Through those conversations, Kaplan found commonalities and strengthened bonds.
“When you ask a student about what they want and plan on doing and find out what they want to do with their lives; I think that’s uncommon with a lot of kids – they don’t get that with many people,” he says. “I think I have a good relationship with them. I got hugs from a lot of them on the last day of classes.”
Along with his classmates, Kaplan was also popular among faculty. Kate Balsley, associate professor of film, who taught Kaplan in a number of classes, says: “He’d always participate and would offer advice and assistance to his classmates. Sam was always willing to share photos and stories about his interesting life and his family. We’re so proud to see him graduate, but we will miss him.”
When Kaplan walks across the stage to receive his diploma, he’ll do so in front of his biggest fan – his 99-year-old mother,Virginia Kaplan of Lawrenceville, will be in the audience.
“She’s very excited,” Kaplan says. “She’s excited, happy and proud.”
Snellville awards $2,000 to local Shark Tank winners
Zaira Bhatti
Five young entrepreneurs got a financial boost to start their own businesses this week during the city’s annual Shark Tank competition.
A total of $2,000 was awarded to the students by judges representing the Snellville business community. The five students – four from Brookwood High School and one from Grayson High School – worked on their businesses all school year, culminating with a pitch for seed money at the competition mirroring the popular ABC television show “Shark Tank.”
Judges crowned Brookwood High School student Zaira Bhatti “Entrepreneur of the Year” and granted her $500 to be used to fund her social media consulting business, MarketRight.
Addison Curtis of Brookwood was also awarded $500 to go toward her swim lesson business, Dolphin Academy; Elizabeth Lachance of Brookwood was awarded $400 for her business, Cursive Cake ‘n’ Bake; Grayson student Ava Hosey received $350 for her business, Desserts by Ava; and Madison Worsham of Brookwood was given $250 for her family photography business, Capture Photography.
Judges who donated their time, expertise and money were: Tim Samuel and Dwayne Walker of Sparket; Kelly McAloon of Snellville Tourism and Trade; Ashlie Franklin and Sara Hodge of Walton Gas; Renae Johnson of the Renae J Group; Kathy Emanuel of Random Technologies; Katisha Henry of the Wing Suite; and Jessie Mullins of Powell and Edwards, LLC.
Art show winners to be on exhibit at Norcross Library
A juried exhibition, “Reflections at the Rectory,“ is on view at the City of Norcross facility at 17 College Avenue. This show features the artworks of the students of Advanced Placement Art at the Norcross and Paul Duke Stem high schools, as well as international baccalaureate students from Norcross High School, 24 in all. The exhibition will be on view through May 14. Subsequently, the winning works will be on view at the Norcross branch of the Gwinnett County Public Library.
Students receiving awards are for first place, Noelle Kreiner from Paul Duke High; second place, Angelique Concepcion from Norcross High; third place, Maggie Burns from Norcross High; and honorable mention, Grace Peagler from Norcross High.
Trust by Hernan Diaz
From Susan McBrayer, Sugar Hill: I cannot say I recommend this book, and I was stunned when it won a Pulitzer Prize this week. I’m disappointed because there was so much hype about this novel and I had to wait months to get it from the library. The story centers around the rapid rise to power of a high-flying NYC financier and his wife during the Gilded Age. I really enjoyed the way it was written in four parts and from four points of view. There was a short novel about the couple, an unfinished autobiography by the financier, a memoir by the autobiography’s ghostwriter and a journal by the financier’s wife. But the promise of suspense — the expected twists and turns — failed to materialize. If anyone else has read this book and really enjoyed it, I hope he or she will write a recommendation about it and explain why. I’m clueless.
- An invitation: what books, restaurants, movies or web sites have you enjoyed recently? Send us your recent selection, along with a short paragraph (150 words) as to why you liked this, plus what you plan to visit or read next. Send to: elliott@brack.net
Much of South Georgia known as “wiregrass country”
Wiregrass country, named for its native tall grass (Aristida stricta), is a historic area of the South shared by south central Georgia, southeastern Alabama, and the panhandle of Florida. In wiregrass Georgia, folk-cultural traditions include a range of phenomena: folk art (quilting to yard decorations); festivals (peanut festivals to rattlesnake roundups); foodways (chicken pilaf to mullet); music and dance (shape-note singing to play-party songs); play and recreational activities (fireball to fishing); occupational lore (turpentining to shade tobacco); vernacular architecture (shotgun houses to tobacco barns); and religious observations (Baptist Union meetings to funerary customs).
Wiregrass folklore owes much to its ecosystem. Associated with the longleaf pine forest, wiregrass grows within a fire ecosystem. This wiregrass ecosystem, moreover, produces a high incidence of low intensity fires as one of its fundamental natural processes. Residents came to regard these fires as a tool to control their environment, and the wiregrass itself helped foster a particular lifestyle. It occurs, for instance, as a prominent motif in the region’s oral tradition.
Storytellers often incorporate it as part of the setting for their narratives of personal experience. In its unburnt state, wiregrass became an integral part of the terrain and served as cover for wildlife, a place where quail might nest or predators like rattlesnakes might lurk.
Rattlesnakes constitute another popular motif. A rationale for ritually burning the forest, unchecked rattlesnake populations represent a real threat to people. Personal experience narratives, as the prime prose narrative form of our times, frequently function as cautionary tales, warning about this potential threat. Several wiregrass Georgia towns (Claxton, Whigham) annually host rattlesnake roundups.
These festivals shift public attention to the prevalence of this dangerous species, especially since local laws prohibit burning the woods without a special permit. Instead, communities sponsor roundups in which competitors literally capture hundreds of snakes. Every year, for example, as many as 20,000 people attend the parade and festival in Whigham (population 605). Claxton promotes its roundup as “the beauty with the beasts” competition: the judging of the snake competition occurs at the same time as the crowning of the Roundup Queen.
Most wiregrass towns choose a local theme for their festivals. In wiregrass Georgia, as in other places, festivals fulfill a social function while promoting tourism. Each town selects an item of regional interest in which it takes pride. Some wiregrass cities celebrate certain crops significant to their commerce. Morven holds a Peach Festival. Glennville’s Sweet Onion Festival faces competition from its well-established neighbor, Vidalia. Sylvester is known for its annual Peanut Festival at Possum Poke, its permanent festival grounds. The Mayhaw Festival in Colquitt is particularly distinctive. The mayhaw fruit grows almost exclusively in wiregrass country and is ripe only during three weeks in the spring. Other festivals, such as Mule Day in Calvary and Swine Time in Climax, fete animals important to the region’s past and present development.
(To be continued)
- To view the Georgia Encyclopedia article online, go to https://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org
Name this island with few distinguishing features
This edition’s Mystery Photo has few distinguished features, at least none man made. But many of you may have passed by this landmark. Now the job is to tell where it is located, and name it. Send your thoughts to elliott@brack.net, and include your hometown.
Solving the last mystery right off the bat was Dr. Michael Gagnon of Flowery Branch: “The troll is part of an exhibit now at Atlanta Botanical Gardens. I saw it advertised on television.” Then immediately Susan McBrayer of Sugar Hill chimed in: “The huge wooden troll is an art form created by Dambo of Denmark. It is (or has been) part of a display at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens.” The photograph came from Molly Titus of Peachtree Corners.
Lots of others recognized it, including Kay Montgomery of Duluth; Lindsay Borenstein, Atlanta: “We actually saw a different set of his trolls at the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens in Boothbay last summer. They are so neat!!”
And also Gloria James of Lawrenceville; Jay Altman of Columbia, S.C.; Allen Peel of San Antonio, Tex.; Lou Camerio of Lilburn; George Graf of Palmyra, Va.; and Virginia Klaer of Duluth.
- SHARE A MYSTERY PHOTO: If you have a photo that you believe will stump readers, send it along (but make sure to tell us what it is because it may stump us too!) Send to: elliott@brack.net and mark it as a photo submission. Thanks.
Record number of graduates complete Gwinnett Tech
On May 9, there was a proud celebration as Dr. D. Glen Cannon, president of Gwinnett Technical College, conferred degrees, diplomas, and certificates to a record more than 600 students to mark the completion of their studies at Gwinnett Tech.
The Class of 2023 met adversity head-on and marched forward through sheer will and self-determination through the many barriers life put before them. Many have full-time jobs, families, and financial hardships, yet they still walked across this graduation stage and staked their claim to a great career with a great company or are beginning their own companies.
Keynote Speaker Bob Mackey, president, and CEO of the Boys and Girls Club of North Central Georgia, spoke about perseverance, stating, “We’re examples of not giving up despite, in many cases, having been given up on! For some, your first step is a large one; for others, this is a step; regardless of which bucket you fall into, to all, there are several steps you’ve got to take to reach that level of personalized success.”
The 10th Gwinnett Multicultural Festival and County Government Open House will be Saturday, May 13 from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. at Gwinnett Place Mall on Pleasant Hill Road in Duluth. Residents can enjoy the day with cultural performances from around the globe, bounce houses, carnival rides, touch-a-truck with public safety vehicles, and more. For more information, email PDCommunityAffairs@GwinnettCounty.com or call 678-442-6520. All ages are welcome at this free event.
Gwinnett Historical Society will meet Monday, May 15, at 7 p.m. at Rhodes Jordan Park Community Center, 100 East Crogan Street in Lawrenceville. Speaker will be Wayne Sikes of Snellville, chairman of the Gwinnett County Hospital Authority. Sikes has served on the Hospital Authority since 1989, and helped lead to the modern health care system in Gwinnett.
The season’s final concert of the Gwinnett Symphony Orchestra and Chorus will be May 15 at 7:30 p.m. at the Gas South Theater in Duluth. Composers to be heard include Lauridsen, Debussy, Garcia and Verdi. For details, visit GwinnettSymphony.org.
Understanding Medicare: Speak with a Specialist on Tuesday, May 16 at 11 a.m. at the Centerville Branch of Gwinnett County Public Library. Get unbiased guidance from a Certified Medicare Counselor about costs and coverage, comparing options, and enrolling in plans.
Ribbon-cutting and reception of Leather and Lace Coffee and Company will be held at Braselton Civic Center 27 East Lake Drive, on Thursday, May 18, from noon until 2 p.m. Ribbon Cutting at 12:30 pm.
Great Strides Walk for Cystic Fibrosis will be in Suwanee at Town Center Park on May 20, beginning at 9:30 a.m. Over 2,000 walkers will raise funds and awareness for this rare, genetic disease that progressively limits the ability to breathe and has no cure. This will be the largest CF walk nationwide, and raised more than $2 million in 2022 to support these efforts. To get involved in Great Strides, call the Georgia Chapter at 404-325-6973 or visit: http://fightcf.cff.org/GreatStridesATL. Walk Day is a fun, family-oriented event with a healthy walk, food, and festivities.
Writing Workshop: Show, Don’t Tell: Why it Matters to Your Reader, will be Saturday, May 20, at 11 a.m. at the Lilburn Branch of the Gwinnett County Public Library. Zachary Steele, author and founder of Broadleaf Writers, will take a deep dive into the process of drawing the most out of your characters and settings.
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