GwinnettForum | Number 25.3 | Jan. 10, 2025
TOP INSTRUCTOR: Gwinnett Technical College recently named its top instructor, the Rick Perkins Instructor of the Year recipient for 2025. He is Mohamed Belal, center. Also shown are, on the left, Rebecca Alexander, vice president of academic affairs; Belal,; and on the right, Dr. Glen Cannon, president of Gwinnett Technical College. For more details, see Notable below. (Photo Credit: Jeremy Statum.)
TODAY’S FOCUS: Murphy reflects on 28 years on school board
EEB PERSPECTIVE: Parents watching how new school board will operate
SPOTLIGHT: Georgia Banking Company
ANOTHER VIEW: America must continue to make progress on equality
FEEDBACK: Gullible consumers yearn for self-prescribed solutions
UPCOMING: Aurora debuts original musical on Jan. 23
NOTABLE: Belal Is Gwinnett Tech instructor of the year
RECOMMENDED: The Lonely Girl, by Edna O’Brien
OBITUARY: Danny Richard Storey
GEORGIA TIDBIT: Atlanta’s Manley wrote about Southerners
MYSTERY PHOTO: Sphere on a pedestal is what you are searching for
CALENDAR: Two artists talk of their work Saturday at Hudgens Art Center
Reflecting on 28 years on the school board
By Mary Kay Murphy
PEACHREE CORNERS, Ga. | For the last 28 years as District III School Board member, I served on the Gwinnett Board of Education. I represented schools in Norcross, Peachtree Corners, Berkeley Lake, Duluth, Peachtree Ridge, North Gwinnett, Sugar Hill, Suwanee, and Collins Hill.
Murphy
During that time, the major change I witnessed was a nearly 100,000-student increase in Gwinnett schools, where students now come from 180 countries with 108 languages spoken.
The school system met this rapid growth by developing world class programs related to the changing needs of its students and families. Many of the programs were good for the school system such as the Academic Knowledge and Skills curriculum that replaced the Outcomes Based Education curriculum.
Another change for the good was the introduction in 1997 of E-SPLOST, the Education Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax, a one penny sales tax that helped the Gwinnett system build 76 new schools between 1997 and 2024.
Not all changes in that time were for the good. Negative changes were imposed on the school system from conditions over which it had no control. These included $100 million in austerity cuts imposed by the State of Georgia in 2008 and continued over ten years.
Another negative impact came when the COVID-19 pandemic closed Gwinnett schools in 2020 and 2021. The closure resulted in learning loss for many Gwinnett students who required schedules, routine, and structure to be successful in school. Many are still working to overcome that loss years after the event stopped impacting the public schools..
As growth increased in its student body, the school system continued to offer a range of programs with a global world class focus. These included International Baccalaureate, Dual Language immersion programs in French, Spanish, Mandarin Chinese, and Korean; and Multi-Language Learner programs.
Growth in student enrollment allowed eighth graders and their families to choose between attending Norcross High School with its IB and 3DE programs or Paul Duke STEM High School with its STEM program. Other school choice programs are offered between Meadowcreek High School and McClure Health Science High School.
Also, the system’s New Life Academy of Excellence charter school provides language immersion in Mandarin Chinese as do Peachtree Ridge High School and the Gwinnett School of Math, Science, and Technology.
Also, among the high school options is the Seckinger High School for Artificial intelligence, along with its feeder elementary and middle schools focused also on Artificial Intelligence.
In partnership with the Georgia Department of Education, Gwinnett offers programs in 17 career pathways. These relate to Career, Technical, and Agricultural Education and provide ways for students to become college and career ready as well as to achieve certification in many of the 17 pathways.
Among its programs, GCPS offers ways for students to restore credit by offering Positive Behavior Interventions and at each of its 142 schools and at the GIVE West and GIVE East alternative schools.
Without the support of our community, the Gwinnett school system could not have adapted to these changes for the good and the bad to serve the needs of its nearly 200,000 students.
Serving on the Gwinnett Board of Education has been an honor, and I am thankful to our community for allowing me to be their School Board member for nearly three decades.
- Have a comment? Click here to send an email.
Parents watching how new school board will operate
By Elliott Brack
Editor and Publisher, GwinnettForum
JAN. 10, 2025—- On Jan. 16 at 6 p.m., the Gwinnett School Board will see two newly elected members take their seats. The new members are Rachel Ruffin Stone (District 1), and Steve Gasper (District 3). They join previous members Steven B. Knudsen (District 2), Adrienne Simmons (District 4), and Dr. Tarece Johnson-Morgan (District 5.)
Gwinnettians take pride in their schools, and well they should, since they are constantly ranked among the top, if not the best, school districts in Georgia. Not only that, but in recent years on two occasions, Gwinnett school board has been named the best school district in the nation, even though it is a big, awkward district, consisting of 182,000 students in 142 schools.
In years past, and even today, many newcomers to Gwinnett will tell you that they moved to the county primarily to make sure their children were enrolled in its outstanding schools. The reason Gwinnett schools are constantly ranked high is because it has excellent instructors teaching kids that are from caring families that make sure that their children perform well. The Gwinnett system is also respected because it has had in the past a solidly-founded school board, and exceptional leadership in its administration.
However, since the school board forced the retirement of the long-time and widely-admired Superintendent Alvin Wilbanks, questions have arisen about certain members of the school board. Some members seem intent on delving into the day-to-day administration of the schools, rather than setting overall policy and allowing their chosen administrators to run the operations of the school system.
Gasper
Stone
In 2021, the school board named its new superintendent as Dr. Calvin Watts. He came to Gwinnett after six years as head of the Kent (Wash.) School District. Previously, for 13 years he was a Gwinnett assistant superintendent of school. So, in effect, the board was hiring a locally-known product.
The question now arises at what will be the mode of leadership of the current school board with two new members. Will the board continue to allow its administrators to follow good school practices, and make sure day-to-day operations are guided by the school staff? Or will this current board meddle itself in operations, rather than provide the overall policies of oversight they are elected to do?
Said another way: will the new board seek to force Dr. Watts and staff out of office, after only 3.5 years, and then have to search for a new superintendent? That would be a vastly negative turn of events for Gwinnett County public schools, and make many parents question that direction of the board. We have seen ruinous school board leadership in neighboring counties. Such poor leadership harms the students, the schools and the county.
Gwinnett parents don’t want a mal-functioning school board tearing down the excellent work that has gone on before for years, but want for the schools of the county to continually improve.
Just look at what Gwinnett has recently accomplished. Gwinnett schools continue to be the model system that other boards emulate, because of the high quality results shown by its students. Their test scores and graduation rates are high, and these graduates go on to excel in colleges across the nation.
Yes, Gwinnett citizens are proud of their schools. We urge the new school board to work together so that Gwinnett schools will continue to show their outstanding performance in the coming years.
We look for the school board to go forward harmoniously with solid decisions and continue on the pathway of excellence.
- Have a comment? Click here to send an email.
Georgia Banking Company
The public spiritedness of our sponsors allows us to bring GwinnettForum.com to you at no cost to readers. Experience High-Tech, High-Touch Banking with Georgia Banking Company (GBC). At GBC, we take pride in delivering a high-tech, high-touch, exceptional customer experience. Our community-focused approach and advanced banking solutions make us the Bank of Choice for many in Metro Atlanta. We believe in combining the best of both worlds: cutting-edge technology and personalized service. Our user-friendly online banking platform is designed to make your banking experience seamless and convenient. With just a few clicks, you can easily manage your accounts, pay bills, and transfer funds. Plus, our mobile banking app lets you take control of your finances on the go. Whether you’re checking your balance, making a transfer, or depositing a check remotely, our app ensures you have access to your accounts anytime, anywhere. At GBC, our team goes the extra mile to provide the support and attention you deserve. Switch to GBC today and enjoy the perfect blend of technology and personal attention. Experience why so many have chosen us as their trusted banking partner. Learn more at www.GeorgiaBanking.com. Member FDIC.
- For a list of other sponsors of this forum, click here.
America must continue to make progress on equality
By Jack Bernard, contributing columnist
PEACHTREE CITY, Ga. | The United States must make greater strides towards diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). However, we must realize that America has made tremendous progress along these lines since the beginnings of the Civil Rights movement began.
Many of this columns’ readers were not alive when Martin Luther King, Jr. was the Civil Rights’ movement leader. As a teenager and young adult in the 60s, I lived on Long Island, N.Y., plus later in Bartow, Clarke and Fulton counties. These places were alike in one way. Many white people shared a general dislike of the civil rights movement and MLK, Jr. in particular.
Some people think that New York has always been progressive. However, it was segregated when I grew up there, and with racial strife. But it was not only race that caused conflict.
My mother’s Italian family was religious. My grandmother’s bedroom looked like a Catholic church with paintings and statues of the Virgin Mary and Jesus everywhere. Her father died and she had to drop out of school to support her mother, who spoke no English.
Working in a factory, she met my father, a French undocumented immigrant. They got engaged. But he was deported, eventually returning to marry her. It was not a typical, big Italian wedding.
My mother grew up with a dozen siblings. All nine of my mother’s older siblings married Italian Catholics. My mother had the audacity to want to marry a French Jew. Boy, did that raise eyebrows! So, she and my father were married at City Hall.
My father was charismatic and a good provider, so her family eventually accepted him. Still, my mother was told it might be advisable not to go to my grandmother’s house for Christmas because an uncle might make a crack about Jews killing Christ.
I lived in an Irish and Italian blue-collar neighborhood. For public school, we were bused into another town, an upper-middle class Jewish area. There were cliques. Jews looked down on Irish and Italian kids. And the Italians and Irish frequently cursed the Jews. Since then, you can see why I say that our nation has become a less tribal, more diverse society.
Fifty years ago, Christians were 87 percent of U.S. adults, 6 percent were another religion, and 5 per cent “did not have a religious preference” Now, only 68 percent call themselves Christian while seven per cent are other religions; the rest are not religious.
According to the census, back in 1960, 88.6 percent of Americans were white, 10.5 percent black, and less than one percent other. Now, only three-fourths of U.S. citizens are white, 14 percent are black and three percent Asian. The other eight percent are a mixture of racial identities.
So America has become more diverse. And civil rights laws, many passed in the 60’s, have promoted integration of our society. But there is a right-wing push to do away with these laws starting with the Roberts’s Court’s infamous 5-4 decision in Shelby County v. Holder, gutting the Voting Rights Act… which had been overwhelmingly re-authorized by both houses of Congress.
Doing away with civil rights laws by Congress or the Supreme Court will simply promote tribalism. As MLK Jr. once said, “It may be true that morality cannot be legislated- but behavior can be regulated. It may be true that the law cannot change the heart, but it can restrain the heartless.” He was 100 percent correct.
- Have a comment? Click here to send an email.
Gullible consumers yearn for self-prescribed solutions
Editor, the Forum:
One could argue about the greatest innovation of our time…is it Gatorade or artificial intelligence? I would suggest it may be Digital Video Recorder, the ability to record a television program and then be able to race through those often annoying tv commercials.
In the most recent issue of the GwinnettForum, took specific issue with pharmaceutical commercials, and applauds hopes to have them cancelled from television viewing as cigarette commercials once were.
The huge overreach in spending for these sales pitches puts the U.S. far above any country in the world (almost 50 percent of the spend) with, as expected, results to match. Regulated by the Food and Drug Administration, guidelines have not been updated in 20 years and often sketchy claims can legally be made. Instead of a doctor prescribing these medications, it’s backwards. A patient often sees an ad and demands their doctor prescribe it when other (non-advertised products) may be better and cheaper.
I guess one requirement has the narrator rip through a list of potential drawbacks and often ends with…”If you are allergic to (brand name) you should not take it.” Really?
That would seem obvious…but maybe not to a too often gullible consumer seeking simple (self-prescribed) solutions.
– Howard Hoffman, Berkeley Lake
Agrees that pharma ads should not be on television
Editor, the Forum:
I agree with the article about drug companies on TV.
– John Sears, Peachtree Corners
Dear John: One doctor said he had been against it ever since it began back more than 30 years ago. It seems to have worsened in the last few years, especially on streaming channels. –eeb
Finds recent Forum yet another excellent issue
Editor, the Forum:
Congratulations on yet another excellent issue. The piece on Jimmy Carter in the January 7 Forum is a masterpiece of thoughtful writing, the article about drug advertising on television is right on the mark, and the photo of Jupiter is quite wonderful. Gwinnett Forum continues to be a much-needed source of information and sanity for all of us. Thank you.
– Mary Beth Twining, Durham, N.C.
Dear Mary Beth: We are constantly amazed at what we get to put in Gwinnett Forum. Put another way, our readers keep us amazed and young. –eeb.
Asks for “One Call” to ban lawyer ads on television
Editor, the Forum:
Regarding banning pharmaceutical ads on television: as long as we are banning ads on TV, can we throw lawyer ads on the heap too? Now that would be “One Call that does it All!”
– Jonathan Galucki, Buford
Liked article on the 39th president of the USA
Editor, the Forum:
I thoroughly enjoyed Andy’s article on “What would Jimmy do?.” No better advice could be given for the next four years. Thank you for illuminating common sense when too many of our leaders want to keep us in the dark.
– Dexter Manning, Peachtree City
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, and include your hometown. The views of letters are the opinion of the contributor. We reserve the right to edit for clarity and length. Send feedback and letters to: ebrack2@gmail.com.
Aurora debuts original musical on Jan. 23
Aurora Theatre’s newest original musical will be King of Pangea, a groundbreaking addition to the Atlanta arts scene. Opening at Aurora Theatre January 23, 2025, this moving new work promises an unforgettable journey of heartbreak, healing, and hope.
At the heart of King of Pangea is Aurora Theatre’s unwavering commitment to nurturing and showcasing original works. This regional premiere musical, written by Martin Storrow of California (book, music, and lyrics), is a personal and imaginative exploration of grief, inspired by Storrow’s experience with the loss of his mother. Initially conceived as a fantastical story set on an imaginary island, the musical evolved into a heartfelt narrative that blends realism with whimsy, creating a deeply resonant and unique theatrical experience.
“King of Pangea offers audiences a fresh, exhilarating experience,” said Storrow. “By weaving together elements of fantasy and personal history, I hope to share a story that touches everyone, whether they’re seasoned musical theatre fans or newcomers to the genre.”
After a sudden loss shatters his world, 21-year-old Christopher Crow embarks on a journey back to Pangea, the imaginary island of his childhood, in search of answers to help him heal. In this fantastical realm, Christopher encounters transformed versions of his family members, who embody the vibrant characters he and his mother once created together. Through this deeply personal and imaginative lens, King of Pangea examines what it means to become the ruler of one’s own heart.
Aurora Theatre’s Co-Founder and Artistic Producing Director, Ann-Carol Pence, has been instrumental in bringing King of Pangea to life. With a career spanning acclaimed productions like Cinderella, Mary Poppins, Les Misérables, and In the Heights, Pence spent months in Oklahoma collaborating with Lyric Theatre of Oklahoma to refine this bold new work. Her dedication and vision have guided the creative team to push boundaries and craft a truly unforgettable theatrical experience. She says: “Producing new musicals has long been a cornerstone of Aurora Theatre’s values system. As we step into the new year, King of Pangea is a show we know will connect with our audiences.”
Co-Founder and Producing Artistic Director Ann-Carol Pence will oversee the music direction. Rounding out the principal cast is: Logan Corleym Riley McCool, Wendy Melkonian, Celia Crow, and Barry Stoltze.
Judge dismisses case on constitutionality of Mulberry
On January 7, a Fulton County Superior Court issued an order dismissing the case of Gwinnett County vs. the State of Georgia challenging the constitutionality of the City of Mulberry.
The Fulton County State Court agreed with the Georgia Attorney General’s office that Gwinnett County did not meet the legal requirements necessary to challenge the constitutionality of the Mulberry charter, and the court granted the State’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit in its entirety.
Mulberry Mayor Mike Coker says: “We in Mulberry are thankful that we can now put these lawsuits behind us and begin working with Gwinnett County. We look forward to further discussing the transition of services with the county and doing what is necessary to build a strong relationship between Mulberry and Gwinnett.”
Belal is Gwinnett Tech instructor of the year
Gwinnett Technical College recently named Mohamed Belal, humanities program director, its Rick Perkins Instructor of the Year recipient for 2025. Belal, who became a teacher to make a meaningful impact on the lives of others, expressed his passion for education and student success.
Belal, in center. Photo provided.
“I love the moment when a concept ‘clicks’ for a student, their confidence grows, and they realize what they’re capable of achieving. My inspiration comes from seeing my students succeed, whether earning certifications, starting careers, or simply gaining the confidence to tackle challenges. Watching them transform their lives through education and achieve their career dreams is deeply rewarding,” said Belal.
Belal emphasized the honor and responsibility of representing Gwinnett Tech, highlighting the institution and the Technical College System of Georgia’s commitment to excellence in technical education. “Earning this recognition confirms my dedication to our students and the community. It also reminds me of the collective effort of my colleagues who strive to make a difference every day,” he stated. “I hope my students leave with more than technical skills; I want them to develop critical thinking, problem-solving, resilience, and a continuous learning mindset. I strive to teach them how to adapt, problem-solve, and excel professionally and personally. Additionally, I incorporate various soft skills into my lesson plans, which are essential for every career.”
Belal holds a Master of Arts in Music Education from Helwan University in Cairo, Egypt, and resides in Lawrenceville, Georgia.
The Rick Perkins Award for Excellence in Technical Instruction has been prestigious in the Technical College System of Georgia since 1991. The award is designed to honor technical college instructors who make significant contributions to technical education through innovation and leadership in their fields.
New budget for Gwinnett approved at $2.67 billion
Gwinnett Commissioners have approved a $2.67 billion budget to fund County operations and projects for the year 2025. The approved budget consists of a $2.11 billion operating budget and a $555 million capital improvements budget, which includes funds from the County’s Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax program.
The adopted budget allows Gwinnett County Government to address local needs such as public safety, community health and high-quality infrastructure while balancing increasing costs of labor, materials and services facing the County and residents alike.
The budget also includes the approval of organizational changes, including the creation of the Parks and Recreation Department, which was previously part of the Department of Community Services. Chris Minor will head that newly-named department.
Initiatives in the budget include:
- The addition of six employees, vehicles and equipment to support the Police Department through the Community Service Aides pilot program to strengthen community engagement and respond to non-emergency requests for service.
- New software for the E911 call center to help improve resource allocation
- State-of-the-art disinfection systems at Lanier and Shoal Creek Filter Plants to improve employee safety and reduce operational costs
- Additional staffing to address growing transportation infrastructure needs and help improve traffic flow throughout the county
- A focus on maintenance and repairs for Parks and Recreation through additional ground crews, vehicles and equipment to enhance residents’ experience at county parks.
The adopted 2025 budget resolution and supporting documents are available online atGwinnettCounty.com.
The Lonely Girl, by Edna O’Brien
By Susan J. Harris, Stone Mountain: In this second novel in the Country Girls Trilogy, Cait/Kate and Bridget/Baba have moved slightly apart due to life circumstances and different goals. Cait, always the romantic, forms an attachment to Eugene Gaillard, taciturn and mysterious and older, fits her idea of the perfect man. The relationship develops in secrecy. Baba is living a more free-spirited life with work and visits to many pubs. She relishes her independence. Cait longs for intimacy. She moves in with Eugene and finds the relationship difficult. Sprinkled through the novel is the backdrop of her Catholic upbringing, her mother’s untimely death, and her estrangement from her father. The book is not an easy read because one steps into several murky worlds; the damp inclement weather, the chilly shut off emotions, and the swirl of questions that seem unattainable. The reader will cheer for Cait and Baba as they grow into womanhood amidst daunting odds.”
- 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. Click here to send an email.
Danny Richard Storey
Danny Richard Storey of Suwanee, 79, passed away on January 7, 2025 after a battle with leukemia. He was preceded in death by his parents, Harold C. Storey, Thelma “Ruth” Storey, and his brother, Harold “Clinton” Storey, Jr.
Storey
Born on November 12, 1946 in Atlanta, Danny was destined for an extraordinary life. Growing up in Kirkwood and attending Murphy High School, he built life-long friendships. He graduated from Georgia Tech as a Civil Engineer in 1969. While at Tech he was a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity. Later that year, he welcomed his son, Kevin, followed by his daughter, Kipley.
After graduation, he began his first career with Chicago Bridge and Iron. This involved multiple moves throughout the U.S. and included five years in Brazil.
During his 17 years with CBI, he made his family his first priority. Upon returning to Georgia in 1987, Danny began his second career, as a luxury custom homebuilder with Profile Homes. In 1998, he and his son, Kevin, formed the family business, Storey Custom Homes. He took pride in working with his family and building award-winning homes.
Danny met his wife, the former Linda Costello of Meadville, Pa. at a dinner party in Atlanta, and found love and happiness. They enjoyed annual family vacations, sporting events, and watching their grandchildren grow up. He and Linda shared many community activities involving Rotary, Gwinnett Chamber, Gwinnett Tech board, Salvation Army and Boy Scouts board. Danny was always willing to help and liked mentoring young people. He was quite a storyteller and loved sharing his life experiences. Above all else, Danny’s family was first and foremost.
Danny is survived by his wife, Linda C. Storey; son and daughter-in-law, Kevin and Jenny Storey; his daughter and son-in-law, Kipley and Charles Morrow; grandchildren: Amber, Zoe, Ansley and Chase; great grandchildren: Declan, Blake, Elijah, and Collins; and numerous cousins, nieces and nephews.
Services will be held on Sunday, January 12, 2025 at Wages and Sons Gwinnett Chapel, 1031 Lawrenceville Highway, Lawrenceville. Visitation will be from 1 to 2 p.m., followed by the service at 2 p.m., with a reception to follow. Burial service for family members will be on Monday at West View Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made in Danny’s name to the Gary Sinise Foundation.
Atlanta’s Manley wrote about Southerners
The author of poems, plays, novels, and short stories, Frank Manley wrote mostly about southern characters in marginal encounters that force them to engage spiritual questions or dilemmas of faith and reason. Moving easily between academic and literary careers, Manley produced a wide-ranging body of work, with critical editions of John Donne and Sir Thomas More, poems about Roman emperors, and violent tales involving trailer parks and mountain cockfighting arenas.
Manley grew up in Atlanta during the years before World War II (1941-45) and emerged as a southern writer much later, midway through what could be considered his first career, as professor of Renaissance English literature at Emory University. He received various awards for his creative writing, including two Georgia Author of the Year awards, a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship, and first prize at the 1985 Humana Festival of New American Plays.
Manley was born in Scranton, Penn., on November 13, 1930, the son of Kathryn L. Needham and Aloysius F. Manley. Reared a Roman Catholic, he attended the Marist School in Atlanta, then studied English literature at Emory, earning his B.A. degree in 1952 and his M.A. degree in 1953. In 1952 he married Carolyn Holliday of Decatur, with whom he had two daughters, Evelyn and Mary. After serving as an enlisted man in the U.S. Army from 1952 to 1955, Manley earned his Ph.D. degree in 1959 from Johns Hopkins University and then taught English at Yale University from 1959 to 1964.
After the publication of his first book, a critical edition of Donne’s The Anniversaries (1963), he returned to Emory as an associate professor of English literature in 1964. Twice a Guggenheim fellow, he remained at Emory until his retirement in 2000. He was named Charles Howard Candler Professor of Renaissance Literature in 1982, and in 1990 he founded Emory’s creative writing program, which he directed from its inception until his retirement.
In the late 1960s and early 1970s Manley began composing poems about family, the historical figures he had studied, and the Gilmer County mountain community where he had built a home. He published his poetry in literary quarterlies and ultimately in a volume entitled Resultances (1980), which won the University of Missouri Press’s Devins Award. A book-length discussion of his poems, Some Poems and Some Talk about Poetry (with fellow Emory professor Floyd Watkins), appeared in 1985.
In a 1985 interview with the Atlanta Constitution, Manley said that he began writing plays simply by chance. He wrote his first play at the suggestion of a colleague in Emory’s theater studies department.
Manley’s narratives typically feature characters who are imprisoned in some way and for whom chance encounters offer the possibility of liberation. His play The Evidence turns on a mountain man’s interpretation of a “Bigfoot” encounter. The Trap (1993), a play produced by Atlanta’s Alliance Theatre in 1993-94, tells the story of a committee of university professors investigating an allegation of sexual harassment.
Manley died in Atlanta on November 11, 2009.
- To view the Georgia Encyclopedia article online, go to https://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org
Sphere on a pedestal is what you are searching for
For today’s mystery, we’ll supply you with one clue; it is located, you might say, in the middle of nowhere. See if you can find out where this sphere is balanced on this pedestal. You might be surprised to find this answer.
The previous mystery was difficult, and was recognized by three readers. The photograph came from Rob Ponder of Duluth.
Allan Peel of San Antonio, Tex. wrote: “Today’s mystery photo is of the Riverfront Station, a commuter rail station, located on the west bank of the Cumberland River in downtown Nashville, Tenn. It is near the John Seigenthaler Pedestrian Bridge and across the river and within walking distance from Nissan Stadium, the home field of the NFL Tennessee Titans and the Tennessee State University Tigers.
“The current station’s ‘post-and-beam’ architectural design is a throwback to the looks of the ‘Old World’ train stations of the early 20th century. It was built on the site of a circa-1902 Tennessee Central Railway Passenger Station that was in use until 1955, after which it became a freight storage site. Work on the new Riverfront Station started in 2004 and was first opened to the public in September 2006.”
Also recognizing it were George Graf, Palmyra, Va.; and Jay Altman, Columbia, S.C.
- 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: ebrack2@gmail.com and mark it as a photo submission. Thanks.
Two artists talk of their work Saturday at Hudgens Art Center
Artist’s talks: Visit the Hudgens Center for the Arts in Duluth on Saturday, January 11, for talks with the exhibiting artists, Kathryn Fincher and Kent Ambler. Presented at 10 a. m. and 2 p.m. in the Fowler Gallery will be Kathryn Andrews Fincher talking of her life’s works. Speaking at 1 p.m. will be artist Kent Ambler on the subject of “Brush and Gouge: woodcuts and paintings.” This will be in the Rowe Promenade. Entry to the Hudgens Center for the Arts is always free.
A Vienna New Year’s Celebration will be presented by the Gwinnett Symphony Orchestra and the Youth Orchestra (side by side) on January 12 at 7 p.m. at the Discovery Theatre in Lawrenceville. Come hear the music of Strauss and Mozart once played in Vienna. Get tickets at visitGwinnettSymphony.org.
Author Talk with Leara Rhodes will be January 13 at noon at the Peachtree Corners Branch of Gwinnett County Public Library. Join Author Leara Rhodes as she discusses her historical novel Spancil Hill. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Design Workshop for the Park Place area will be held at the Country Inn and Suites, 1852 Rockbridge Road in Stone Mountain on January 14 at 6 p.m. Learn about the Park Place Master Plan project recommendations and share your ideas on how the community could improve. This area has been identified as prime for redevelopment based future transit, proximity to major thoroughfares, and ongoing public investment. For more information, visit GwinnettCounty.com/ParkPlacePlan
Mobile Career Lab: Climb aboard the Mobile Career Lab to receive assistance from a professional Human Resource Specialist in career planning, job readiness coaching, resume assistance, information about training opportunities, and more. The lab will be parked at the Lawrenceville Branch of Gwinnett County public library on January 16 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Detention Pond Maintenance Workshop: Attend this and learn maintenance guidelines for private property owners and Home Owners’ Associations. Learn how to care for detention ponds in your neighborhood. This will take place on January 16 at 6 p.m. at the Collins Hills Branch of Gwinnett County Public Library.
GwinnettForum is provided to you at no charge every Tuesday and Friday.
Meet our team
- Editor and publisher: Elliott Brack, 770-840-1003
- Managing editor: Betsy Brack
- Contributing columnist: Jack Bernard
- Contributing columnist: George Wilson
More
- Mailing address: P.O. Box 1365, Norcross, Ga. 30091
- Work with us: If you would like to learn about how to be an underwriter to support the publication of GwinnettForum as a community resource for news and commentary, please contact us today.
Subscriptions to GwinnettForum are free.
- Click to subscribe.
- Unsubscribe. We hope you’ll keep receiving the great news and information from GwinnettForum, but if you need to unsubscribe, go to this page and unsubscribe in the appropriate box.
- © 2024, Gwinnett Forum.com. Gwinnett Forum is an online community commentary for exploring pragmatic and sensible social, political and economic approaches to improve life in Gwinnett County, Ga. USA.
Follow Us