GwinnettForum | Number 25.23 | March 21, 2025
IN THE LONG BROWN COAT is a hero of the American Revolution, the Marquis de LaFayette, visiting the tomb of General George Washinton in 1824, when he was 67 years old, on the invitation of President James Monroe Read more about his visit to the United States in Today’s Focus below.
TODAY’S FOCUS: Why the USA still celebrates the Marquis de Lafayette
EEB PERSPECTIVE: Gwinnett company hits $1 billion in sales in 2024
SPOTLIGHT: Heaven and Alvarez, LLC
FEEDBACK: Raises issues with recent Forum contributor
UPCOMING: City of Mulberry hires interim city manager
NOTABLE: Commission funds several local projects
RECOMMENDED: ECO BARONS, by Edward Humes
GEORGIA TIDBIT: Early pamphleteer in colony later supported the Crown
MYSTERY PHOTO: Can you identify this peaceful mountain scene?
CALENDAR: 5K run is 9 a.m. March 22 in Peachtree Corners
Why the USA still celebrates the Marquis de Lafayette
(Editor’s note: The following contribution comes from the April, 2025 Lafayette BiCentennial edition of Tap Roots, The Journal of the Genealogical Society of East Alabama, of which Tom Fort is the editor.—eeb)
By Tom Fort
SNELLVILLE, Ga. | Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, the Marquis de Lafayette, was born into French aristocracy in 1757. Orphaned young, he inherited great wealth but little guidance.
As a teenager, he trained for military service and was inspired by the ideals of the American Revolution. Defying family and government opposition, he sailed to America in 1777. Despite speaking little English, he impressed General George Washington, who became his mentor, forging a lifelong father-son bond.
Marquis de LaFayette in a 1791 portrait by Jean-Baptiste Weyler, via Wikipedia.
Lafayette’s first combat was the Battle of Brandywine, where he was wounded while organizing an orderly retreat. His bravery earned him command of troops, and he fought in key campaigns, enduring the winter at Valley Forge alongside his men.
Recognizing the need for support for the Colonists, he returned to France in 1779 and secured crucial aid. Back in America, he played a key role in Virginia, helping trap British General Cornwallis at Yorktown. His strategic leadership, particularly his bold maneuvering to cut off British reinforcements, helped secure the final victory. His attack on a key redoubt contributed to the British surrender in 1781, effectively ending the war.
After the Revolution, Lafayette maintained close ties with the U.S. while advocating reform in France. Initially supporting a constitutional monarchy, he was later imprisoned during the French Revolution. Released in 1797, he refused to support Napoleon and remained politically marginalized. Following his wife Adrienne’s death in 1807, he continued championing democratic ideals, rejecting opportunities for personal gain to remain committed to the principles of liberty.
In 1824, President James Monroe invited Lafayette to the U.S. to mark the Revolution’s 50th anniversary. As the last surviving major general of the war, his visit united Americans in celebration. Arriving in New York that August, he toured all 24 states, receiving overwhelming admiration.
Accompanied by his son, George Washington Lafayette, and secretary Auguste Levasseur, he chronicled his journey, including a winter stay in Washington, D.C., and an invitation from Alabama’s governor to visit the young state. His travels took him beyond civilization into the expanding frontier, where he witnessed firsthand the nation’s growth and transformation.
A deeply emotional moment came on October 11, 1824, when Lafayette visited Mount Vernon to honor Washington. Accompanied by his son and a small delegation, he stepped inside Washington’s tomb and, overwhelmed with grief, knelt before the sarcophagus. He reportedly took a handful of soil as a keepsake and received a gold ring containing a lock of Washington’s hair from Washington’s adopted grandson. In that moment, the young officer who had once looked to Washington for guidance now stood as an aging statesman, paying tribute to the man who had shaped his life and the destiny of a nation.
Lafayette’s tour reinforced his role in American history, strengthening U.S.-France relations and reminding Americans of their revolutionary past. When he departed in 1825, he left behind a legacy of loyalty, courage, and dedication to liberty. Today, nearly 200 years later, his commitment to self-government and individual rights remains an enduring inspiration. His name graces many places across the country.
Lafayette’s dedication to freedom and democracy continues to symbolize the ideals America holds dear, ensuring that his contributions to liberty will never be forgotten.
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Gwinnett company hits $1 billion in sales in 2024
By Elliott Brack
Editor and Publisher, GwinnettForum
MARCH 21, 2025 | A Gwinnett County company has achieved a significant goal: sales of $1 billion in the calendar year 2024.
That company is Mingledorff’s of Peachtree Corners, the heating, air conditioning and plumbing distributor in Georgia, Alabama, part of South Carolina, in the panhandle of Florida and southeastern Mississippi. Its headquarters is at 6675 Jones Mill Road, just off Peachtree Boulevard.
Bud Mingledorff, chairman of the board, says it was close: “We hit $1 billion in sales at 1:30 in the afternoon of December 31.”
Theo Stathakis, marketing manager, remembers: “We knew we were close to achieving that goal, so our sales team was pushing to get all the sales we could in that year.”
Sales in 2023 had ended at $847 million. Stathakis says: “We thought that the $1 billion in sales would arrive in 2025, but it surprised us that it came in 2024, but just barely.” Mingledorffs has 780 employees in its 41 locations.
Bud Mingledorff
Mingledorff’s was founded in Savannah in 1939 by Walter Lee Mingledorff, then a 25 year old Georgia Tech engineer. It was originally a franchised Carrier heating and cooling equipment installation contractor. It moved its operations to Atlanta in 1958, and to Gwinnett in 1985.
The company’s first job was to install an air conditioning system in Mindledorff’s father-in-law’s Savannah home. He was from Canada and didn’t like hot weather. His was the first air conditioner in Savannah. That original Carrier compressor was still operating when it was replaced in 1988, after 49 years of operation.
Before World War II came, Mingledorff bid on a government contract to build one minesweeper for the Navy, before there was a shipyard in Savannah. The firm, under the name of Savannah Machine and Foundry, constructed the shipyard, then built 25 minesweepers and four submarine rescue vessels. At their peak of production, the shipyard employed between 2,800-3,300 people.
When the war ended, Mingledorff became a direct distributor for Carrier Company in 1946. Since 1958, Mingledorffs has concentrated on wholesale distribution and industrial accounts. Today it is a dealer for Carrier, Bryant, Totaline, Weathermaker, Heil and Bard equipment.
Meanwhile, Walter Lee Mingledorff became the youngest president of the Savannah Chamber of Commerce, then served for three terms as mayor of Savannah. He moved the company headquarters to Atlanta in 1958, but then lost a race for Chatham County commissioner. He died in 1965.
By 1959, the company had achieved sales of $2 million. In those days, it had nine employees. Bud Mingledorff, Walter’s son, says: “When I got out of the Army in 1970, we had grown to $12.5 million in sales. I never expected that I would live long enough to see us grow to $1 billion in sales.”
He adds: “Our mission has always been to remain the same: to equip our heating and air conditioning wholesale customers, the companies that install our equipment, to be professionals and to succeed. Our top objective is to provide these dealers and contractors with the tools and equipment needed for continued success. So far, we have had 9,800 of our professional customers attend the dealer training sessions. That totals over 50,000 hours of professional training to make these people better at installing our equipment.” This training is in-person and online.
All the Mingledorff employees benefitted once the $1 billion in sales was reached. Bud Mingledorff recognized: “It wasn’t possible to get everyone together for a celebration, but we provided everyone with their choice of a significant gift from a catalog, allowing them a tangible recognition of something of value to them.”
Congratulations, Mingledorffs, for $1 billion in sales in one year!
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Raises issues with recent Forum contributor
Editor, the Forum:
In the GwinnettForum on March 18 (“With no mandate, Trump oversteps his boundary”), why did Mike Wood not state that our country has a $37 trillion debt crisis and reduction of federal spending is necessary to prevent a debt crisis?
Using Elon to reduce spending is a great move. Also, why are the left-leaning people in this country supporting violent illegal aliens staying in the country? They also supported ending DEI and men in women sports and locker rooms as Title 9, an American law, does not support.
The American people voted for these changes and it’s happening now.
– Stewart Ogilvie, Rehobeth, Ala.
(Dear Stewart: who sez the left-leaners support violent illegal aliens? Or DEI? This does not seem to jive with the majority opinion of the voters in the 2024 election.—eeb)
Another viewpoint of Mike Wood’s comments
Editor, the Forum:
In response to Mike Wood’s article, I was an employee of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and its predecessor, the Civil Service Commission for my entire 29 year career. While in its employ our mission was to provide services to agencies such as background investigations, help with staffing by conducting civil service examinations, providing training courses and evaluation of agency personnel programs. It both saddens and angers me to see how OPM is now being used.
It seems to me that in carrying out its current destruction of the Federal Government, the Administration is using A-I, no, not Artificial Intelligence, but Arrogance and Ignorance.
– John Titus, Peachtree Corners
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.
City of Mulberry hires interim city manager
Palmer
The City of Mulberry has announced an interim city manager. He is Jamie Palmer, 34, who for nine years was with the City of Woodstock, his last position being Special Projects Manager and assistant to the city Manager. Mayor Michael Coker says: “His experience in local government and project management makes him the perfect person to lead our city.”
Palmer was born in Newnan. His father was a Methodist minister. He was raised in Rome, and is a graduate of Reinhardt University. He is single and lives in Marietta, and anticipates moving to the Gwinnett area.
Besides Palmer, the city has two employees, including Chandler-Faith Pitts, who is the city clerk. Bill Riley of the law firm Riley McLendon of Marietta is the city attorney. The firm contracts with three companies for planning and zoning, finance and internet services.
The city meets twice monthly in its offices at 2089 Teron Trace, suite 120, in Dacula.
Commission funds several local projects
The Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners acted on several initiatives during its March 18 meeting. A recap of what the Board approved follows.
- Ivy Creek Greenway boardwalk renovations. The Board awarded Steele and Associates of Alpharetta Inc. a contract not to exceed $1.3 million to renovate the Ivy Creek Greenway boardwalk. Originally built in 2008, the boardwalk connects the Mall of Georgia to The Preserve at Mill Creek Apartments and the Gwinnett Environmental and Heritage Center.Work is expected to begin in the third quarter of 2025, following material delivery. The project is funded by the 2023 SPLOST program.
- Jimmy Carter Boulevard Master Plan: the Board approved a $440,000 contract with TSW of Atlanta to develop a master plan for Jimmy Carter Boulevard. This project is part of the Atlanta Regional Commission’s Livable Centers Initiative with $320,000 in grant funding and a $120,000 local match.
- New monument signs for government buildings: the Board awarded a $224,000 contract to A-1 Signs, Inc. of Norcross for the installation of new monument signs at several County facilities, including:
- One Justice Square to be renamed Innovation Square.
- Government Annex to be renamed Connections Corner.
- Courts Annex to be renamed Gwinnett Traffic Court and Juvenile Justice Building.
These rebranded building names aim to enhance public navigation and reflect the County’s evolving services.
- Gwinnett Place Transit Center architectural and engineering design: The Board approved a $3.5 million contract with Wendel Architecture, PC of Atlanta to provide architectural and engineering design services for the new Gwinnett Place Transit Center. Funded 80 percent by the Federal Transit Administration, this project will create a modern transit hub at the Gwinnett Place Mall site. A multi-department review committee evaluated proposals based on quality management, technical expertise, transit knowledge and experience, with Wendel Architecture scoring the highest.
ECO BARONS, by Edward Humes
From Rick Krause, Lilburn: This is a fascinating story of some of the folks who have dedicated their lives and much of their fortune for the good of Planet Earth. This well-researched-and -well-written non-fiction work tells the stories of rags-to-riches men and women who devoted their lives and fortunes to saving the earth from the spoils of overdevelopment and destruction. The hardcover subtitle is The Dreamers, Schemers, and Millionaires Who Are Saving Our Planet. Included are Doug Tomkins, Esprit de Corps; Roxanne Quimby, Burt’s Bees; Ted Turner, media mogul—all millionaires and then some; and Kieran Suckling and Peter Galvin, the uncompromising founders of the Center for Biological Diversity, certainly not wealthy barons. Since its publication date, 2009, Jeff Bezos, Amazon founder, would be considered an Eco Baron, even though his heart’s certainly not in it. This is a fascinating and compelling read, highly recommended.” The full title is ECO BARONS—The New Heroes of Environmental Activism.
- 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.
Early pamphleteer in colony later supported the Crown
John Zubly, a Calvinist minister, was the first pastor of the Independent Presbyterian Church in Savannah. A religious leader known throughout the colonies, the Reverend John Zubly was a revolutionary pamphleteer whose broadsides supporting the colonies in their disputes with Britain were widely distributed on both sides of the Atlantic. Notwithstanding his fame and importance during the years of 1750 through 1775, he has been all but forgotten because he became a Loyalist when he found himself unable to support the war for independence from Britain.
John Joachim Zubly was born Hans Joachim Zublin, in St. Gall, Switzerland, on August 27, 1724. Zubly was ordained in the German Reformed Church in London in 1744. He arrived in South Carolina soon after his ordination. In 1746 Zubly married Anna Tobler, the daughter of the publisher John Tobler.
In 1748 Zubly accepted a position as pastor to the Wappetaw Independent Congregational Church in Wappetaw, S.C. In 1760 he accepted a position as the first pastor of the Independent Presbyterian Church of Savannah.
Zubly was quick to take up the pen to defend the colonies in their conflicts with Britain or to expose the attempts of the official Anglican Church to tyrannize those who held different religious views. Beginning in 1766 with the Stamp Act crisis, Zubly wrote a series of pamphlets on the various controversies between the colonists and the British authorities. His most widely circulated work was written at the request of the 1775 Provincial Congress of Georgia. In this work Zubly addressed the King’s representative in the American colonies, the earl of Dartmouth. Zubly described the nature of the atrocities committed by the British against the Americans and warned of the consequences. This work was reprinted in London Magazine in January 1776 as an articulate explanation of the case for the colonies.
From the first day of his term in the Continental Congress, Zubly opposed independence.
On November 10, 1775, Zubly left Philadelphia and returned to Georgia. He was branded a traitor because of his opposition to independence. On July 1, 1776, the Council of Safety of Georgia ordered his arrest. He was banished from Georgia, and half of his property was confiscated. A crowd of patriots stormed his home and threw his library into the Savannah River. He took refuge with Loyalists in South Carolina, but returned to Savannah when the British retook the town in 1778.
Zubly’s pen, however, was not silenced. In 1780 and 1781 Zubly wrote a series of nine essays under the pseudonym of Helvetius. These essays were published in The Royal Georgia Gazette and in John Tobler’s The South-Carolina and Georgia Almanack for the Year of Our Lord 1781. In these essays Zubly used international law and the Bible to show that Americans were not fighting a legal revolution but were engaged in an illegal and unjust rebellion of which God disapproved.
Zubly would never witness the dramatic turn in the fortunes of the Americans and their eventual victory at Yorktown, Va., in October 1781. On July 23, 1781, he died, peacefully, surrounded by family and friends and confident that history had proved he was justified in the rightness of his opposition to the war for independence.
- To view the Georgia Encyclopedia article online, go to https://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org
Can you identify this peaceful mountain scene?
From reeds, to water, to mountains, here’s a beautiful Mystery Photo. Can you determine where this photograph was made? If so, send your idea to ebrack2@gmail.com, and include your hometown.
The last mystery photo came from Rick Krause of Lilburn. The only readers to recognize it were Allan Peel of San Antonio, Texas, and George Graf of Palmyra, Va. Peel wrote: “Today’s mystery photo is an old photo of the Chicamacomico Life-Saving Station located in the unincorporated community of Rodanthe on Cape Hatteras in North Carolina. It was used by the United States Life-Saving Service and later the U.S. Coast Guard, to conduct sea rescues along the dangerous waters of the Outer Banks, an area known for frequent shipwrecks due to shifting sandbars and storms.
“This life-saving station was one of the first of seven built along the Outer Banks in 1874. It was expanded substantially in 1911 to include the main building shown in the mystery photo, as well as five other outbuildings (not visible in the mystery photo). The site continued to operate until 1954, after which it was transformed into a museum and is now managed by the National Park Service. It is one of the most significant and well-preserved life-saving stations in the United States.
“The Chicamacomico Life-Saving Station has saved many lives throughout its history, including the ‘Mirlo Rescue’, when, on August 16, 1918, the British tanker HMS Mirlo was traveling off the Outer Banks of North Carolina, carrying a cargo of gasoline from New Orleans to Norfolk. As it neared Rodanthe, it was torpedoed by the German U-117 boat, which ignited the gasoline, causing massive explosions and turning the surrounding ocean into a burning inferno. The crew of 51 men was forced to abandon ship, escaping into lifeboats, but many were trapped by the flames. In the end, the Chicamacomico crew were able to reach 42 of the Mirlo crew and bring them safely to shore.”
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5K run is 9 a.m. March 22 in Peachtree Corners
Georgia Mobile Audiology is offering a free health screening for ages 3–22 at the Norcross Public Library on March 22 from 10 to 11 a.m. They will also assist with the next steps by offering resources for those who may need them. Registration is preferred, but not required.
Bloom into Spring by hearing author and garden expert Teresa Speight in conversation with horticulturalist Abra Lee as they discuss Black Flora, which celebrates the vibrant legacy and future of Black floral artists and entrepreneurs. This will be March 22 at 11 a.m. at the Duluth Branch of Gwinnett County Public Library.
Family-friendly 5K run will be Saturday, March 22 at 9 a.m. at the Peachtree Corners Baptist Church, 4480 Peachtree Corners Circle, hosted by the church and Neighborhood Cooperative Ministries. Lace up your running shoes and support a great cause! Register here! Enjoy a scenic, chip-timed race through a quiet neighborhood, complete with a race t-shirt, post-race refreshments and medals for top finishers.
Tchaikovsky’s 6th Symphony will be featured at the Gwinnett Symphony Orchestra on Sunday, March 23, at 7 p.m. at the Discovery High School in Lawrenceville. Conductors will be Robert Trocina and Gregory Pritchard. Other works featured will be by Brahms and Barber. For more details: info@gwinnettsymphony.org.
Heritage of Duluth will host a reception celebrating the cultural heritage of Duluth on March 25 at 5 p.m. at Dreamland Barbecue. The Society will unveil its newest art acquisition, an original painting of The Belle, a railroad locomotive, by Ann Odum. The Belle was famous for its daily commuter run from Toccoa to Atlanta. Kathryn Willis will receive the Society’s Impact Awards, and her sister, Ann Odum, will be honored as historian of the year. The Society is fundraising to preserve the Knox Family Cabin at the Duluth Depot Museum.
Speaking at PDC in Norcross at 45 South Café on March 26 will be Attorney Jonathan Tonge, on the subject of bringing suit against those in sexual trafficking. The meeting starts at 8:15 a.m. All are welcome. There are no attendance or dues requirements.
Gwinnett Economic Outlook will be March 27 at 11:30 a.m. at the John C. Maxwell Leadership Center at 12Stone Church. Speaker will be Dr. Alfie Meek, director of the Center for Economic Development Research at Georgia Tech.
Science, Spiders, and the Wolbachia Mystery is the subject of a discussion by Dr. James Russell, professor of biology at Georgia Gwinnett College. This will be March 28 at noon at the Lawrenceville Branch of Gwinnett County Public Library. He will discuss Wolbachia spiders in general, and the research findings at Georgia Gwinnett College on the infection in Joro spiders found in Georgia.
Recycling and Spring Clean Up Day in the City of Norcross will be Saturday, March 29, from 8 a.m. until noon at Norcross Public Works, 345 Lively Avenue. Residents will be able to drop off their paper for shredding, as well as electronics, batteries, scrap metal, and paint (limit to five containers) for recycling as well as bulky junk items for disposal or donation.
Braselton Community Clean-Up Day will be Saturday, March 29. Meet at 8:30 a.m. at 100 High Point Parkway, located near Hwy 211 and Friendship Rd (behind the Chick-fil-a.) From there, groups, teams, individuals, and families will be dispersed into different areas of our community to pick up trash.
The 53rd annual Lilburn Daze is now accepting applications for vendors and sponsors. This event will be held in Lilburn City Park on Saturday, October 11, 2025. For more information and applications please visit Lilburn daze.org.
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