Treat your friends and family to an Intimate Christmas Brunch or Dinner Concert with the John Driskell Hopkins Band and the Atlanta Pops Orchestra. John Driskell Hopkins (“Hop”) is a founding and current touring member of the Zac Brown Band. For several years Hop and his band have put their own spin to best loved holiday classics including: Santa Claus is Coming to Town, Santa baby, Here Comes Santa Claus, and scores of others!
Joining John and the band to serve up mouthwatering brunch and dinner is Chef Rusty Hamlin, Executive Chef on tour with the Zac Brown Band. For the evening concert only, 15 members of the Atlanta Pops Orchestra will join the band on stage for a truly memorable experience.
The Olde Towne Athletic Club will host two concerts on Saturday, December 15, 2018. The first concert is a family friendly brunch (yes, with Santa!). The evening concert will be a more upscale, adult-oriented evening featuring our special guest, Wes Henderson of Angels Envy bourbon – and of course special cocktails featuring one of the world’s highest rated spirits. VIP meet and greet opportunities are available for both events.
A silent auction adds to the excitement, you even have the opportunity to bid on a private concert by Hop in your home for your guests.
Both shows benefit the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Click here to go to the ticketing site.
Please contact Lara Dolan for information on donations, and for VIP Tickets and tables. Lara.dolan1969@gmail.com or text to 404.514.6533.
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Real estate agent Janice Overbeck and former Atlanta Falcons player Terance Mathis were the hosts of a celebrity poker fundraiser for Emory ALS last weekend in East Cobb.
Here’s more on the event per a release from the Janice Overbeck Real Estate Team:
A little over one hundred attendees joined together to try their luck in the tournament while raising funds through a silent auction and awareness for Lou Gehrig’s disease. Other local celebrities such as Mark Lee from the band Third Day, Michael Reid (NFL), and Corey Patterson (MLB) came to support the cause and play in the tournament with local fans and event goers.
Through donations, silent auction, and raffle tickets sold, the event raised $20,472 presented to Dr. Jonathan Glass of the Emory ALS Reach Center.
Since its inception in 2016, the Janice Overbeck Real Estate Team’s non-profit, JO Gives, Inc., has hosted fundraising events in addition to making donations to the Emory University ALS Research Center annually.
“After losing my father to ALS in 2015, I have been very passionate about research and finding a cure for this horrible disease. Additional funding is extremely important to better understand the disease and determine possible risk factors. Though research has advanced over the last several years to help m any ALS patients live longer and more productive lives, there is still a lot of work to be done,” says Overbeck.
For more information on current research and clinical trials for ALS or to make a donation please visit the Emory ALS Research Center website.
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The Cobb County Police Community Affairs Unit is conducting its second annual coat drive for those needing them this winter.
Last year more than 2,000 coats and other items were collected as part of “Giving the Gift of Warmth.”
Those wishing to donate new or gently used coats, scarves, hats and gloves can do so now by dropping off items at Cobb Police precincts. In East Cobb, that’s Precinct 4 at the East Cobb Government Service Center (4400 Lower Roswell Road).
The hours to make donations are from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday-Friday, excluding holidays. A cutoff date for the drive will be announced later.
The other precinct locations are as follows:
Pct. 1—2380 Cobb Parkway, Kennesaw;
Pct. 2— 4700 Austell Road, Austell;
Pct. 3—1901 Cumberland Parkway, Atlanta;
Pct. 5—4640 Dallas Highway, Powder Springs;
H.Q.—140 North Marietta Parkway, Marietta.
Those who donate to the coat drive and who are interested in adopting a pet can get the adoption fee waived by the Cobb Department of Animal Services.
To receive a voucher, donate either five hats, five pairs of gloves or one coat. Those items must be new, and you should indicate to the precinct staff where you drop off that you’re interested in getting a pet adoption voucher.
Vouchers can be obtained starting Nov. 19, and can be used for an adoption from Dec. 3-21.
Those who want to donate but cannot do so in person are asked to call Sgt. Jeff Tatroe, the Cobb Police Community Affairs Unit supervisor, at 770-499-3981 or email him at jeff.tatroe@cobbcounty.orgfor a scheduled pick-up.
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She noted that the non-profit she started to help people in need with basic, everyday items is holding an open house Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
They’ve got a warehouse in the Marietta area, and will be giving tours, discussing their programs and asking for volunteers to help them help families in need. Here’s more from Rhodes:
“We’re inviting everyone in our community to stop by the warehouse to chat, grab a bite to eat, meet some clients and learn about our mission. The open house is a great opportunity to see for yourself what Simple Needs GA does for people in need in Cobb County and to learn how you can get involved. Those who take the tour always learn something new about our programs.”
The open house coincides with a donation drive in which SNGA is collecting household items, winter wear and more. For more details, visit simpleneedsga.org.
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On Saturday, Nov. 24, the East Cobb Honest-1 automotive repair business is having its fifth anniversary celebration.
The festivities are from 10-4 and include door prizes, games for kids, a cookout with free hamburgers and hot dogs and a photo opportunity with Cousin Eddie from the “Christmas Vacation” movie.
There also will be a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 11 a.m. with the East Cobb Business Association.
Owner Butch Carter is active in the community as a member of the ECBA and the Rotary Club of East Cobb.
As part of the celebration, Honest-1 also is collecting items for the food pantry at Brumby Elementary School.
You’re asked to bring like peanut butter, jelly, canned meats, beef stew, spaghetti noodles and sauce and granola or breakfast bars.
Anyone who brings a bag with those items to the event will receive a voucher for a free synthetic blend oil change.
Honest-1 is located at 1391 East Cobb Drive, next to the East Cobb Station post office and behind Pinestraw Plaza (Trader Joe’s and California Pizza Kitchen).
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Do you have business news to share? We’ll post your openings and non-sales events here, including charitable activities. E-mail us at editor@eastcobbnews.com.
If you want to promote your business (including sales and specials other than grand openings), email us at advertising@eastcobbnews.com and we’ll be glad to send you a media kit.
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Thanks to Donna Goldenberg for the photo and information about her son Trevor, who for the second year in a row organized the For Three Basketball Clinic for exceptional youth, and a few adults.
She says 18 participants, ranging in age from four years old to 39 years old, turned out for the clinic last Tuesday at the Mt. Bethel Christian Academy high school gym on Post Oak Tritt Road.
In addition, around 20 volunteers took part in helping run the clinic, which was held on Election Day, when Cobb schools are closed.
Donna says the clinicians are selected in various ways, usually by word of mouth. She says Trevor, who’s circled at the bottom left of the photo, began the clinic last year as a bar mitzvah project (the family attends Temple Beth Tikvah in Roswell). He is an 8th grader at Dodgen Middle School and is a member of the school’s Beta Club.
She adds that East Marietta Basketball, a youth organization, and president Clark Humble, is involved as a sponsor of the event.
“We are going to do it again next year and will continue to do it with their help,” she said. “Hopefully, we can get more sponsors next year to make it even bigger and better.”
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Rev. Ike Reighard of MUST Ministries opens the Brumby Elementary School food pantry with students, volunteers and staff. (Cobb County School District photos)
The 31st school in Cobb and Marietta schools to be provided with a food pantry had a ribbon-cutting Thursday. The Brumby Elementary School food pantry is now open to students as part of the non-profit’s Save It Forward initiative.
The pantries are located primarily at Title I public schools in the county to address hunger and nutrition needs for at-risk students.
In the Save It Forward program, volunteer shoppers receive weekly e-mail lists for items that cost less than $6 each. Those items, which also include toiletries, are then stocked on the shelves at the school pantries for students and their families who need them.
Partial funding for the pantries also comes from the United Way of Greater Atlanta. More than 3,000 Cobb students and their families are served by the school pantries.
On hand for Thursday’s event were Cobb Board of Education member Scott Sweeney and State Sen. Kay Kirkpatrick, as well as members of the Rotary Club of East Cobb, which is involved extensively with community service projects at Brumby Elementary School.
Rev. Reighard meets with Charlene Brisco, the Brumby social worker.
Other Save It Forward schools in East Cobb include Lassiter and Sprayberry high schools and McCleskey Middle School.
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Brenda Rhodes receives the East Cobb Citizen of the Year plaque from Johnny Johnson of Edward-Johns Jewelers. (East Cobb News photos by Wendy Parker)
The East Cobb Citizen of the Year for 2018 has an expansive background in community service, but she noticed some seemingly small things from her primary volunteering effort that led to larger action.
Volunteering at MUST Ministries inspired Brenda Rhodes to do something more for the homeless and low-income people who relied upon the non-profit agency for shelter, food and other basic assistance.
In 2010, the East Cobb resident started Small Needs GA, a non-profit that helps those in need with a little more—like bringing tents to those living in the woods, or duffel bags with toiletries and other household items.
It’s grown to much more than that, but her philosophy has remained the same.
“I just happened to see some needs that were being unmet,” Rhodes said Thursday as she was honored by the East Cobb Area Council of the Chamber of Commerce at a breakfast at Indian Hills Country Club.
“So I thought that I should do something about it.”
That was in 2010. Since then, Simple Needs GA has helped hundreds of clients, many of them single mothers with children, often fleeing domestic violence and abuse. Among the items delivered are birthday and Christmas presents, shoes, furniture, bedding and mattresses and school uniforms.
Last year, Simple Needs GA provided birthday gifts and other items to more than 200 homeless children in Cobb through the My Birthday Matters and Spirit of Christmas programs.
Rhodes, who holds down a corporate job as a business analyst at Genesys, says she spends 20-30 hours a week with Simple Needs GA, and even drives delivery trucks.
“It’s actually fun to drive a big truck,” she said.
“Our goal is to meet the needs that aren’t being met” by other agencies. “We’re trying to fill the gap.”
Simple Needs GA accepts donations of money and other items on its website. More about its programs and community partnerships can be found here.
Rhodes has served in many capacities as a community volunteer. In addition to MUST, she has helped with Good Mews Animal Foundation, the Atlanta Community Food Bank, Hands On Atlanta, WellStar Foundation and The Center for Family Resources.
She contributes to local missions teams, sings in the choir at First United Methodist Church of Marietta and belongs to the Georgia Symphony Orchestra Chorus.
Rhodes is a two-time recipient of the National Points of Light Award and was Hands On Atlanta’s Premier Volunteer in 2004.
She is a graduate of the 2016 class of Leadership Cobb and the winner of the 2016 W. Wyman Pilcher Jr. Memorial Grant for community service from the Leadership Cobb Alumni Association.
The East Cobb Area Council chooses the Citizen of the Year from nominations made by members of various community service organizations, including the East Cobb Lions Club, Rotary Club of East Cobb, the East Cobb Civitans Club, the East Cobb Business Association and others.
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Low-income families often have the daily stress of choosing between food and diapers.
Prolonged wearing of a wet diaper causes diaper rash and a crying baby leads to more stress in the home. Local agencies such as the Center for Family Resources, liveSAFE, MUST Ministries and others can only dispense diapers four times a year to their clients, due to the lack of resources. In tough economic times, low-income families face the facts that:
Food stamps do not include hygiene products such as diapers.
On average, the cost to purchase diapers is approximately $100/month.
Day care centers require parents to provide their own diapers.
Declare a day in October to collect diapers from your employees, organization members or friends, or hold a diaper drive in your neighborhood.
Drop off the diaper donations at Glover Park on the Marietta Square on Monday, Oct. 29 from 5-6 p.m.
All donated diapers will be given to Center for Family Resources, liveSAFE Resources, MUST Ministries, Ser Familia, Simple Needs GA and Sweetwater Mission for distribution to help ease some of the burdens of the hundreds of families with infants that enter their doors each month.
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The Atlanta office of Wells Fargo has awarded Simple Needs GA (SNGA) a $5,000 grant to help people in need in Cobb County.
The Human Services & Basic Needs grant will go toward SNGA’s Simple Household Needs program, which provides furniture, household items and cleaning kits to people transitioning out of homelessness or escaping from domestic violence.
“We are deeply honored to receive this generous grant from Wells Fargo’s Atlanta office,” said Brenda Rhodes, an East Cobb resident and Founder and Executive Director of SNGA. “This will help dozens of children and families in need in Cobb. It will translate directly into people moving from the floor or air mattresses to real beds, or finally having kitchen or bath basics that most of us take for granted.”
The Atlanta office of Wells Fargo is proud to support SNGA’s commitment to the community, said Tai A. Roberson, Vice President, Senior Community Development Officer, Wells Fargo Government and Community Relations. Each year, she noted, local offices of the national bank provide similar grants to a wide variety of community organizations across the country.
“At Wells Fargo, we believe that grant-making decisions are more effective when made locally,” Roberson said. “That’s why Wells Fargo is actively involved in the communities where we live and work, and why our team members are leaders in helping our communities succeed.”
SNGA’s Simple Household Needs program provides all-new cleaning kits to help families sanitize and dignify their surroundings. The new laundry baskets are filled with more than a dozen cleaning products and tools—supplies not covered by food stamps. “Social workers help us distribute these kits to families,” Rhodes said. “They also go to our furniture clients and to several agencies who shelter clients in apartments, such as LiveSAFE Resources.”
Via the program, SNGA also relies on donations of household items, including dishes, linens, silverware, microwaves, vacuums and cookware for clients and collects donations of gently used furniture such as beds, tables and chairs, dressers and more. “It’s all the essential items you would need if you had nothing in a new home,” Rhodes families. “Struggling families are typically overjoyed when we drive up in the delivery truck and also when they see all the household items from which they can choose during their appointment at our space. Most leave with no room left in their car. This program helps them live with greater ease and dignity.”
For more information about SNGA or Simple Household Needs, email brenda@simpleneedsga.org.
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Cobb Juvenile Court Judges at Volunteer Dinner honoring CASA Volunteers left to right: Judge Amber Patterson, Judge Wayne Grannis, Judge-Elect Kareem West (Photos courtesy Cobb Juvenile Court)
Thanks to Amanda Marshall, director of the Cobb County law library, for submitting the photos and information about Cobb CASA volunteers being honored by juvenile court judges last week. CASA volunteers are the court’s special-appointed special advocates, and the organization says its looking for more people like them to help out kids who’ve been abused and neglected:
Cobb Juvenile Court Judge Amber Patterson spoke to a group of volunteers at a dinner honoring Cobb County Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) on Oct. 11 at 7pm.
Cobb Juvenile Court JudgeWayne Grannis, and Judge-Elect Kareem West, also attended the event held to show appreciation to CASA Volunteers for their time and dedication to youth in our community.
The event, held at The Conservatory in downtown Acworth, was put together by the CASA Advisory Council. The council is comprised of volunteer members from the community who gain support for the Cobb CASA program by promoting the program in the community, and raising funds. A CASA is a trained volunteer, appointed by a judge, who watches over and advocates for abused and neglected children. CASA volunteers make sure children don’t get lost in the overburdened legal and social service system, and remain on the case until the child is placed in a permanent home.
Judge Patterson, who served as a CASA in law school, recalled her first appointment as a CASA during her speech to volunteers. She related with many of the struggles and triumphs CASA volunteers face during their service. “I remember my very first case, his name was Billy, and he was five,” stated Patterson. “He didn’t choose this life for himself, these were the cards he was dealt.”
After years spent advocating for Billy and trying to find him a permanent home, Billy was placed back into the child welfare system. Patterson recalled a conversation she had with Billy’s previous foster mother. “He doesn’t know anyone, all of these people are strangers to him, he has no one,” said Patterson.
Then the foster mother responded with a powerful message that stayed with her, “He has YOU.” Patterson told volunteers it was at that point her mission as a CASA became clear. “Children like Billy, need a YOU,” Patterson claimed. She continued, “They need someone they can count on, even when the outcome you hope for doesn’t always come to fruition.”
According to the Georgia Association for CASA, there are currently 21,000 children in foster care, and of those, 9,700 children are waiting for a CASA to help them find a safe and loving permanent home. GA CASA states a child who is appointed a CASA is half as likely to languish in the foster care and child welfare system, and that much more likely to find a safe permanent home.
Maricruz Garcia, Cobb CASA Program Coordinator, says there are approximately 100 children in Cobb waiting for a CASA to be assigned to their case. Because there are not enough CASA volunteers to represent all of the children in care, judges typically assign CASA volunteers to their most difficult cases.
“Our program needs more volunteers to serve as the court’s eyes and ears for these children, and to be the child’s voice in the courtroom,” stated Garcia. Garcia urges individuals interested in advocating for abused/neglected children in our community to contact Cobb CASA at casa@cobbcounty.org or by phone at 770-528-2285.
The Juvenile Court of Cobb County Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) Program provides thoroughly screened, expertly trained, and fully supervised community-based, citizen volunteers to advocate for the best interests of children involved in juvenile court dependency proceedings.
Cobb County Court Appointed Special Advocates speak up for the needs and basic human rights of child victims of abuse and neglect, one child at a time. Cobb County CASA is a program of the Juvenile Court of Cobb County, affiliated with Georgia CASA, Inc., and a member of the National CASA Association, Inc.
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From the office of Cobb Commissioner JoAnn Birrell, who recognized the East Cobb Lions Club at Tuesday’s meeting:
The East Cobb Lions Club has a legacy of service that spans 60 years! They received their charter July 14, 1958 from the Lions Clubs International to serve the eastern portions of Cobb County. The East Cobb Lions have conducted fundraisers of every kind and have worked tirelessly to benefit the citizens of East Cobb and Cobb County.
Their efforts over the past 60 years helped lead the expansion of the Cobb County Library System and they have been vigilant in providing eye exams and glasses for countless children and adults.
The East Cobb Lions’ work is not limited to services in Georgia for they have provided training and dog guides which restore independence and mobility through Leader Dogs for the Blind in Rochester Hills, MI and Southeastern Guide Dogs in Palmetto, FL.
As part of their greater mission they support Lions Clubs International Foundation which provides disaster relief both within our state and internationally and works to eradicate measles and preventable causes of blindness throughout the world.
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Thanks to Kali Mann of the YMCA of Metro Atlanta for the information and photos of last week’s food and housing insecurity outreach event involving Cobb YMCA volunteers, including those from the East Cobb-McCleskey Family and Northeast Cobb branches:
On Saturday, September 15, nearly 80 volunteers assembled more than 300 meal kits and toiletry kits, and knitted 50 blankets for Cobb’s food and housing insecure individuals. Volunteers included employees from J.M. Huber Corporation, members and employees from the Northwest, McCleskey, and Northeast Family YMCAs, and non-Y members.
Helping Cobb’s needy families is not new to the YMCA. Now that the “Days of Service” event is complete, the Northwest YMCA in Kennesaw will begin gathering food to feed Cobb’s children during the Fall and Winter breaks.
“Over the past 160 years, the Y has evolved to meet the unmet needs within communities around the Metro Atlanta area,” said Kristin McEwen, senior VP of operations for the YCMA of Metro Atlanta. “While times have changed since the Y’s founding in 1858, the Y’s focus on serving the community has not.”
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Lingering issues over Cobb non-profit funding have been put on hold by county commissioners, who want more time to go over proposals to spend $850,000 for grants to 15 local community service providers.
Rev. Ike Reighard
At last week’s commissioners meeting, they agreed to delay action, possibly to Sept. 25 when they meet again to conduct regular business.
The funding has been set aside in the fiscal year 2019 budget commissioners adopted in July, and would be distributed over the next two years.
Most of the organizations are part of the Cobb Collaborative, an umbrella organization that coordinates non-profit county grant funding.
Last year, commissioners changed the criteria for awarding grants to non-profits. The agencies must provide services related to homelessness, family stability and poverty, ex-offender re-entry and workforce development, and health and wellness.
According to Cobb deputy county manager Jackie McMorris, the Cobb Collaborative received 27 applications for grant funding, totaling $1.8 million, before making the recommendations contained in the chart below.
Several leaders of those non-profits on the recommended list spoke at Tuesday’s meeting about how they spend that money, and how it’s still needed.
Jeri Barr of the Center for Family Resources, which focuses on homelessness issues, said losing that funding “could be a death-knell for a number of non-profits.”
CFR would receive $141,339 under the current grant recommendation, the largest for any of the non-profit agencies on the list. Of that amount, $127,205 would be used directly for homeless-related programs, especially housing assistance.
“We help hundreds of families stay in their homes” with financial assistance that includes rent payments, she said, adding that that kind of stability keeps kids in schools.
Because of its Cobb grant funding, CFR also gets a federal match from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Barr said.
MUST Ministries, which is best known for operating a homeless shelter in Cobb, also provides housing and employment services for its clients.
The non-profit reported 2017 revenues of $10.6 million, and would receive $53,002 in Cobb grant funding under the proposal.
Rev. Ike Reighard, senior pastor at the Piedmont Church in East Cobb and the MUST president and CEO, told commissioners that of that $52,002, two-thirds of it, or around $35,000, goes for shelter services.
The remainder would be used for providing employment services for clients in the South Cobb area.
“You’ve been great partners to us over the years,” Reighard said.
Commissioners expressed some differences not only on how to spend the money, but whether to do it at all.
South Cobb commissioner Lisa Cupid was upset that other agencies weren’t included on the list that serve her community.
Commissioner JoAnn Birrell of Northeast Cobb said she’s concerned about spending taxpayer money involuntarily for such services and favors a voluntary process to fund non-profits.
Ott also has expressed similar sentiments, but his motion to table non-profit action was because he wasn’t at a work session on Monday in which the recommendations were outlined.
“It’s the first time I’m seeing this list,” he said.
Commission chairman Mike Boyce said without the services these agencies provide, the county would likely have to spend more money on incarceration and public health.
“What is the value of this county? Is this for the greater good of the county? My answer is, yes.”
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Thanks to Crystal Bradshaw for letting us know about the return of the Fore the Cure Golf Tournament at Indian Hills next month, as part of a larger fundraising and awareness campaign for breast cancer programs across the state:
Join us on Monday, October 22nd at Indian Hills Country Club for the fourth annual “Fore the Cure” golf tournament benefiting It’s The Journey, a local 501c3 that raises money exclusively for breast health and breast cancer programs in Georgia. This event is chaired by longtime East Cobb residents George and Kathy Bartelme.
“We love that It’s The Journey is a small organization making a big impact in our community. Since 2002, they have funded 335 grants totaling $14 million to support everything from breast exams, to biopsies, to research, all right here in Georgia. As a breast cancer survivor, it meant a lot to me find an organization that was helping the women and men in my community in meaningful, tangible ways.”
The Bartelme support has evolved into an annual golf tournament that is now in its fourth year. The annual “Fore the Cure” golf tournament has raised over $140,000 since 2015. This year the tournament will take place on Monday, October 22nd at the Indian Hills Country Club. Registration begins at 8:00 am, with a shotgun start at 9:30 am. Participants will receive the use of a golf cart, lunch, 18 holes of golf, and prizes for golf challenges. Individual, foursome, and corporate sponsorships are available as well as donations for the silent auction and in-kind gifts. It is a very fun tournament and players consist of both members/non-members of Indian Hills as well as men and women.
There will also be a silent auction the day of the tournament. Items for auction include golf packages, sports memorabilia, original artwork, themed gift baskets, and more.
The fight against breast cancer is not a single battle. It’s an ongoing struggle that is faced with courage and determination. It is, in fact, a journey. It’s The Journey, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization founded in 2002 that raises funds for Georgia breast cancer organizations offering support to many women and men across the state.
It’s The Journey, Inc.’s mission is to support Georgians by raising money for breast health and breast cancer programs that focus on screening, diagnostics, genetic counseling and testing, support services, and research.
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The group estimates more than $70,000 was raised for a number of East Cobb and other local charities it works with, including East Cobb charities, including School Mates Literacy Project, Canine Assistance, Aids Awareness, The Center for Family Resources, Cobb County Public Safety and Kids2Leaders Inc.
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A record total of 694 people took part Saturday morning in the 13th East Cobb Rotary Club Dog Days Run, which started and ended at the East Cobb-McCleskey Family YMCA.
The 5K event took place along East Piedmont Road and Sewell Mill Road before winding back along Roswell Road to the YMCA. The proceeds will benefit a number of East Cobb charities, including School Mates Literacy Project, Canine Assistance, Aids Awareness, The Center for Family Resources, Cobb County Public Safety and Kids2Leaders Inc.
Runners were cooled off by the Cobb Fire Department as they made the final turn back into the YMCA.
Post-race refreshments included bottled water, donuts and plenty of bananas. Local businesses, including Honest-1 Auto Care, Tuxedo Pest Control, Cheek Dental, Dentistry of East Piedmont, Fitness Together East Cobb, Big Peach Running Co., MDE School, Dermatology Consultants and The Solana East Cobb had information booths.
Also on hand were members of East Cobb Robotics, who later shot small rubber balls into the souvenir-seeking crowds.
Blooper, the Atlanta Braves mascot, also turned out for the festivities.
Some of the top winners. Medals were awarded across all age groups, ranging from under 10 to the 80s. There even was a woman runner who is 99 years old.
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This year the show, which takes place next Sunday, July 22, will benefit the Orphan Annie Animal Rescue organization, and the event has been expanded.
Here’s more about Orphan Annie, and below is the message Bradley’s is getting out about the show, including a sign-up link if you’d like to have your car registered.
We will have all of the excitement of last year plus much more! Join us July 22 from 3 PM to 7 PM for live music, outdoor food specials and entertainment, frozen treats, games, prizes and of course, lots of awesome automobiles! See you there!
Registration Info: All makes, models and types of automobile are welcome! To register, participants must FIRST purchase a Vehicle Registration ticket on Eventbrite. SECOND, participants must register their vehicle information at BradleysBarandGrill.com. A Vehicle Registration ticket is admission for one vehicle and 2 participants. General Admission tickets are sold separately! A portion of proceeds will be donated to Orphan Annie Animal Rescue to support our local pets in need!
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After donating more than $100,000 this week to help Cobb County acquire some of the Tritt property (previous East Cobb Newspost here), the Friends for the East Cobb Park is replenishing its endowment with a new fundraising campaign.
The contribution made by the non-profit citizens group helped Cobb take in nearly 30 acres of the adjacent Tritt land, and complete green space purchase around the county with $27 million of a 10-year-old parks bond referendum finally funded last year.
At Tuesday’s Cobb commission meeting, District 2 commissioner Bob Ott said he would be chipping in to help Friends begin its fund drive, and here’s what he sent us and is sharing with his constituents and the community today:
I, along with the rest of the Board of Commissioners, am especially grateful to Friends for the East Cobb Park. You may have read in the newspaper that this nonprofit group contributed to make up for a shortfall in County funds needed to close this purchase. The final figure isn’t available just yet but is expected to be over $100,000. You’ll recall that this is the group of community volunteers who raised over $1 million to purchase the original 13-acres of the East Cobb Park almost 20 years ago. This is a very unique public/private partnership that we are all very proud of. The Friends group once again stepped up to assist so that the east Cobb community’s much-loved park can literally double in size.
What wasn’t in the paper is that these funds came from an endowment fund established over 15 years ago from a generous grant matched by funds that the group raised. Interest from this endowment has been used over the years to make various improvements to the park. The Friends group, with the assistance of the Cobb Community Foundation where the fund is held, received permission to utilize some of the principal from the account to cover this shortfall, with a promise to launch a new fundraising campaign to raise money to replenish the fund.
The board of Friends for the East Cobb Park is planning to launch a new fundraising campaign, and you can soon learn more about it on their website www.eastcobbpark.org. It’s my hope that the east Cobb community will rise to the occasion and consider participating in the campaign. Remember that the community will one day have the opportunity to purchase the remaining acreage, and any funds raised over and above the amount needed to restore the endowment fund will be earmarked to assist with this potential purchase down the road. I have heard from many, many of you over the years regarding the Tritt property, and now the east Cobb community will have the opportunity to be a part of this exciting project. I have personally pledged $1,000 to the campaign, and challenge each of you to consider how you and your family can help. To make a tax-deductible contribution please make your check payable to “Friends for the East Cobb Park” and mail it to P.O. Box 6313 Marietta, Georgia 30065.
I’ll continue to provide updates in my newsletter and look forward to seeing a long list of supporters!
The Friends for the East Cobb Park has set up an online payment system via PayPal, and you can contribute directly at this link, in any amount that you like. You can make a one-time contribution or set up a monthly payment.
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“Why Non-Profits Are Good for Small Business” is the title of the panel discussion at the ECBA’s monthly luncheon on Tuesday. It takes place from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Olde Towne Athletic Club (4950 Olde Towne Parkway).
The speakers are Dawn Reed of Aloha to Aging, Inc., Natalie Rutledge of the Cobb Schools Foundation, Tom Gonter of MUST Ministries and Mary Kay Boler of TAG-Ed Education Collaborative.
The cost for the luncheon is $20 in advance for ECBA members, $25 in advance for guests, and $30 at the door. Online registration can be done here.
A couple of stories related to these groups that we’ve posted recently: Aloha to Aging, the East Cobb-based non-profit that works with seniors and their caregivers, is holding a gala celebration at Kennesaw State in August as a fundraiser as it expands its services.
In January the Cobb Schools Foundation held a Casino Night fundraiser at SunTrust Park to benefit its programs that assist the Cobb County School District.
The Marietta-based MUST Ministries operates a homeless shelter and services for families and individuals in need.
Also next week, the Northeast Cobb Business Association will hold its monthly luncheon. It’s Wednesday from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Piedmont Church (570 Piedmont Road), and the guest speaker is Dana Johnson, director of the Cobb Community Development Department.
The cost is $15 for members and $25 for members and online registration can be done here.
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Every Sunday we round up the week’s top headlines and preview the upcoming week in the East Cobb News Digest. Click here to sign up, and you’re good to go!
