Renderings of The Avenue East Cobb’s dining space in the forthcoming “jewel boxes.”
As we posted last month, The Avenue East Cobb will be unveiling its new plaza on Sept. 7 with a cocktail celebration.
Today, tickets went on sale for the event, which lasts from 6-9 p.m., which costs $75 a person, with all proceeds being donated to MUST Ministries.
There will be food samplings from new restaurants, an open bar with bourbon tastings, music and other entertainment. Attire is cocktail-appropriate, what North American Properties, The Avenue’s management company, describes as “garden party chic.”
The Plaza is the centerpiece of the retail center’s redevelopment, which has been underway since last December.
The public square will include a music stage and dining areas near the new “jewel box” restaurant space, which includes Press Waffle Co., as well as Peach State Pizza, which is moving into the former Stockyard Burgers & Bones space.
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The following East Cobb residential real estate sales were compiled from agency reports. They include the subdivision name and high school attendance zone in parenthesis:
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!
Scouts from Troop 1011, sponsored by the Rotary Club of East Cobb.
A woman crossed the finish line carrying a baby.
A short time before, a woman expecting a baby completed her run.
So did families, couples, flag-bearing Boy Scouts and quite a few people with dogs.
It’s the Dog Days Run, of course, and canines were warmly welcomed as participants enjoyed a pleasant Saturday morning event at at the McCleskey Family-East Cobb YMCA.
It was the 18th running of the Rotary Club of East Cobb, and it was a record-setting one.
The 5K/Fun Run attracted around 600 runners, which has been typical in recent years.
But the combination of race registrations and sponsorships netted more than $100,000 for the first time in what’s the Rotary Club’s biggest fundraiser of the year, president Butch Carter said.
The Rotary Club hands out the proceeds to more than 20 local non-profits and charities (list here), ranging from MUST Ministries to the Friends for the East Cobb Park to the Cobb Library Foundation and more.
Those recipients will be honored at a “Give Back” dinner next March.
The Dog Days Run is a Peachtree Road Race qualifier, and awards were given out across a number of categories—including one for actual dogs—and human age groups.
This year’s sponsors included Dentistry at East Piedmont, Wellstar Health System, Malon D. Mimms Company, The Hanna Family, The Romanoff Family, Honest-1 Auto Care, Indian Hills Country Club and more.
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Scoot Henderson, a former basketball standout at Kell High School who will soon begin his NBA career, is sponsoring a back-to-school event with his family in the East Cobb area this weekend.
The event is called O.D.D-CON, which stands for “Overly Determined to Dominate,” and includes sports, technology, entertainment and empowerment segments for youth.
It’s being held Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Next Play 360 basketball training facility (2910 Canton Road), which is run by his parents. The event will also provide school supplies for students in need.
There is no charge to attend O.D.D.-Con, which will feature speakers and panelists who will discuss entrepreneurship, wellness, STEM education, and personal development, along with friendly competition in basketball, volleyball and pickleball, as well as yoga and meditation sessions.
Also on tap are live musical and artistic performances, interactive art installations, workshops led by local artists and musicians and a curated fashion show with local designers and models.
“Overly Determined to Dominate, is a mindset coined by Scoot, a way of thinking, doing, living and attaching your path to the life you want to achieve,” according to a press release announcing the event.
Henderson led the Kell Longhorns to the 2021 Georgia High School Association Class 6A title game, where they lost to Wheeler.
For the last two years he played in the G-League, a developmental basketball circuit, and was recently the third pick in the NBA draft, chosen by the Portland Trail Blazers.
His sister, Crystal Henderson, led the Kell girls team to the 2023 GHSA Class 5A state title and is a freshman at Georgia State University.
There are five other Henderson siblings, all of whom played college basketball.
For information about O.D.D.-Con and to sign up for school supplies, click here.
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Cobb PARKS is accepting entries in its 18th annual Fun in the Park Photo Contest. (The photos in this post are what we’ve taken in the past on our visits to parks in the East Cobb area; we’ve never submitted them for the contest.)
Participants can submit up to 10 of their favorite photos taken at county and city parks until Nov. 2. Entries are not accepted for photos taken at national parks or those outside Cobb County.
The categories include nature and wildlife, sports and action and general, and there is no charge to enter the contest.
Here’s some very specific information on photo files and how to label and submit them:
Photos should be in full-size jpeg format with no watermarks or signatures on the image. Name the files with your name, category and photo # – (example: John Doe_NW_01). This would represent your file as John Doe > Nature and Wildlife > photo #1. Digital photos must be accompanied by an entry form. Entries that are submitted by email will need entry information in the email with the category for each picture and number indicated. Cobb PARKS reserves the right to not accept photos deemed inappropriate.
Submit entries to Mark.Chandler@cobbcounty.org.
Plaques will be awarded for first, second, third and honorable mention for each category.
Judges will be provided by the Cobb Photographic Society and Cobb County PARKS. Winners will be notified by email by the first week in December.
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Delta Community Credit Union, Georgia’s largest credit union with $9 billion in assets, will begin accepting applications for its 2024 Philanthropic Fund grant program on July 1, 2023. Throughout 2024, the program will distribute a total of $150,000 to 20 nonprofit organizations committed to the health and well-being of young people as well as financial literacy and education programs focused on instruction in science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics (STEM/STEAM).
“We always look forward to opening the application process for Delta Community’s Philanthropic Fund as the program is central to our practice of good corporate citizenship,” said Hank Halter, Delta Community CEO. “Over the years, we have seen the positive impact grant recipients make in the lives of metro Atlanta children and families. We welcome new opportunities to invest in organizations that share our mission and values to improve the communities where we are privileged to serve.”
Since launching in 2013, the Philanthropic Fund has invested more than $1 million in 208 organizations that offer educational opportunities, job and career training, and medical and human services support to people in need. In addition to its Philanthropic Fund, Delta Community invests in local communities by partnering with schools, awarding scholarships and supporting chambers of commerce, industry partners and civic organizations.
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The sponsor is the Atlanta Braves, and the spring competitions will include league and all-star play at the local, state and national levels, leading to championship rounds in June.
In a message to member families on Thursday, East Side Baseball president Majd Saboura said that “joining the new Braves Country Baseball League is the right path forward for our program and children. We believe that this league will provide all of East Side children and member organizations with a lot more opportunity and offer a lot more opportunity for our all star, hybrid and rec teams a chance to play competitive baseball and in our own backyard!”
East Side Baseball, based at Fullers Park, is one of 16 youth baseball/softball organizations that’s becoming part of the Braves County circuit in metro Atlanta.
Those include Oregon Park in West Cobb, Acworth Baseball and Powder Springs Youth Baseball.
The change doesn’t affect the fall season, which begins in September.
East Side Baseball, which formed in 1970, offers a variety of baseball options for youths ages 4-18.
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Cobb County Public Library System patrons who are homebound can check out books and other materials via a new book-by-mail service.
It’s eligible for library cardholders who have a temporary or permanent disability or who have transportation issues that prevent or limit them from coming to their local branch.
Patrons can check up to four books, CDs and DVDs that are then delivered through the U.S. Postal Service for up to nine weeks, and they will be offered pre-paid postage at no cost to them to return to the materials.
Only one batch of materials at a time can be checked out by any given patron who requests them.
For more information, and to fill out an application form to sign up for the program, click here or call 770-528-2343
Cobb commissioners earlier this year approved spending $21,600 in American Rescue Plan Act for the book-by-mail outreach program.
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The Cobb Fire and Emergency Services Department said Wednesday that it has disciplined seven firefighters who were found to have “collaborated on answers in a proctored-exam situation.”
Cobb Fire and Emergency Services Chief Bill Johnson
A release issued by the Cobb Communications Office said that following an internal investigation, four of the firefighters were demoted from lieutenant to engineer, and three others—two engineers and a firefighter—were suspended without pay.
“We are extremely disappointed by the poor judgment of these firefighters,” Fire Chief William Johnson said in the release. “We launched an investigation as soon as we learned of the accusation. Those involved cooperated with us and realized they had made a huge mistake. The punishment is severe but should send a message that this department will not tolerate any breach of ethical behavior.”
The release said the exam was a state-administered certification for becoming instructors on “specific fire apparatus operations.”
He said the seven individuals otherwise had “spotless records. The discipline rendered hopefully reinforced all the values that the department embraces. It is regrettable, but it shows we will handle these situations appropriately, knowing the department’s reputation is on the line.”
Johnson said the department will review how the courses in question are handled in Cobb County and will work “with the state to make any changes necessary.”
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Elected officials and Kroger representatives christened the new store on Powers Ferry Road Wednesday morning. ECN photos and video
After years of anticipation, a Kroger “SuperStore” opened at the MarketPlace Terrell Mill development in East Cobb Wednesday with an early-morning celebration.
Before they headed off to school, cheerleaders and a pep band from Wheeler High School set the tone for the festivities, which included a special dedication to the supermarket chain’s partnership with local schools.
After elected officials and Kroger executives spoke, they cut the ceremonial ribbon, then ushered onlookers inside to have a first look at the 90,000-square-foot store, Kroger’s first locally of such an expanded concept.
The store, which also includes a gas station, is the centerpiece of the redevelopment that includes apartments, fast-casual restaurants and small retail, and touted as a catalyst for improvements along the Powers Ferry Road corridor.
Victor Smith, Kroger’s Atlanta division president, thanked former Commissioner Bob Ott and Powers Ferry Corridor Alliance president Patti Rice, among others, “for helping to make this happen.”
He said Kroger is investing $38 million in the project, which has expanded “everything” from its recently closed store just down Powers Ferry Road.
Ott, who lives nearby and who served three terms as District 2 commissioner until 2021, said “it’s been a long time coming.”
The nearly 24 acres at Powers Ferry and Terrell Mill Road previously housed some office, retail and restaurant space that was aging. The Kroger at 1311 Powers Ferry Road sits on the former site of Brumby Elementary School, which relocated to Terrell Mill Road in 2018.
“We started talking about [redevelopment] during the economic downturn,” he said. “For a while I wasn’t sure it was going to happen.”
The Development Authority of Cobb County approved issuing $35 million in revenue bonds for the part of the project containing the Kroger store, because it was listed on the county’s roster of redevelopment properties.
East Cobb resident and former Cobb Commission Chairman candidate Larry Savage challenged the tax breaks, which were initially invalidated in Cobb Superior Court.
While the case was on appeal, Kroger said it might not go ahead with the MarketPlace Terrell Mill store if it lost in court.
But in June 2019, the Georgia Supreme Court upheld the tax breaks, which exempt Kroger completely in the store’s first year of operation. Kroger will gradually pay an assessed tax value phased in over a 10-year period, rising by 10 percent each year.
(According to Cobb tax records, the Development Authority is listed as the owner of the 10.8 acres on which the Kroger project sits, and it has an appraised value of nearly $12 million).
For a time, supporters of the project worried their aspirations may not be realized.
“Never!” Rice said when asked if she thought this day would come. “I’m just so happy. They said it would be the last thing to go in. It’s beautiful.”
“It’s fresh. It’s new. It’s got a lot of product,” Ott said.
Customers pass by a specially-designed mural of local landmarks at the entrance, leading into a cornucopia of fresh-cut flowers, an abundance of produce offerings and fully stocked sushi, delicatessen, bakery and meat and seafood counters.
There’s also a location of Murray’s Cheese Shop, which has 42 spots in metro Atlanta, including Kroger stores at Parkaire Landing and the Pavilions at East Lake in East Cobb.
Aisle after aisle after aisle are loaded name-brand foods, frozen goods, personal care and household products, toiletries and pet food. (The store is still waiting for a retail beer and wine sales license.)
Smith said that’s part of Kroger’s “unwavering commitment to our purpose—to help feed the human spirit.”
The vacated Kroger store at Powers Ferry and Delk Road that served the community for 42 years had been proposed for apartments earlier this year.
The Marietta City Council approved rezoning for 322 units in April, but Mayor Steve Tumlin vetoed the project.
Ott said he’s confident that that property will be redeveloped eventually, and “it will become something great.”
The MarketPlace, he said, has inspired other improvements in the area, including the redevelopment of Restaurant Row, with the Rose and Crown Tavern relocating back there soon.
Tasty China Restaurant is also moving from the Franklin Gateway to property that once housed the La Frontera Restaurant on Powers Ferry Road.
Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid said that “renewal does something. It energizes community and inspires confidence.”
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A Cobb County political organization with ties to the Tea Party is urging the Cobb Board of Commissioners to vote against holding a transit tax referendum in 2024.
The Franklin Roundtable, which labels itself “a non-partisan advocacy group based in Marietta,” said its board of directors has voted unanimously to oppose the proposed tax.
Cobb commissioners are expected to decide later this whether to call for a transit tax referendum after voting along party-lines in March to hire a consultant to plan for such a referendum.
Jim Jess, chairman of Franklin Roundtable, said in release that “the transit tax is nothing but a boondoggle. We need serious traffic solutions. But what do we get from our commissioners? Empty buses on Cobb County streets. Multimillion dollar transportation studies that make consultants rich. And transit proposals that won’t improve traffic flow. Who is being served by this? It’s certainly not the citizens of Cobb County.”
The three Democrats on the board voted to hire the consultant, Kimley-Horn & Associates, to prepare for what’s being called the Cobb Mobility SPLOST.
It’s a one-percent, special-purpose local-option sales tax that Democratic Chairwoman Lisa Cupid has proposed to be collected for 30 years for a variety of transportation purposes, including mass transit as well as traditional transportation options, including resurfacing.
The two Republicans voted against hiring the consultant, and have said they’re opposed to such a long tax-collection period.
GOP commissioner JoAnn Birrell of East Cobb has publicly supported a five-year tax for road transportation projects.
The Franklin Roundtable, named after Benjamin Franklin, is a non-profit that supports limited government, free markets and fiscal responsibility. Its website states that since 2018, it has been the “official public name” of the Georgia Tea Party Inc.
“Most of our current commissioners are not serious about real traffic solutions, and they are not fiscally responsible,” Jess said. “They are more concerned about serving the economic development lobby and the consultant lobby. County spending reflects this year after year.”
Much of the group’s statement focused on mass transit, which it called “an idea best left in the previous century.”
Instead, the Franklin Roundtable suggested in one example that the county contract with Uber or Lyft to help those needing transportation to work.
The group also suggested building flyover lanes or access roads to bypass busy intersections, and the purchase of vans that are “smaller and can move through traffic more quickly” than more expensive buses.
Jess said that “solutions like the ones we are talking about are simply common sense. We need our commissioners to make some better decisions, beginning with dropping the idea of a transit tax. It really doesn’t make sense for our situation in Cobb County.”
The Franklin Roundtable release said that should there be a referendum, it will work with “a coalition of likeminded citizens and organizations to defeat this wasteful, ineffective and unnecessary tax.”
Cobb DOT officials told commissioners in March that part of the consultant’s work was to conduct further outreach, following an objection to a 30-year tax from the mayor of Cobb’s cities.
Cobb DOT has not yet released a detailed project list of what might be used with tax revenues.
Department head Drew Raessler said this spring more input is being is being sought from citizens and in cities and community improvement projects to hear “what type of projects they would like to see.”
He has said that more transit solutions need to be provided to Cobb citizens so the county can continue to grow economically.
Cupid said at the same March meeting to hire the consultant that “I think we have a significant opportunity to invest in our future, at least just to ask the citizens the questions, to flesh out with the mayors what the options are.”
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Nearly a year after being proposed, a rebuild of the Starbucks at Paper Mill Village finally got a vote on Tuesday.
After months of delays, what had been first designed as a two-story standalone building went before the Cobb Planning Commission as a one-story coffee shop on the site of the present Starbucks location.
The matter was on the consent agenda, which was passed by a 4-0 vote.
The applicant, S&B Investments, Inc., wanted to rezone 0.73 acres at 31 Johnson Ferry Road, at the intersection of Paper Mill Road, from future commercial and low-density residential (R-80) to neighborhood retail commercial.
The expanded coffee shop would have had 2,500 square feet, 25 parking places and drive-thru service and would be open daily from 5:30 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Those dimensions were sharply reduced in March after the initial plans were filed for two stories, 5,000 square feet and 23 parking places.
The Cobb Zoning Staff analysis said that wasn’t enough parking, and local civic groups also got involved in what turned to be months of discussions and revisions.
In a July 20 stipulation letter, S&B attorney Parks Huff said his client was withdrawing its site plan and keeping the building’s present configuration and footprint.
The letter also said there would be no drive-thru and any changes would go before county commissioners.
The present building would follow the “village” architectural style of Paper Mill Village and conform to the Johnson Ferry Design Standards in building the new structure.
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The latest Chick-Fil-A location in the East Cobb area to undergo major renovations will be temporarily closed for some time.
The Chick-Fil-A Sprayberry (2530 Sandy Plains Road) closed after business hours Thursday and is expected to stay that way for 4-5 months, according to a sign in the window, “to build a brand-new store.”
UPDATE:
The old building was demolished a couple days after we posted this.
ORIGINAL REPORT:
A message on the store’s Facebook page encouraged customers to go to the Chick-Fil-A Lassiter (3046 Shallowford Road).
Chick-Fil-A restaurants on Johnson Ferry Road and Roswell Road in East Cobb were closed for several months in recent years to build new standalone locations.
In the case of the former, at Woodlawn Square, the closure was nearly 10 months from mid-2018 to the spring of 2019, delayed by bad winter weather.
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Lou Alvarado (in wheelchair), board chairman of Friends of Disabled Adults and Children, with CEO Chris Brand
Submitted information and photo:
The East Cobb Civitan Club is pleased to announce the 2023 Civitan International “Servant’s Heart Award” has been bestowed on Chris Brand who, since 2003, has served as the President and CEO of Friends of Disabled Adults and Children (FODAC). FODAC is the nation’s largest provider of low cost, or free refurbished home medical equipment such as wheelchairs, walkers and other durable medical goods. Over the years FODAC has provided thousands of disabled individuals with improved mobility. Brand has personally made a great impact during his tenure by adding opportunities to increase the distribution of durable medical goods in Cobb and surrounding communities.
The Servant’s Heart Award, a program of Civitan International, seeks to recognize and honor those “unsung heroes” from the nonprofit, local government, public education and other sectors who have dedicated their lives in service to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
Other 2023 finalists nominated for this year’s Award are Jim Hamm, founder of Special Populations Tennis and Renate’ Elliott, Accessibility Services Supervisor for the Cobb County Public Library System.
Civitan International is a global organization impacting lives at the grass roots level through local service clubs. Members of Civitan share a Servant’s Heart and a desire to create positive change for people with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. There are currently 40 clubs in Georgia, including Camp Big Heart, a service club dedicated to providing inclusive overnight camping for those with developmental and intellectual disabilities.
Interested new members are always welcome at upcoming Civitan meetings. For more information about Civitans International and local clubs, please contact Carolyn Polakowski, East Cobb Civitans at 770.722.7075 or Carolyn@caycommunications.com
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Charlie and Erin Chesnutt confirmed as the event’s chairpersons, while Allen Devlin of Atlanta News First will be the master of ceremonies. Mr. Chesnutt is a senior vice president and treasurer/special advisor to the CFO with Atlanta-based Genuine Parts Company while Ms. Chesnut is a marketing and communications executive contributing writing to Alabama-based TPI Publications/Tallapoosa Publishers Inc. Devlin is weekday anchor for ANF’s afternoon and evening broadcasts.
Themed “A Night at the Cabaret” the Gala celebrates ArtsBridge Foundation’s year-round mission impacting the lives of thousands of Georgia K-12 students through arts education and financial aid subsidy programs.
The Gala will feature a cabaret cocktail hour, a sumptuous gourmet three-course meal prepared by Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre Executive Chef Nick Alvarez, theater-in-the-round style entertainment by winners of the 2023 Georgia High School Musical Theatre Awards (a.k.a. “The Georgia Dozen”), a live auction featuring stellar packages and big-ticket bidding encouraged by Auction Horizon, and an after-party featuring a live band in the Kessel D. Stelling Jr. Ballroom.
Alvarez’s cabaret-themed menu for the occasion includes a baby romaine salad featuring heirloom tomatoes, shaved parmesan, frico and sherry Caesar dressing, followed by a duo of grilled New York steak and Chilean sea bass accompanied by confit fingerling potatoes, crusted baby fennel, Swiss chard, soubise and Périgueux. The evening’s vegetarian main course option features spiced baby eggplant, fennel, fingerling potatoes and quinoa almond crumble with skordalia. Dessert features a peach ricotta cheesecake, gluten free shortbread, bruléed marshmallow and almond crumble.
“We greatly appreciate the generosity of our longtime sponsors and supporters of ArtsBridge Foundation who already stepped up to support ‘A Night at the Cabaret,’” said Jennifer D. Dobbs, executive director. “As we countdown to the big event, we are looking for additional community businesses and leaders to join us in support of youth arts education through any of our Gala sponsorship levels.”
The Gala fundraising goal is $150,000 to support the organization’s Title I Adopt-A-School Financial Aid Subsidy Program, which subsidizes admission and bus transportation for thousands of deserving children throughout the state. Gala sponsor levels include Supporting Cast Member ($1,000), Spotlight Sponsor ($3,500), Showstopper ($5,000), Headliner ($10,000) and Premier ($25,000). Additional details for each level of support, including individual tickets ($350), may be found at https://bit.ly/ArtsBridge2023OvertureGala or by contacting Dobbs at 770-916-2803.
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A couple weeks ago we brought you the story of Charlie Porter, an East Cobb resident who was preparing for a kidney transplant, along with his son Teddy, who was his donor.
That procedure took place last Tuesday in Nashville, and this morning we got the following information and photo above from Charlie:
“I have been in a bit of a bubble since surgery but now that my head is clearing, I wanted to let you know that the transplant was a huge success. Teddy did great and he is now back home being taken care of by his mother and girlfriend. I’ll remain in Nashville for another six weeks or so.
“The surgical staff, nurses etc are all very happy with how everything went.”
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The following East Cobb residential real estate sales between July 10-14, 2023, were compiled from agency reports. They include the subdivision name and high school attendance zone in parenthesis:
July 10
4655 Andrea Pointe, 30062 (Hadley Walk, Pope): $1.05 million
2081 Reverie Ridge, 30068 (Reverie, Walton): $3.35 million
1055 Della Street, 30068 (Brighton Park, Wheeler): $467,500
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As he was planning another back-t0-school extravaganza earlier this summer, D.A. Layne lost his mother.
She was so much more than a parent, as he told friends and participants at his 5th annual In The Layne Backpack-N-Swag event Saturday in East Cobb.
She was his inspiration for so many things beyond the successful basketball career he enjoyed at Wheeler High School and the University of Georgia.
She taught him to give back to the community, and helped him start the event that provides free backpacks and school supplies for students in need at the start of the school year.
“What she wanted for me was what she wanted for all of us,” Layne said as a small group of friends and families honored her memory with a balloon release at the basketball courts at Grace Church Marietta on Holt Road.
Earlier in the afternoon, families turned out to enjoy food, live music, bouncy houses and the backpack giveaways.
While there was plenty of labor and goodies donated—including the box lunches from Zaxby’s—Layne said his foundation pays for the backpacks and school supplies.
Nearly 500 people signed up in advance, and Layne said they had to cut off registration after that.
“We want to reach everybody we can,” he said, adding that those turning out come from beyond the East Cobb community to include other parts of metro Atlanta. “Thousands even.”
He began In the Layne Hoops to help children through basketball, but his community work has gone beyond the court.
During the Christmas holiday season, he works with sponsors to hold a toy drive for children who otherwise wouldn’t get gifts.
It’s part of what he said his mother stressed to him from a very young age, and it’s an influence he hopes to continue spreading.
“We’re still grieving here,” he said. “But we have to keep it going.”
Layne and his family observe a moment of silence for his mother before a balloon release in her honor.
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It made common sense as a first-time business owner to meet others for networking, referrals, and doing some business.
What I didn’t know was the extent to which many of these small-business owners go to serve their communities.
As in really serving their communities.
After a corporate sales career, ECBA member Butch Carter in 2013 became the owner of Honest-1 Auto Care in East Cobb and Johns Creek, and where I’ve happily had my vehicles serviced over the years.
But like many business owners I’ve come to know through ECBA and elsewhere, that’s only the start of what Carter means for the community.
He’s also the current president of the Rotary Club of East Cobb, which next weekend will stage its biggest fundraiser, the Dog Days Run.
The Rotary Club is involved in charitable work in this community and beyond to an amazing degree, and has set a goal of raising $100,000 from that event that it will give out to more than 20 non-profit organizations.
Carter touched on this effort earlier this month at the ECBA regular business luncheon, which was themed around the ideas of business and community building.
“We’re typical of a lot of small businesses in East Cobb in that we give back to the community,” Carter said.
He calls what he advocates “cause marketing” and at the luncheon representatives of other Cobb non-profits spoke, including Shelly Owen of the Cobb Community Foundation, which she says connects “donors who care with causes they like.
“We’re not the fixer of the problem, but we’re the convener of those who can.”
She said the CCF last did an extensive human needs assessment in 2019, right before the COVID-19 pandemic, and will be conducting another one this fall.
CCF helps connect major and corporate donors with its Corporate Community Champions program.
“It’s an awesome way to connect with others in the community,” Owen said.
On a small-business scale, Honest-1 is involved in efforts to raise awareness for breast cancer that started by selling pink wiper-blades.
He urged his fellow business owners to think creatively about how they can help, by donating items or products or services from their businesses, as well as expertise.
An Air Force veteran, Carter has has held cookouts for veterans at his shop on East Cobb Drive and has supported the work of United Military Care, an East Cobb non-profit that assists veterans and next weekend will have its We CARE Vet Fair at the Cobb Civic Center.
It’s a place for veterans who need services, help navigating the Veterans Administration bureaucracy, and basic assistance with food, housing and medical care.
Leenie Ruben, a retired marketing professional who does community outreach for United Military Care, has found the value of associating with the ECBA, and attends many events.
She said at the luncheon that the work of UMC continues to grow, with the ranks of veterans in Cobb County swelling to more than 44,000.
Another longtime ECBA member, Susan Hampton, has spearheaded the organization’s sponsorship of an appreciation dinner for Cobb Police Precinct 4 staff and the entire Cobb Fire and Emergency Services Department.
She’s expanded that advocacy into a role with the Cobb County Public Safety Foundation, a non-profit that supports local public safety professionals.
Next Saturday, that group also will have a benefit event, the First Responder 5K Run/Walk, at The Battery Atlanta.
ECBA member Susan Hampton is also involved with the Cobb Public Safety Foundation and the East Cobb Lions Club.
Hampton, a former East Cobb Citizen of the Year, also is involved with the East Cobb Lions Club, which conducts 15,000 eye screenings a year for children in need.
These are all examples of what MUST Ministries CEO Dr. Ike Reighard offered to urge business owners and leaders to start “kicking your buts.”
“I would like to help, but . . . ” is the common refrain that Reighard, also the senior pastor of Piedmont Church in East Cobb, said he has heard in many years of community advocacy.
He picked up on the theme of cause marketing by explaining that “people look for companies and organizations that are oriented that way.”
He rattled off many things that “volunteering does for you,” including making new friends and staying connected with people close, instead of resorting to screen companionship.
“You get surrounded by people who have the same values that you have,” Reighard said. “And you’re building friendships along the way. It makes you happier.”
Volunteering “also gets you out of your comfort zone. The day your memories are greater than your dreams, you’re dead in the water. It gives you a sense of purpose.”
Carter said the work of blending business and serving community is an easy “win-win” for both.
“Our goal is to help build a better community.”
If you’d to get involved in any of these organizations financially and/or as a volunteer—and you don’t have to be a business owner—here are their links:
