Free Press 7-10-15

8/20/2019 Free Press 7-10-15

1/20

championnewspaper championnewspaper champnewschampionnews

thechampionnewspaper.com

 FRIDAY, julY 10, 2015 • VOl. 18, NO. 15 • FREE

• A PUBLICATION OF ACE III COMMUNICATIONS • Serving East Atlanta, Avondale Estates, Brookhaven, Chamblee, Clarkston, Decatur, Doraville, Dunwoody, Lithonia, Pine Lake, Tucker and Stone Mountain.

F REE P RESS 

See Ellis on page 15A

See Legend on page 15A

Harry Flournoy: a sports legend

Harry Flournoy told campers at Mike Glenn’s All-Star Basketball Camp for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing to live up to their potential.

Flournoy is presented with an award during the camp. Photos by Carla Parker

by Carla [email protected]

When people think about the Blackathletes who transormed sportsduring the segregation years,Jackie Robinson, Jesse Owens,

Althea Gibson and Muhammad Ali are o-en the irst names to come to mind.However, one would be remiss to talk

about inluential Black American athleteswithout bringing up the 1966 exas Westernmen’s basketball team. Prior to the 1966 bas-ketball season, no major American collegebasketball team had ever had ive Black play-rs in the starting lineup, which exas West-rn did in 1966.

hat same year, the team ended the his-oric season with a win over Kentucky in the

national championship game. he 2006 ilmGlory Road  portrayed the team and its roado the national title.

Harry Flournoy , who now lives in Mc-Donough, was a member o that team.

Flournoy was in Decatur June 23 to speako the campers at Mike Glenn’s All-Star Bas-ketball Camp or the Dea and Hard o Hear-ng. He was also recognized by the camp with

an award and said he was honored that MikeGlenn invited him to speak to the children.

“When I think about Mike Glenn, I thinkabout somebody who understands thatbasketball was what he did,” Flournoy said.[Basketball] wasn’t who he was or who hes. His purpose in lie is to give back to other

people so that they would have the same op-portunities that he had. hat’s something that

like to be a part o—people that eel thatway because who I am, giving back to peopleo that they can get some o the same oppor-unities that I got.”

by Andrew [email protected]

Te retrial or suspended DeKalbCounty CEO Burrell Ellis ended withhe jury finding him guilty o perjury

and attempted thef by extortion.

Ellis, accused o strong-arming ven-

dors to donate to his reelection cam-paign in 2012, was ound guilty July 1o three counts o perjury or lying toa grand jury in 2012, and one count oattempted thef by extortion.

Te jury deliberated six days.Ellis was ound not guilty on three

counts o attempted thef by extortion,

thef by extortion and bribery.In the attempted thef by extortion

charge, prosecutors argued that Ellisthreatened to end a county contractwith Power and Energy Services Inc.afer an officer o the company did notcontribute money to Ellis’ campaign.

Ellis is guilty 

Ellis

lOcAl, 8A lOcAl, 9A lOcAl, 12A

Business ........................16A

Education .....................14A

Sports......................18-19A

Opinion ...........................5A

Classified .......................17A

QUICK FINDER

REFUGEES GROW

AT COMMUNITY

GARDEN

FORMER DEKALB

BAND DIRECTORS FIND

SUCCESS WITH JAZZ

DISCORD OVER

LITHONIA’S PROPOSED

ANNEXATION PLAN

8/20/2019 Free Press 7-10-15

2/20

Page 2A The Champion Free Press, Friday, July 10, 2015

LOCAL

Mom wants answers inson’s near drowningby Andrew [email protected]

An investigation is un-der way into what happenedwhen a boy nearly drownedat Brown’s Mill Aquatic Cen-er June 22.

Fourteen-year-old Bri-onne Sloan was playing inhe pool with friends when

he became unconscious andnearly drowned. No oneyet has offered an explana-ion as to what caused hisrauma.

“He doesn’t rememberanything,” Melissa Sloan aid about her son. “He just

emembers dropping.”Brionne “went over fiveminutes without oxygen tohis brain,” Sloan said. “Myon had passed away, and he

came back. He was gone. Hewas not breathing.”

The unconscious boy,who will be attending RedanHigh School in the fall, waspulled out of the pool bywo men—“civilians,” nothe lifeguards, Sloan said.

“Some lady—I don’tknow her name—she decid-ed to rub and pat his backand she revived him—nothe lifeguards,” Sloan said.

“I owe her my life,” Sloanaid. “My kids are my life.

She’s a hero. He would havedied. Nobody that workedhere did anything.”

Sloan said she and herfamily were at the pool foress than an hour when she

heard a commotion. An-other patron said a boy wasn trauma.

“I didn’t know it was myon,” Sloan said when sheaw Brionne. “His face was

blue.”

“He still has some trau-ma to his lungs,” Sloan saidon June 25, the day Brionnewas released from Children’sHealthcare of Atlanta—Eg-eston. “He’s got some issues

with his eyes. He’s havingome headaches, and he told

us this morning about thesebad] dreams he having.”

Sloan said she is con-

cerned that the lifeguardswere not properly trained.

“I don’t understand, Ican’t begin to understand it,”Sloan said. “The lifeguarddidn’t know the address ofthe waterpark.”

The lifeguards also didnot appear to know CPR,she said.

In one of the four 911recordings released to The

Champion, a male said, “I’ma lifeguard, and we just havea child who just passed outhere. We need y’all…rightnow.”

When the 911 operatorasked for the address of theincident, the lifeguard canbe heard asking someone,“Hey, what the address,bro?”

He immediately told theoperator the incident ad-dress is “Browns Mill Roadat Browns Mill waterpark.”

The operator, who knew

of at least one of the othercalls from the waterparkasked the lifeguard, “Thishas nothing to do with adrowning? It’s just a childfainting?”

The lifeguard answered,“I believe it’s both at thesame time.”

The operator told thelifeguard that she neededclarification because there

are different instructionsfor each incident. She askedhim whether he can getclose to the victim.

“I need to know whathappened,” the operatorstated.

“I have no idea,” the life-guard said, adding that themale had vomited. “The life-guard that was on duty toldme a guy drowned and then

he gets him out of the waterand he unconscious. Me andmy coworkers are with himright now…this man is un-conscious we cannot get himto wake up.”

Later in the conversa-tion, the operator told thelifeguard that another 911operator is on the phonewith another caller fromthe scene who is receivingCPR instructions to help themale.

“Ma’am…we need some-body here like now,” the life-

guard said.“Sir, listen. They’re al-ready on the way,” the opera-tor said. “One of your otherpeople are there talking witha 911 operator giving some-one CPR instructions. Ok?”

Sloan said she is inter-ested in the call DeKalb of-ficials have not released.

“No one has heard thefinal call,” she said. “It’s the

call of them giving CPRinstructions to a lifeguardover the phone. That to meis probably the most crucialone; you’re giving instruc-tions to someone whoshould already know.

“Somebody needs to betrained, educated and heldaccountable,” Sloan said.“My son survived. Some-body else’s son may not.”

Sloan said pool workers“missed the severity of whatwas going on.” They offeredrainchecks to patrons beforeher son was off the property.

“Even we were offereda raincheck,” she said. “I’llnever go back there.”

Lifeguard services atBrowns Mills are providedby USA Management LLC.

According to the USAPools’ contract with the

county, USA Pools scopeof work includes “lifeguardsupervision for public swim-ming.” Lifeguard “must havecurrent lifeguard trainingcertification, as well as CPRand first aid certification.”

USA Pools also is re-quired by the contract tolog in-service on lifeguardtraining and submit the logsto the county each week.

The Champion filed anOpen Records Request forweekly lifeguard trainingin-service logs and proofof certification for all life-guards used by USA Man-agement.

A county attorney re-plied stating that the in-formation would not bereleased because it is part ofan ongoing investigation.

#ItsInTheChampionwww.thechampionnewspaper.com

From left, Melissa Sloan has questions about her son Brionne’s neardrowning. Photos provided

Brionne was admitted to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta—Eglestonafter nearly drowning at Brown’s Mill Aquatic Center in June.

8/20/2019 Free Press 7-10-15

3/20

The Champion Free Press, Friday, July 10, 2015 Page 3ALOCAL

Expert teaches children to mind their manners

Donna Paige Riley looks on as young students demonstrate what they learned about greeting others properly.

by Kathy Mitchell

Etiquette, according toDonna Paige Riley , a social-zation expert, author, eti-

quette teacher, speaker andadio program host, is notust about learning which

fork to use.“It’s about having con-

ideration for others in ev-erything you do,” she said.People today can be veryelf-centered, and that self-shness is the root of bad

manners. It goes back to theGolden Rule—treat othershe way you would like to bereated.”

She described etiquetteas a “soft skill,” but said it’svery important in both so-cial and business settings.

The word etiquette comesfrom an old French wordmeaning ‘ticket.’ Good man-ner really are our ticket tobetter relationships,” Riley,a Stone Mountain resident,aid.

Good manners, she said,are for everyone. “Whitecollar, blue collar or no col-ar, good manners make a

difference,” she said. “It’sbest to learn proper man-ners when you’re young.They become automatic—part of who you are.”

Starting July 11, Riley iseaching a four-week chil-dren’s course at NorthlakeMall, called Manners areFun! She described theone-and-a-half-hour ses-ions as “fun and interac-ive workshops in whichtudents will develop theirelf-confidence by learn-ng communication skills,elephone manners, formal

place settings, table man-

ners, appropriate meal con- versation, personal hygieneand grooming, as well asposture and poise.” Children5 through 11 will be taughtin one class and children12 and older will be in a

separate class. Each studentreceives an autographedcopy of Riley’s book What isEtiquette Anyway? 

“It’s not a lecture formatat all. It’s fun. When peoplehave fun as they’re learning,they tend to remember moreof what they have learned,”Riley said.

“Children really getinto this,” she said. “Theybecome the etiquette po-

lice at home. They tell theirfriends, siblings and eventheir parents the properthing to do. I had a mothercall me and ask me to pleaseexplain to her daughter thatit’s not necessary to set a for-

mal table for dinner everyevening. We agreed that shewould do that only for Sun-day dinner.”

Riley said she hopesher classes will spur a trendtoward good manners. “Wesee rudeness everywherethese days. Many peoplesee it as acceptable behavioreven among those who arein the customer service busi-ness. Simple things like say-

ing ‘please’ and ‘thank you’are falling by the wayside.”

Some parents are sur-prised to learn that goodmanners lead to higher self-esteem, Riley said. “It mayappear that the child who

is rude and inappropriatelyassertive has strong self-es-teem, but that’s not the case.It’s actually the person whoknows how to behave in anysituation who has poise andconfidence.”

Riley said she doesn’thesitate to say somethingwhen she sees a child behav-ing badly in public. “I hearchildren saying all sorts ofdisrespectful things, even

cursing in public. I go upto them and say, ‘I know Ididn’t hear you say what Ithought you said.’ At leastthey know that someonefound their behavior unac-ceptable.”

Parents of earlier genera-tions taught good mannersas a life skill, Riley observed.“Today many are too busyor they never learned goodmanners themselves.” Shesaid her mother was her rolemodel. “She was tough onus. She insisted that I alwaysbe a lady. My mother madesure we never left the housewithout being properlydressed and knowing howwe were to behave whereverwe were going,” she said.

She said entertainment

media is having a negativeimpact on social behavior.“Many television showsderive their humor frompeople saying harsh, rudethings to one another. Manyso-called reality shows sendthe message that bold in-sulting remarks are the bestway to get a point across.Children may get the ideathat being well-mannered isbeing fake or nerdy. It’s nota matter of trying to be bet-ter than those around you.Proper etiquette makes ev-

ery interaction more pleas-ant. They make people likebeing around you. We haveto teach children that goodmanners are not just accept-able, but they’re crucial.”

For fees, schedules andother information on theNorthlake classes, call (770)938-3564 or visit www.northlakemall.com.

8/20/2019 Free Press 7-10-15

4/20

The Champion Free Press, Friday, July 10, 2015 Page 4AOPINION

John [email protected]

Chief Operating Officer 

Signs. Signs. Everywhere signs.I spend an unusually large

mount o time on Atlanta’soadways and more specifi-ally on I-285 through much o

DeKalb County. Much o thisime, regrettably, is spent at alow pace and ofen sitting still.

For the last several monthshere have been traffic delaysaused by resuracing and signhanges all along Atlanta’s pe-imeter, but I have been moreainully aware o these chang-s in the sections o I-285 thatre in DeKalb.

In October 2014, the muchouted–and just as ofen ma-gned–variable speed limitigns were installed at abouthe same time the speed limit

was increased to 65 mph inertain sections o the perim-ter. Tese variable speed signs

were supposed help traffic flow

nd help drivers anticipatelower traffic in advance o ac-ually encountering it.

Shortly afer the variablepeed signs were installed,here was much discussion and

many jokes about the obviousrogramming errors o theigns. It was not, and still isot, uncommon to see a sign

illuminating a speed limit o5 mph on one side o the roadand another showing a speedlimit o 65 mph directly acrossrom it. As with most govern-ment projects, we as taxpayersdon’t really expect optimum

perormance or efficiency. Wecollectively shake our heads indisbelie and continue our usu-ally painul commutes.

Beginning a ew monthsago, drivers on I-285 wereaced with daily delays as new,larger directional signs wereinstalled. Te newer signs areeasier to read and will be help-

ul or those using our highwaysystem who are not amiliarwith routes. Te irony o thisis that the new signs have beenup or at least a month, andthe old signs are still in place.In most locations the old signsobscure the views o the newsigns and actually create whatwould seem to be even moreconusion.

Te latest additions to thecluttered signscape along I-285are mile markers; not the oldermile markers that simply indi-cate the total miles in a clock-wise direction rom the officialstarting point at I-85 just southo the airport—but new milemarkers mounted on the me-dian wall that indicate everyone-tenth o a mile.

For the lie o me, I can’tquite grasp the importance o

having signs to indicate everyone-tenth o a mile along ahighway system; particularlywhen old-school mile mark-ers are already in place on theshoulder o the road. Tey justaren’t as precise as the one-tenth markers.

As I drove in recently, Iwondering about the cost asso-

ciated with the one-tenth milemarkers. Te total distance oI-285 is 64 miles; thereore,there are 640 markers on eachside o the highway (the signsare mounted back to back on asingle pole), making the grandtotal o 1,280 markers alongthe route.

At a conservative estimatedcost o say $30 per sign, thecost o producing and printingthe signs would total $38,400.And, with another conserva-tive estimated cost o say $25to install each sign, the totalor production and installationwould come to $70,400.

With the above price es-timates applied to the totalnumber o miles on I-285,taxpayers have paid $110 perone-tenth o a mile.

What benefit could these

signs possibly have? I have twotheories.

One theory is that a riendor amily member o a pro-curement officer or the Geor-gia Department o ranspor-tation runs, or sells on com-mission or, a sign business.Another possible theory is thatperhaps the production o the

signs is a way o keeping pris-oners in state institutions en-gaged in productive activities.

Knowing the way most gov-ernment purchases work, mybet is that someone is profitingmightily on all these new signswe are suddenly seeing, and itdoesn’t make much sense.

I believe that there is a highprobability o at least one oc-cupant in almost every car onAtlanta’s roads having a smartphone with navigation, andthere are also many cars withbuilt-in navigation systems andthat in reality, the driving pub-lic could probably unction justas well with ewer signs clutter-ing our roads and distractingdrivers.

Te next time I’m sittingstill on I-285, I’ll attempt to tagmy location on social media

to see i all these one-tenth oa mile markers are recognizedand so my amily and riendswill know within one-tenth oa mile where I am at any giventime.

8/20/2019 Free Press 7-10-15

5/20

OPINIONThe Champion Free Press, Friday, July 10, 2015 Page 5A

Let Us Know What You Think!

THE CHAMPION FREE PRESS encour-ages opinions from its readers. Pleasewrite to us and express your views. Lettersshould be brief, typewritten and containthe writer’s name, address and telephonenumber for verification. All letters will beconsidered for publication.

Send Letters To Editor, The Champion Free Press, P.

O. Box 1347, Decatur, GA 30031-1347; Send emailto [email protected] • FAX To: (404)370-3903 Phone: (404) 373-7779 . Deadline for newsreleases and advertising: Thursday, one week priorto publication date.

EDITOR’S NOTE: The opinions written by colum-nists and contributing editors do not necessarilyreect the opinions of the editor or publishers. ThePublisher reserves the right to reject or cancel anyadvertisement at any time. The Publisher is notresponsible for unsolicited manuscripts.

Publisher: John Hewitt Chief Financial Ocer:Dr. Earl D. GlennManaging Editor:Andrew cauthenProduction Manager:Kemesha Hunt Photographer:Travis HudgonsSta Reporters:carla Parker, Ashley Oglesby

The Champion Free Press is publishedeach Friday by ACE III Communications,Inc., • 114 New Street, Suite E, Decatur,

GA. 30030 • Phone (404) 373-7779.

www.hampionnewspaper.om

DISPLAY ADVERTISING (404) 373-7779 x 110

F REE P RESS

STATEMENT FROM THE

PUBLISHERWe sinerely appreiate thedisussion surrounding this and anyissue of interest to DeKalb county.The Champion was founded in 1991expressly to provide a forum fordisourse for all ommunity residentson all sides of an issue. We have nodesire to make the news only toreport news and opinions to effet

a more eduated itizenry that willultimately move our ommunityforward. We are happy to presentideas for disussion; however,we make every effort to avoidprinting information submitted tous that is known to be false and/orassumptions penned as fat. 

ONE MAN’S OPINION

“Every record has beendestroyed or falsified, everybook rewritten, every picturehas been repainted, everytatue and street building has

been renamed, every date hasbeen altered. And the processs continuing day by day and

minute by minute. Historyhas stopped. Nothing existsxcept an endless present in

which the Party is alwaysight.” - George Orwell,984

Symbols, words and flagsall matter. Real and last-ng societal change, which

often impact those words,lags and other symbols, is

best typically accomplishedover time and incrementally.

Sweeping and fundamentalhifts, though sometimesoverdue and justified, tendo cause ripples, waves of

counter-reaction, pushbackand occasional backsliding.

Some actions shatterpeace and create fast rum-bling reactions which caneverberate for years. Suchn an information age arehe abhorrent images of de-anged, racist, 21-year-old

Dylann Roof, armed andcarrying his battle flag of theConfederacy, almost uni-versally visible following hisnexcusable, violent murder

of nine Black Americansn Charleston, interruptingheir otherwise peaceful day

of worship.Roof wanted to start a

ace war, and to some ex-ent, he is getting his way, as

tensions clearly mount overthis and multiple other is-sues and concerns rangingfrom the appropriate useof force by police and law

enforcement, to ongoing de-bate over income disparitiesbetween the races.

But the “ fergit, hell”  andcrossbows crowd in theAmerican south representsan infinitesimally small mi-nority of Americans, evenamong southerners, as the

 vast majority, White, Blackand other races, simply wantus all to live and work to-gether and get along.

I believe that Roof shoulddie for his crimes, insteadof living life in prison or amental health facility.

South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley  was right insubsequently determiningthat it’s no longer appro-priate to fly the battle flagof the Confederacy on thegrounds of the South Caro-lina Capitol.

And though there is

no question that slaveryis a horrific crime againsthumanity, do rememberslavery was legal across theentire United States for 94years, and that 12 Americanpresidents (more than 25percent of the total) wereonce slave owners.

When we broaden ourperspective to the unfor-givable acts of genocidecommitted post-Civil Waragainst thousands of na-tive Americans during theTrail of Tears, or the muchmore recent acts of intern-ment against thousands ofJapanese Americans duringWorld War II, one has to askwhere this purging, white

washing or attempts to re-move anything deemed po-tentially “offensive” from ourhistory to anyone will end?

In contrast, our Ameri-can Battle MonumentsCommission, now helmedby Cabinet Secretary MaxCleland, administers, oper-ates and maintains 25 Amer-ican military cemeteries, aswell as 26 federal memorials,monuments and markers,located in 16 foreign coun-tries and territories abroad.

More than 218,000 wardead, the majority fromWorld War I and II, are me-morialized, commemoratedor buried near battlegroundswhere they fought, in placesas varied as Normandy,France, Sicily, Italy, Santiago,Cuba and Tunisia. And ateach of these cemeteries or

hallowed memorial grounds,the American flag flies.

If the Edmund PettusBridge in Selma should re-main so named, in part dueto its fame following hor-rific treatment and violenceagainst Civil Rights protes-tors, despite the Civil Warmilitary history and post-war Klan leadership of for-mer Alabama U.S. Senatorand Democrat, Mr. Pettus,then clearly we should noteven be discussing removingthe name of southern gentle-man, later college presidentand founder, as well as ad-mired military tactician andVirginia loyalist, Robert E.Lee.

My last few recollec-tions of our nation feeling“together” are from the daysand weeks immediately fol-lowing 9/11/2001, whenwe knew we were all underattack, but not yet certainof by whom or from where,and the equally devastatingtime following the landfallof Hurricane Katrina alongour Gulf Coast in 2005.

It should not require anact of war or natural disasterfor the American people toact as one. But unless wecan all start developing bet-ter abilities to focus on themany things in life we allhold dear and in common,

 versus creating wedges andfractions over our small dif-ferences, we only weaken thecollective for those real en-emies which still exist from

Bill Crane

[email protected]

Columnist

Rainbows and crossbowswithout.

I’m simply suggestingthat we truly each practicethe Golden Rule, treatingothers as we prefer to betreated. Perhaps for a mo-ment, set aside our differ-ences, put down those cross-bows, smile and remembera simpler time, or create itagain, maybe somewhere,over a rainbow.

Bill Crane also serves as a political analyst and commen-tator for Channel 2’s ActionNews, WSB-AM News/Talk750 and now 95.5 FM, as wellas a columnist for 

 he Cham-pion, Champion Free Pressand Georgia rend. Crane isa DeKalb native and business

owner, living in Scottdale. Youcan reach him or commenton a column at bill.csicrane@ gmail.com. 

8/20/2019 Free Press 7-10-15

6/20

Page 6A The Champion Free Press, Friday, July 10, 2015

LOCAL

ATLANTA (AP) Con-ederate flags will continue

lying at Stone MountainPark near Atlanta becauseGeorgia law prevents theiremoval, according to whathe head of a state authorityhat oversees the park saiduly 1.

The law would have tobe changed for the flags tobe removed, said Bill Ste-phens, chief executive of-icer of the Stone Mountain

Memorial Association.Stephens said the park’s

Flag Terrace, where severalversions of Confederate flags

ly, was donated by the Unit-ed Daughters of the Con-ederacy in 1964. He said it’s

considered a memorial and,as such, can’t be removed orelocated under Georgia law.

In a written statement heaid, “The law that changedhe flag to our current statelag also expressly prohibited

changes at Stone MountainPark. Some on both sides ofhese issues have said thathese Confederate symbols

belong in a museum. Heren Georgia, Stone Mountain

Park serves that purpose.”

He added that anyonewho tampers with the park’smemorials to the Confed-eracy could be charged witha crime.

Earlier, Stephens hadsaid the park’s leaders wereconsidering what to doabout the flags and research-ing their options.

The Confederate banner

has come under renewedcriticism nationwide after aJune 17 church massacre inCharleston, S.C. The manaccused in the case posed

for photos with the Confed-erate symbol.

Stone Mountain’s flagsituation has parallels tothat of the Confederatebattle flag hanging at the

South Carolina statehousegrounds. South Carolina lawprevents that flag from beingmoved without a two-thirdsmajority approval from both

chambers of the legislature.Stone Mountain Park

has been fielding phone callsabout the flags from oppo-nents as well as supportersand employees have been

listening to all viewpoints,Stephens said.Among opponents is 

Shannon Byrne, a 1993graduate of Stone Mountain

High School who frequentlyhikes the trails on and

around the mountain. Shesaid she thinks it’s shame-ful that the Confederateflags are flown at StoneMountain, particularly sinceit’s a place where the KuKlux Klan once held cross-burnings and organizationalmeetings.

But to others, the Con-federate flags representthe valor and honor theConfederate soldiers whofought in the American CivilWar. Sons of ConfederateVeterans spokesman Ben

Jones, who played Cooteron the Dukes of Hazzard TVshow and later representedGeorgia in Congress, saidthe flags are a source ofpride for him and other de-scendants of rebel fighters.

Among flags flying atStone Mountain, the onethat attracts frequent criti-cism is the mostly red-and-blue banner often referredto as the battle flag. Askedwhether that flag could beswapped with another inthe park’s display, Stephenssaid park officials interpret

state law as saying it can’t bechanged, since it’s a memo-

If you would like to nominate someone to be considered as a future Champion of the Week, please contact Andrew Cauthenat [email protected] or at (404) 373-7779, ext. 117.

 HERB MCCOY 

Stone Mountain Park official:

Rebel flags must fly under law 

See Flag on page 8A

For Herb McCoy, giving backto his community is a way of life.

Growing up, McCoy said he was“pretty involved in fundraising andother work within the community.”

When he became an adult, Mc-Coy said, that fre and willingnessto help people never left.

“I realized that I got a great joyout of understanding the diversityand meeting so many different peo- ple through service,” he added.

McCoy is a native of New Jer-sey; his parents are from Moultrie,Ga. He said traveling between thetwo locations assisted him in under-standing diversity and differences between people based on their geo-graphic location.

McCoy moved to DeKalbCounty in 1991, where he said he’s

ventured from working in Gwin-nett County, south DeKalb and theTucker area.

He attended college at Clark At-lanta University (formerly known

as Clark College) and received hismaster’s degree locally at MercerCollege’s Chamblee-Tucker loca-tion.

McCoy, along with his wife andson, now reside in Decatur and is aas vice president at Fidelity Bank.He said making the decision towork in Decatur allows him to domore work in the community.

“Decatur became a hotbed foropportunities to meet people andoffer services,” he said.

McCoy presently volunteers withthe Decatur Public Library Founda-tion, Decatur Business Association,

Decatur Rotary and several otherorganizations throughout DeKalb.

McCoy said when volunteersdedicate time and services to an or-ganization they’re working toward a

greater good.He said being a part of the Ro-

tary Club appealed to him. “Theirmotto is service above self. That just fell right in line with how I felt.

“There are so many organiza-tions and opportunities to do goodthings and devote your time. I thinkit’s a part of the journey of life, asyou proceed, look and see how youcan pay it forward at any given timethat will assist in making this a bet-ter place.”

Various versions of the Confederate battle ag have a protected status by state law at Stone Mountain Park.Photo by Travis Hudgons

8/20/2019 Free Press 7-10-15

7/20

The Champion Free Press, Friday, July 10, 2015 Page 7ALOCAL

Atlanta

MARTA to host job fair

MARTA will host a job fair July 11 to fill 53fulltime bus operator positions by August. Thefair will be held at MARTA headquarters atrium,2424 Piedmont Road NE in Atlanta, 8:30-11a.m. Candidates must be at least 21 years old,pass pre-employment background screenings,ncluding customer service tests and physical

exam—including drug and alcohol testing andhave “excellent” customer service skills. Formore information, visit www.itsmarta.com.

BrookhavenNew playground equipment on the way toLynwood Park 

 Children visiting Brookhaven’s Lynwood

Park will soon get to enjoy new playgroundequipment that includes multiple tube andwave slides. The equipment is on the way, andnstallation is set to begin next week, the city an-

nounced June 24. The playground is provided byhe Shinnick family in honor of Liam Shinnick  

and was designed by Landscape Structures. Thenew equipment will be installed across the pathfrom the current playground structures and will

be under construction for four to six weeks. Thearea will be taped off for safety of park patrons,who are asked to stay clear of the area for theirafety. For more information, contact the Parks

and Recreation Department at (404) 637-0542.Lynwood Park is located at 3360 Osborne RoadNE.

DecaturLunch & Learn to focus on oral histories

 DeKalb History Center’s July Lunch and

Learn will focus on the basics needed to do oralhistories of the people, places, things, life experi-

ences and events of daily lives.Guest speaker will be Fred Mobley  whoreceived his master’s in Heritage Preservationfrom Georgia State University and is archivist atDeKalb History Center.

The event is scheduled for Tuesday, July21, noon – 1 p.m. at the Historic DeKalb Court-house, 101 E. Court Square in downtown Deca-ur. Attendees are encouraged to bring a lunch;here is no charge to attend.

DeKalb History Center reveals civil warsymposium

A Civil War symposium will be held at the

DeKalb History Center, 101 East Court Squareon July 11 from 9 a.m. - 2 p.m.The symposium includes a walking tour,

ectures, a panel discussion, lunch, a play and an

optional bus tour.The event will focus on people and events in

and around Atlanta and DeKalb County duringthe Civil War.

For more information about the symposiumor to register by phone call (404) 373-1088, ext.20.

Lunch is included in the cost of registration.

LithoniaSummer revival services announced

Ousley United Methodist Church will pres-ent Super Summer Revival on Sundays July 12,19 and 26 with guest speakers and a theme of

“Turning Our Hearts Back to God.”

The schedule is as follows:

•Sunday, July 12 – Rev. Ronny Brannon fromProspect United Methodist Church in Coving-ton.

•Sunday, July 19 –Rev. Dr. Elaine Crawford,Chaplain at Clark Atlanta University and Rev.Terri Lemons of Newnan Chapel United Meth-odist Church.

•Sunday, July 26 - Rev. Telley Gadson of St.Mark United Methodist Church in Taylor, S.C.

Revival services will begin each Sunday at 6p.m

A release from Ousley UMC states, “Come

 join ‘Our Multicultural Church Family Doingthe Work of Christ.’” Rev. McCallister Hollins issenior pastor at Ousley UMC.

The church is located at 3261 Panola Roadin Lithonia.

For additional information contact the Ou-sley UMC at (770) 981-0180) or visit www.ous-leyumc.org.

Creation Care presents annual Carribeanfestival

Creation Care Community will host its fifthannual Farmers Market and Taste of Carribeanon July 11. The purpose of the festival is to pro-mote healthy lifestyles.

Creation Care is a nonprofit organizationthat provides hands-on experiences that teacheschildren and adults how to grow their own food.

The event will be held in Lithonia at 5197Salem Road 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. It is free and opento the public.

Additionally, the event will feature perfor-mances by Tonio & Epic, Akua Taylor, OMBBand and Calabash Alley Masquerades. Therewill also be a children’s theater show, storytell-ing, face painting, horseback riding, healthscreening, cooking demonstrations, motorcyclesafety riding demonstrations and garden walk-ing tours.

Other activities include Afro-Cardio, Afri-kan dance and an Africentric fashion.

For additional information contact Pam Ste- vson-Jones at (404) 314-9404 or Karen Graham at (404) 408-8329.

CountywidePhoto contest continues during NationalParks and Recreation Month

 DeKalb County Department of Recreation, Parks

and Cultural Affairs, The Champion Newspaper ,Discover DeKalb Convention & Visitors Bureau andSouthern Airways Express are sponsoring a photog-raphy contest focused on increasing awareness of thecounty’s parks and recreational facilities.

Open to amateur and professional photogra-phers, the contest runs July 2 until July 31. A list ofsubjects will be provided to all participants by theDeKalb County Department of Recreation, Parksand Cultural Affairs; and photos must have beentaken between Jan. 1, 2014, and July 31, 2015.

In conjunction with the photography contest, afree photography workshop led by professional pho-tographer John Glenn will be held July 9, 6:30 to 8:30p.m. at Callanwolde Fine Arts Center’s Sam Gold-man Retreat, 980 Briarcliff Road in Atlanta.

 Winning photographs will be selected by apanel of judges. Winning photographers and theirwork will be recognized at an event in September atCallanwolde Fine Arts Center and featured in TheChampion Newspaper  and in Discover DeKalb’s tour-ism publications. Prizes will be awarded to first-, sec-ond- and third-place winners and will include suchpremiums as flights on Southern Airways Expressand a weekend hotel stay in DeKalb County.

All photographs submitted must be taken inparks owned, managed and listed by DeKalb CountyDepartment of Recreation, Parks and Cultural Af-fairs.

The Department of Recreation, Parks and Cul-tural Affairs’ mission is to provide safe parks andfacilities, enhance the quality of life as a providerof recreation and cultural experiences and ensure acustomer-focused parks system.

To participate in the contest or to register forthe photography class, visit www.dekalbcountyga.gov/dekalbparkspics. For additional information call(404) 371-3695.

Juvenile court to host community resourcefair

DeKalb County Juvenile Court will host aCommunity Resource Fair in conjunction withDeKalb County Board of Health on July 15,from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Families with youth ages14-24 are invited to come and receive resource

information on health and wellness, familystrengthening, mentoring, and educational ser- vices.

Health and Wellness topics will includeAIDS prevention and awareness and HIV test-ing will be available. Information will be pro-

 vided on programs and educational servicesthat are offered at no cost to participants. OpenHouse for Youth Creating Change and the YouthAchievement Program will also be held that day.These programs, along with other classes heldat DeKalb County Juvenile Court promote aca-demic achievement, workforce developments,and positive social skills.

The juvenile court is located at 4309 Memo-rial Drive in Decatur. For more informationabout DeKalb County Juvenile Court’s Commu-

nity Resource Fair or to become a vendor, con-tact Quiana Scott at [email protected] or E. Diane Hill at [email protected].

AROUNDDEKALB

8/20/2019 Free Press 7-10-15

8/20

Page 8A The Champion Free Press, Friday, July 10, 2015

LOCAL

Stop bullying now stand up • speak out

Discord over Lithonia’sproposed annexation planby Carla [email protected]

Lithonia Mayor Debo-rah Jackson’s proposed an-nexation map is not sittingwell with some businessowners and one cityhoodgroup.

During the May 18 citycouncil work session, Jack-on presented an annexation

map to council members.The proposed map includesan additional 6,000 to 8,000esidents. Some of the areasn the map include parts ofhe proposed Greenhaven

and Stonecrest maps.The bills for the pro-posed cities of Greenhavenand Stonecrest failed to passhe General Assembly in theast session, although Stone-

crest passed the senate 45-1.A meeting was held betweenackson and representatives

of Greenhaven and Stone-crest.

Jason Lary , chairman ofhe Stonecrest City Alliance,aid he told Jackson that his

group was “not willing toadhere or bend our borders,for several reasons.”

“One is that we’ve al-eady presented this propos-

al to the House of Represen-atives and to the State Sen-

ate, by which we’ve alreadypassed the senate 45-1.Two, is that their proposedboundaries would decreaseour population by 10,000people and split half of thendustrial park, neither of

which [is] acceptable to us,”Lary said.

“From an industrial side,he business owners and thendustrial owners in that

area have expressly told thecity of Lithonia that they donot want to be included inany annexation at all,” Laryadded. “Not only has thendustrial park told the cityhat, the businesses in the

Stonecrest corridor have ex-pressed the same sentiment.”

Attorney Bernard

Knight, who represents Kel-ly Land Company in the in-

dustrial park, said businessowners have been in discus-sions with Jackson about an-nexation since late 2013.

“Industrial ownerslearned that she was con-templating taking a proposalto the General Assembly forthe 2014 session,” Knightsaid. “The industrial own-ers asked for a town hallmeeting with Jackson, whichJackson agreed to hold. Themeeting room was packedwith members of the in-dustrial community, whouniformly told her that theywere very unhappy that upto that point she had notreached out to them and dis-cussed this issue with them.”

Knight said the citycouncil apologized to theindustrial community andpassed a resolution to es-tablish a task force to becomposed of representa-tives from the industrialcommunity, the mayor andother city officials to studythe question of annexation.Knight said the city coun-cil also asked the mayor to

defer taking the annexationproposal to the General As-sembly until the task forcereported back to the citycouncil.

During the task forcemeeting, business ownersasked the mayor to conducta feasibility study.

“The mayor should be

required to do a study, es-pecially given the fact that

the city of Lithonia is in direfinancial straits,” Knightsaid. “[The industrial com-munity] does not want tobe part of an enlarged citywhich is going to go downthe tubes.”

Business owners alsoasked the mayor to projectwhat the millage rate wouldbe. They want a millagerate cap added to the citycharter, an industrial zoningcode, according to Knightwho said they do not wantto be a part of a full service

city. Knight said Jackson hasnot done anything that theyhave requested.

Jackson said that is nottrue.

“We still were in a pro-cess of looking at thoseissues,” she said. “My ap-proach was how do we cre-ate something that wouldbe a win-win? Several of theindustrial property ownershad indicated that they werenot happy with the DeKalbCounty zoning code. Myapproach was since the citydoes not currently have in-dustrial zoning, why don’tyou look at what might besome opportunities in termsof best practices for gettingthat industrial park de-

 velopeds. My approach wasmore of collaboration.”

Knight said some busi-ness owners fear the city willuse the industrial park as a“cash cow.”

“They will impose a very high millage rate,which would certainly in-

 jure the existing businessesand discourage new busi-

nesses from coming intothe park,” Knight said. “Andthe second fear is that themayor’s underlying intent isto dismantle the industrialpark and convert it over intohousing.”

“That’s absurd,” Jacksonsaid in response to Knight’sstatement. “The industrial

park is what it is. There hasbeen an attempt to be cre-

ative about what are new op-portunities to really have theindustrial park be a vibrantand thriving area. As far asI know, there has not been aspecific plan developed forthe industrial park, becauseI’ve asked.”

Knight said Kelly LandCompany and most of theother business owners inthe industrial park are “verydisappointed” in the waythe mayor has attempted tocreate a new city at “theirexpense.”

“We’re also disappointedthat the mayor—after hav-ing been apprised by thetask force members of theflaws in her plan and thethings that she needed to doin order to show us that it isfeasible—has disregarded allof that and has proceededwith another plan withoutcontacting the industrialstakeholders,” he said.

Lary said Jackson doesnot have support from citycouncilmembers on the an-nexation plan.

“She does not have po-litical support,” Lary said.“They wouldn’t even makeit to the General Assemblybecause they’ve told her thatif she does not have the sup-port of the council we’re notgoing to talk to you aboutthis.”

Councilman Al Frank-lin said he thinks annexa-tion is a good idea only ifit does not impede on pro-posed cities.

“I would definitely be-lieve that the council, asa general majority, would

probably agree with mein knowing that it didn’twant to cut into areas of thebusiness park, nor areas ofStonecrest,” he said.

rial.“They are decisions for

the General Assembly tomake in terms of changingthe law,” Stephens said.

More than 1,000 people

have signed an online peti-tion at MoveOn.org urgingthe Confederate Flags betaken down at Stone Moun-tain Park.

“Stone Mountain canhave historical and educa-tional context, but shouldnot celebrate a culture ofhate,” the petition states.“Flying the flag is a sign ofrespect and honor, neitherof which should be given toracism and a legacy of en-slaving people.

“The Confederate flag

perpetuates values of andpride in White supremacyand racism,” the petitionstates. “We believe that ev-ery person should be able to

 visit the park without seeingblatant signs of hate.”

Mary Faircloth of StoneMountain commented onthe petition, “It’s the 21stcentury! Not 1870!”

Elisheva Aneke ofBloomington, Ind., and whogrew up in Lithonia, wrotethat “as a Black woman, themany Confederate memori-als and symbols are discour-

aging reminders of how littlethe systems of oppressionhave changed to afford Blackpeople with the same oppor-tunities as White Americans.Take down the flags.”

Maryellen Pient ofAtlanta wrote that the “thesymbols of the Confederacyare an insult to the peoplewho visit this park, the ma-

 jority of which are AfricanAmerican.”

Another petition signer,Kristen of Decatur, said theflags should be removed

because “it seems like theyare being revered. Historical,yes. Honorable, no. No morehonorable than a swastika.”

 Andrew Cauthen contrib-uted to this story.

FlagContinued From Page 6A 

Lary

8/20/2019 Free Press 7-10-15

9/20

The Champion Free Press, Friday, July 10, 2015 Page 9ALOCAL

See Garden on page 13A

Lithonia officer, infantkilled in crash

Kaiser ID#

25277709 is ahappy-go-lucky2 year old boywho loves to play

 just as much ashe loves sittingby your side.This fun-lovingboy seems to

know his “sit” andwould love tolearn more tricks.He has a softspot in his heartfor treats and hewill do just about anything for them! His kissableface and lovable personality are the icing on thecake for this sweet boy. Come meet Kaiser at theDeKalb shelter. If you adopt Kaiser during Julyyou’ll pay only $17.76 during our “Celebrate theirIndependence Day” special; including his neuter,vaccines and microchip at no additional charge.If you would like more information about Kaiserplease email adoption@dekalbanimalservices.

com or call (404) 294-2165. All potential adopterswill be screened to ensure Kaiser goes to a goodhome.

Pet of the Week by Justin Beaudrot

Tucked away on a neigh-borhood street in Clarkstons Jolly Avenue Community

Garden. There, a varietyof corn, tomatoes, beans,quash, cucumber, lettuce,ong bean, mustard greens

and roselle grow.Organized and ad-ministered by Friends ofRefugees, the Jolly AvenueCommunity Garden of-fers tenant farmers, mostof whom are refugees andClarkston residents, a spaceand opportunity to practiceurban agriculture. RebekahLawson, garden coordina-or, brings in volunteers to

help maintain the grounds,but the farmers are respon-ible in large part for theirndividual plots.

Pat Maddox , founder

of Friends of Refugees,purchased the Jolly Avenueproperty in 2005 to use as a

community food pantry andclothing closet. Not possess-ing the proper permits atthe time for that enterprise,though, both were shutdown by the county. BrianBollinger, CEO of Friendsof Refugees, saw how hecould help and initiated the

development of a commu-nity garden on that sameproperty.

Lawson said, “He sawthat many refugees, clearlynot all, but many, come inwith an agricultural or gar-dening background…and healso saw that [the] middle-aged generation and oldergeneration often didn’t findways to plug into jobs, cul-ture [and the] mainstreambecause acquiring Englishand computer skills past acertain age is so incrediblydifficult. So he wanted them

to have a place to use theirskill set in a communitysetting and a place for the

different cultures to cometogether doing somethingsimilar so they would seethat commonality.”

With the garden’s firstgrowing season in 2008,Jolly Avenue CommunityGarden has flourished. In-dividuals who are assigned

plots and supply their ownfencing and crops. As a re-sult, the garden is an eclecticmix of reused and repur-posed materials acting asfencing, pathways and gatesto form and protect plots.

“It doesn’t look, I guess,like your standard com-munity garden because you

 just see all these randomsticks, you know, pokingout at different angles andtied together with whatever,”Lawson said. “We wantedthem to do it their way, andwe’re really proud and happy

about the idea this beinga place where they can dowhat they know how to do.

by Carla [email protected]

A Lithonia police officerand an infant were killed in

a two-vehicle accident July 4.The accident occurredon Rock Chapel Road andKimberly Lynn Court. Ac-cording to the police report,Jodie Green was travelingnorth on Rock Chapel Roadwith her infant daughter,Melony Flood, and JamesFlood when she attemptedto make a U-turn on RockChapel Road to go to theChevron at StephensonRoad.

Off-duty Lithonia po-lice officer Jamell Dent wastraveling south on a motor-cycle on Rock Chapel whenhe hit the right rear doorof Green’s car, causing it tooverturn. Green told policeshe did not see Dent ap-proaching.

Dent was trapped underGreen’s car and was pro-nounced dead at the scene.

Green told police shefound her infant daughterunresponsive. The babywas transported to EglestonChildren’s Hospital and was

pronounced dead.The baby’s father had visible injuries to his rightarm and a cut to his face, ac-cording to the police report.

Dent had been with theLithonia Police Departmentsince December 2014. Hewas with the DeKalb policeforce for six years prior to

 joining the Lithonia force.“He was a good offi-

cer,” Lithonia Police ChiefRoosevelt Smith said. “Hebrought experience andleadership to the force.”

DeKalb Police Capt. Ste- ven Fore said the accident isstill under investigation, butpolice believe the speed ofthe motorcycle is the maincause of the accident. Foresaid he does not anticipateany charges will be filed.

Refugees grow atcommunity garden

A stripped box spring is used for fencing. Photos by Justin Beaudrot

The hand-painted welcome sign greets people as they enter the Jolly Avenue Community Gardening.

8/20/2019 Free Press 7-10-15

10/20

Page 10A The Champion Free Press, Friday, July 10, 2015

LOCAL

Avondale Estates lowers millage rate

Photo 

contest:  Share your best shots of DeKalbCounty Parks.For informaon and to register visitdekalbcountyga.gov/dekalbparkspics

Sponsored by:

Win roundtrip airfareon Southern Airways

Express

Win roundtrip airfareon Southern Airways

Express

#DeKalbParksPics

iFlySouthern.com visitatlantasdekalb.com dekalbcountyga.gov/parks TheChampionNewspaper.com

by Carla [email protected]

The Avondale EstatesBoard of Mayor and Com-missioners voted July 1 to

ower the millage rate to9.957.The millage rate will

be one mill lower than thecurrent rate of 10.957. Ac-cording to the city, the ratecorresponds to a net taxncrease by the city of about

5.8 percent. If the rate hademained the same, the netax would have increased to

18 percent.The 5.8 percent prop-

erty tax increase is due tohe millage increase overhe rollback rate of 9.408

and the increase in property

 values as assessed by DeKalbCounty. According to thecity, the Board of Mayor andCommissioners believed thesensible decision would beto lower the millage to offer

tax relief to Avondale Estatesresidents, while meeting thecity’s budget needs.

Residents who spoke atthe public hearing before themillage rate vote said theywant the rate to remain as is.

Joe Anziano said he was infavor of keeping the existingmillage rate rather than roll-ing it back.

“I believe a reserve ismore than just putting mon-

ey aside for a rainy day,” hesaid at the hearing. “It’s actu-ally having an active reservein case something comes up,and you want to spend it. Ifwe need a particular itemthat costs extra [money],

you’ll have money reservedif the board moves that way.”

Before the vote, MayorPro Tem Terry Giager saidhe was in favor of looking atchanging the millage rate.

“If we kept it where it is,I think that will be the larg-est tax increase we’ve had inAvondale Estates history,” hesaid. “It’s not because we’reraising anything, it’s just themillage rate [is] where it is.”

Commissioner LindsayForlines she did not realizethe net tax percentage wouldincrease if the millage rateremained the same.

“While I agree whole-

heartedly with reserves andexpenditures, I don’t wantto increase our taxes by thatmuch in a single year,” shesaid.

CountycelebratesParks andRecreationMonth

DeKalb County Recre-ation, Parks and Cultural

Affairs is celebrating Na-ional Park and RecreationMonth in July to raiseawareness about parks andecreation departments.

The following upcomingactivities are free and openo the public: G.E.A.R. Reading Pro-gram, July 1-31. AllDeKalb County recreationcenters. Check with centerfor times.

Water Safety Awarenessworkshop, July 9-28, 10a.m.–2 p.m., at the fol-lowing locations: July

9, Gresham Pool, 3113Gresham Road, Atlanta;July 18, Lithonia Pool, 2501Park Drive, Lithonia; July21, Kittredge Pool, 2535 N.Druid Hills Rd., Atlanta;July 23 – Exchange SprayGround, 2771 ColumbiaDrive, Decatur; July 28 –Kelly Cofer Pool, 4259 N.Park Dr., Tucker; July 11(swim meets July 11-25),DeKalb Swim League,County Dual Swim Meet,9 a.m., Lithonia Pool, 2501Park Dr., Lithonia.

Mason Mill SummerCamp Field Day, July 13,Mason Mill RecreationCenter, 1340 McConnellDr., Decatur, 1–3 p.m., ages5-15.

8/20/2019 Free Press 7-10-15

11/20

The Champion Free Press, Friday, July 10, 2015 Page 11ALOCAL

WEEKPICTURESIn 

Photo brought t you by DCTV 

DeKalb County begins one-day-a-week sanitation collection service July 6, 2015

Residential customers will have same-day garbage, recyclable materials and yard trimmings collection

For more info, call or visit:

 (404) 294-2900

www.rollingforwardtoone.com

In time for Independence Day, ags lined Larkspur Terrace in unincorporated Decatur. Photo byAndrew Cauthen

A Stone Mountain Park employee keeps children entertained with giant bubbles. Photo byTravis Hudgons

City of Decatur hosts its annual Fourth of July celebration reworks show. Photosy Travis Hudgons

8/20/2019 Free Press 7-10-15

12/20

Page 12A The Champion Free Press, Friday, July 10, 2015

LOCAL

Former DeKalb band directors find success with jazzby Carla [email protected]

Educators by day andmusicians by night—that ishe life of Marvin Pryor and

Nelson Render.In 2009, the former

DeKalb County School Dis-rict band instructors who

now work for Atlanta PublicSchools District, formed ThePR Experience, a jazz/funkband composed of middleand high school educators.The award-winning, eight-member band has performed

across Georgia and theoutheast, and has plans toake their brand further.

The band started out asan idea of Pryor and Render,who are accomplished musi-ians. Pryor, who plays trom-

bone, and Render, who playsrumpet, played with The

Ohio Players 2010 through2012.

“We started out playingwith several other groups,getting calls for recordingessions and also playing inhe church,” Render said.One day we decided to

put something together. Ihought we could do [just as

well] as these other groups.”“It was an opportunity

or us to play what we reallywanted to play,” Pryor said.We look at this as an outletrom what we do on our 9-to-

5 [jobs]. It has been moreuccessful than we had evermagined. We thought we

would do this as a pastime,and it has just mushroomednto where we are today and

whereas it’s high demand andwe’re seriously considering

doing this thing fulltime. It’sbeen a great journey.”Pryor and Render have

known each other for years,with their friendship dating

back 20 years when Pryorwas a band director at Towersand Render was a memberof Pryor’s all-city jazz band.Years later, Pryor was nameddirector of bands at Stephen-son High School when theschool opened in 1996.

Render, a recent collegegraduate, visited Stephensonone summer to see the newmarching band. From there,Render became the band di-rector at Stephenson MiddleSchool and an associate di-rector at the high school.

“That was really the

union there,” Pryor said.When they formed ThePR Experience, they wantedto have a specific.

“We were not in thisthing for the money,” Pryorsaid. “We were into it for thecreativity and being able toexpress ourselves the way wewanted to express ourselves.”

“This is our baby and wetry to make sure we protectit as best as possible, and wedon’t want to hire somebodyand have them come in ifthey don’t’ have the rightspirit or the right connec-tion,” Render said. “Thatshows and it comes out in themusic. We did that and it hasgrown from the embryonicstage until now, and I thinkwe’re still going.”

The PR Experiencemembers went through threebands before they found agood nucleus of musicians.The band consists of saxo-phonist Kevin Shepherd–aDeKalb graduate and musicteacher; keyboardist GodfreyGrannum; bassist Ted Stew-art; drummer Quentin Rob-

inson; percussionist Bran-don Caldwell; and vocalistChristy Clark . The band hasbeen together for two years.

“It has pretty much been

everything we’ve wished forand asked for,” Pryor said.“Things are very bright forus now. We have found anucleus that really jells wellon the bandstand. The guysfeed off of each other on thebandstand, so we would hopethat this will be the nucleusfor a long time.”

The band has made aname for itself in Atlanta—performing at clubs andevents such as the SweetAuburn Festival and Praise102.5/97.5 Gospel Jazz Show-case. It has also won awards,

such as the 2015 RAW Atlan-ta Musician of the Year awardand represented Atlanta inthe RAW National Musiciancontest. The PR Experiencewas selected as the Georgia

Music Awards 2014 Jazz Art-ist of the Year.

They are nominatedagain for Jazz Artist of theYear. The band has appearedas opening act for Eric Rob-erson, Alex Bugnon andhas provided entertainmentfor celebrities such as RobinGivens, and Judge GlendaHatchett.

The band’s single “AhhBaby” topped the charts atNo. 1 on Platinummics.comfor 30 weeks in 2012. Theband’s success has Pryor andRender preparing to expand

the band’s brand.“We’re getting ready tolaunch our brand beyond thisregion,” Pryor said. “Our goalfor next year is to grace someof the big stages as far as jazz

festivals.”The band’s success also

has the two considering mak-ing this a full-time gig.

“I’m at the point nowwhere I’m ready to retirefrom my day job and do thisthing fulltime,” Pryor said. “Iam very excited for what thefuture holds.”

 “That would be the ul-timate goal for everybody,but we’ll have to do it andperform on the same typeof stage as the Jill Scotts andpeople like that,” Render said.

In regard to where Ren-

der and Pryor see the band infive years:“We’re Grammy bound,”

Pryor said.

rom left, Marvin Pryor, Keven Shephard and Nelson Render makes up the horn section of The PR Experience band. Photo by Carla Parker

8/20/2019 Free Press 7-10-15

13/20

Page 13A The Champion Free Press, Friday, July 10, 2015

LOCAL

by Ashley Oglesby [email protected]

On July 1 Clarkston of-

ficials voted unanimously topartner with Pesticide Ac-ion Network  and Beyond

Pesticides to protect honey-bees and other pollinatorsby becoming a Honey BeeHaven.

Mayor Ted Terry saidhe saw it fitting to start thenitiative after being ap-

proached by stakeholdersabout the epidemic affectingpollinators.

“It revolves around acertain pesticide, the neo-nicotinoids products thatare believed to cause colonyclass disorder in certainbee populations,” Terry ex-plained.

According to the resolu-ion presented at the council

meeting, scientific evidencehows that neonicotinoidnsecticides, including clo-hianidin, thiamethoxam

and imidacloprid are threatso pollinators.

Terry said, “Pollinatorsare responsible for one outof every three bites of foodwe eat. They’re responsiblefor over $19 billion worth of

ervices to U.S. agriculture.”Neonicotinoids are anew class of insecticideschemically related to nico-ine. The name literally

means new nicotine-like in-ecticides. Like nicotine, the

neonicotinoids act on re-ceptors in the nervous sys-em. They are much moreoxic to invertebrates, such

as insects, than they are tomammals, birds and otherhigher organisms.

The insecticide sharesa common mode of ac-ion that affects the central

nervous system of insects,esulting in paralysis and

death.Terry said, “I ran for

office because I wanted tomake a greener and moreustainable Clarkston. In

our public parks and pub-ic areas we don’t use the

chemical cocktail neonic-otinoids. That’s one of themain criteria for becominga haven–knowing that thosechemicals are linked tocausing bee colony collapsedisorder.”

He added, “By simplyeliminating those chemicalshat’s the first step. This is amall thing that we can doocally that is also symbolic

to other communities in theAtlanta region, to encouragethem to follow suit.”

Although the city of

Clarkston does not own oruse chemicals with neonic-otinoids, Councilman War-ren Hadlock said the citydoes purchase plants withneonicotinoids.

City officials agreed tophase out plants treatedwith the insecticide.

Hadlock said he fullysupports the resolution, “butlet’s understand that honeybees are by no means thegreatest pollinators we have.Honey bees are not nativeto America, that’s prob-ably one of the reasons thattheir population is beingdecimated because they’renot native, and they’re be-ing subjected to stresses thatwouldn’t be in their nativehabitat.”

Current Georgia lawstates that a city cannot banprivate individuals and busi-nesses from using pesticidesor herbicides of any class.

Terry said, “But certain-ly as a city we can decidewhat we use in our publicparks and public rightways.”

“As a city we’re saying

that we’re not going to usesomething that causes envi-ronmental harm. We wantto encourage residents andbusiness owners to do thesame since we’re not com-pelled to tell them by ordi-nance or law,” he said.

To become a honey beehaven a municipality musttake the pledge and pass aresolution or ordinance toprovide healthy environ-ments for bees, includingaccess to clean water andfood, provide shelter andeliminate the use of bee-harming pesticides.

Paul Towers, spokes-person for Pesticide ActionNetwork said, “Lacking stateand federal leadership, localgovernments have a respon-sibility to protect pollina-tors, especially honey bees.Bees are declining at analarming rate all across thecountry and are responsiblefor one in three bites of foodwe eat. For years, habitatloss, diseases and lack ofhealthy food have createdstresses for bees. The intro-

duction of new pervasiveand persistent pesticides,especially neonicotinoids,has made matters worse,driving the dramatic popu-

Clarkston joinshoney bee initiative

Often in a refugee’s experi-ence, an American has toteach them the essentialskills and language of thestates, but at this garden,they have the opportunity todo what they know how todo with having an Americanteach them that.”

Lawson said, “[The gar-den] gives them a role. Thisprovided them a place wherethey could put food on thetable. Their skills are recog-nized more readily withintheir family unit.”

Friends of Refugeesplans to break ground later

this year on an expansiveproject at the Jolly AvenueCommunity Garden thatwill provide an array ofcommunity developmentopportunities in addition tocommunity gardening.

GardenContinued From Page 9A 

A July 4 incident at theDeKalb County Jail has re-sulted in the death of oneinmate and charges beingbrought against another asthe suspected murderer.

Jah’Corey D. Tyson,23, was pronounced dead atDeKalb Medical Center afterbeing transported there after

sustaining injuries duringan altercation with his cell-mate, Donte Lamar Wyatt,33. DeKalb County Sher-iff’s deputies administeredemergency medical services

at the scene. Details of theincident, including the causeof death, are being withheldpending a homicide investi-gation by the DeKalb PoliceDepartment. The Sheriff ’sOffice is also conducting aninternal administrative re-

 view, as a matter of protocol.Wyatt was arrested on

April 13 on a charge of felo-ny murder. Tyson was takeninto custody on May 28, andwas charged with battery--family violence and rape.

“While altercations with-

in the inmate populationhappen frequently and for

 various reasons, incidentsof homicide among inmatesare rare,” Sheriff Jeff Mannsaid. “In fact, we have nothad an inmate homicide inmore than five years. How-ever, this does not lessen thetragedy of the situation, and

we extend our sincerest con-dolences to Mr. Tyson’s fam-ily, as we look into what mayhave caused his death.”

lation declines.”He added, “Local gov-

ernments not only have theability to restrict the use of

these pesticides on publicly-

owned properties but canalso model healthy waysto maintain parks, rights-of-ways, gardens and other

spaces that residents can put

into practice in their ownbackyards. The pledge is apublic commitment to showleadership for the bees.”

DeKalb jail inmate’s death investigated as murder

Honey Bees swarm inside of a jar. Courtesy of HoneyBeeHaven

8/20/2019 Free Press 7-10-15

14/20

EDUCATIONThe Champion Free Press, Friday, July 10, 2015 Page 14A

by Ashley Oglesby [email protected]

On July 1 Stephen Green wassworn in as the new superintendent ofthe DeKalb County School District.

Green was hired for the position

in June after the DeKalb Board ofEducation conducted a nationwidesearch and named Green as its solefinalist.

Green said, “I am honored toserve the Board of Education and thecitizens of DeKalb County in this im-portant role, but I am even more hon-ored and excited to serve the 100,000students of the DeKalb CountySchool District.”

Green was sworn in by SuperiorCourt Judge Gregory A. Adams inthe presence of his wife, family mem-bers, school board members, andstaff.

Melvin Johnson, chairman of theDeKalb Board of Education said, “Wehave in Green a seasoned professionalwho has stabilized troubled schooldistricts and knows the steps we musttake to propel the district forward.”

He added, “Green will have thefull support of the board and thecommunity in moving our districtforward.”

Green previously served for threeyears as superintendent of the KansasCity Public Schools.

Under Green’s leadership, KCPSearned provisional accreditation fromthe state, scored three consecutivebalanced budgets and perfect finan-

cial audits, and stabilized enrollment.Prior to assuming the superinten-

dency in Kansas City in 2011, Greenwas president and CEO of Kauffman

Scholars Inc., an academic enrich-ment and scholarship program thatprovides tutoring and life skills sup-port to students from middle schoolthrough college. He served as super-intendent of Community School Dis-trict No. 28 and a local instructional

superintendent for the New YorkCity Board of Education. Green alsoserved as the president and executivedirector of the New Jersey Teachingand Learning Collaborative, a not-for-profit organization founded to pro-

 vide technical assistance and advo-cacy for local and state policy reform.

Green said his focus in DeKalbCounty “will be on meeting the aca-demic needs and goals of our school-children and ensuring that we aremaximizing all of our community’sresources to achieve the best resultson our students’ behalf.”

“This begins a new chapter in the

DeKalb County School District thatwill feature a focus on improving stu-dent achievement and students’ expe-rience in the classrooms; a new chap-ter that will focus on achieving equityin among our schools and a focus onimproving relationships. Things havebeen moving in the right direction.I’m pleased that my predecessor hasbegun part of that process, now it’stime to take it to the next level,” Greensaid.

He added, “In the area of studentachievement and what happens in theclassrooms, I’ll have very laser-like fo-cus on matching up rigor with regardto the developmental structure of

our classes. I think our students havegreat potential, and I think there is aresponsibility from all of us to realizethat potential.”

DeKalb’s new school chief sworn inKimberly Green holds the bible as her husband, DeKalb school Superintendent Stephen Green is sworn into his new position.

Superintendent Stephen Green responds to reporters after being sworn in.

8/20/2019 Free Press 7-10-15

15/20

Legend Continued From Page 1A

Ellis Continued From Page 1A

The Champion Free Press, Friday, July 10, 2015 Page 15ALOCAL

Ellis testified that he did not pressure contrac-or Power and Energy to contribute to his politicalampaign. He was, however, concerned that a rep-esentative hung up on him.

“When I saw how much business they were do-ng with the county, that, even more so, made me

mad that she would hang up the phone,” Ellis saidn June. “I you don’t respect the office o the CEO

you don’t respect the county.” Kelvin Walton, a wit-ness or the prosecution and Ellis’ ormer procure-ment director, testified that he was told by Ellis todry up the work o Power and Energy, a companyhat serviced generators or the county.

Ellis was sent to jail afer the verdict and afer hisbond was revoked by Superior Court Judge Court-ney Johnson

. His sentencing was scheduled or July8, afer Te Champion’s press time.Te judge also issued a gag order, prevent-

ng DeKalb County District Attorney Robertames and Ellis’ attorneys rom commenting on therial until afer sentencing.

Afer the verdict, interim DeKalb County CEOLee May released a statement in which he encour-aged residents “to join me in keeping the Ellisamily in our thoughts and prayers. I wish themstrength in the days and months ahead.”

May stated that Ellis’ suspension would continue“during any appeal until the final disposition o hiscase or the expiration o his term o office, which-ever comes first. While the suspension is in effect,I remain as interim Chie Executive Officer. As in-terim CEO, I will continue to stay ocused on mov-ing the county orward.”

According to an opinion issued by O.V. Brant-ley , the county’s attorney, Ellis is no longer entitledto receive compensation rom his office.

“I Mr. Ellis is subsequently reinstated to officehe shall be entitled to receive any compensationwithheld under this law,” Brantley stated.

In a statement Commissioner Nancy Jester said,“Te taxpayers, businesses and residents o DeKalbCounty received a portion o justice long due to

them.Jester said that the verdict, “while important and

necessary, does not close the book on corruption inDeKalb. o the contrary, these verdicts, along withguilty pleas o a ormer commissioner, are but araction o the justice that must be tendered to thecitizens o this county.”

Unhappy axpayer and Voter, which decribesitsel as a grassroots, aith-based, nonpartisanmovement representing and protecting the interesto taxpayers and voters, released a statement saying“12 women and men on the jury have spoken to saythat Burrell Ellis is guilty o extortion and perjury.We respect the jury’s decision.”

Te group said it will continue to demand “in-

 vestigations and criminal orensic audits to restorethe public’s trust, transparency, ethics and account-ability in DeKalb County government.”

“Until we place restoring public trust as a toppriority, DeKalb County will struggle to heal romcorruption,” the group stated.

A native o Gary, Ind., Flournoy’sourney to exas Western was interest-ng and inspiring. As a child, Flournoy

did not play any sports. When hentered high school, he still had nontentions to play sports due to the ra-ial divide at the school. However, his

girlriend’s brother convinced him tory out or the basketball team.“Her brother was on the varsity

eam and they had try outs, and heasked me how come I wasn’t at thery outs,” he said. “I told him I didn’t

want to play. He asked me i I liked hisister, and I said, ‘Yeah, I like her.’ Heaid, ‘Well, i you want to keep seeing

her you’re going to have to go out orhe basketball team.’”

Flournoy tried out and made theeam, but midway through the season

he was ready to quit.“I decided I didn’t like the game,

and I was going to dump his sisterand go on about my business,” he said.

But ater the season was over, hewould come by the house and take meo this gym where I would play, and Itarted liking the game.”

Flournoy was not a good playern the beginning, but he enjoyed theomradery o the team, and it moti-

vated him to continue to play basket-ball and he improved. He played threeyears on the varsity team.

His skills on the court capturedhe attention o exans Westernoach Don Haskins. Haskins wanted

Flournoy at exas Western, butFlournoy was not interested.

“My mother is the one that ledme to enroll there,” he said. “I didn’t

want to go there because I had [gone]hrough a lot o racial adversity at the

high school that I went to. Gary, Ind.,during the time that I was there, wasike a Southern city with a Midwestocation. hey did not have the signs

up, but they had boundaries, whereyou could go or couldn’t go.”

He attended Emerson High School,a majority White high school where heaid Black students were shunned by

Whites. He said he did not want to go

through that same experience in col-lege.

“I wanted to go to a majority Blackschool or a historically Black school,but when my mother met coachHaskins she ell in love with him, andshe thought that would be the best en-

 vironment or me,” he said.As Flournoy expected, he and his

Black teammates aced racism rom

students and ans, and it intensiiedwhen Haskins started ive Black play-ers, including Flournoy, early in the1966 season, Flournoy’s senior season.

“We had diiculty with the ansin El Paso accepting it at irst; we hadempty [stands] at irst until we played[high-ranking] Iowa,” he said. “Whenwe played Iowa, we beat them hand-edly, and everyone came on board.Everybody loves winners.”

Flournoy averaged 8.3 points and

10.7 rebounds per game that season.He played only six minutes in thechampionship game, leaving the gamewith a twisted let knee. He said heoriginally injured his knee in the semi-inals game.

“Back then you played the semi-inals game on Friday and inals onSaturday—you went back-to-back,” hesaid. “Even though I started Saturday,

I didn’t have the lateral movementthat I needed in order to play eectivedeense, which was what our mainstaywas.

“It was very hard to sit there,”Flournoy said o being out o thegame. “I we had diiculties in thatgame, I would have come back in thatgame, but we didn’t have any diicul-ties in that game. Even though theycame back within one point, we stillcontrolled the whole game. It was

hard, but I was proud o the guys withhow they responded to me not beingin there.”

Beore leaving the game, he scoredtwo points and grabbed two rebounds,one o which was displayed on thecover o Sports Illustrated  where

Flournoy rebounded a ball over NBAlegend Pat Riley .Unlike Riley, Flournoy did not play

in the NBA, but it was not by choice.He said the NBA blackballed him andother Black teammates because theyproved that Black athletes could com-pete with White athletes.

“here was a backlash, rom usdoing what we did,” he said. “Peoplehate to be proven wrong and that wasthe backlash. hey didn’t drat anyonerom our team.”

Flournoy went on to earn his col-lege degree and became a teacher andbasketball coach at an elementaryschool in El Paso, exas. He worked

a couple o years in insurance beorehe moved to Caliornia and started acareer in the ood industry. He retiredater more than 30 years in the oodindustry and moved to Georgia in2009.

He is married and has six children.At Glenn’s basketball camp, he

urged campers to live up to their po-tential and never let anyone convincethem “you can’t.”

“I hope that these kids under-stand that it’s not what other peopletell them what they can’t do, it’s up tothem,” he said. “Whatever they wantto do, they can. Whatever they wantto try, they can try. here is no limit

to where they can go i they use whatthey have.”

Reerring to Glory Road , Flournoysaid he was impressed with MehcadBrooks’ perormance as him.

“I’m glad that they got the best-looking person to portray me,” hesaid. “It was really good. I think he gotsome ilm o me because he got medown pretty well.”

Harry Flournoy averaged 8.3 points and 10.7 rebounds per game for Texas Western duringthe 1966 championship season. Photo provided

8/20/2019 Free Press 7-10-15

16/20

The Champion Free Press, Friday, July 10, 2015 Page 16ABUSINESS

LawrencevilleHighway Krystalgets makeover

DeKalb Chamber of Commerce • Two Decatur Town Center, 125 Clairemont Ave., Suite, Decatur, GA 30030 • 404.378.8000 • www.dekalbchamber.org 

INFLUENTIAL

After more than 40 years in the same spot, the Krystalon Lawrenceville Highway closed—but only for a few days.

“We closed on a Sunday evening and reopened Fridaywith a new look. I was impressed at how fast the work wasdone,” said James Smith, director of operation.

As a brand, Krystal has been around 82 years. “We’reone of the oldest fast food chains in America and possiblythe oldest one in the South,” he said.

Smith said every company-owned restaurant in thechain will be remodeled over the next seven years. “We’rereally excited about this. Everything was redone—the sig-nage, the lobby, the restrooms, the dining area. We’ve givenit all a more modern look.

“This is something we wanted to do for our custom-ers, and they seem to really appreciate it,” Smith continued.“We have regulars who have been coming here for years.They tell us how much they appreciate the upgrade. This istheir Krystal. One lady asked if she could put a clock in thedining room. We said, ‘of course.’”

Smith said the Lawrenceville Highway location, whilenot the oldest in the metro Atlanta area, is among the bestknown. “Decatur has been good to us,” he said. “We reallyenjoy being here.”

by Kathy Mitchell

Happy hour at DogwoodHealing Arts is every Thurs-

day from 4 to 7 p.m., butno liquids are involved, saidKaren Lang , owner of theDunwoody business.

“This is acupuncturehappy hour,” Lang explained.We offer an acupuncturereatment that is focused onalming the mind, reducingtress and alleviating anxiety.nstead of heading to a baro unwind and relieve stress,

people can come in for apecially priced treatment inzero-gravity recliner chairs

where they can be social or

ust relax quietly. No ap-pointment is needed,” sheaid.

As with traditionalhappy hours, Lang said,ometimes groups of friendsome after work to unwind.

Describing the sessions ashealthier alternative to

elieve stress, Lang added,plus it is a fun way to try

out acupuncture for thosewho are curious.”

Lang said she discov-red acupuncture years ago

when she sought relief frompain she was experienc-

ng. Recalling that she hadtried everything else,” Lang

underwent acupuncturereatments and said she wasamazed” at the results.

The acupuncturist,whose background is inocial work, said she had be-ome burned out at her jobt the Centers for Disease

Control and Prevention. “Itill wanted to help people,

but I wanted to do it in a dif-erent way.”

She enrolled in a NorthCarolina school where she

earned Chinese healingrts, including acupuncture.Lang, who had a master’sdegree in social work in so-ial work before enrollingn the healing arts school,aid the graduation require-

ments are demanding andnvolve three board exams.n addition to acupuncture,he learned other Chinese

healing arts, including cup-ping—which she describess “the opposite of a mas-age”—and gua sha, a skin

Acupuncture ‘happy hour’geared toward stress relief 

scraping technique.The techniques, she said,

are more than 3,000 yearsold and are taught from

books written more than2,000 years ago and trans-lated from Chinese. Theseand other treatments areavailable at Dogwood Heal-ing Arts, which opened inOctober 2014, but Lang saidshe has a special interest instress relief.

“Chronic stress takesa high toll on our healthand well-being,” she said.“As humans, our bodiesare built to handle stressfulsituations through our ‘fightor flight’ response. In our

distant past, this was usefulfor evading large predatorsand defending our families.However, in modern times,we face prolonged stress thatcauses our bodies to be ina constant state of ‘fight orflight,’ which can have verydamaging effects. Somecommon symptoms of stressare anger, anxiety, digestivedisorders, headaches, heartdisease, high blood pressure

and weight problems. Acu-puncture has been used forthousands of years to helppeople manage the effects of

their stress and stay healthy.”She said Dogwood Heal-

ing Arts also specializes inmanaging chronic pain,healing sports injuries, en-hancing women’s health andpromoting emotional well-being.

Lang observed that thereare many misconceptionsabout acupuncture. “Somepeople imagine a painfulprocedure in which largeneedles are inserted intothe body.” The needles, shesaid, are small, flexible and

are discarded after one use.“They work with the body’sown energy. There may bea sensation of warmth, butno pain. Some people feelnothing at all—but it’s stillworking.”

Some people become“a little loopy” immediatelyafter the treatment, she said,but most feel “deep relax-ation—shifting down andletting go.”

Lang said the numberof acupuncture treatmentsappropriate for a person de-pends on what the person istrying to accomplish. “Somepeople want to reduce the

amount of medicine they’retaking or try an alternativewhen what they’ve been do-ing isn’t working. You reallycan’t get too much acupunc-ture.”

Karen Lang says happy hour at Dogwood Healing Arts is an opportunityfor those curious about acupuncture to try it.

The Krystal on Lawrence Highway has faithful regulars, according toJames Smith, director of operations.

8/20/2019 Free Press 7-10-15

17/20

The Champion Free Press, Friday, July 10, 2015 Page 17ACLASSIFIEDS

DISCLAIMER: We do not knowingly accept advertisements that discriminate, or intend to discriminate, on any illegal basis. Nor do we knowingly accept employment advertisements that are notbona-de job offers. All real estate advertisements are subject to the fair housing act and we do not accept advertising that is in violation of the law. The law prohibits discrimination based on color,religion, sex, national origin, handicap or familial status.

Te Champion is not responsible for any damages resulting from advertisements. All sales final.

RATES: $30.00 for up to 40 words, each additional word $0.60.All ads are prepaid! All Major credit cards accepted!

 Fo Price, Deadline and Information   Visit www.championclassifeds.com

ClassifedsTheChampion

Ads Due By Friday - Noonfor next publication date.

AUCTIONSAUTO AUCTION Court Ordered 150+ots Live Auction Friday, July 10th 2ocations Clayton County Sheri Oce10AM 9157 Tara Blvd, Jonesboro, GA

9 Vehicles JD’s Auto Sales – 12PM040 Jonesboro Rd, Forest Park, GA20+ Vehicles Online Bidding Available!.W. Benton Company, Inc.07 Oak Valley Drive, Macon, GA 478-44-0027 www.bidderone.com #3215

AUCTION SCHOOL – Start your NewCareer Today. July 30th, August 8th,

Greenville, SC. Contact us early discount.64-444-1325. www.SSAuctioneering.nfo or email: [email protected]

ADVERTISE YOUR AUCTION in over 100ewspapers for only $350. Your 25-wordlassied ad will reach more than1 millioneaders. Call Jennifer Labon at the Geor-ia Newspaper Service, 770-454-6776.

DRIVERS ATTN: DRIVERS - $2K SIGN-ON Bonus. We Put Drivers First! Earn $55/yr + Bo-nuses. Family Company. Beautiful Trucks.CDL-A Req. (877) 258-8782. www.drive4melton.com

 ATTN: Truck Drivers! Covenant Transportis HIRING! Team & Solo Drivers Needed.No CDL? We can help! 3wk training avail.Call Career Trucker today! N. GA 866-494-7434; S. GA 866-557-9244.

DRIVER TRAINEES – PAID CDL TRAINING

Stevens Transport will cover all cost! NOEXPERIENCE NEEDED! Earn $800 per

 week! Local CDL Training! 1-888-749-2303. Drive4stevens.com

 Are you ready to kick-start your new ca-reer? Now Interviewing Accredited TruckDriving School Graduates (With CDL-A) forour Entry Level Apprentice Program. Musthave good MVR, Work history and Crimi-nal background history. Call Chris Black-

 well at 843-266-3731 to discuss pay and

benets. www.bulldoghiway.com EOE

Experienced OTR Flatbed Drivers earn50 up to 55cpm loaded. $1000 sign onqualied drivers. Home most weekends.Call: 843-266-3731 / www.bulldoghiway.com EOE

EDUCATIONALTRAINING

 AVIATION Grads work with JetBlue,

Boeing, NASA and others – start here with hands on training for FAA certica-tion. Financial aid if qualied. Call AviationInstitute of Maintenance (866) 564-9634.

 www.FixJets.com

MEDICAL BILLING TRAINEES NEEDED!Become a Medical Oce Assistant! NoExperience Needed! Online training canget you job ready! HS Diploma/GED &PC/Internet needed! 1-888-407-7162.

 WELDING CAREERS – Hands on train-ing for career opportunities in aviation,automotive, manufacturing and more.Financial aid for qualied students – Joband Housing assistance available. CALL

 AIM (877) 205-2968.

HELP WANTEDMETRO RYDC Must ll open positions:Juvenile Correctional Lieutenant, JuvenileCorrectional Ocer 2, Juvenile Correc-tional Ocer 1, Registered Nurse, NursePractitioner. Please v isit www.djj.state.ga.us. http://www.djj.state.ga.us. Ap-plicants subject to ngerprinting, back -ground check, and pre-employment drugtest. METRO RYDC is an Equal Opportu-

nity Employer. Can You Dig It? Heavy Equipment OperatorCareer! We offer training and certificationsrunning bulldozers, backhoes and excava-tors. Lifetime Job placement. VA BenefitsEligible! 1-866-362-6497.

GUARANTEED WORK!!!

CDL "P" endorsement drivers with a good MVR guaranteed work! .Enjoy discovering America by