Peachtree Middle field sets in, awaits fence
PAGE 4
Dunwoody gets some good financial news
Latest revenue projections should keep reserves intact
By HAYDEN SUMLIN hayden@appenmedia.com
DUNWOODY, Ga. — Dunwoody announced July 24 that new revenue projec-
tions show its financial position is much stronger than anticipated, and it has no need to dip into its reserves this year.
The city is expecting to collect $1.26 million more in revenue than anticipated in its adopted 2025 budget because of increases to the city’s tax digest and collections of business and occupation taxes,
An inside look on policing
Dunwoody officials celebrate the graduates of the 2025 Teen Police Academy at the July 14 City Council meeting. Mira, one of the graduates, said her most valuable experience was chatting one-on-one with sworn officers about their daily patrols and law enforcement activities. See story, page 3.
rental income and franchise fees.
At its July 28 meeting, the Dunwoody City Council was set to vote on a mid-year budget amendment to eliminate the use of reserves in this year’s budget.
To read about the meeting, visit appenmedia.com.
Finance Director Richard Platto said
revenues have come in over budget, and expenses came in under.
“We’re basically aligning 2024 revenues … a lot of our revenue sources, taxes for example, come in later in the year (October-December),” Platto said.
Homeowners association meets, talks DeKalb Schools funding
By HAYDEN SUMLIN hayden@appenmedia.com
DUNWOODY, Ga. — The DeKalb County School Board and the Dunwoody Homeowners Association are both trying to get a handle on younger generations with the pandemic in the rearview mirror.
Around 25 community members gathered in one of the new classrooms at the Spruill Arts Center for the July 27 meeting and an opportunity to hear from the city’s elected official on the DeKalb County School Board.
State Rep. Long Tran (D–Dunwoody, District 80), City Councilman Rob Price and District 1 candidate David Ziskind also attended the meeting.
For new DHA President Tim Brown, modernizing one of the cornerstones of the community involves rebranding, expanding programming and attracting younger families.
For new School Board member Andrew Ziffer, the key to a successful school district is cooperation and efficiency among the elected officials who manage its more than $2 billion budget.
Both Brown and Ziffer have about six months under their belts as leaders and already notched some wins.
The Dunwoody Homeowners Association is the process of finalizing its new website and rolling out new events to meet with community members and get their feedback.
At the same time, Ziffer said the DeKalb County School Board has updated its accounting system and has a plan for how to tackle the changing landscape of public school education.
“My responsibility is to manage 14,000 employees, 92,000 students and that budget,” Ziffer said.
See DHA, Page 11
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POLICE BLOTTER
All crime reports published by Appen Media Group are compiled from public records. Neither the law enforcement agencies nor Appen Media Group implies any guilt by publishing these names. None of the persons listed has been convicted of the alleged crimes.
Officers seize marijuana during I-285 traffic stop
DUNWOODY, Ga. — Dunwoody Police arrested a 41-year-old Jonesboro man July 9 after a traffic stop off I-285 allegedly turned up more than an ounce of marijuana in his vehicle.
In the state of Georgia, possession of more than 1 ounce of marijuana is classified as a felony and can include imprisonment up to 10 years.
An officer said he smelled weed coming from a Hyundai Tuscon as his unit was conducting a safety checkpoint at North Peachtree Road and the westbound I-285 off ramp.
The Dunwoody Police Department regularly uses strategically placed safety checkpoints for traffic and sobriety enforcement.
The officer said he had the driver pull over after noticing an odor.
After initially denying possession of illegal substances, officer said the driver admitted to having marijuana in his vehicle.
Officers said their search of the vehicle turned up three separate containers of marijuana, each with around 14 grams, totaling of 1.5 ounces. They also said they found two open Bud Lights in a plastic bag on the passenger’s side of the vehicle.
The driver was charged with felony possession of marijuana and misdemeanor open container and transported to the DeKalb County Jail.
According to records, he was bonded out July 13 for an unspecified amount.
— Hayden Sumlin
Police arrest New York man for reported mall behavior
DUNWOODY, Ga. — Dunwoody Police arrested a 21-year-old New York man
July 6 in the Perimeter Mall parking lot after he allegedly assaulted a woman and harassed a female officer.
An officer said he gave the man a trespass warning for 4400 Ashford Dunwoody Road and cited him for disorderly conduct and loitering.
Before he arrived in the parking lot, the officer said a caller reported a man punching a woman and refusing to let her exit a vehicle. Upon arrival, the officer said both subjects were separated and denied any physical altercation.
The witness who reported the incident told the officer that she saw the man strike the woman multiple times and block her from leaving.
Eventually, officers said the female victim requested to be picked up by her mother because she did not want to stay with the man.
When the officer had mall security trespass the man, he allegedly became angry and began yelling at officers and demanding their badge numbers.
According to the report, the man allegedly refused to leave the property, prevented the female victim from leaving and verbally harassed a female officer.
Officers said they arrested the man after he refused to get into his mother’s car and leave the mall parking lot.
He was transported to DeKalb County Jail and bonded out a day later for an undisclosed amount.
— Hayden Sumlin
Two paddleboards stolen from Martin’s Landing
ROSWELL, Ga. — Roswell Police are investigating the theft of two paddleboards worth a combined total of $1,700 from an activity building at Martin’s Landing July 20 near the Chattahoochee River.
The victim, a 59-year-old Roswell man, said he locked up his paddleboards on a rack behind the activity building around 3 p.m. July 17. When he returned three days later, the man said
they were missing.
The stolen belongings include a $900 11-foot-long red BIC paddleboard and a $700 10,5-foot-long white Tahe paddleboard.
The officer said the man suggested someone cut the paddleboards’ straps because the steel cable used to secure the paddleboards was undamaged and remained attached to the rack.
The owner said the kayaks behind the building were untouched from when he last saw his paddleboards.
The officer said he would follow up with the homeowners association and review footage from nearby security cameras.
The victim told the officer he wanted to press charges and would send him photos of the stolen paddleboards.
The case remains active.
— Hayden Sumlin
Business owner reports stolen U-Haul truck
ROSWELL, Ga. — A 60-year-old Lilburn man and local business owner reported a stolen U-Haul truck, listed as a 2025 Dodge Ram valued at $32,000, to the Roswell Police Department July 14.
An officer said the stolen vehicle has an Arizona license plate.
The victim said someone rented a U-Haul truck June 23 from Tampico Express off Alpharetta Highway (Ga. 9) but did not return it when it was due July 1.
The man said several attempts to contact the renter were unsuccessful, including a July 11 demand letter.
After receiving no responses, the business owner told officers that he would like to press charges.
The officer said he listed the vehicle as stolen on crime dashboards and provided the victim with a case card.
According to Fulton County Jail records, the suspect was arrested by the Milton Police Department in 2015 on an outstanding warrant out of Gwinnett County.
— Hayden Sumlin
ASK APPEN
Teens get inside look at police operations
By HAYDEN SUMLIN hayden@appenmedia.com
DUNWOODY, Ga. — The Dunwoody City Council honored the graduates of the 2025 Teen Police Academy and program leader Sgt. Anwar Sillah during its July 14 meeting.
The free, five-day summer course ran the second week of July, providing teens aged 14-19 with an inside look at law enforcement operations and its challenges.
Sgt. Sillah introduced the initiative within its community policing efforts more than five years ago.
The Teen Police Academy is geared toward enhancing the relationship between youth and law enforcement through fun and interactive education.
Police Chief Mike Carlson told elected officials that Sillah is dedicated to ensuring the program is informative for young people for years to come.
“This year, we hosted a total of 16 students from all across Metro Atlanta,” Sillah said. “It’s created the strength in the relationship between law enforcement and the young people in our community, while also sparking interest in public safety careers.”
Participants get a tour of Dunwoody Police Headquarters at City Hall, the DeKalb County Jail, ChatComm’s enhanced 911 emergency center and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation Headquarters in Decatur.
While Dunwoody residents are given priority, the program is open to anyone and requires an application and background check.
Dunwoody officers walk participants through the duties of different divisions and specialized units within the department, including Uniform Patrol, civilian prisoner transport officers and public safety ambassadors, Criminal and Special Investigations, North Metro SWAT, the K-9 Unit and Domestic Assault Response Team.
CITY OF DUNWOODY/PROVIDED
Dunwoody Police Sgt. Anwar Sillah, center, gathers with members of the 2025 Teen Police Academy outside of the Real Time Crime Center at City Hall, 4800 Ashford Dunwoody Road. Sillah said the Teen Police Academy gives young people an understanding of law enforcement activities, potentially shaping the next generation of public safety professionals.
One highlight of the program was a first-hand look at the DeKalb County Police Department’s aerial support unit, or helicopter.
“The Teen Police Academy is a vital investment in our young people,” Sillah said. “It gives them an opportunity to understand our industry and potentially shape the next generation of dedicated public safety professionals for our community.”
The week also included practical traffic stop scenarios, letting teens step into an officer’s shoes and understand the complexities of police interactions.
Mira, one of this year’s graduates, first thanked Sillah and officers Dobbs and Hernadez for dedicating their time to the program. She will attend Kennesaw State University this fall, majoring in criminal justice.
“This academy gave me an opportunity to ask in depth questions and talk to employees who have pursued these careers,” she said, listing crime scene investigators, K9 officers and SWAT as her favorite positions. “This was a way to show how all the different
PUBLIC NOTICE
The annual ADMH Run for Health 2025 supports teens and adults with developmental disabilities and will take place at Brook Run Park on Sunday, September 7, 2025. The race takes place within the park between 8:30am and 11:00am. There may be increased traffic on North Peachtree Rd, Peeler Rd and Barclay Drive. There will be minimal interruption.
For more information or any questions, visit https://runsignup.com/Race/ GA/Dunwoody/ADMH
organizations work together to make our community safe.”
She said the most valuable part of the program was chatting one-on-one with sworn officers.
“Law enforcement is also human and deserves to be treated like one,” she said. “Some values I took away from this academy were friendship, curiosity, authenticity and being a part of a
community.”
During a trip to the Sandy Springs Fire Department, participants received life-saving training in CPR and learned how to use an automatic external defibrillator and best practices to stop bleeding.
Sillah said this year’s class was also the first to see the Police Department’s Real Time Crime Center, which incorporates the city’s Flock Safety cameras into a centralized command center.
“I want to thank the command staff, the mayor and council and all the instructors both externally and internally who dedicated their time the entire week,” Sillah said.
During the meeting, city officials also recognized three officers — Davis, Edwards, Estes and Wanstreet — for receiving the Georgia Medal of Meritorious Service. The life-saving awards recognize officers who demonstrate exceptional leadership, courage and dedication to their community.
“So much appreciation and thanks from our community that you were able to save these lives and that you jump into action whenever there is a need,” Mayor Lynn Deutsch said. “We are forever grateful.”
New grass sets in at Peachtree Middle with fencing scheduled
By HAYDEN SUMLIN hayden@appenmedia.com
DUNWOODY, Ga. — There is grass growing on the Peachtree Charter Middle School athletic field, a couple of months after the city of Dunwoody paid to have new sod installed in May.
Earlier this year, the field was unsafe for middle school students and athletes. With drainage issues, muddy or sandy conditions depending on the weather and not much green grass, students led the civic charge to restore the field to playable conditions.
The work, paid for by the city and required via an agreement with the DeKalb County School District, did not make the grass field’s surface perfect,
but the improvement is noticeable.
Estimates earlier this year but the price tag for resodding around $10,000.
Unlike most facilities owned by the DeKalb County School System, Dunwoody leases the Peachtree Middle School athletic field as a part of a 2016 land swap agreement for the construction of Austin Elementary.
Parks and Recreation Director Rachel Waldron said there were really two issues, a leaking pipe near the school building and a lack of general irrigation. Both of those problems have now been addressed, she said.
“The next step for us is to work on permanent fencing,” Waldron said.
“We’re trying to schedule a meeting with the school in the coming weeks … we’re
supposed to have our install soon, like the fencing you see at the [Brook Run Park] multi-use fields.”
Peachtree Middle School Principal Jennifer Gates, Ph.D., said she thinks there is a night-and-day difference between the field’s condition in the spring and its look in late July.
“The difference is dramatic, and the changes that have been made to support not only our athletic endeavors but the whole community are significant,” Gates said, crediting a civic-oriented group of girls soccer players for their work lobbying the School Board and the City Council. “For them it was a matter of safety and security.”
Originally, the city budgeted $1 million dollars toward turfing the middle school athletic field during the 2024 budget cycle. While the budget was being developed during the summer of 2023, the parks and paths bond referendum was assumed to pay for a variety of citizen-chosen upgrades.
A few Dunwoody council members have reminded residents that the failure of the bond referendum means less capital funding for things like a new turf field at the city’s only middle school.
With less funding for capital projects, some council members have suggested investing in other properties and projects because of the city’s lease of the field.
In late July, the city released new revenue numbers, stating its “financial position is much stronger than anticipated [and] according to the city’s year-end audit of 2024 financials, $3.5 million was added to Dunwoody’s reserves.”
At the same time, the city’s general fund for day-to-day operations is
strained by increasing personnel costs and general inflation.
The city’s financial direction is undetermined, with different accounts from community members and elected officials about where the city’s spending plan is headed.
DeKalb County School Board member Andrew Ziffer, representing Dunwoody in District 1, said he does not think the resodding has been as successful as school representatives and city officials claim.
At the July 27 Dunwoody Homeowners Association meeting, Ziffer said the field is better but the grass in the center of the field is brown and struggling to hold. But he also said the middle school athletic field is in significantly better shape than the one at Chamblee Middle School.
Eric Oliver, coach of the sixth grade Junior Wildcats football team, said the field condition is noticeably improved, and he plans to get a use agreement to have practices there this fall.
After recent news about Dunwoody’s strong financial position, Oliver said it appears the city does have the funding to install a new turf field at the middle school.
While it would most likely require a reworking of the agreement between the city and school district, some community members are still pushing elected officials to okay the project.
“I find it interesting that you have the DeKalb County School District saying they can’t do anything about turfing the field at Peachtree Middle because it is not their field,” Oliver said. “Then, you have the city of Dunwoody saying that they won’t do anything about turfing the field because it is not theirs either.”
HAYDEN SUMLIN/APPEN MEDIA
Students at Peachtree Charter Middle School in Dunwoody have a safer, greener athletic field after the city Dunwoody put down new sod and fixed drainage in May.
Cool memories in appreciation of conditioned air
VALERIE BIGGERSTAFF Columnist
During these sweltering days of July, it is easy to forget that there were not always cool, air-conditioned spaces to work and live.
I can remember the time before my family had air conditioning. We had an air-conditioned car before our home was air-conditioned. My mom and I would sit for a brief time in the family AMC Rambler, just to cool off. We also went to the movies, knowing that the movie theater was air-conditioned, and we would enjoy the cool air as much as the movie.
Before we had air conditioning in our 1960s home, we had a whole house fan, or attic fan. It did a decent job of cooling the house at night, but it was loud. An attic fan may have been the sound machine of the 1960s.
Dr. John Gorrie designed an icemaking machine in 1851 and received a U.S. patent that same year. He believed cooling would make hospital patients more comfortable and help prevent malaria. The machine created ice by using a compressor powered by horse, water, wind-driven sails or steam. His invention eventually led to modern refrigeration and air conditioning, but following the death of his financial backer, it never made it to the marketplace. (energy.gov)
The next major step in the development of air-conditioning happened in 1902, when Willis Carrier
PROVIDED
too expensive for home use. (Atlanta Constitution, Oct. 1934)
In 1932, a window unit was developed that could be used in homes, but not many were purchased due to the high cost. The 1932 Carrier Room Weathermaker was large and expensive, but the 1940 model was advertised as half the size and half the price of the earlier version. (New Georgia Encyclopedia)
A 1950 advertisement in The Atlanta Constitution describes the Brookhaven Theater as the “Suburban Home of All Downtown hits.” A modern refrigerated air-conditioning system helped bring in customers. By the late 1960s, window units were more affordable, and most new homes were built with central air conditioning.
designed a system to control humidity using cooling coils. His patent was for an “Apparatus for Treating Air.”
Mechanical refrigeration was used to cool the Missouri State Building at the St. Louis World’s Fair in 1904. A system to cool public movie theaters was designed in 1922, and the Rivoli Theater in New York was the first to use an air conditioning system.
Atlanta shoppers could enjoy the new cool air system of DavisonPaxon department store in 1928.
“Shoppers of Atlanta now may enjoy one of the blessings of modern science which heretofore has been reserved
for theater goers and the patrons of a few restaurants.” The system is described as fresh air passing through an air shaft and “forced through a falling sheet of water.” The water was chilled by refrigerator pipes. (Atlanta Constitution, June 8, 1928, “Cool Air System Now in Operation at Local Store”)
Fox, Capitol, Paramount, Grand and Rialto Theaters in Atlanta all boasted on their cool air systems by 1934. Restaurants and more department stores began installing air conditioning systems. Offices began adding new cooling systems, but it was
North DeKalb Mall opened on July 29, 1965, advertised as “Metropolitan Atlanta’s first regional shopping center with an air-conditioned mall.” (Atlanta Constitution, July 29, 1965, “City’s first weatherproof mall shopping center opens Thursday”)
By 1971, when Perimeter Mall opened, air conditioning was expected. The mall is advertised as having “…an atmosphere of perpetual Springtime, created electrically just for your comfort.” (Atlanta Journal, August 31, 1971)
Award-winning author Valerie Biggerstaff is a longtime columnist for Appen Media and the Dunwoody Crier. She lives in Atlanta. You can email Valerie at pasttensega@gmail.com or visit her website at pasttensega.com.
Resident thanks crew for neighborhood help
DUNWOODY, Ga. — One neighborhood in Dunwoody, led by the efforts of Beth Sherman, decided it would take some time this summer to properly thank the crew members paving their streets.
Dunwoody’s 2025 Street Paving Plan, covering 10 lane miles on 23 streets around the city, began April 8 in the Mayfair Park subdivision. The city is a couple years away from its 20-year goal of resurfacing every street in the city.
Hela Sheth, an active community member, said her neighborhood was being paved in mid-July and surrounding families pitched in to provide breakfast Monday-Wednesday.
“Maybe this will spur other neighborhoods to do the same, which is great for our essential workers,” Sheth said. “Our crew members truly appreciated three days of meals from Chick-fil-A, Goldbergs and Crema before they worked long hours to beautify our city roads.”
Tell the Crier: Send your photos, announcements and letters to newsroom@ appenmedia.com.
Georgia’s new voucher program is starting, with lower demand than expected
By TY TAGAMI Capitol Beat
ATLANTA —Thousands of Georgians will soon be spending money from the state’s new subsidy for private K-12 education, as the first quarterly payouts appear in “promise scholarship” accounts.
More than 15,000 students applied for one of the $6,500 annual subsidies, and about 8,500 were approved. That means the state is on track to give about $55 million in taxpayer dollars — far less than budgeted — to families that have chosen private schooling over attendance at their nearby lowperforming public school.
To qualify for the payments, most students had to spend a year attending one of the nearly 500 public schools performing in the bottom quarter of state academic measures. But the youngest students have a way around that requirement. Under last year’s law establishing the payments, often referred to as a “voucher,” rising kindergartners need not have attended public school to qualify.
According to new figures from the Georgia Student Finance Commission, which oversees the program, a third of the recipients will be attending kindergarten. Nearly half will be in elementary school, with the rest in
seventh through 12th grades.
The money will be paid out quarterly, starting this month. Families can use it for a variety of education-related expenses. Two-thirds said they plan to spend it on tuition, according to the commission. The rest will use it to cover home schooling costs and other allowable expenses, such as tutoring, therapy and curriculum.
Opponents of these vouchers argued they would mostly be used by the wealthy, who are more able to afford the difference between the amount of the subsidy and the cost of private school tuition, which can exceed $10,000 a year.
As state Republican lawmakers were pushing Senate Bill 233 to final passage last year, Sen. Nabilah Islam Parkes, D-Duluth, summarized the opposition, mostly from fellow Democrats.
The vouchers are “a mirage for families like mine and for countless others across our state,” she said on the Senate floor, adding that they would undermine education for kids who don’t choose private school, since public schools would lose state funding for each student who took a voucher.
“It is a battle for the soul of our education system,” Parkes said.
“I’ve got news for you,” responded Sen. Greg Dolezal, R-Cumming, the
chief co-sponsor of the bill. “The wealthy already have school choice, including some wealthy members in this room who have been able to exercise school choice for their own children.”
Supporters of the bill, which Gov. Brian Kemp signed into law a month after passage, said the loss of state funding for public schools would not hurt them because they would no longer have to cover the cost of educating the voucher recipients.
The commission reports that three quarters of recipients are “lowerincome,” meaning the students are coming from households with incomes at or below four times the federal poverty level. ($106,600 a year for a family of three and $128,600 for a family of four.)
Half of the recipients are Black and a third are white.
Two metro Atlanta districts will lose the most students — DeKalb County, with nearly 900 scholarship recipients, and Henry County, with nearly 800. Others rounding out the top five districts losing students to vouchers are Bibb County, at nearly 600 students; Richmond County at nearly 500, and Savannah-Chatham County with more than 400.
The commission cautioned that the numbers are a moving target because
some students may yet opt out. But the participation numbers are well below the $141 million that lawmakers budgeted for this school year.
Tony West, Georgia director of Americans for Prosperity, a group that lobbied for this program, attributed the low participation to several potential reasons: parents haven’t heard of the program yet, they know about it but are skeptical or they did not apply because they do not live in the attendance zone of an eligible public school.
Only 56% of applicants were approved, which suggests that many who applied do not live near an underperforming school. Address and state residency were the two main qualifying criteria.
“I think that strongly suggests that the eligibility requirements are too restrictive,” said West, who noted that 16 states with similar scholarship programs have not based eligibility on address. He can see his group lobbying state lawmakers to convert Georgia’s program to universal access.
“We’ll see what the political appetite is moving forward,” he said.
This story is available through a news partnership with Capitol Beat News Service, a project of the Georgia Press Educational Foundation.
Workers with Dunwoody’s paving contractor Stewart Brothers Inc. enjoy Chick-fil-A breakfast provided by Beth Sherman and the Ashford Chase neighborhood after the neighborhood had its streets resurfaced in July.
— Hayden Sumlin
PHOTOS BY: HELA SHETH/PROVIDED
A street paving crew chows down on food provided by residents of the Ashford Chase neighborhood in Dunwoody during an afternoon break in July.
Good luck!
TOOLS
1. River feature. Croupier’s tool. Hate.
2. Fireman’s tool. Family member. Conundrum.
3. Small whirlpool. Carpenter’s tool. Man of morals.
4. Dentist’s tool. Chess piece. Wanderer.
5. Saintly topper. Plumber’s tool. Killer whale.
6. Sculptor’s tool. Voting group. Sign of healing.
7. Command to a horse. Priest’s superior. Farmer’s tool.
1 River feature. Croupier’s tool. Hate
2. Fireman’s tool. Family member. Conundrum
How to Solve: Each line in the puzzle above has three clues and three answers. The last letter in the first answer on each line is the first letter of the second answer, and so on. The connecting letter is outlined, giving you the correct number of letters for each answer (the answers in line 1 are 4, 5 and 5 letters). The clues are numbered 1 through 7, which each number containing 3 clues for the 3 answers on the line. But here’s the catch! The clues are not in order - so the first clue in Line 1 may (or may not) actually be for the second or third answer in that line. Got it? Good luck!
3. Small whirlpool. Carpenter’s tool. Man of morals
4. Dentist’s tool. Chess piece. Wanderer
5. Saintly topper. Plumber’s tool. Killer whale
6. Sculptor’s tool. Voting group. Sign of healing
7. Command to a horse. Priest’s superior. Farmer’s tool
Notes about summers connecting at the beach
RAY APPEN Publisher Emeritus ray@appenmedia.com
Our three grandchildren stayed with us this week for “Papa-Tina” camp at the beach. They are 10, 8, and 5. They do not selfentertain all that much, but we knew that. Actually, I’m not sure that any kids do at those ages.
Food is a big deal. So is going to bed, taking baths and brushing teeth. And by “big deal” I don’t necessarily mean “problem.” I mean those things are mission-critical and, well, sometimes are embraced and at other times, not so much.
“Why I remember when” (fill in the blank) and compare it to today’s kids – their behavior, their awareness, their attitudes and such. If you dare.
Christina (“Tina”) checks on 5-year-old Annie who is in the shower:
“OK Annie, it’s time to get out. It’s bedtime.”
“I only shampooed so I haven’t finished bathing the rest of me.”
“That’s OK, the shampoo ran down the rest of you so you’re clean now.”
Annie just looks at Christina and shakes her head, “I don’t think it works that way, Tina.”
Huh? How old are you?
But that made me remember the story from years ago about the youngest child
of one of our friends – 5-year-old Sammie – that took place outside the Louvre in Paris. There had been an “issue” and Sammie was in timeout – with her mother sitting next to her – on the bench outside of the museum, while dad and the other kids were inside taking in all the art. After a considerable amount of time, Sammie turns to mom: “I bet you’re sorry you gave me this punishment now.”
Huh? Yeah, no words. Sure.
I remember the times when I had to order four copies of each new Harry Potter book – all seven of them – in order to avoid World War III from my kids fighting over who got to read it first. And as I recall, the book releases seemed to frequently fall during the summer, so we would take delivery at the beach – where we spent most summers – and each kid would retreat to their own particular space and not move for days while they devoured each book. And, of course, we would then have the issue of the fastest reader sharing what happened to Harry in the book and, of course, World War III would break out anyway.
You know you really can’t win, right? I think eldest son Hans recently finished (re)reading all seven Harry Potter books to daughter Phoebe. How cool is that? Makes me want to revisit them. And, well, maybe World War III isn’t so bad after all if that is the type of collateral “damage” that results down the road?
Beach time is always special. Memories made at the beach often last forever.
And usually what makes it special are not big things; it is the little ones – top bunk or bottom; Frisbee or football; only one sand-flea net and three kids wanting to catch sand fleas; badminton versus volleyball. Summer beach romances. Freedom. New friends. No schoolwork. Bloody games of Risk, puzzles, book reading, sleeping in, cards, no TV, kite-flying, bare feet the whole time, late night snacks, uncombed hair, of course, fishing.
We have an old not fancy “cracker” Florida beach house we’ve owned now going on 26 years. It’s on a barrier island about 5 miles out in the Gulf of Mexico. You get there by boat or plane. There are no stores, no restaurants, no paved roads, no stop lights, no traffic, no hotels or condos, no law enforcement or medical facilities – just sand, shells, arrowheads, pine trees with scars from sap harvesting early in the 20th century, occasionally wrecks of old Spanish sailing vessels, sand fleas, moccasins, gators, raccoons, dunes and about 80 houses – of which maybe 6 are permanent residents.
Everyone knows each other. You know each other’s boats, dogs and favorite beverages. My kids have friends they only ever see at the beach – beach friends only. Most of those kids are now adults now. But they still come back. For years we successfully avoided having a TV so everyone did “analog” stuff, like read books and play games. I think our kids learned how to connect there – how to be just kids.
That hasn’t changed, somehow miraculously on the island. It almost seems to stand still – time.
People meet and catch up at the mail kiosk – three times a week when the mail boat delivers the mail. We pop a squat on the dock in the harbor and just visit. We invite each other to dinner all the time. We’re almost never in a hurry; no one is out there. We watch weather. We watch tides, and it’s a big deal to know wind direction and speed. The weather can change hourly and it’s like going to the movies sometimes – only you and your surroundings are the script.
I think today, loneliness is epidemic, and a hollowness to be connected to something real, something meaningful is pervasive. We know we’re missing something. The loneliness is not just for each other but also for connection to a natural world.
Beach-time reminds us. It is, albeit temporary, an antidote. It is a salve, a tonic, an elixir. It heals. It nurtures. It makes memories we don’t forget. It connects.
“Time passes slowly up here in the mountain
We sit beside the bridges and walk beside the fountains
Catch the wild fishes that float through the stream
Time passes slowly when you’re lost in a dream.”
“Time Passes Slowly”— Bob Dylan
Once confusing Southern sayings make perfect sense
As we slog these humid days that serve to turn sitting on the deck as close to a steam bath you’re ever going to get while fully-clothed, my mind started wandering about some sayings.
Here in the South, we have plenty of little pearls that if “you ain’t from around here” will make little or no sense. It took me awhile to become adept at making sense of some phrase that, until I became an enlightened Southerner, would have given me a headache.
Now, after happily embracing where the Good Lord has placed me for more than half of my 70 years, I find myself using some of these amusing, often nonsensical ditties. I should have known this was my pre-ordained fate. After all, I was raised on country music, sold sausage to Merle Haggard and taught Buck Owens to play racquetball.
Here are some of my favorite phrases that…
“Tickle me pink.” I have no idea what this means, and I certainly am not a fan of being tickled. And I see no benefit of losing any type of tan that results from being on a motorcycle ride and turning pink.
“He ain’t got the sense that God gave a goose.” Okay, I double dog dare you to make any sense of that one. First, I would hope God has more things to worry about than whether his geese creatures are making sound decisions. Second, I’ve ran into geese on the golf course back in the day. I’ve only seen them hiss at me, try to attack (incidentally, a 3-iron is a good deterrent for goose aggression; I could never hit a golf ball with that club, but it saved me on a few occasions from getting goose-nipped), and poop on the greens.
“That’s a tough row to hoe.” Huh? Okay Leroy, why don’t you go to Home Depot and arm yourself with a better tool. Better yet, go out to the shed and pick out one that will tame that row and double as a goose-smacker too.
Speaking of sheds, when someone
said: “I’m going to take you out behind the woodshed,” there’s no way I’m going anywhere near that woodshed. There might be spiders. See if you can entice the belligerent goose to go instead.
“He’s full of prunes.” You don’t have to be a genius to know that you’re not talking honest-to-goodness wrinkled prunes. The subject of this derision is probably full of what that is full of before dumping the load on a putting surface.
I’ve never eaten a goose, but all this goose talk has made me hungry. How hungry, you ask? “I could eat the south end of a northbound horse.” Or you can substitute “wooden hobby horse” for “northbound horse.” Either way, no way I’ll be eating a horse of any ilk, wooden or otherwise.
I get tickled pink when I hear “I’ll stomp a mudhole in your butt.” Now wait a minute! I watched plenty of rasslin’ in my day and the only way I see anyone accomplishing this feat is to use the old “loaded boot” tactic.
No stomping necessary. In fact, I’d hope we could be a bit more civil. Better
yet, let’s go have a few drinks. My treat. With any luck, you might be “drunker than Cooter Brown.” Hold it! Just who is Cooter Brown and with him being so popular despite liking to imbibe more than Otis Campbell, I say we show some compassion and get ol’ Cooter into some type of 12-step program.
Finally, we have perfected being sensitive and kind here. When someone describes a particularly less-than attractive baby by saying: “Isn’t she precious?” instead of being truthful, Southern diplomacy and kindness usually shines through, lest the daddy threatens to “beat you like a red-headed stepchild.” Anyone threatens me like that, I’m going to find them a cantankerous goose. Or maybe I’ll just leave before someone says: Don’t let the door hit you where the Good Lord split you.”
Mike Tasos has lived in Forsyth County for more than 30 years. He’s an American by birth and considers himself a Southerner by the grace of God. He can be reached at miketasos55@gmail.com.
MIKE TASOS Columnist
Tips for engaging children in gardening activities
Gardening is more than just a fun outdoor activity. It’s an excellent way to engage children in hands-on learning and teach them valuable life skills. From sowing seeds to watching plants grow, gardening provides an immersive experience that fosters a love for nature, curiosity and responsibility. Here’s how you can engage children in gardening and make it an exciting, educational journey.
Start simple with easy-to-grow plants
For beginners, it’s important to choose plants that are easy for children to handle. Flowers like sunflowers, marigolds, or zinnias are vibrant and grow quickly, offering instant gratification. Vegetables like tomatoes, beans, radishes, carrots or lettuce are also rewarding, as children can harvest their crops in a few weeks. Let children participate in every step of the gardening process: digging, planting, watering and caring for the plants. Children are more likely to eat vegetables they grow themselves. A 4-year-old may surprise you and eat a radish or lettuce when you never thought she would.
Incorporate fun, creativity in projects
Gardening doesn’t have to be all about the plants themselves. Children love creativity, so incorporate fun projects like designing a themed garden. Create a Fairy Garden with miniature decorations, or build a vegetable garden in the shape of a star or plant. Plant a Pizza Garden in the shape of a pizza. You could plant tomatoes, basil and peppers in the garden that you can use making a pizza.
Let kids use colorful plant markers to label their plants or design their own garden signs. You can even create a seed bomb by mixing clay, compost and wildflower seeds into small balls, which children can leave in various areas of the garden for the rain to wash the clay away and germinate wildflowers.
Teach valuable lessons about nature
Gardening offers a unique opportunity to teach children about the environment and the science of plant growth. You can explain how plants need sunlight, water and soil to thrive, and show how these elements work together. In addition, you can introduce basic concepts like photosynthesis, pollination and composting. Your child may already know these words if they are in elementary school.
Teaching children about beneficial insects such as bees, butterflies and ladybugs can also spark their interest in the ecosystem and biodiversity. By introducing
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
them to the plant growth cycle, you help them understand the interconnectedness of all living things. Consider participating in the Great Southeast Pollinator Census on August 22-23. You can do this at home or attend one of the many public events in your area, such as the one on Saturday, Aug. 23 at the Sandy Springs Farmers Market, 1 Galambos Way, Sandy Springs, GA 30328. Children can help us count and do fun activities. Visit https://gsepc.org/ for details about doing the Pollinator Census at home.
Foster responsibility and patience
Gardening instills a sense of responsibility as children take on the task of caring for their plants. Watering them regularly, checking for pests and ensuring the soil remains healthy all require consistent attention. Additionally, gardening teaches patience. Unlike many instant gratification activities, gardening takes time. Watching a plant grow slowly from a tiny seed into a blooming flower or a ripening tomato can teach children the value of persistence and the rewards of waiting.
About the author
This week’s “Garden Buzz” guest columnist is Chris Adams, a Master Gardener for almost 20 years and a Sandy Springs resident. She loves to teach gardening classes, especially to children. She can be found once a month April-October at the Sandy Springs Farmers Market helping the children with a fun nature-based activity.
Incorporate learning opportunities
Use gardening as an educational tool beyond science. Introduce or enhance math skills by measuring plant growth or counting seeds and plants. Gardening can also help with reading and language skills, particularly if you have children label plants or read gardening books together. Check out books at your local library, and read them together. Fun books include “The Great Pollinator Census” by Susan Edwards Richmond and “The Saved Seed” by Brenda Moore.
Create a sense of accomplishment
One of the most rewarding aspects of gardening is the sense of accomplishment that children feel when they see their plants flourish. Whether it’s picking ripe fruit, seeing flowers bloom or simply admiring the beauty of a well-tended garden, these moments can boost a child’s self-esteem and provide a sense of pride.
Gardening is a powerful tool for engaging children in meaningful outdoor activities while also fostering a deeper connection with the environment. By combining creativity, learning and responsibility, gardening provides a wonderful opportunity for kids to explore the natural world and develop essential life skills. Through gardening, children not only learn how to care for plants but also gain a greater appreciation for the world around them.
Happy Gardening!
North Fulton Master Gardeners, Inc. is a Georgia nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization whose purpose is to educate its members and the public in the areas of horticulture and ecology in order to promote and foster community enrichment. Master Gardener Volunteers are trained and certified by The University of Georgia Cooperative Extension. Learn more at nfmg.net.
Previous Garden Buzz columns are featured at https://appenmedia.com/opinion/columnists/garden_ buzz/.
Save the Date: The 2025 Great Southeast Pollinator Census is August 22-23.
Thank you Bob Meyers for Celestine Sibley column
To the editor, I thoroughly enjoyed Bob Meyers's article on Celestine Sibley. I loved her articles in the Atlanta Journal Constitution. I shared her concerned that Crabapple was losing
its charm and Southern roots with "unchecked growth.”
I was honored to meet her when my leadership North Fulton toured the Atlanta Journal Constitution, and met
many of the writers including the very talented editorial cartoonist, Mike Lukovich.
Thank you, Bob for a wonderful article.
– Marsha Spear
Opinions
Appen Media aims to present a variety of views in its opinion pages. Send your thoughts, questions and letters to newsroom@appenmedia.com.
CHRIS ADAMS/PROVIDED A little girl counting pollinators at Lost Corner Preserve.
ANNE WISKIND Guest Columnist
GET OUTSIDE, GEORGIA!
You’ll encounter danger in the tall, tall grass!
The nicest thing about these blazing hot July days is that exquisite hour or so of not-quite-so-hot that comes just as the sun is about to go down. That trusty ol’ star settles lower and lower onto the horizon, going from blinding white to yellow and orange and then red. They say red is a danger color, but I kind of like it in the sky on a late July evening.
Late evening is our favorite time for fishing too. Just the other day we fished our way from suppertime to dark, and the later it got the better it got. The fish were bluegill, big and scrappy, and just before dark we were getting a hit on those little foam spiders on almost every cast. And yes, since you asked, she outfished me again.
But you can’t fish all the time. Sometimes you’d rather hike, and that hour right at dusk is a great time for hiking too.
A couple of days ago, I decided on some evening hiking in an area that’s new to me – the Tallapoosa River Wildlife Management Area located between Cedartown and Buchanan. A relatively recent addition to Georgia’s catalog of public lands, this 3,053acre tract is made up of two separate parcels and offers lots of different opportunities for enjoying the out-ofdoors. It’s primarily a hunting area. However, this time of year, the hunting seasons are closed and it’s a great place for a ramble in the woods.
Note that you’ll need either a hunting license, a fishing license, or a lands pass to access this property… and yes, they do check.
Tallapoosa River WMA is a little bit of a trip from home, but as things
DEATH NOTICES
Bennett Boyd, age 55, of Alpharetta, GA passed away on July 17, 2025. Arrangements by Northside Chapel Funeral Directors & Crematory.
Sydney DeSouza, age 88, of Alpharetta, GA passed away on July 18, 2025. Arrangements by Northside Chapel Funeral Directors & Crematory.
work out, I have plenty of time to make the trip. Since this area is new to me, I have no particular destination. I figure I’ll just find an old woods road or something. Then I’ll strap on the hiking shoes and see where it leads. All I have to do is pick a route and go.
Driving along on one of the gravel roads which provides access to the western portion of the WMA, I see coming up ahead of me a wide spot with room enough to pull over and park – and right next to what appears to be the start of an overgrown old road.
I stop the car and get out for a better look, stepping into knee-high grass that reaches my knees. The old road appears to go downhill, perhaps down toward the river perhaps? Down toward a future place to fish?
I’ll never know if I don’t check it out. I should carry a fishing rod. Just in case.
I walk around to the back of the car and open the rear hatch, grass gently tickling my legs as I do. It takes a few minutes to find the rod I want and another few to rig it up.
I close the back hatch and turn to go but then realize I’ve left my water bottle up front. I walk back through the grass back to the driver-side door, open it, and retrieve the water. With every step, I feel as much as hear the rustle of the grass blades against my jeans.
Ready at last, I set out. I follow the old pathway for a while, enjoying the walk as it meanders in and out of shade, in and out of more patches of grass. But I stop too often (to watch a deer and two fawns, to stand stock-still as a cottontail rabbit nibbles grass, to get a close look at a flower I’d not seen before) and my time gets away long before I ever get to the water.
I’ll just have to come back.
Turning back at last, I retrace my
Richard Dey, age 90, of Alpharetta, GA passed away on July 22, 2025. Arrangements by Northside Chapel Funeral Directors & Crematory.
Patrick Hawes, age 77 of Roswell, GA passed away on July 16, 2025. Arrangements by Northside Chapel Funeral Directors & Crematory.
route – back up the hill, back through the patches of grass and undergrowth, back to the car. I put up the rod, walk back through the grass to the driver’sside door, open it up and settle me in.
The drive home is restful.
The itching doesn’t start till later.
At first, it’s just one little itchy spot down on my lower leg. Being an enthusiastic scratcher of itches, I level it with a few determined swipes of a finger. I know, I know…
Then comes another, also on the lower leg…exactly where, it occurs to me, I felt all those tickles from that grass.
And then there are three…and eight…and 15…and oh no. A word comes to mind, a word to strike terror into the heart of even the most intrepid outdoor adventurer.
Red bugs. Trombiculidae. Chiggers. Oh no.
Chiggers, relatives of ticks, are the larval form of a bug that likes to eat things like us. They tend to hang out in groups in (you saw this coming, didn’t you?) grass and similar environs, waiting for dinner (in the form of you or me) to wander by. When that happens, they waste no time in relocating and digging in. Specifically, they settle in to feed on our skin cells (Ours! Mine!). They don’t actually bite, which should be comforting to know but is not. Instead, they excavate a hole (which scientist types call a stylostome) in one’s skin, which they then use to access and nibble on our inner skin.
And as they do, their digestive enzymes start to cause what one source helpfully describes as “intensely itchy welts.”
Yeah.
Eventually, the well-fed nymph has its fill and drops off. And then the itching begins. Then it gets real.
It was real for several days. Parts
Shaila Pandit, age 80, of Alpharetta, GA passed away on July 18, 2025. Arrangements by Northside Chapel Funeral Directors & Crematory.
Susan Stinecipher, age 53, of Alpharetta, GA passed away on July 17, 2025. Arrangements by Northside Chapel Funeral Directors & Crematory.
of me looked like I’d been shot by a shotgun loaded with red ink. I have (mostly) resisted the temptation to claw away great expanses of skin, particularly wherever there are creases or folds or tight places. Use your imagination. If you’ve ever had ‘em, you know what I mean.
Yeah.
What can you do to keep chiggers on the grass and off you? Long sleeves and long pants, with pants tucked into your boots or at least your socks, will help. Repellents containing DEET or permethrin may help, too, but I suspect they may just weed out the weak ones. The best thing is to avoid chigger habitat (tall grass, for example…I know, I know), particularly during the cooler parts of the day like sunset when chiggers are most active. As I write this redbug reminiscence, we’re sitting in the Denver airport on our way to Montana. We’re going fishing. Will she outfish me again? I think I know the answer to that one. One unanswered question remains, however.
Are there chiggers in Montana? I’ll let you know.
Elizabeth Towater, age 80, of Milton, GA passed away on July 19, 2025. Arrangements by Northside Chapel Funeral Directors & Crematory.
Lori Young, 66, Roswell, GA passed away on July 21, 2025. Arrangements by Northside Chapel Funeral Directors & Crematory.
STEVE HUDSON Columnist
DHA:
“My job is to listen to 50 complaints and hear the one positive comment from someone, but that’s okay. It’s what I signed up for.”
Ziffer said his experience in the real estate industry and as a business owner and gives him a different perspective than many former and current School Board members.
“Public education is just messy, if you’ve had kids in school then you know this. It’s human … we have to educate every child and provide them all with the same services,” Ziffer said.
He also discussed DeKalb Schools Superintendent Devon Horton’s plan to close 30 schools countywide but assured Dunwoody residents that the north half of the county is not the focus.
Most of the schools below 50 percent enrollment capacity are in south DeKalb and are still performing at or below other schools at 90 percent or more.
HAYDEN SUMLIN/APPEN MEDIA
DeKalb County School Board member Andrew Ziffer chats with the Dunwoody Homeowners Association July 27 about the upcoming 2025-26 school year at the Spruill Arts Center. Ziffer said he thinks board members are cooperating more than they have in the past, but there are challenges.
tax.
He said a 40 percent increase in building costs since 2020 is a hurdle that may require a countywide bond in the next few years to cover the construction of newer, larger schools.
Ziffer said he is supportive of a senior homestead exemption but thinks reducing the property tax rate below 20 mills would fail students countywide. Continued from Page 1
The DeKalb County School Board approved the district’s final budget and millage rate in early June for the 2026 fiscal year.
The district’s budget projects $1.620 billion in general fund revenues and $1.635 billion in expenses, with an additional $8.1 million being transferred out to support other funds. That results in a $23.6 million difference to be covered by general fund reserves.
While the board approved a 22.78 millage rate, which is a 0.10 reduction from last year’s budget, some DHA members said they want it below the state-mandated cap of 20 mills. Currently, the county has an agreement to exceed the cap.
In response, Ziffer said DeKalb County has a unique problem in Metro Atlanta. Per student, the school district is spending on par with Gwinnett, Cobb and Fulton counties, but its millage rate is higher because of the number of impoverished people lowers the tax base.
Dunwoody High and Peachtree Charter Middle schools, the only options for public school in Dunwoody, are reportedly overcapacity with temporary classroom trailers.
Revenue:
Continued from Page 1
“This mid-year budget amendment gives an opportunity to true-up the 2025 revenue in the budget with what the actuals look like for 2024.”
Secondly, the city says it added $3.5 million to its reserves – or unassigned fund balance – following its year-end
Ziffer said one of the problems facing the school district is that it has around $1 billion in capital needs across the county but only takes in around $140 million a year from its one-cent sales
audit of 2024 financials.
The city’s fiscal year runs from January through December, and staff generally finalize a budget for the upcoming year before the end of October. Dunwoody staff said the City Council plans to discuss reserves during the 2026 budget process this fall.
With the windfall, Dunwoody expects to have enough reserves at the end of 2025 to cover 10 months
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of expenses, totaling just under $30 million in total unassigned fund balance.
The City Charter requires Dunwoody maintain at least four months of reserves, which, right now, would be around $12 million.
Mayor Lynn Deutsch said she prefers to have at least 6 months to allow for the unexpected.
“Through careful planning, budgeting and spending, we’ve added
to the reserve every year since I became mayor,” Deutsch said. “What’s more, we’ve haven’t spent the reserves — even during the uncertainty of COVID and its aftermath.”
City staff said Dunwoody has added around $7 million to its reserves since 2022.
“This positive trend gives us the ability to be strategic and not just reactive as we plan for the city’s future,” Mayor Deutsch said.
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