North Forsyth overcomes Alpharetta ‘Battle of the Raiders’
By ANNABELLE REITER
annabelle@appenmedia.com
FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. — After scoring the first touchdown of the game, Alpharetta was shut out in the second half by North Forsyth High Oct. 24, unable to recoup the 28-7 final deficit.
North Forsyth celebrated their homecoming by exploding for three touchdowns in the fourth quarter after nearly two full quarters of a tied game at seven points apiece. Alpharetta’s defense couldn’t hold up and the young offense
couldn’t keep up, with many players working nonstop on both sides of the ball.
Alpharetta
starting quarterback Matthew Schletty checked in also as an outside linebacker, recording a sack and a tackle for loss.
Even before Schletty exited the game in the second quarter due to concussion symptoms, both teams were finding more
success on the ground than in the air.
Alpharetta sophomore running back Brayden Henderson rushed for his team’s only touchdown, racking up 124 yards on 18 carries and taking on further responsibility when Schletty went out.
North Forsyth running back Darron Parry responded with a quickness, setting a school record in rushing yards by going for 255 yards and two touchdowns, more than doubling his yard total against Alpharetta last season. On North’s first snap of the second quarter, he ran 69 yards to the house, less than 20 seconds after Alpharetta’s score.
By HAYDEN SUMLIN hayden@appenmedia.com
ATLANTA — Housing affordability and traffic are top regional concerns, according to the 2025 Metro Atlanta Speaks survey of more than 4,000 adults living in the 11 counties surrounding the Georgia State Capitol.
The Atlanta Regional Commission conducts the annual survey to gather key insights into quality-of-life issues like transportation, the economy, crime and education.
When asked about the biggest problem facing Metro Atlanta residents, 28 percent of respondents said housing affordability and another 24 percent picked traffic.
This year, the Metro Atlanta Speaks survey offered housing affordability as a choice to the “biggest problem” question for the first time. Last year, crime and economy were the region’s top concerns.
The survey also found support for public transit. Nearly four in 10 respondents said expanding public transit is the best long-term solution to the region’s traffic problems, ahead of improving roads and highways at 34 percent.
More than half of respondents said future growth in Metro Atlanta should be focused along existing transportation corridors and in areas where businesses are already concentrated.
ANNABELLE REITER/APPEN MEDIA North Forsyth running back Darron Parry, left, carves a path for a keeper from quarterback Noah Bourque, center, at North Forsyth High School Oct. 24.
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Child porn allegedly found on man’s phone
FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. — Deputies allegedly discovered child pornography while reviewing an abandoned cellphone Oct. 7.
The Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office said deputies were looking through the photos of the phone to determine its owner when they found the images. They were looking for a selfie photo.
Instead, deputies reportedly found images of nude girls under the age of 18.
The sheriff’s office said deputies identified the phone’s owner as a 47-year-old Cumming man.
It’s unclear whether the man was charged with a crime, but the incident was classified as a felony exploitation of children.
— Jon Wilcox
Two arrested on meth charges
FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. — Two Cumming residents were charged with possession of methamphetamine after a traffic stop Oct. 9.
The Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office said deputies stopped a trailer without working tail lights on Ga. 400 at Bethelview Road.
The driver, a 48-year-old man, and passenger, a 45-year-old woman, told deputies they were on their way back from painting a deck in Bridgetown.
Deputies noted the man’s and woman’s stories were inconsistent and both had a history of drug use, the sheriff’s office said.
The man and woman admitted to possessing methamphetamine during a search with a K-9, the sheriff’s office said. A used glass pipe also was allegedly found.
The man was charged with possession
of methamphetamine, possession of drug related objects and operating a vehicle without tail lights. The woman was charged with possession of methamphetamine.
— Jon Wilcox
Police investigate alleged fraudulent vehicle purchase
ALPHARETTA, Ga. — A fraudulent purchase of a vehicle was reported by a Ford dealership Oct. 7.
Alpharetta police said officers were dispatched to the Mansell Road dealership about 11:20 a.m.
A loss prevention officer told police a 30-year-old Atlanta man purchased a 2022 Ford Explorer with a bad check in February.
Ford employees realized two months later the man’s bank account reportedly lacked funds.
The dealership was unable to locate and repossess the vehicle.
Police then located the vehicle in South Carolina where it had been sold. The Atlanta man allegedly was in possession of the vehicle’s title.
The incident was classified as a felony theft by conversion.
— Jon Wilcox
After car break-in, resident reports credit card fraud
ROSWELL, Ga. — A 34-year-old Roswell woman said someone rung up her credit cards for $1,500 after her vehicle was broken into Oct. 20 at Roswell Area Park off Woodstock Road.
The victim said she parked her Kia Telluride at an activity building within the park before taking her children inside. She said she received a fraud alert on her phone, warning that her debit card was being used at the Mansell Road Walmart.
When she returned to her vehicle, the Roswell woman said she found her pink Kate Spade wallet missing from the console of her unlocked vehicle.
An officer, who spoke with the victim on the phone, said the wallet contained
a Chase Bank debit card, two Visa credit cards and her state of Texas driver’s license.
The Roswell woman said her Capitol One card was charged $1,000 and her United Airlines card was charged $500, adding that the debit card declined.
The officer said the victim told him she canceled the stolen cards and thinks the fraudulent charges will be reversed.
— Hayden Sumlin
Officers investigate battery after men left unconscious
ROSWELL, Ga. — Roswell Police are investigating an aggravated battery after an unidentified suspect knocked out two men Oct. 17 at Chaplins Bar & Grill off Atlanta Street.
Officers said the victims, a 27-yearold Roswell man and a 29-year-old Texas man, were left unconscious for a few minutes after the altercation.
Later, they were transported to Wellstar North Fulton Medical Center for treatment of their head injuries.
Multiple witnesses on scene, including the restaurant manager, told officers that the two men were left unconscious on top of one another outside in the parking lot.
A 25-year-old Sandy Springs man working next door said he heard a loud thud on a window. He said both men were unconscious for several minutes.
A 35-year-old Marietta man said he saw the suspect, a 5-foot-10-inch man of unknown ethnic origin with a stocky build, knock out each victim with a single blow to the head, one after the other.
After reviewing security footage, an officer said he confirmed the witnesses’ account of the aggravated battery but did not have enough evidence to bring any charges.
One of the witnesses mentioned a possible suspect, and officers said they instructed him to come by headquarters to see if he matches the suspect in the restaurant’s security footage.
— Hayden Sumlin
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Roswell homecoming goes viral nationally
By ANNABELLE REITER annabelle@appenmedia.com
ROSWELL, Ga. — When homecoming king and senior quarterback Trey Smith gave his crown to the Hornets’ biggest fan, Jake Jeffries, he didn’t realize people across the country and world would be touched by the story.
Kaitlyn Ross, a reporter from 11Alive, posted an Instagram Reel Oct. 12 that quickly garnered hundreds of thousands of likes and comments. Now, videos of the crowning have been viewed millions of times.
National outlets and social media pages such as Fox News, Overtime Elite and World Star followed Ross with videos and posts of their own. The story has reached nearly every social media platform: Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and Reddit.
Smith was nominated to homecoming court by teachers just four days before the dance, as a representative of the football team. He met with school administration, where the plan started to come together –to honor the true heart of the football team.
Jeffries is the hype man on the sidelines, helping with handing out water bottles or game balls and is always there for a supportive gesture in the trainers room.
Smith felt that Jeffries would be a bet-
ter representation of what it means to be a Roswell Hornet, so he ran to where Jeffries was standing upon receiving the crown –before it even made it on Smith’s head.
The crowd erupted as Smith began to transfer his homecoming king swag to Jeffries: the crown, cape and sash. Adjusting Jeffries’ crown as a final touch, Smith then gestured to the crowd for more noise.
Smith began a butterfly effect felt all over the country, spreading a message of
“He’s such a fun guy to be around, he’s really funny and always cracking jokes,” Smith said. “He plays a big role in our team’s success, just being our hype man, so it was only right to give him the glory. It makes me happy that I was able to spread God’s love and spread God’s kindness and that it made people’s day brighter.”
Smith said the response has been overwhelming; his former teammates and Roswell alumni from all over the country have reached out to him. He said out of the whole experience, he is most proud to be a bit of light for those in the darkness.
kindness that has touched so many hearts.
Jeffries’ father Scott said the moment was “surreal” and the team’s inclusion of Jake on the sidelines was priceless. Jake hasn’t missed a game since ninth grade.
Smith said multiple players on the football team who help with Roswell’s community-based instruction sector of the special education department have connected Jeffries with the team since middle school, and his relationship with the team has been invaluable.
Roswell Athletic Director Ben Sutter agreed with Smith that one of the best parts of homecoming weekend was watching the energy transfer to Saturday night at the homecoming dance and Jeffries enjoying his reign as king, leading a conga line with a blue lightsaber in line with the Star Wars theme.
“Jake is the ultimate Roswell kid, he doesn’t have bad days and he makes you smile just because he loves being out there,” Sutter said. “It’s bigger than football, it’s bigger than just Roswell. In a world where kids can get very caught up in social media and their own selves, it’s great for people to be able to see this and the type of kid Trey is as well as see how Jake is a valued part of the team.”
ROSWELL HIGH SCHOOL/PROVIDED
Trey Smith, left and Jake Jeffries, middle, stand with other members of the 2025 Roswell Homecoming Court Oct. 12.
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ARC Chief Research & Innovation Officer Ann Carpenter said the survey has been running for just over a decade, and it’s a key “pulse check” to provide data that can inform planning decisions.
“One thing that was very clearly articulated by the respondents is that housing affordability is a huge issue for the region,” Carpenter said. “Traffic was, for places like Forsyth, Cherokee and Gwinnett, their number one issue of concern with affordable housing being number two. Traffic was one or two in every county.”
For housing, the survey asked respondents to identify the main reason for affordability problems in Metro Atlanta. Options included investors buying up properties to rent, residents opposing new housing types, developers building expensive homes and local zoning laws reducing available supply.
Nearly 80 percent of respondents said they believe investors and developers are a main reason for the region’s housing affordability problems.
While most respondents in DeKalb, Forsyth and Fulton view developers as the main cause, local zoning laws and resident opposition often drive what types of new housing are built.
‘Crush the Scale’ event to celebrate body kindness
ATLANTA — The Eating Disorder Information Network (EDIN) and the International Association of Eating Disorder Professionals (IAEDP) invite the community to come together for a joyful, empowering and free fall celebration: 'Crush the Scale: Unweigh Yourself — A Celebration of Body Kindness.’
This unique event encourages participants to literally smash diet culture and redefine what it means to care for themselves and others. The gathering will feature a 'scale-smashing' activity, creative art stations, music, snacks and opportunities to connect with local organizations dedicated
to mental health, body acceptance and eating disorder recovery.
The event will be Sunday, Nov. 2, 199 Armour Drive NE, Unit E, Atlanta, GA 30324. It is free and open to all ages. Online RSVP is optional but encouraged at crushthescale.eventbrite. com.
"Crush the Scale is about reclaiming joy and rejecting the shame that diet culture promotes," said Chandler Appen, EDIN co-president. "We want everyone to walk away feeling lighter, not because of a number on a scale, but because they've let go of something that no longer serves them."
Whether you are navigating your
own healing journey or showing up in solidarity, this event offers a welcoming space to practice body kindness, engage in creative expression and find community connection.
Come cozy, come curious, and come ready to celebrate yourself, exactly as you are. Together, the group will break what's broken and build something beautiful.\
The Eating Disorder Information Network (EDIN) is a nonprofit organization based in Atlanta, dedicated to preventing eating disorders through education, outreach, and support. Learn more at edinatl.org.
— Carl Appen
A message to college students, part one
Millions of you, including my two boys, just started a new school year swamped by toxic politics, a tough job market, and tectonic AI shifts on campus and off.
• It’s easy to understand why stress, uncertainty and sadness are soaring.
Why it matters: I want to offer you a very different way to see the world awaiting you — one with a lot less impending doom. It’s based on a belief I grow more certain of with each passing month:
• You’re being duped!
It’s not your fault. We all are:
• You’re being duped into thinking most people are nuttier, meaner, more polarized than they actually are.
• You’re being duped into thinking America is more broken, more unfixable and more hostile than it actually is.
• You’re being duped into thinking you can’t shape your life on your terms in your own way. You actually control a lot more of you than you realize. What if I told you that politicians, the media and your social media feeds are all chasing the exact same thing … your attention?
• And all three get your attention, to varying degrees, by amplifying conflict and juicing your emotions — mainly your negative ones. Our brains are hardwired with what is called “negativity bias.” So we’re all susceptible to eating this up.
The result: Everything — and everyone — appears nastier, more outrageous,
more hopeless than they really are. Think about it: Your reality is shaped by what you see, hear and read. So if your eyes, ears and mind are lit up with doom and gloom, you assume darkness and conflict are everywhere.
• But what if I told you most people in the real world aren’t obsessed with politics, aren’t glued to MSNBC or Fox News, or don’t download X?
• Most people are the opposite of that: They’re normal — living their lives with friends and family just like you. It’s the people lighting up your social feeds who aren’t.
• Most people don’t care about Sydney Sweeney’s jeans/genes or Cracker Barrel’s logo.
Reality check: I’m not diminishing the real-world, real-time consequences of politics in an era when we see that our communities, country and world are changing with historic and at times alarming speed. And, yes, there are big, urgent challenges, from rising pessimism to AI’s effect on entry-level work.
But let me lay out a different way to think about tackling all of this. First, some context:
• Yes, I’m in the media, so you can argue I’m part of the problem. But Axios doesn’t have an opinion page — our reporters cover their beats clinically, like doctors, and we aim to be sources of truth amid the noise.
• I come at this view as a father of two sons in college, and a daughter who graduated recently. I helped co-found two companies, Politico and Axios. I’m CEO of 450 employees — and I’m an unapologetic beneficiary of democracy, capitalism and America’s entrepreneurial spirit.
My perch allows me to talk to
From Jim, part one Axios CEO Jim VandeHei wrote three letters to college students. He gave Appen Media permission to share them with readers. This essay is part one.
CEOs, political leaders, tech and business executives, and lots of young people who work at Axios or move through my daily life. Here’s what I see, and what I hope my kids and the rest of you will consider:
1. America rocks. Yes, there are countless things we could do better. And lots of areas of legit concerns. But I beg young people to understand the enormous, indisputable advantages of this country, especially compared to other nations. We’re the best-performing economic and new-idea-generating machine on the globe.
We’re blessed with two oceans on our shoulders and friendly neighbors north and south. We’re sitting on more energy than was ever dreamed possible, and we have the freedom to move, live and work anywhere. We’re leading AI and health advances — and we’re the envy of all for our startup culture and can-do spirit.
2. It’s your country. I don’t get the hopelessness and defeatism about changing things.
The last three presidential elections all came down to a few hundred thousand votes in a few states. The tiniest of shifts would have tipped the White House — and the House of Representatives — the other way. Hell, every president going back to Bill Clinton (25 years ago!) enjoyed all-party rule (the White House, Senate and House) for at least two years.
No stat better captures what a 5050 nation we are. So your individual ability to change things, regardless of party or age (provided you’re 18+), has never been stronger.
3. No, things actually have been a lot worse. We all suffer recency bias. And assume “it’s never been this bad.” It sure as hell has. Crime is near a 50year low. Murders? Low, and dropping by double digits three years in row. War? Military deaths are at a historic low. Yes, but this economy sucks! Cost of living has gone up — but inflation is nowhere near as bad as three years ago, and unemployment is holding near historic lows. But poverty. Yes, it’s 11%, which sucks — but that’s half the rate in 1959.
You control how early you wake up, what you eat, whether you exercise, how you treat others, whether you pray or meditate or take time to think, what you read, watch and listen to, and what you do at night.
5. You control your reality. You choose the read, watch, listen inputs that feed your mind and shape your reality. Too many feeds are awash with dumb, trivial, fake news. You choose whether to stare at stupidity or fixate on phony, airbrushed versions of people and events. There’s more highquality, life-enhancing, mind-enriching content available for free on YouTube, podcasts and elsewhere online than at any point in history. And it’s not close. You simply need to choose it.
6. You’re living history. Pay more attention to the world unfolding before you. The way we work, communicate, travel, learn, practice politics, wage wars and explore space are all rapidly changing before our eyes. So open them. Be curious. AI alone might be bigger than the internet or electricity. You know it’s going to change the world. So use it before you have to. Learn about it. Question it. Life is too short to be a silent, clueless bystander.
7. Get in the damn game. These might be the five most important words of advice after “You control you.” You have roughly 80 years on Earth, one-third spent asleep. So don’t piss them away wishing, wondering, whining. Jump in. Trust me, life will hit you hard with unexpected punches that truly hurt and leave a mark. So use every punch-free day to get in the fight on your terms. Try new things. Read new things. Meet new people. Find new passions. Change things you want changed. Do good things for others. Yes, America has big problems. Always has. Always will. So help fix ‘em.
8. Be grateful. It sounds cheesy and trite even to write it. But we live in extraordinary times, in an extraordinary nation, full of extraordinary people. It’s easy to doom-scroll life away, both on your screen and in your mind. Don’t. Want proof there’s more to be grateful for than you think? Starting today, keep a running list (I use the Notes function on my iPhone) of people who do things, big or small, that brighten or better you. You’ll be astonished how long this list grows — and how seemingly little things leave a big mark decades later.
4. You control you. Those are the most important three words of advice I will ever offer. We’re often caught up in a blame-others or blame-life culture. It’s a stupid waste of time. And wrong.
The bottom line: There’s a lot to lament. Just look at social media and the email you’re about to send me telling me I’m a privileged, delusional knucklehead. But there’s a lot more to love — once you realize you’ve been duped.
Jim VandeHei is the CEO of Axios. Let him know what you think by emailing jim@ axios.com.
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Hummingbirds have a history, too
People, places and things generally come to mind when we think of history. However, animals and birds may also have interesting histories. It makes sense to take a look at hummingbirds since they have been taking part in their annual migration south from Georgia and other states triggered by declining day length.
Hummingbirds evolved from European ancestors some 40-50 million years ago. Over time, they gradually disappeared from Europe. Today they exist only in the Americas where they have diversified into some 350 species.
Fossils from Europe reveal that early hummingbirds lacked hovering flight ability and had short bills. Following some 10 million years of evolution, the birds had sharp pointed bills, hovering ability and high metabolism which allowed them to eat almost constantly. Then as now, they consume large amounts of sugar every day in the form of nectar to support their colossal energy requirements. According to Stanford University, they have the highest metabolic rate of any animal and consume roughly their weight in nectar every day.
European explorers of the new world first noted hummingbirds in the 16th century. In 1557 Jean de Léry (1536–1613), a French explorer and writer, published a book, “History of a Voyage to the Land of Brazil,” based on his experiences while living for a year with a Brazilian Indian tribe. Early European explorers like de Léry had never seen anything like the tiny birds. His description of hummingbirds helped generate a wide interest in the birds.
In colonial times, hummingbirds were appreciated for their beauty but were not well understood. Adriaen van der Donck (circa 1618-1655), a Dutch attorney in New Amsterdam (today’s New York), in his 1655 book, “Description of New Netherland,” questioned whether hummingbirds were birds or insects, calling them “West India bees” due to their humming flight and frequent visits to flowers. Naturalist John Josselyn (1638–1675) wrote in his 1672 book “New-England’s Rarities Discovered” that “they sleep all Winter, and are not to be seen till the Spring, at which time they breed in little Nests.” He confused migration and hibernation.
By the Victorian era, hummingbird specimens had become popular collector
BOB MEYERS/APPEN MEDIA
The striking Ruby throated Hummingbird is the most common hummingbird species in Georgia and throughout the eastern U.S. The iridescent red throat of the male is known as a "gorget." These tiny birds spend most of their time resting and consuming about their body weight every day. They move from flower to flower consuming all the nectar and small bugs they can to maintain the intense pace of their flight and their rapid wing beats of up to 80 beats per second. The sugar in nectar is particularly important as the birds bulk up for their annual fall migration from Georgia to southern Mexico and Central America. Depending on their point of departure, they fly non-stop 500 miles across the Gulf of America in one day without a stop.
items with major displays at events like the famous May to October 1851 Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of all Nations at the Crystal Palace in London. Victorian audiences were fascinated by the exotic and by miniatures. They referred to hummingbird taxidermy specimens as “living gems.”
The renowned ornithologist of the time was John Gould. His book, “A Monograph of the Trochilidae or Hummingbirds,” published between 1849 and 1861 contained 418 plates of hummingbirds hand painted by teams of colorists working under Gould’s supervision. Certain galleries today sell John Gould lithographs which in most cases are hand-colored prints from his original series. These are quite valuable, much more so than modern reprints which are also available.
The famous portrait artist and naturalist Charles Willson Peale (1741–1827) kept hummingbirds in his house allowing them to fly freely, sometimes sitting on his wife’s shoulder while she fed them sugar-water according to Alexander Wilson’s book, “The Natural His-
tory of the Birds of the United States,” published in 1878. A note: a portrait by Peale of George Washington sold in 2006 for $23.1 million.
During the second half of the 19th century, wearing the feathers or entire bodies of birds on ladies’ hats became very fashionable. Hundreds of thousands of hummingbirds were harvested for the fashion industry in New York, Paris and London every year. Not until 1918 did birds receive federal protection under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.
Hummingbirds played important and varying roles in Native American cultures and were part of Cherokee legends for hundreds of years. Due to their ability to hover and fly backwards they implied flexibility and strength. They brought joy and beauty. In the Cherokee Talagi language the word for hummingbird is “tsuwu,” which means “summer” or “sun,” which associates hummingbirds with flowers and light. Hummingbirds carried urgent messages from the Great Spirit to humans in times of necessity.
French explorer,
and Protestant minister who wrote a book History of a Voyage to the land of Brazil in 1557. His description of hummingbirds helped generate interest in the birds.
The only hummingbird that breeds east of the Mississippi is the beautiful ruby throated hummingbird. It is by far the most common in Georgia and along the East Coast.
Migrating hummingbirds and others fall victim to collisions with windows and buildings which account for up to one billion bird collisions a year. According to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Atlanta was ranked the 9th most dangerous city in the U.S. for birds during their spring migration and 4th during fall migration. Hummingbirds are the most frequent victims of collisions according to Birds Georgia.
Georgians love their hummingbirds, not only for their beauty but also for their amazing abilities. They can double their body mass prior to making their non-stop journey across the Gulf of Mexico twice a year. They are defenders of their territories which includes their favorite backyard feeders. They faithfully return every year to their preferred back yard.
Bob is director emeritus of the Milton Historical Society and a Member of the City of Alpharetta Historic Preservation Commission. You can email him at bobmey@bellsouth.net. Bob welcomes suggestions for future columns about local history.
BOB MEYERS Columnist
SMITH COLLEGE PROJECT/PROVIDED Jean de Léri was a
writer
The clues are numbered 1 through 7, with 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!
LIVING QUARTERS
1. Moonfish. Kind of shark. Earth covered Navajo lodge.
2. Beach sight. Rustic digs. Wanderer.
3. Hyphenated snow house. Facts and figures. Collar type.
4. Rot. Domed residence. Worn out mentality.
5. Martini addiction. Sound rebound. Parson’s home.
6. “Beowulf”, e.g. Swiss mountain dwelling. Beer buy.
7. Barber’s supply. One of many residential units. Sheep-like.
1 Moonfish. Kind of shark. Earth covered Navajo lodge
2. Beach sight. Rustic digs. Wanderer
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. Hyphenated snow house. Facts and figures. Collar type
4. Rot. Domed residence. Worn out mentally
5. Martini addition. Sound rebound. Parson’s home
6. “Beowulf,” e.g. Swiss mountain dwelling. Beer buy
7. Barber’s supply. One of many residential units. Sheep-like.
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Football:
Continued from Page 1
Parry said after a slower game against West Forsyth, he was happy to push closer to his goal of 1,000 yards this season. He has 43 to go to reach four digits of rushing this year, already having eclipsed 1,200 all-purpose, with just one game remaining Oct. 31.
“We executed tonight, we pushed through after a slow start in the first quarter,” Parry said. “The o-line was there to give me holes to run through. I kept my pace throughout the game, and the receivers were there to block to help with outside runs too.”
North Forsyth quarterback Noah Bourque had a quieter night after seasonhighs in passing yards and touchdowns thrown last week against West. Bourque threw 2-8 for 76 yards and one touchdown, adding another touchdown rushing.
Alpharetta linemen Duke Condie and Hudson Cueny, along with receiver/defensive back Thomas Byrd are among the pillars of the class of 2026. Head coach Brian Landis said the 12 seniors have helped to provide structure to a younger team in Landis’ first year at Alpharetta.
“Our motto for the year has been ‘choose hard,’” he said. “Our junior Raiders program is where it all starts, teaching kids how to win, how to do things right, how to keep choosing hard in their life. It’s all coming together, we have a young team this year and our big thing right now is putting four quarters together, when we can do that it’s gonna be special.”
North’s defense stepped up to keep Alpharetta stagnant once Schletty exited the game. Senior Adriel Rojas, sophomore Dan Levkov and junior Marco Troncalli each
rushes for a first down, narrowly escaping several tackles at North Forsyth High School Oct. 24. Schletty also checked in on defense, logging a sack and a tackle for loss, but he exited the game in the second quarter with concussion symptoms and did not return.
made several key tackles and Troncalli scooped up a blocked Alpharetta field goal.
North Forsyth head coach Robert Craft, sitting at No. 5 in Region 6 of 6A, needs to move up to No. 4 for his team to have an opportunity to play more than one game more this season.
“We want to be built on toughness and discipline, and that showed tonight,” he said. “We were able to keep our composure and eventually took the game over. These region games mean a lot, we want the kids to enjoy wins and then turn the page on Monday and refocus and get ourselves ready for the next one.”
North will face Forsyth Central Oct. 31 while Alpharetta will go up against West Forsyth for the last game of the regular season.
PHOTOS BY: ANNABELLE REITER/APPEN MEDIA
Backup quarterback Jack Ullman, center, is tackled by North Forsyth nose guard Shcharansky Darden, left, and linebacker Dan Levkov, right, at North Forsyth High School Oct. 24.
Alpharetta quarterback Matthew Schletty
“It’s been rough and rocky travelin’, but I’ve finally found my feet back on the ground,
After taking several readings, I’m surprised to find my mind is fairly sound…” — “Me and Paul” Willie Nelson
“Where in the world have you been? Them Appen folks didn’t run you off, did they?”
It was a panicky, getting wiser-withage, Burford “Slats’ McElroy on the other end of the line.
I had to explain that no one ran me or anyone else off. I had been feeling poorly but just knew after feeling like a big steaming pile of what a cattle rancher has to shovel, for more than two months, I knew I was in for it.
My family kept telling me to go to the hospital, but Super Dad wasn’t having any of it. Hospitals are for sick people and despite gaining 30 pounds while not eating and feeling I had been hit in the head with a 10-pound sledge, there was no way “Super Dad” was going to the ER.
Even feeling poorly for two months didn’t convince me. Somehow, stupid me thought the whole thing would resolve itself and simply go away.
No, what had happened was the oral chemo agent wreaked havoc, and I was retaining an enormous amount of fluid. My lab work showed a critically high amount of creatinine. Quicker than you can say “Marcus Welby,” I was firmly ensconced in a room at Northside, an IV Lasix drip doing its best to rid my body of all that excess fluid.
But the fun was just commencing. For the faint of heart, I beg of you to stop reading right this minute, for it was time for that IV drip to get some help from the dreaded Mr. Foley, as in a catheter that packs a wicked punch.
“Just a rootin’ tootin’ minute,”
pleaded as the Foley catheter was shown to me. “You’re going to put that giant balloon where?”
The nurses pointed to my own private “South of the Border,” below the belt. The Foley was inserted where no one has ever gone before. And God willing, no one will ever go there again.
Before I started screaming, I asked for a silver dollar coin.
“Is that for luck?” asked the nurse.
“No, that’s for something I’m pretty sure I can bite in half if you’re fixin’ to put that “Wizard of Oz” sized balloon where you’re looking.”
Then it was “Suck it up, Buttercup,” and I met Mr. Foley. If had my druthers, I’d never meet that guy again.
Here was one of the most perplexing aspects of the entire experience: The reason I was in this jackpot was because I did everything the oncologist and nephrologist told me to do.
That oral agent, for whatever reason except that cancer is a crafty opponent that doesn’t play fair, decided to wreak havoc. So now, we are starting a new regimen that involves an hour of weekly immunotherapy for eight weeks, followed by a PET scan to assess if it’s working.
Prayers and good thoughts will be most appreciated. You can take this to
the bank: Cancer doesn’t play fair. Just when you think you have the answers, it changes the questions.
In the meantime, I need to catch up on reader emails. There are quite a few and I’m looking forward to corresponding with those readers who missed me. Get this: The lady who wanted to banish me and have me move to Philadelphia; actually, wrote to tell me she agreed with my take on the Braves. Answering her is first on my list.
“Slats” was concerned and after talking about the cancer’s progress, I could tell he was getting a bit emotional.
“You’re not going to, you know, uh,” he stammered.
“Someday, we all will, you know, Slats.”
“So, what are you going to do?” he fought back a sniffle.
“Until I get called up to the majors, I’m going to fight like hell,” I said to Slats.
He answered: “Okay, I’ll fight right alongside with you.”
I can certainly live with that.
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
Software Developers/Software Engineer – Multi Openings – Alpharetta, GA. Discovery Analytics Inc needs professionals: Work using Java/J2EE, Struts frameworks, REST API, shell & batch scripts, 7 Chrome Developers tools. Req. - Master’s + 1 yr Exp. Comp. salary, Relocate to unanticipated site. No national/ international travel. Mail resume to: President, 11535, Park woods Circle, Ste A, Alpharetta, Georgia, USA 30005.
Ceena LLC is hiring a Senior Data Engineer in Alpharetta, GA to design, build, and maintain secure, scalable data pipelines and systems. The role involves close collaboration with architects and security teams to support data pipelines. Master’s degree in CS, IT is required; Mail resumes to HR, 3480 Preston Ridge Road, Suite 500, Alpharetta, GA 30005.
Midway Preschool is looking for a Lead Teacher in our Y5’s class. Half-day Christian Preschool. Follow Forsyth County’s school calendar. Contact Beth Dotson (770-752-0440) or email beth@midwayumc.org
ESL Contractor Instructor (Evening)
Bilingual (English / Spanish) Donor Operations Supervisor
NFCC is seeking an Evening ESL Contractor Instructor to teach English classes through our Adult Education program, serving students throughout North Fulton and surrounding counties. Our ESL Program runs three sessions annually, with comprehensive lessons covering speaking, listening, reading, and writing skills, along with regular assessments to track student progress.
The Bilingual (English / Spanish) Donor Operations Supervisor (Full-time) manages the donation door process and delegates tasks to staff, volunteers, and community service workers. As the face of NFCC, they provide excellent customer service while greeting donors and ensuring donations are properly removed from vehicles and sorted in designated areas. They are responsible for maintaining the security of merchandise and keeping all areas clean and organized.
We’re looking for an instructor who is available to teach evening classes. The ideal candidate will be committed to maintaining strong enrollment of at least ten students per class and who can create an engaging learning environment that supports adult learners in achieving their English language goals.
Truck Driver
Bilingual (English / Spanish) Donor Operations
Supervisor
NFCC is seeking a Truck Driver (Donor Operations Services Associate II) to join our Facilities team. Our Truck Driver collects scheduled donations from businesses, residential locations, and special events while serving as a key point of contact for donors to coordinate pickup appointments. As the face of NFCC during donor interactions, this role requires maintaining a professional and a welcoming presence that reflects the organization’s values. Additionally, this position contributes to facility maintenance operations as needed.
The Bilingual (English / Spanish) Donor Operations Supervisor (Full-time) manages the donation door process and delegates tasks to staff, volunteers, and community service workers. As the face of NFCC, they provide excellent customer service while greeting donors and ensuring donations are properly removed from vehicles and sorted in designated areas. They are responsible for maintaining the security of merchandise and keeping all areas clean and organized.
The Truck Driver works Monday through Friday 9am – 2pm and periodically on Saturdays or Sundays for special events.
If you have 1-2 years of Box Truck delivery experience, maintain a valid Ga Driver’s License free of any traffic violations for the past 3 years and enjoy providing excellent customer service, we’d love to hear from you! Please submit your resume to jobs@nfcchelp.org
The Supervisor must be able to lift up to 75lb frequently and be on their feet most of their shift. They must enjoy staying busy, training and influencing others to work as a team in a professional manner. Must have the ability to work Tuesday through Saturday 9am – 5pm. An extraordinary Total Rewards Package is included with this opportunity!
If this sounds like the role for you, we’d love to hear from you! Please submit your resume to jobs@nfcchelp.org
If you have a bachelor’s or master’s degree in TESL, TESOL, English with a TESL certificate, linguistics or applied linguistics with a TESL certificate, we’d love to hear from you! Please submit your resume to jobs@nfcchelp.org
The Supervisor must be able to lift up to 75lb frequently and be on their feet most of their shift. They must enjoy staying busy, training and influencing others to work as a team in a professional manner. Must have the ability to work Tuesday through Saturday 9am – 5pm. An extraordinary Total Rewards Package is included with this opportunity!
If this sounds like the role for you, we’d love to hear from you! Please submit your resume to jobs@nfcchelp.org
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