April 2014

NWGA’S PREMIER FEATURE MAGAZINE / APRIL 2014

TARDY

GRAS

FORGET FEBRUARY. OMIT MARCH. ACROSS GREATER ROME, APRIL IS THE MONTH TO PARTY DOWN. ART BY JAMIE ARMSTRONG

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16 that’ll do, pig

18 straight-talk express 20 nacho average affair

features

26 chasing george, sr.

30 clear as folk

36 bows for holly

40 gordon’s seventh-day solution

FROM

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U Ulcers

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a

pril showers always bring May flowers, but April 2014 will witness a lessorganic bloom in even greater abundance, with pinwheels being “planted” on lawns all over the country to raise awareness during National Child Abuse Prevention Month.

Greater Rome is a unique community in so many ways, and one of its strongest foundations is built upon a deeply rooted commitment to caring for the less fortunate among us. Local nonprofit administrators and volunteer staffers work countless hours, and often endure great emotional stress, to ensure that those in need have a shoulder to cry on, a friend to talk to, or the guidance critical to getting them back on their feet.

They don’t do it to be congratulated; they do it simply because they care too much to not put an iron in the fire. Thereby, we owe them

Ian Griffin MANAGING PARTNER+ HEAD OF ADVERTISING

Publishers’

our gratitude and support, so that they may continue to help support others.

To mark National Child Abuse Prevention Month here at V3 Magazine, we are encouraging our readers to help lend a hand in making NWGA a better place to grow up. You can do something as simple as participating in “Blue Mondays” this April, on which you can raise awareness by—you guessed it—wearing blue or sporting a blue ribbon as you go about your day. This illustrates that, while support through financial donation is by all means welcome, you can certainly make an impact without spending a single penny.

The Exchange Club Family Resource Center is also a great place to start. Visit them online at exchangeclubfrc.org to discover more volunteer options.

And hey, if nothing else, “plant” a few pinwheels on the lawn.

Essentially, the message the Child Abuse Prevention Partnership (CAPP) wants to drive home is that we, as a community, are in this fight together, and that no child deserves to be robbed Neal Howard of his or her innocence through abuse CREATIVE PARTNER+EDITOR-INor neglect. In the year 2013 alone, there CHIEF+V3 MAG HEAD DESIGNER were 205 substantiated cases of child abuse and neglect in Floyd County.

Three of those children lost their lives as a result, and that’s just in our backyard.

As someone who experienced a fabulous childhood here in Rome, I’m especially saddened by the thought that many local children are denied the same luxury. Let’s all pitch in to make it a birthright.

Note

Ian Griffin, V3 Managing Partner 8

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EDITOR-IN-CHIEF + PRODUCTION MANAGER + MAG ART & DESIGN Neal Howard WRITERS J. Bryant Steele, Luke Chaffin, Oliver Robbins, Holly Lynch, Kent Howard, Neal Howard, Ian Griffin, Matt Davis PHOTOGRAPHY Derek Bell, MFA 706.936.0407 CHIEF OF ADVERTISING + OFFICE MANAGER + SALES DIRECTOR Ian Griffin AD SALES + CLIENT RELATIONS Shadae Yancey-Warren, Chris Forino AD DESIGN + MARKETING CONCEPTS Ellie Borromeo, Laura Briggs PUBLISHER V3 Publications, LLC CONTACT One West Fourth Avenue Rome, Ga. 30161 Office Phone 706.235.0748 Email>v3publications @gmail.com

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• Photos by S oto •

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RACA ANNOUNCES WINNERS OF FIREFLY FLING EXHIBIT; LOCAL STUDENT ARTISTS RECEIVE $600 IN PRIZE MONEY

R

2ND PLACE

ome Area Council for the Arts has awarded three prizes in the Firefly Fling Student Art Exhibit. A first-place prize of $300 was awarded to Jamie Armstrong (see cover art), a sophomore at Armuchee High School. The $200 second-place prize was awarded to senior Kinsey O’Neal (shown right), also at Armuchee High School. And finally, a third-place $100 prize was awarded to Kaitlyn Phillips (see pg. 15), junior at Coosa High School. Each prize will be split between the ARMUCHEE student and their respective school art department.

“The submissions were impressive across the board,” says Kikki Edmonds, RACA Board member and leader of the exhibit.

“They were indicative of a great pool of artistic talent in our region.”

In its inaugural year, the exhibit required that students submit art of their chosen medium which they felt best fit the theme, “Cajun Summer Nights”. Public and private high-school art teachers in the city and county were allowed to submit up to five pieces for inclusion in the exhibit. Winners were selected by a panel of judges made up of local professional artists.

“We raise money from our community so that we can support artists of any age and nurture the ongoing improvement of local arts infrastructure in our community,” says Emily Hjort, president of the RACA Board of Directors. “Our members make it possible to supplement reductions in arts education budgets through this exhibit and many RACA programs throughout the year.”

All works of art will be on display at RACA’s annual Firefly Fling fundraiser, which will be held Fri., April 25 at 7 p.m. in the courtyard of the State Mutual Building (210 East Second Ave.). Tickets are available for $75 per, and include a catered dinner, open bar, live music, and an interactive firefly experience. For more info and/or to purchase tickets, visit ROMEARTS.ORG.

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CENTS& SENSIBILITY WITH J. BRYANT STEELE

M

aking New Year’s resolutions is both a convenient and arbitrary enterprise. People determine to lead better lives at all times of the year, just ask a priest or a surgeon.

But we are now already one-quarter of the way through 2014, a good time to review progress on New Year’s resolutions you may have made. So, have you lost any of that weight? Started exercising? Had a physical? Put more into savings? Are you volunteering or otherwise contributing to worthy causes? Have you quit smoking, drinking, or cheating on your spouse? Did you submit your resolutions to the paper shredder mid-January, content to accede that temptation always trumps intention?

(If so, you may skip ahead a few paragraphs.)

Conversely, if you are fully committed to betterment in any area of your life, especially career, the best thing about regularly evaluating your progress is that it gives you a chance to either keep on track or to get 16

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THAT'LL DO, PIG (SIGH) IF ONLY SELF-EVALUATION OF OUR OWN NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTeness ALLOWED FOR AS MANY LOOPHOLES AS THE SLICKLY WRITTEN CAP LAW REGARDING LOBBYIST INFLUENCE UNDER THE GOLD DOME, WE'D ALL FEEL A LITTLE MORE SECURE WITH OUR HEADS BURIED IN THE TROUGH

things moving toward what you have promised yourself, and the one-quarter mark is a good time to review your goals.

Of course, personal lifestyle choices are between you and your significant others, but with regard to your professional life, here are some things to consider: You should be documenting activities and achievements all during the year. Your boss is going to ask for them in December. Don’t make your life even more hectic that time of year by trying to recall details.

Now is also a good time to ask yourself a fresh set of questions relative to your set goals, which also gives you a chance to “reword” the goals your boss set for you (within bounds).

Third, make notes regarding problems you helped solve or prevent. Without being a braggart, make sure others know you can be a go-to guy in your area(s) of expertise.

Take on the assignments no one else wants.

Don’t make your boss lose sleep over you, but, at the same time, don’t be ignored or taken for granted because you are just so competent. Keep a list titled something to the tune of “What Didn’t Blow Up Today”.

Take notice when a fellow employee does something well. Those who like to toot their own horns are a minority, but everyone needs to hear “way to go.”

Improve your skills. Employers often will pay for workshops or certification programs. Sometimes you only get one helpful idea from an all-day workshop, but that’s one idea you didn’t have yesterday. To boot, you can use the time to network.

Chart your work life to your satisfaction and you’ll find that you aren’t carrying it over into your personal life. It makes those other resolutions seem not so pesky.

I

BIZBITS

n legislative news, it was unbelievable in the first place that Georgia would finally place a cap on how much lobbyists can spend to influence lawmakers. It happened on the last day of the 2013 General Assembly session, as discussed in prior installments of Cents & Sensibility.

The law was crafted in secret, yet, curiously, it purported setting a limit of $75 per lawmaker.

Those of us who have spent any time on a farm know that the hogs aren’t happy when the trough is empty. Now, thanks to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, we know of one major loophole in the lobbyist spending law: There is no spending limit for caucuses approved by the ethics committee of either chamber or the General Assembly. A caucus can consist of as few as three people, and lobbyists can spend as much as they want when hosting a caucus. One caucus, for instance, consists of Gov. Nathan Deal’s three floor leaders in the Senate.

A leader of Common Cause Georgia called any effort to control lobbyist spending “a shell game.” Put another way, it isn’t a new day under the Gold Dome, just a new trough.

While Georgia lawmakers were otherwise busying themselves with the pressing matter of getting guns into more places where guns don’t belong, their brethren in Missouri found a different way to make their own state safer: A proposed bill to nullify federal gun-control laws and give the state the authority—pay close attention to this, now— the “power” to jail any federal agent trying to enforce federal laws. This is ridiculous, and a complete waste of taxpayer money.

But the Missouri Senate has already passed the bill and sent it to the House.

More on the haves/have nots front: A recent study of 50 cities found Atlanta the worst in income disparity, citing that a child born into poverty in Atlanta is least likely to grow out of it than any other evaluated.

Much of this can be laid at the doorstep of the Atlanta Public Schools system, where the test-cheating scandal continues to play out in the courts and on front pages. The problems belying the debacle are decades old, and numerous administrations have failed to address them in a continuous, systemically impactful manner.

In other news, I’ll preface my next point by saying that I would hate to be an elected official forced to make budget cuts in tough economic times. It’s an impossible task. But this does interest me: During a Floyd County Commission hearing on cutting funds for the library, an audience member asked how many commissioners held a library card.

Not a single hand went up.

There’s more bad news for American agriculture, as the drought out West is driving up the price you pay for beef. But there is good news, too: That crappy, extra-cold winter we endured was helpful for Georgia’s peach crop. In turn, the fruit for which we are named should be plentiful and sweet.

And if you’ve just moved to our lovely home state, take the following tip to heart: Buy peaches at farmers markets and roadside stands, not at grocery stores.

Finally, this: Bored with your Internet routine? There’s a site now where you can track, on a real-time map, where people swear (“cuss”) the most using Twitter. Spe-

CONTINUED ON PG. 23 >>

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STRAIGHT-TALK EXPRESS YOU CAN FIND OUT EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT YOUR LOVED ONES' LIVES ANYTIME YOU CHOOSE. JUST PUT YOUR CAR IN DRIVE AND PLACE YOUR FOOT ON THE GAS

O

n occasion, I’ll load up the wife and kids into our 10-year-old Ford and take a drive through the mountains of north Georgia. The purpose of these daytrips is simple: to get away. Not that we are trying to “escape” a reality laced with work, bills, trips to the doctor, et cetera, but removing ourselves from it all for a short time is healthy for the spirit.

Over the years, the thing we have come to appreciate most about these outings is the

company CEO, Mac, often likes to veer us toward more introspective subject matter.

“Hey guys, I like to fart,” was his last initiator, if I’m not mistaken.

Much of the remainder of the conversation, as you might have guessed, revolves around why he’s then being put in his place.

The larger lesson, though: We love the conversation and togetherness we embrace through the power of the ride, an amazing communication tool that mankind has all but forgotten about. But even more broadly, we have also lost perspective on the importance of alone time with one another. Our grandparents and great grandparents used to ride Saturdays and Sundays for entertainment on the regular, and inadvertently, it produced a culture in which, very likely, family members knew one another a little better. Seems they weren’t driving 10 miles per hour on purpose, they were simply too engaged to mind the speedometer. The byproduct was valuable time together, time alone, without interference. No one could reach them by phone, no one could text or tweet What r yall doin? They were the only people in the world for however long the ride lasted.

According to a recent interview with Atlanta-based radio/thrift-tips star, Clark Howard, it stands to reason that the price of gasoline might be higher than you want to pay—it always has been and always will be—but your engine is capable of better gas mileage than were your grandparents’ and great grandparents’ automobiles. Therefore, you can’t use the excuse that gas costs too

TOUCHING

THELINE

W I T H K E N T H O WA R D less-interrupted conversation we have with one another. Like yours, our family can take a topic and run with it for hours. Some are spiritual, some are humorous, some are thought-provoking, others tear-jerking. The only thing we know for sure is that we open up more and better share our hearts on these drives than we often do at home. Perhaps it’s the humming of the engine, the comfort of knowing that it’s just us up here—at least for the time being.

When Isabelle, my 8-year-old, commands the floor, we hear in vivid detail the drama happening at school. She then passes the mic to Lauren, my wife, who breaks down in even clearer detail the family to-do list for the coming week. Bringing up the rear, 3-year-old comedian and future choo-choo 18

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CONTINUED ON PG. 23 >>

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A

ccording to Pew Research Center, the share of men ages 18 to 34 who say that having a successful marriage is one of the most important things in their lives has dropped since 1997, from 35 percent to 29 percent.

Women, on the other hand, still want to marry. So much so, in fact, that in the very same survey, the percentage of women who expressed the opinion that marriage was important increased from 28 to 37 percent.

As an event planner whose primary source of revenue is weddings, this statistic is alarming. If the men don’t want to become grooms, there will be no brides, no matter what their desire to marry may be.

The reasons to not marry, however, especially for men, are pretty compelling. In this country, in this culture, the heterosexual

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man has been pretty well trod on. If you want to read more about the issues facing men in this country, just Google search “the war on men” and you’ll find plenty of commentary.

But on a far less conspiratorial plane, I would venture to guess that a top reason men are less interested in marriage is because they really don’t want to deal with the wedding. A wedding, by definition, is a gathering of people who witness the public commitment that two people make to spend the rest of their lives together—which sounds

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simple enough. And yes, maybe a wedding was simple back in the day—church ceremony, basement reception, done. (Because nothing says wedding more than cake, punch, and Jordan almonds served by your grandmother’s Sunday school class.)

No, seriously, I’m not being sarcastic.

Many of the best marriages still going today began that way. There’s a clerk at the probate court—where you obtain a marriage license, ironically—who swears she got married at the courthouse on her lunch hour. She says she still had time for a quick reception at the Taco Bell before she and her new husband returned to their jobs.

They’ve been married for 26 years.

The wedding, no matter how small, is important. There are very few events in life where we can truly declare, This is the day!

The other two that come to mind are literally engraved in stone: the day we’re born and the day we die. I feel pretty confident we don’t (and won’t) remember much from those two dates, but we will remember our wedding day.

The funeral and the wedding are the two times in a person’s life where everyone in his or her world shows up. The old adage that we only see certain relatives and friends at funerals and weddings is true,

and your wedding is the one event where friends from college, friends from high school, friends from work, your boss, your parents, your siblings all come together in one place. We get together for weddings because the celebration of such a monumental life decision deserves a little hoopla.

At every wedding I have ever planned, there has been a moment at which I’ve seen a shared look on the faces of the gathered crowd. A look that radiates joy, contentment, approval and hope. Sometimes it’s when the bride arrives at the altar, when the groom visibly exhales, when the beaming couple exits the ceremony, or at the reception, when the newly minted couple embraces for their first dance. Those moments are so very beautiful on their own, but also because of what our guests experience.

A wedding with lots of family and friends may not be possible within every couple’s budget, but the gathering of people who all share a similar love for you is a great blessing. When a bride of mine gets nervous right before walking into the church, oftentimes she’ll turn and ask me with a hint of incredulity, “How many people are in there?!” I always tell her, “Just the people who love you.”

I’m not sure my words help, but the truth is that everyone involved in a wedding celvini vidi vici / v3 magazine

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ebration ultimately wants the same thing for the couple: happiness.

So, looking at the new Pew stats, why avoid a wedding instead of welcoming one? It’s a chance for the people who love you to show up and show support. There are very few decisions a person can make in life where everyone wants to celebrate it with you. You’ll have babies and buy houses, you’ll change careers and take amazing vacations, but you’ll only share those moments with a few people face to face. The wedding, conversely, is where people actually show up. It is a place where “liking” a photo or posting a comment bears little weight. At a wedding, your friends are live, in person, and participate in the fun. They pray with you, laugh with you, dance with you, drink your wine and eat your food.

Moreover, a wedding is also the beginning of something big. It’s the first day. On the first day of a new job or on your first day at a new school, you have no idea what you’re doing. But at a wedding, on that first day of a marriage, you know exactly what you’re doing. You know where to be, what to wear, what to say. It’s the one event where the first day warrants a major celebration. If you opt out of the wedding, what day will you celebrate in its absence? The day you signed the lease together? Moving day? You might get a friend or two to show up for that, but it’s not exactly a party.

A wedding brings with it a host of things most men don’t take account of—or don’t want to—like flower selections, music, family dynamics. Most of the grooms I am fortunate enough to meet before the big to-do have some idea of what they want to happen on their wedding day, but most of all, they want their future wives to be happy. Otherwise, most of them would happily start their marriages at Taco Bell. VVV

Holly Lynch is owner of and head planner for The Season Special Events Planning at 250 Broad Street in Rome.

as the workday progresses.

The idea originated as a project by a Carleton University student. We had projects like that when I was in college, too, we just didn’t earn credits for them. VVV

J. BRYANT STEELE IS AN AWARDWINNING BUSINESS JOURNALIST BASED IN ROME.

FROM PG.18, TOUCHing... much in 2014. It has always cost too much.

As a basketball coach, some of my best communication with players occurs when they are left at school with no ride home.

I have had players tell me things during those brief car trips about their families, sad backgrounds, feelings on faith and love, tastes in music, and the tough road to their life goals. Many of these young men would never dare to open up in the locker room, the classroom, or the coach’s school office the way they often do on those rides home.

Also, it gives them a chance to ask me difficult and uncomfortable questions about life that they sometimes feel they can’t get anywhere else. Consequently, these deeper, more personal talks give me great insight as to how I can help them throughout their

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FROM PG.17, CENTS &... cifically, where people are using a word that I certainly cannot print here, but it’s used a lot by men while driving a truck.

Countries that speak English, naturally, lead the current field, particularly America and Great Britain. Interestingly, there’s less swearing in Canada, which is in step with its stereotyped buttoned-down image, but also Australia, which makes no sense to me. The heaviest volume of profanity occurs, perhaps not surprisingly, on weekdays

young lives by better guiding them in the present.

As a husband and father, I want to use any and all methods of conversation shy of water-boarding to best communicate with the people in my life. Life is difficult for each and every one of us, and personal circumstances can change drastically on any given day. It is vital that we stay tightly connected to our loved ones so that we can help each other grow together, and not apart. Make it a point to eliminate modern distraction by “getting away” for quality time by any means necessary. Insist on learning your friends and family deeper and deeper so that growing apart is never an option.

Who knows, a simple car ride could even help Obama and Putin see eye-to-eye on the Crimea issue. Maybe after the car ride was over, they could text each other and post their selfies together on Instagram. And all because they took a ride. VVV

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I

t is once again time for one of Northwest Georgia’s most anticipated events. Just as the 9 a.m. morning sun begins to dry the droplets of newly fallen dew, the gates will open to the 49th Annual Atlanta Steeplechase at Kingston Downs. This year the event falls on Easter weekend, so there is no doubt that ol‘

CHASING

GEORGE,SR.

IN THE WAKE OF A COFOUNDER'S SEPTEMBER passing, THE 49TH ANNUAL ATLANTA STEEPLECHASE LOOKS TO DOUBLE AS A DAYLONG TRIBUTE AND A HOPPING GOOD TIME FOR BIG FANS OF THE WORLD'S MOST FAMOUS BUNNY Peter Cottontail will drop by, bringing with him all the pleasantries associated with the holiday. The 2014 races will also include the Southern charm we’ve all come to expect, as well as a definitive nod to the most celebrated attendees, our precious youngsters.

First, though, it is important to mention that this year’s race will be run in memory of George E. Chase, Sr., one of the Atlanta Steeplechase’s original founders and a former chairman. George, Sr. passed on Sept. 16, 2013 at the age of 87, but his dream lives on.

His son, George Chase, Jr., has now taken the reins and is leading the event into the future as its new chairman. George, Sr.’s love for steeplechasing inspired him to partner with others who also enjoyed the pastime, and his son wishes us all to remember his legacy.

Now, this corner of our state will, hopefully, be privy to this majestic sport for many years to come, thanks to George, Sr., his gracious family and friends.

And now (insert self-generated starter-pistol sound effect), it’s off to the races!

Let’s just see if we can manage to stuff Atlanta Steeplechase’s massive itinerary into a few pages.

The April event has always been the perfect chance for families to get away from everyday stressors and enjoy a Saturday removed 26

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from the crowded sideTEXT walks and stuffed briefcases. The riders and the PHOTO horses are merely the icing on a cake that is eight full hours of great food, engaging activities and neighborly company. India Wilkinson, marketing director for Atlanta Steeplechase, highlights some of 2014’s most special attractions. “This year we are having an Easter egg hunt, and that will be great for the kids. The Easter Bunny will be skydiving at the race as well—weather permitting,” she says. “The Budweiser Clydesdales will be coming back, and they always have a meet-and-greet in downtown Rome on the Friday night before the races.

People can actually pet them and talk with the Budweiser folks.

“On the day of the races, people on the back stretch will have a chance to get up close and personal with the horses for photos, as well.”

Wilkinson points out that Steeplechase is always the perfect outing for families, but this year, its planners have paid special attention to providing Easter traditions patrons normally observe offsite.

“We will also have the Jack Russell Terrier races, which is really fun, and we will have

OLIVER ROBBINS S COURTESY OF AT L A N TA S T E E P L E C H A S E the Kids Corral,” says Wilkinson when explaining some of the family-focused staples to be found at Kingston Downs come April 19. “There we will have the camel rides, rock climbing, bungee jumping and ziplines.

There is also a petting zoo and face painting for the kids.”

Adults can also be excited about some of the features planned for them. “We are going to have retail shops and food trucks in the infield for people who want to shop,” says Wilkinson. “We will also have five races with a full race card.”

Phipps Plaza, one of the race sponsors, will have merch from some of its retailers available on the cleverly named “Tally Ho Patio”.

From this vantage, the crowd can take in the race and pick up a few keepsakes to take home. Phipps Plaza will also host the prerace party on Sponsor Hill for the early birds.

During the races, another race sponsor, Terry Reid Hyundai, will be raffling off a brand-new Hyundai Equus, the official vehicle of the 2014 Atlanta Steeplechase. One

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“For my hEart, I choosE rEdmond.”

Barry

Heart Attack Survivor

“The paramedic ripped my shirt off to get those paddles on me and they said I was blue. And he said, ‘this is one we are not going to bring back’.”

Barry had a major cardiac event while driving down the highway at 50 miles an hour.

Due to the heroic efforts of others, his life was saved. The EMS used cardiac defibrillation to shock his heart several times before transferring him to nearby Redmond Regional.

Redmond physicians lowered Barry’s body temperature using a procedure called hypothermia to stop damage to his body and then treated his heart. New life-saving procedures are giving patients like Barry a second chance.

Barry is just one of many stories at Redmond Regional Medical Center.

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lucky Joe, or Jane, will walk away from the event with keys to a new set of wheels, courtesy of the good people at Terry Reid. Raffle tickets can be purchased at atlantasteeplechase.org, as well as from the Terry Reid Hyundai dealership (816 Joe Frank Harris Parkway, Cartersville, Ga.).

Wilkinson adds, “Celebrity Cruises will be offering games and other activities for the people on Sponsor Hill, which should be great. We will also have two hat parades this year. One will take place on Sponsor Hill and it is sponsored by Von Maur, and Lilly Pulitzer will sponsor the parade held in the infield.

That’s all new to the event as well.”

Other notable sponsors for 2014 include Coca-Cola, who will provide refreshments, Enghouse Transportation, Beaulieu America, the Estates at Serenity Farms, and Goose Island. Be sure to check out atlantasteeplchase. org for a complete list of sponsors and events planned for the day. Details of the merriment not mentioned in this article are only a mouse-click away.

This year, Atlanta Steeplechase’s primary goal is to raise money for the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine, to ensure quality care for our furried, feathered, or sometimes scaled, family pets.

Jean Bird, Atlanta Steeplechase executive director, clearly is excited about this year’s race. She is a 15-year vet, and she always has

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"...THIS IS A DAY TO SOCIALIZE, NETWORK, AND GET AWAY FROM THE DAILY STRESSES OF LIFE." a ball at Kingston Downs in April. “I really can’t tell you one time in particular that was special for me, because there are so many special times I’ve had at the Steeplechase,” Bird says. But a high point this year, she notes, will be honoring George, Sr. by running the races in his name.

“The gate opens at 9, and our infield events start early. I really try to help new attendees understand that this is a day to

socialize, network, and get away from the daily stresses of life,” says Wilkinson. “It’s great to just connect, enjoy family, and get to know new people. Also, many return year after year, so it is like a reunion for them.

It really is a Southern tradition of being together for a day in the country.”

The event is “massive,” she adds, so she encourages newcomers to try and beat the crowds.

George Chase, Sr. and his fellow Atlanta Steeplechase founders obviously had their friends and loved ones in mind when starting this great tradition here in Northwest Georgia. Let’s do him a solid and make sure that when he looks down from just beyond the clouds on April 19, he can gaze upon his field of dreams with pride. This one’s for you, George. VVV vini vidi vici / v3 magazine

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PLACING STUDENTS' HARMONY OF CREATIVE SPIRIT AT CENTER STAGE, FOLK SCHOOL OF CHATTANOOGA DIRECTOR CHRISTIE BURNS (ABOVE) AND HER ACCOMPANYING BAND OF MUSICIAN-INSTRUCTORS DE-EMPHASIZE COMMON RIGORS TO STIR THE "FREEWHELIN' "

A

merica is a country bonded by the traditions of those who call her home. Each unique custom influences our highly diverse ways of expression, allowing our experiences to transcend language and the cultural barriers that separate our lives.

Oftentimes, we tell our stories through the arts, and few mediums are more powerful than song. Sure, a masterfully crafted crayon drawing commissioned by a kindergarten teacher can warm the heart, a photographer can speak to our souls without uttering a word, and the Statue of Liberty shouts freedom to all who peer upon her face. But there is something about music that binds the nations of the world, providing a place where humankind can relocate its collective identity.

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Christie Burns, native of New Jersey and director of the Folk School of Chattanooga (1200 Mountain Creek Road, Suite 130, Chattanooga, Tenn.), found her love of music through the interests she had in multiple cultures. Early on, however, her attention to learning the musical process was not as focused as it became later in her career. “When I was a kid, I had these mandatory piano lessons,” Burns recalls. “I showed the slightest bit of musical talent as a 3-year-old, and my parents were like, Let’s get her into lessons!

It was like an indeterminate sentence where I had to go and deal with this teacher every week, and I would have to lie to her face about how much I practiced,” she laughs.

Now, before every piano teacher within eyeshot of this article becomes concerned,

Burns did retain a great lesson from her days in front of the ebony and ivory. “What was fun to me about playing the piano was figuring out songs and then showing them off to siblings, and, later on, to friends in school. I loved to see the moment of recognition when someone heard what I was playing and they knew what it was,” she says.

After 10 years of the mundane struggle, Burns finally worked up the nerve to tell her parents she didn’t want to take piano lessons anymore. Still, little did she recognize her musical escapades were only beginning. “I thought I was giving up music completely, but around that same time, I found a guitar in the garage. I was wondering how this thing works. I was 13 or 14, and this was an instrument I could play in my room with my door

CL E A R

AS FOLK T E X T O L I V E R R O B B I N S P H O T O S D E R E K B E L L

closed, and it was nobody’s business but my own.”

After picking up guitar tips unconventionally, from friends and anyone who would offer instruction, Burns fell in line with the folk process. “There was no teacher or a standard curriculum, you know, it was like learning on the street,” she says. “That saved me. I was ashamed to go anywhere near a piano, having campaigned for a termination to my lessons. I didn’t want to let my parents down, and I don’t think they had a real comprehensive view about what being a musician could be. To them, it meant that if you were taking it seriously, then you were studying classical music, and then you are going to go to Julliard to audition for the symphony.”

Growing up on the outskirts of Philadelvini vidi vici / v3 magazine

31

phia, Burns’ parents gave her the opportunity to see some of the greatest classical ensembles the region had to offer, but she was never attracted to the classical genre. She yearned for the music of the alleys, the fields, and the ‘folks.’ Music passed down through goodold human interaction.

Burns soon gathered all the inspiration she needed from sounds she was seldom exposed to. “I began to figure out songs from groups I was listening to like the Indigo Girls, Toad the Wet Sprocket, and REM,” she says.

When Burns figured out that she could pick up on sounds she heard, she had the fortune of coming in contact with a hammered dulcimer, a trapezoid-shaped wooden sound board with strings stretched across its top. These strings are struck with mallets or “hammers” by the person playing the instrument, much like the inside workings of a piano. “Nobody in my family or town played one of those instruments, and I saw one at the Pennsylvania Renaissance Fair. It was the

coolest thing I have ever seen or heard, and I couldn’t live without one. I needed it and I had to have one.”

After this high-school field trip, Burns began a new campaign to her parents, this time for an instrument. Like any nurturing couple would do for their child, they soon tracked a hammered dulcimer down for their daughter to play at the Pinelands Folk Music and Basketry Center in south Jersey. There, at the shop, Burns took lessons on the hammered dulcimer.

“I spent many hours in that place and never felt the time passing, and that’s how I knew I was onto something.”

Her love for seldom-played instruments, like the viola

FOLK SCHOOL OF CHATTANOOGA DIRECTOR CHRISTIE BURNS

"I SPENT MANY HOURS IN THAT PLACE AND NEVER FELT THE TIME PASSING, AND THAT'S HOW I KNEW I WAS ONTO SOMETHING." da gamba and the harpsichord, grew at a rapid pace.

Soon, she was neck-deep in the music of the past, and the stories these instruments carried in melody and rhythm.

College was looming in the distance, and Burns began to research the institutions where she could continue to learn about the music she had grown to embrace.

“I wanted to study music without getting myself into one of those classical-music binds,” Burns says. UCLA was one of the best schools suited for a concentration in ethnomusicology. Ethnomusicology, she found, was the study of the people who created specific sects of music and what societal influences determined the distinctive sounds they would produce.

She describes the discipline as “an anthropologist’s view of music.” At UCLA, Burns would take her study of music to all corners of the globe.

During her senior year at UCLA, England, France and 32

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Germany were only a few stops she would make on her journey to learn all that she could about the music of common peoples retelling the uncommon stories of their lives through song. After graduating from UCLA in 2003, she went on to obtain her M.A. in folk studies from Western Kentucky University. In 2007, she relocated to Chattanooga as part of the ArtsMove program, which brings artists to the city and establishes them in urban neighborhoods, so as to better foster programs and education in parts of town that are often overlooked with respect to the arts.

After a visit to the Old Town School of Folk Music, located in Chicago, Burns crafted the idea to start a folk school of her own in the community of Lookout Mountain. The Old Town of Folk Music was an establishment going 50 years strong, and she hoped she could model her school after the exemplary staying power she witnessed while in Chicago.

Now led by a shining example of how to make her dream of teaching students the traditions of folk music, Burns arranged for the director of the Folk School of St. Louis to fly down to Tennessee and help devise a business plan for a nonprofit folk-music school.

Because the St. Louis school was operating under a similar model to the one in Chicago, and the director was willing to travel, Burns jumped at the chance get firsthand help form-

ing the Folk School of Chattanooga.

Burns and her founding partners, Matt Evans and John Boulware, were excited about the wonderful ideas shared by the Folk School of St. Louis. “She came to us with a big binder of materials explaining how they got their 501c3, this is how we manage our funds, and this is how we manage our budget. We named ourselves the Folk School of Chattanooga to pay homage to the Folk School of St. Louis. We started giving lessons in a store called Mountain Music. We were going to name the school after the store, but after that store closed, we decided ‘Mountain Music School’ would not be appropriate.”

In 2010, the Folk School of Chattanooga became official.

Four years later, the school is thriving.

Students from all age groups come through its doors to learn traditional folk instruments and songs. Lessons concentrating on the fiddle, upright bass, banjo, and mandolin are available. Other, less accessible instruments are also taught here, such as the dulcimer and harmonica. Lon Eldridge, now a Broad Street mainstay (see our December 2013 feature on Eldridge at v3magazine.com), can be booked for an instructional session here, as well. For a complete list of available lessons, concerts, and community events, check out

the website at chattanoogafolk.com.

There is a focus on music theory here, but more importantly, the goal of the instructors is to make music both educational and fun.

Students are free to explore all areas of folk, and no instructor will expect you to practice for a recital alone. Essentially, Burns and company are looking to remove the pressures often associated with conventional music lessons. “We try to provide opportunities for our students to take their instruments out of the case and play. We have several events where we all get our instruments out and play together. I’ll even be up there with them.”

V3 had the pleasure of sitting in on a class conducted by Burns at the school. Four young ladies— Iris, Hannah, Holly and Laurel—passed around a box of Jolly Ranchers while playing the guitar, hammer dulcimer, and fiddle. With Burns at the helm, these young musicians came together to produce incredible sounds from instruments most people would look at with a temple scratch.

More importantly, the smiles are more gleaming than the brightly painted ukuleles hanging from the wall, and the laughter in the room is beautiful music to the parents waiting in the lobby. They all share much more than the room, the space, and the time. They share rhythm, melody, and the notion to create something that makes them feel good about life and the memories they will make together. VVV

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R

ome native Holly Moore became a household name in Northwest Georgia as an artist in her own right, and as an advocate for cervical cancer awareness, which led to her untimely death last November.

As a master cosmetologist and owner of Imagine Studio for Hair and Art, Holly headquartered her creative work and love for the arts in Downtown Rome, just two blocks down from the Rome Little Theatre (RLT) headquarters inside the Historic DeSoto.

“She wanted there to be a place [like Imagine] where artists could create and bring their creative items and get exposure,” says Shea Dale, office manager at Imagine and a personal friend of Moore’s. “That included styling hair,” “I never looked at hair as an art form until Holly,” adds Kristi McEver, fellow Imagine stylist and friend.

Dale and McEver say Holly referred to herself as a “master hair artist”—not a barber, not a hairdresser, not even a beautician—but an artist. “She saw art in everything,” says Dale. “She always promoted self-expression and being the person that you are, no matter what. She was always trying to help people express themselves.”

B OWS F O R

H O L LY

IMAGINE STUDIO FOR HAIR & ART OWNER HOLLY MOORE DIDN'T ONLY

caught Moore and she was selected as producer of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. After Joseph closed in April 2011, Holly would soon be faced with her mortality in the form of a devastating cancer diagnosis. “She insisted, ‘This is not going to stop me,’ ” Murchland says of Holly’s great resolve in the face of her life-changing news.

Casting for RLT’s production of Dracula came not long afterwards, that summer, as Holly began chemotherapy and radiation treatments. “She never missed a beat,” adds Murchland. “Even through her struggles that summer, the show was first and foremost in her mind. She had aspirations to do Dracula ever since it was announced. Her passion for that show was unbelievable.”

Moore could have continued the tradition of promoting the show in a more “vanilla” way, with normal headshots and “going by the script,” but she would have none of this.

As a true master of reinvention and devising fresh new ways of looking at reality, she instead enlisted the help of an old friend from her Coosa High School days, photographer Chris Ozment. The two collaborated on a unique photo shoot for the Dracula promo packet that likely challenged, and perhaps even shocked, the Northwest Georgia theatre community. One particular show poster

DEDICATE HER LIFE TO BRINGING OUT THE BEST IN HER OWN WORK, BUT ALSO IN OTHERS' Moore’s gregariousness and charm not only affected her own way of viewing the world, but frequently opened to her new opportunities and friendships, as well as spilling into the lives of those around her.

“For so many years, she was that one beacon of light. When you were facing a trying time, she would always have the perfect positive answer, the perfect quote to move you onto something happy,” Dale explains.

According to those who knew her best, Moore was fond of saying that creativity could come from anywhere, and she was innately adept at bringing it forth.

Pieces from a variety of NWGA artists still warm the exposed brick walls and show floor at Imagine. Bill Bussey, for one, has various prints displayed in a corner on the gallery’s Broad Street side. They depict Rome-relevant scenes from different decades over the last 60 years, including the black-and-white panoramas of downtown for which he is best known. One is a 36

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recent evening shot of the pedestrian bridge that crosses the Oostanaula River. Dale says that it reminds her of a conversation between Bussey and Moore a few years back, during which the “master hair artist” coaxed the veteran photographer into snapping and releasing some new photographs. This helped spark a creative revival for Bussey, who, now in his eighties, is again producing pertinent work.

Moore’s real prowess, however, was best witnessed backstage at the DeSoto, “where her prodigious talents had the most influence,” says Wendell Barnes, who first worked alongside Holly on the December 2007 RLT production of Here’s Love. As a director, Barnes also worked closely with Holly on the local production of Steel Magnolias. She was thrilled to design and build the set, he says, which included an era-appropriate beauty shop complete with old-fashioned dryer chairs and supplies from her own salon.

According to Barnes, the production bug

TEXT LUKE CHAFFIN IMAGINE PHOTOS DEREK BELL MOORE PHOTOS CHRIS OZMENT vini vidi vici / v3 magazine

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IMAGINE STUDIO FOR HAIR & ART 334 BROAD STREET, ROME

portrayed a madman in a straight jacket in one of the less-traveled, less-kempt alleyways of Downtown Rome, with fantastic lighting and dark imagery. It was a memorable hit that still has people talking three years later.

Murchland credits Holly outright for the success of the show: “She thought outside of the box—and that is what I loved about her.”

Moore’s love for darker theatre was evident in Dracula, and continued as she and Murchland were again selected to work their magic on Frankenstein in 2013. As her dis-

ease progressed she remained steadfast, and even in the face of a bleak diagnosis, she refused to admit defeat. “It wasn’t in her personality to give up,” Murchland explains.

Frankenstein opened at the Historic DeSoto last October, but Moore was unable to make any of the performances. Her handprints, however, were indeed present, and witnessed throughout the entire production.

Holly’s curtain closed on Nov. 3, not long after the RLT’s final performance of the show. At her funeral, mourners sang a fitting tribute to her life, John Lennon’s “Imagine”.

“I miss her laugh. It was infectious. She would get so tickled and her nose would curl up,” McEver recalls.

During her time with the RLT, Holly won several Roman Awards: Best Director and Best Non-musical for Dracula, as well as numerous hair and makeup awards. Barnes says, “Holly approached producing with the same enthusiasm…she did makeup and hair, constantly questioning and learning

CONTINUED ON PG. 45 >>

"HOLLY WAS A FIRM BELIEVER IN TRYING SOMETHING NEW, AND THAT YOU WOULDN'T KNOW THE

OUTCOME IF YOU DIDN'T AT LEAST TRY."

MOORE WORKS HER MAGIC BACKSTAGE WITH THE ROME LITTLE THEATRE

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E

xcavators, temporary trailers, and a sea of red Georgia clay are now in plain view for passersby on Red Bud Road in Calhoun, Ga., as Gordon Hospital is once again expanding. This is the first of a multi-phase addition to the facility, and the $37 million-dollar project will take around 18 months to complete. It includes the construction of 59,000 additional square feet to the hospital, as well as the renovation of 11,500 square feet of existing space.

While there are many facets to the current project, it is highlighted by a new intensive care unit, new patient care unit, and the expansion of Gordon’s emergency department.

Another key addition will be a new north entrance, which should allow patients to navigate the hospital with greater ease once completed.

“The hospital continues to grow rapidly,” says Pete Weber, Gordon Hospital president and CEO. “This new construction, which is

part of our overall healthcare service strategic growth plan, will streamline services for us and make it easier for patients and visitors to navigate the facility. In addition, growing services at Gordon Hospital helps continue to grow and keep more jobs in our local community.”

No doubt, it is an ambitious project, and one that couldn’t be completed without the support of the local community and Gordon’s governing body, the Adventist Health System (AHS). “We have been fortunate,” says

Weber. “Some hospitals are struggling tremendously and aren’t able to do these types of projects. Our physicians and our community have supported us over the years, so we are able to move forward and continue to grow our services for our patients and their families.

“The downside to any growth, however, is that you must live through the construction.

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small community, so that means when our doctors and nurses go to Walmart, they are going to see the patients they have treated.

We want them to be happy to see us, and that can only be accomplished by giving the highest level of care to each and every patient.”

With this commitment at the heart of it all, in 2012 a master plan was set in motion that looked forward to the next 10 years at Gordon Hospital. Using an outside company to assist with patient-volume projections, administrators began deliberating the needs of the hospital and what projects they believed would be critical to its advancement. In this first of what was

them to one another, allowing them to, perhaps, connect on a deeper level with their likeminded patients.

“Our CEO tells us he wants every patient to be treated like we would want our mothers to be treated,” says Reeves. “We strive to do just that. And we understand that this is a

to become five overall, long-term phases, decision-makers addressed what they felt needed to be handled right away, and say they will continue to reevaluate and adjust the plan going forward.

“We had just finished an ER upgrade when I first came here in 2008,” says Reeves, who is most excited about the expansion of the emergency room. “That upgrade was supposed to sustain us for 10 years, but it was quickly apparent that wasn’t going to be the case. The majority of our patients come through the ER, and I view it as the front door of the hospital. These renovations not only will allow us to see more patients, but they will make the process much easier for the patients.”

“The plan changes based on the community’s needs.

We will, without a doubt, continue to grow, but we have to keep a constant eye on healthcare trends and adjust our plans accordingly.

By growing responsibly and focusing that growth on what will help our patients, we can continue to provide the best possible care for everyone who walks through our doors.” VVV

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FROM PG.38, MO ORE as she went along with how to produce a wonderful show.”

“She taught herself so that she could teach others,” adds McEver. “She felt that you couldn’t be selfish with your knowledge.”

Fellow longtime friend and Imagine stylist, Katie Barfield, chimes in, “Holly was a firm believer in trying something new, and that you wouldn’t know [the outcome] if you didn’t at least try.”

“Peace, love, create” was Holly’s motto, her mantra, and truly the lens through which she viewed life. She would enjoy the opportunity to open others’ eyes when people would ask for clarification: Wasn’t it actually “Peace, love, happiness”? “When you’re happy, you make things,” she would tell them.

To hear Moore’s friends tell it, being creative was happiness for Holly, and her existence was full of both as she walked this life beside her husband of 16 years, Phil Moore.

“He was her constant helper,” says Barnes.

Phil served as her immovable rock, her foundation—no matter the season, no matter the undertaking.

The memory of Rome’s “magician with scissors” remains vivid in the minds of those whose lives she touched, whether cutting up while wielding a pair of shears, encouraging those who needed a pick-me-up, or simply offering a smile as she walked down Broad en route to the DeSoto. She knew this world was not a dress rehearsal, but filled with real people who needed that love, that inspiration, that spark of artistic encouragement she took it upon herself to offer them—no strings attached.

Moore also used her life’s journey to reach out to others across Greater Rome in what became a very public battle with cervical cancer. “She picked up and became a voice.

It was never about her own struggle, it was about how she could help somebody else through her story,” Murchland says. “She made people feel good about themselves. She took people under her wing. She was always a champion for the underdog.”

Today, Holly Moore’s fingerprints are seen all over her beloved hometown. Sure, hairstyles will change, new theatre productions will come and go, but she left a lasting legacy that, while not as immediately visible or as flashy as a theater marquee, will nonetheless endure. It is a legacy found in the smile of those who alight when her name is brought up in conversation, when someone remembers a time they believed they could not do something and she persuaded them otherwise, or any time a friend remembers being made to feel their true worth.

Holly invested in others in a way that few seem to take the time to anymore. She invested in the soul, crafting new mindsets and newfound confidence along the way. VVV

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