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TODAY'S ISSUE
Gwinnett community
ready to be seen
on national TV cheering "Georgia Force"
By
Christy Sparks
Vice President of Business Development
The Georgia Force
Special to GwinnettForum.com
DEC. 3, 2002 -- "Have you bought your Georgia Force season
ticket?" That's the way I start every conversation now.
Season Ticket holders will be a part of "our Gwinnett"
team in the new Arena at Gwinnett Center on February 16th when the
entire county is watching on NBC.
I will and I know you will want to be there, too.
In August, Virgil R. Williams, a lifelong native of Gwinnett County,
and Georgia Force chairman and owner, facilitated the move of the
Arena Football team from Phillips Arena in downtown Atlanta to the
new Arena at Gwinnett Center. By moving the Force to Gwinnett County,
he relocated the team closer to the club's fan base, which predominantly
comes from the suburban metropolitan area.
His vision began one year earlier with the naming of the team the
"Georgia Force." He wanted to embrace not only the city
of Atlanta, but also its strong and growing metropolitan areas,
like Gwinnett County, that were quickly becoming "Forces to
be reckoned with."
On October 30th, the Georgia Force officially kicked off the "grassroots"
campaign to sell season tickets. The campaign is being co-chaired
by Judge Jim Oxendine, senior judge, Superior Court of Gwinnett,
and Bartow Morgan, chief executive officer of The Brand Baking Company.
The campaign involves members of the community from various local
companies and organizations such as the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce,
Gwinnett Convention & VisitorsBureau, Council for Quality Growth,
Gwinnett University Center and Gwinnett Magazine, just to name a
few.
This is a perfect chance for Gwinnett County to show everyone how
they support their community and put their best foot forward. Persons
interested in joining the sales effort, can join the campaign at
any time by contacting me at The Georgia Force offices.
The Georgia Force will enter its second season in the AFL in February
on NBC. The AFL consists of 16 teams, including eight in the ten
largest U.S. media markets.
I have attended a lot of football games in a lot of different stadiums
and arenas, seen and heard the impact that fans can have on a game.
With the new Arena at Gwinnett Center and the Georgia Force, we
all have an opportunity to turn our community into the hottest venue
in town. Soon, NBC announcers will be commentating about the Georgia
Force and its great fans of this community to a national viewing
audience.
Now is your chance to get involved and take part in all the excitement
of Arena Football. For more information on joining the Gwinnett
County community "grass roots" effort or to buy season
tickets, please contact me at 770-813-7616 or Christy@georgiaforce.com.
I will be happy to ask you, "Have you bought your Georgia
Force season tickets?"
ELLIOTT
BRACK
Here's
a way to get rid of those pesky, intrusive phone calls
By
Elliott Brack
editor and publisher
GwinnettForum.com
DEC. 3, 2002 - - If you are like me, you are annoyed at those telemarketing
calls that always seem to come at the wrong time, often during dinner.
For $5 a telephone line, you can get relief. Take it from me: it
works!
Here's why I say that. About two years ago, we paid our $5, sent
a check to the state and asked to be put on the "No Call"
list. The state starts a new list each quarter, and sure enough,
pretty soon the calls virtually dried up.
This isn't to say that all the calls stopped. We would get sporadic
calls, but in general, which we especially noted during time for
dinner, the harassing by unsolicited calls ceased.
We preface this subject with the above words for one reason: placing
your telephone number on the list does not last forever. We found
out. The hard way.
You see, without us realizing it, our "no call" two years
was up. Guess what? Yep, you got it right. We started getting telemarketing
calls once again. It's as though when the telemarketers see your
name drop off they list, they make a special effort to harass you
again. For here came the calls, with zesto!
So, belatedly, we made the effort to get on the no-call list again.
This time we found that you can do it through email, and pay via
credit card. You can also do it through a toll free number, or even
by mail.
The toll free number is 1-877 426 6225. The web site is www.GANOCALL.com.
Or you can obtain a form from the Public Service Commission and
mail it to them at
Georgia Public Service Commission
c/o Computer Business Services
P. O. Box 105559
Atlanta, Georgia 30348.
Any way, the result will be for you to be on the Georgia No Call
List, and by the start of another quarter, you should be free of
the annoying telemarketing calls. The Georgia Office of Consumer
Affairs enforces this list, by the way, and not the Public Service
Commission.
February 1, 2003, is the cut-off date to get on the list for the
quarter to begin April 2003.
More than 350,000 residents have signed up for the no-call service
since it started. Since the service began, throughout the nation
some 120 companies have been fined for violating the tenets of the
service.
The Public Service Commission warns, however, that your name on
the No Call List does not mean that you won't get some calls. It
says:
"Please be aware, however, that registration on the Georgia
No Call List does not limit calls from:
* Businesses that have a previous or current relationship with
the customer;
* Recognized charitable or religious organizations; or
* Political pollsters or candidates for public office."
But, we found out, being on the No Call Lists stops many a telemarketer.
If there is one glaring omission in the Georgia No Call program,
it is that there is no notification of when your name drops off
the list. Most of us would gladly fork over another $5 to keep our
name current on the list, if we were notified.
We can't wait for your new quarter to start!
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FEEDBACK:
12/3: Says Grayson
losing "Best kept secret" identity
Editor, the Forum:
Thanks for the great article about Grayson. I have forwarded
it to all my friends and relatives. Even though our signs read
"Gwinnett's Best Kept Secret," we aren't going to be
that way for long!
Being born and raised in Grayson and with my child now being
the third generation in our family to go through Grayson schools,
I can't tell you how proud I am of our community! Thanks for recognizing
such a great and special part of Gwinnett!
-- Suzanne Adams, Grayson
12/3: Editor causes
great laughter
Editor the Forum:
Who is Tammy Savage? I've received quite a few humorous e-mails
over the
weekend!! Have a great week.
-- Tammy Shumate, Grayson
(Editor's note: Sometimes people with the
same first names, without realizing it, causes unexpected problems.
This happened to this editor this time .Tammy Shumate is the Councilperson
in Grayson; Tammy Savage is not. Apologies all around. -eeb.)
THOUGHT
OF THE DAY
Being prepared in
ways different from Boy Scouts
"I always keep a supply of stimulant handy in case I see
a snake--which I also keep handy."
----- Comedian W. C. Fields
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