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TODAY'S ISSUE
Things will go better with Coke at Lake Lanier Island now
By Virgil Williams
Special to GwinnettForum

APRIL 25, 2006 -- You may have noticed some red trucks coming and going on Lake Lanier Islands in recent weeks.

I am happy to report those were not fire trucks……but trucks of Coca-Cola Company carrying that refreshing drink that is the trademark of the South.

Coca-Cola Company has reclaimed ground in its home state. The world's largest beverage company, which started in a kettle in an Atlanta backyard, now has the pouring rights at the premier Resort on Atlanta's Great Lake.

Coca-Cola Company and Lake Lanier Islands Resort have reached an eight-year agreement for Coke to have the exclusive beverage and marketing rights here on the Islands. Just this week we finished the conversion of equipment and products.

When I assumed the lease ownership last August, there was a different beverage company in place. Their name started with a "P." Just like that soft drink company, these Islands have had a confusing identify over the years and lacked brand awareness! Together with Coke we are going to change all of that.

As a son of the South, I could not imagine having any beverage company but Coke holding the pouring rights on these Islands. Coca-Cola is the world's most recognized brand. It has been said they sell the most successful product in the history of commerce.

In my 40 years of involvement with Coca-Cola, I have always admired how they radiate optimism in their corporate culture and in their actions. I look forward to Coca-Cola putting their upbeat marketing to work on these Islands.

I still remember the Coke slogan the year I graduated from Georgia Tech in 1963, "Things go better with Coke." It was 1970 when "It's the Real Thing" caught on. My personal favorite came out in 1986. It was tailor made for the Islands, "Catch the wave."

Coca-Cola is the right fit for us because they are committed to strong ethics and to strengthening the communities in which they operate.

Could you imagine Atlanta without the contributions of Coca-Cola? Their support of economic development, colleges, universities, non-profits, the arts, and the Atlanta Symphony are legendary.

Coke's founder, Asa Candler, funded a 275 bed building in 1922 at what is now Emory University Hospital; the same Hospital to which I owe my life and recovery from lung surgery. In more recent years, Coke gave the land that made the Georgia Aquarium a reality. Books have literally been written about Coca-Cola's philanthropy and that of their bottlers.

Coca-Cola is getting in on the front end of something great. We are on the brink of a major transformation of these Islands. Over the summer we will complete a new master development plan with several hotels, more quality accommodations, more recreation and leisure opportunities and improved infrastructure.

We may not sell as many Cokes as the Varsity, but we are going to sell a lot of Coke and Coke will help us sell our Resort.

ELLIOTT BRACK
From illegal immigrant workers to dumbing down schools
By Elliott Brack
Editor and Publisher
GwinnettForum.com

APRIL 25, 2006 -- Unrelated interesting information comes to us all the time. We've collected a few in this compilation today. We call 'em tidbits.

But first, isn't the weather great? Granted, we have pollen, but we also have green leaves all around us now, plenty of sunshine, even a few roses already. Ah, springtime in Georgia!

First item to tickle your brain: Who was Archibald Leach, born in Bristol, England (1904)?

Since illegal immigrants are all the talk these days, let's see what we are talking about. We saw this in a recent edition of The Christian Science Monitor, and pass it along so we will all be on the same page when we are talking.

Legislators tinker all the time with what our schools should teach, often "dumbing down" our curriculum. But at least one state is moving in the other direction.

Michigan lawmakers have approved some of the nation's most rigorous high school graduation standards, starting with the class of 2011, we hear from the Georgia Public Policy Foundation. The Merit Core Curriculum mandates four credits of English and math, including Algebra II, three credits of science and social studies, two foreign language credits and one credit each in art and physical education. Source: Detroit News.

Lo and behold. Another sign that the world is every changing: Waffle House now takes credit cards!

This came from Jim Hood, the retired Lawrenceville Realtor, and we thought you would enjoy:

"When some people (not all maybe most) get power whether political or business, they lose all sense of right and wrong and feed on the power. I think Tom Delay is a good example. I have read a good bit of Dick Armey and his thoughts and they are right on line about the wrongs committed in the name of self importance created by power. But what to do about it?

"Maybe now more than ever term limits are needed. I am encouraged by a few in Congress like Pence and Osborn, but I guess I'm glad to have just about out run the mess. I do worry for our kids and grandkids."

Author Barbara Tuchman said her number one rule as a writer of history was, "Above all, discard the irrelevant."

Cell phone companies are charging us $1or more for 411 / information calls you don't have to pay. When you need to use the 411/information option, simply dial 1-800-FREE-411 or 1-800-373-3411 without incurring a charge at all. This works on your home phone also.

With the high price of gasoline, we found this to pass on. On Dec. 1, 1913, the first gas station in the United States opened at the corner of Baum Boulevard and St. Clair Street in Pittsburgh, Penn. It sold just 30 gallons of gas the first day it was open, at 27 cents a gallon. It was a brick building with a little pagoda on top, and it offered free air for tires, restrooms, and 24 hour service. Again, my, have times changed!

Today's sponsor is Brand Banking Company, headquartered in Lawrenceville, where it has three offices, with additional branches in Snellville, Grayson and Flowery Branch. It is the largest privately held bank in Gwinnett, with assets of $770 million. Member, FDIC and Federal Reserve System. More: http://www.thebrandbank.com

On the "Lake Train": Great idea! I know Bill Shaffer of Norfolk Southern personally and he has told me that NS's attitude on such projects is that they'll be glad to cooperate as long as they are adequately compensated for the use of their facilities. Fair enough, in my opinion.

On "progress": many people forget that the terms "progress" and "change" are not necessarily synonymous. All change is not progress. I've seen a lot of change lately, but very little, if any, progress.

Editor, the Forum:

Unlike our Congressional representatives, our military, fire, police and other first responders do not get to vote for their own pay raises directly. Year in and year out Congress, whether controlled by Democrats or Republicans, have voted for their own raises as far back as I can remember in my short 42 years on the planet.

Not only ought this entire endeavor become a criminal offense, it flies in the face of the constant rhetoric of the ruling junta currently in power who are always claiming that lack of support for their own political (and also financial) agenda is somehow a lack of support for our troops.

This is not only false but misleading in ways that boggle the mind. Yet the public at large seems to swallow it whole---hook, line and sinker, every time there is an election.

While I agree with the Editor's attempts to get opposition parties to train new people to run as candidates for office, I want to take the concept further and implore the voters at large, regardless of party affiliation, to begin once and for all to hold those currently in office accountable for their own rhetoric.

Rep. John Linder, my own representative, has categorically left my questions regarding this matter unanswered. Therefore I am forced to publicly ask the questions again in this Forum.

Mr. Linder, when you go to vote for your yearly pay increase, please do not ever speak to me again of supporting our troops until they have the same pay scale as yours, to include your own health benefit package and retirement plan.

I am sick to death of watching our young soldiers come home physically and emotionally broken, only to watch how the VA and other military health facilities (military hospitals primarily) haggle and dicker with the care of these heroes. Meanwhile, politicians such as Linder and his cronies constantly refer to "support our troops" as their campaign mantra, all the while stuffing their own greedy pockets with soldiers' blood all over their hands.

I implore every voter to ask their representatives face to face and in writing, how do you justify your own pay increases while shortchanging those who truly know what service means?

More than 1,600 volunteers will gather on the Gwinnett Tech campus, donating more than $100,000 of work in one of county's largest volunteer efforts. The work begins April 25 and continues through April 29 as Gwinnett Technical College gets three outdoor play spaces at the new D. Scott Hudgens Jr. Early Education Center.

The community-built playground, one of Gwinnett county's largest volunteer-driven efforts, will see volunteers contribute at least 6,600 total man-hours, fueled by 300-400 meals a day provided throughout the project.

The outdoor play spaces will enhance the overall learning environment of the Hudgens Center as it enhances physical, cognitive and socio-emotional development. It will open in early July.

The 26,000 square-foot, state-of-the-art facility on the college's campus will provide students studying early childhood education a hands-on experience in a quality learning environment, as well as serve as a nurturing educational center for 220 children, aged 6 weeks to 12 years. The Center, the first of its kind in the state, will provide infant, toddler and before-and-after-school care, plus a Pre-Kindergarten program, following the National Association for the Education of the Young Child (NAEYC) accreditation standards.

Leathers & Associates, a 30-year-old firm specializing in custom-designed, community-built projects, is overseeing the college's playground build at the Hudgens Early Education Center. The company has designed and managed more than 1,600 community-built playground projects.

To volunteer for help build the playground, call 678.226.6316. To learn more about the Early Education Center or the college's early education program, or to pre-register a child in the Center, call 770-962-7580 or visit online at www.gwinnetttech.edu.

Lisa Scottoline, an author of suspense novels and a Philadephia attorney, in mid-March published her 13th book. In its first month, the novel has been riding the the bestseller list of The New York Times.

Dirty Blonde, described as a "riveting page turner" begins in the chambers of a female judge and ends in the alleys of Philadelphia. Many of the past stars of Scottoline's fictions have hailed from an all-female law firm of Rosato and Associates in Philadelphia. With her latest production, the author has introduced an entirely new cast of characters.

On May 6 at the L'il River Grill on the square on Crogan Street in downtown Lawrenceville, Scottoline will discuss her beginnings as an author, share a few writing secrets and entertain with her well-known sense of humor at the annual spring event of the Gwinnett County Public Library Friends of the Foundation.

This event will have a cash-bar, a sit-down dinner, a silent auction and a book-signing, and will begin at 7 p.m. The ticket price is $50 per person, and proceeds will be used to support the Library Friends of the Foundation.

A lifelong Philadelphian, Scottoline still lives in the Philadelphia area. This year, she is teaching a "Justice and Fiction" course at the University of Pennsylvania law school. Scottoline's achievements have also been recognized by many universities and organizations, including her being awarded a doctorate of laws from West Chester University.

Tickets for the event are available by calling 770-978-5154.

The City of Suwanee is putting Art on a Limb again this year-and, at the same time, making creative use of its old water tower. The old tower, which was constructed in 1954 and dismantled last year when the City installed a new water tower, has been cut into pieces that will serve as canvases for this year's project.

Begun last year, Art on a Limb is a month-long City of Suwanee initiative designed to celebrate and bring attention to the arts as well as the natural beauty of the four-mile Suwanee Creek Greenway.

This year's Art on a Limb program uses the water tower pieces as unique canvases that have been painted by award-winning artist Melody Orr. These pieces of art will be "hidden" along the four-mile Suwanee Creek Greenway throughout the month of May. Each day, at least two of these limited-edition pieces, which are about 5 x 5 inches in size, will be placed along the greenway. Those who find these unique trail treasures get to keep them. (Note: each piece can weigh up to five pounds.)

Orr says: "The idea of finding original artwork along the greenway really appeals to me. It joins the community, the natural beauty of the area, and the creative element of art.

"The most exciting part of this project for me," she adds, "is using pieces of history, small sections of the old Suwanee water tower, as my canvas. Each piece will represent either the 'heart' of Suwanee or the parks, greenspace, and century-old trees."

If you're not lucky enough to find one on the greenway, the small paintings will be available for purchase at various City of Suwanee events and at City Hall beginning June 1. The cost for each piece is $30.

Singer Brenda Lee, known as "Little Miss Dynamite," has enjoyed success as a child performer, teen idol, easy-listening chanteuse, and country music queen, sustained through each of these career transformations by a powerful voice that belies her diminutive stature (four feet, nine inches tall). An important pioneer of early rock and roll, she achieved unprecedented international popularity during the 1960s.

Brenda Lee was born Brenda Mae Tarpley on Dec, 11, 1944, in the charity ward of Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta and was raised in Conyers and Lithonia. After winning a talent show at the age of five, she began to appear regularly on local Atlanta radio and television. When she was nine, her father died following a construction accident, and she became the family's primary breadwinner. In 1955 the family moved to Augusta, where the young singer shortened her last name to "Lee" at the suggestion of a local television producer.

Her big break came in 1956, when she joined country star Red Foley onstage at the Bell Auditorium in Augusta and belted out Hank Williams's "Jambalaya." Foley subsequently signed her to appear on his Ozark Jubilee, the first nationally televised country music show. Like Foley, millions of viewers were charmed by her precocious talent, and Lee became one of the first singers whose career was launched by television.

She signed with Decca Records in 1956 and the following year moved to Nashville, Tenn. Her growling, hiccupping vocals on these songs seamlessly fuse country and rhythm and blues styles. "Rockin' around the Christmas Tree," first issued in 1958, is her best-known rockabilly recording, and it remains a holiday standard.

Her signature song, "I'm Sorry," was released in 1960 and held the number one spot in the United States for three weeks.

The 1960s marked the peak of Lee's career. Aided by constant worldwide touring and multilingual recordings, she became one of the first performers to achieve global popularity, notably in Great Britain, Germany, and Japan. During this decade, her songs reached Billboard 's pop, country, rhythm and blues, and adult contemporary charts 55 times, making her the most successful female performer of that decade and placing her fourth overall in the decade behind Elvis, the Beatles, and Ray Charles.

Lee and her husband/manager, Ronnie Shacklett, have been married since the early 1960s. She is a member of both the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the only female to be so honored. She was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame in 1982. Brenda Lee has sold more than 100 million records, and she continues to perform.

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