Dunwoody Crier - October 6, 2022

Atlanta Kosher BBQ Festival to host 10-year celebration

DUNWOODY, Ga. — The Hebrew Order of David has announced the official in-person and live return of the Atlanta Kosher BBQ Festival taking place on Oct. 23.

The event will run from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. at Brook Run Park in Dunwoody.

Celebrating its official 10-year an niversary, the festival will host over 20 teams including traveling participants from Florida, Texas and Washington, D.C., to take part in this year’s competi tion.

Organizers expect more than 4,000 barbecue lovers and community sup porters to be in attendance. The festival offers events and musical programming for all ages in addition to barbecue

tastings and vendor booths showcas ing local Kosher caterers, community organizations, first responders, artisans and more.

For the past several years the Cobb County Police Department has entered a team to participate in the festival’s competition. In light of recent events, in which two Cobb County deputies were lost in the line of duty, the festival and its organizers will be making a donation with a portion of the event proceeds to honor their memories and families left behind.

“In these tough situations, we must all find ways to support each other,” said Jody Pollack, the executive director for the Atlanta Kosher BBQ Festival.

Impending hospital closure rattles health care landscape

By SAM WHITEHEAD and ANDY MILLER Kaiser Health News

ATLANTA — Like many neighborhoods in cities across the country, Atlanta’s Old Fourth Ward is changing.

Condo buildings and modern minimal ist homes punctuate city blocks of lowincome housing. Many longtime residents of the historic neighborhood where Martin Luther King Jr. was born have been priced out and pushed to other parts of town.

Atlanta Medical Center, a 460-bed Level 1 trauma center, will be the next fixture to change.

Despite banners proclaiming the hos pital’s commitment to the area — “120 Years Caring For Atlanta,” one reads — its nonprofit owner, Wellstar Health System, recently announced plwans to close the hospital’s doors on Nov. 1.

Georgia has seen several rural hos pitals shutter in the past decade, but this year Atlanta has joined other urban centers with facility closures, including a previous downsizing at a facility in the nearby city of East Point.

The Wellstar announcement has stoked the political debate over Medicaid

Perimeter Center vision to be open house topic

expansion ahead of the Nov. 8 midterm elections. Like 11 other states, Georgia has not expanded eligibility rules for its Medicaid program under the Affordable Care Act, and hospital officials across the state say inaction has hurt their bottom lines because they still treat high numbers of uninsured patients, many of whom cannot pay for treatment.

The Wellstar announcement shocked city officials, including Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, as well as other mem bers of the community.

On a recent weekday morning, Tere sa Smith, 60, who lives in the neighbor hood, said she frequently receives care there for a chronic digestive issue.

“This hospital will be missed by the whole community,” she said.

Liliana Bakhtiari, the Atlanta City Council member whose district includes the hospital, was sharp in her assessment.

“There will be loss of life and critical injuries that will not be taken care of, and I wish that mattered more to Well star,” she said.

Wellstar declined KHN’s request for an interview about the closure.

Dunwoody sets open house to share Edge City 2.0 plans

DUNWOODY, Ga. — After eight months of community input and review, the City of Dunwoody is inviting residents to an open house for Edge City 2.0 on Thurs day, Oct. 20, from 5 to 7 p.m.

The drop-in event will take place at Dunwoody City Hall and is intended for residents to share thoughts on a com munity-supported roadmap for future development in Perimeter Center.

Edge City is a joint effort between the City of Dunwoody and the Perimeter Com munity Improvement Districts that’s being carried out in close coordination with a consultant team led by Pond & Company.

Dunwoody Economic Development Director Michael Starling said there are many reasons developing a vision for the area is important, especially because Pe rimeter Center was built as a suburban retail and office market with a lot of as phalt for parking. He said those patches of underutilized asphalt are the perfect opportunity for redevelopment.

“We want to approach future develop ment in Perimeter Center with eyes wide open and shape our future with a mar ket-feasible and aspirational roadmap,”

Starling said. “Growth is inevitable and already happening, so it’s important to put forth and pursue a vision of how we want to grow.”

Starling said a thriving Perimeter Cen ter is what keeps the City of Dunwoody strong, adding that the roadmap reflects current conditions and considers what the next 20 years could look like for retail, restaurants, entertainment, trails, parks, office, transportation, hotels and housing.

“From what we’ve heard from the com munity so far,” Starling said, “priorities include walkability, outdoor entertainment spaces and connected greenspace.”

Over the past couple of months, the city has solicited and shared community input in a variety of ways, ranging from a spring open house to public presenta tions in June and August to the Dun woody City Council.

Those unable to attend the open house on Oct. 20 care share their thoughts using an online survey that will be shared and posted on the proj ect website after the meeting by visiting dunwoodyedge.com.

— Chamian Cruz

Master Gardener talk slated for Oct. 8 at Brook Run Park

DUNWOODY, Ga. — A free Master Gar dener talk and fall plant sale hosted by the Dunwoody Community Garden and Orchard will be held at Brook Run Park in Dunwoody on Saturday, Oct. 8.

Cyndi McGill, with the Dunwoody Community Garden and Orchard, will present information about shade gar dening from 11 a.m. to noon in the Barn at Brook Run Park. The one-day fall plant sale will also be held at the barn

from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

“Visitors can purchase cool season vegetable and herb seedlings, as well as choose from a limited supply of pol linator friendly perennials, shrubs and trees,” the organization stated.

Cash, PayPal and checks will be accepted for payment at the event, and it the event will offer free coffee and conversation.

Nancy Kane, an adjunct professor at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health, sees connections between the Atlanta situation and hospital closures in other major cities.

Many were acquired by large health care companies as part of package deals, and they served largely low-income, mi nority populations.

“If you acquire a hospital, you should have an obligation to fix it up,” Kane said. “Wellstar has the funds to invest in this hospital. It’s a choice.”

Some community members wonder whether the hospital closure will lead to a pricey real estate development on the roughly 20 acres Wellstar owns in the neighborhood.

Randy Pimsler, an architect whose firm has designed projects in the area, said “it could become a blank slate, either for rede velopment or for new development.”

Politicians have been quick to turn the closing into a campaign issue. And at the center of the debate is Gov. Brian Kemp’s health care policy.

The Kemp team is working to put together a long-term plan to strengthen health care in the area after the closure, said Andrew Isenhour, a Kemp spokes person. Kemp, a Republican who’s run ning for a second term in November, is unlikely to try to keep the facility open.

But officials at the nonprofit Grady Health System said this week that they have met with Kemp’s office, Dickens, and officials from Fulton and DeKalb counties about a financial infusion of state funding that would support capital needs at Grady Memorial Hospital, a Level 1 trauma center about a mile from Atlanta Medical Center.

Grady is expecting as many as 2,500 extra emergency room visits a month after

Atlanta Medical Center shuts its doors.

“We can absorb all the trauma,” said John Haupert, CEO of Grady Health System.

Still, the added ER crunch will be a challenge with more patients arriving, said Ryan Loke, chief health policy of ficer for Grady.

State funding would accelerate Grady’s existing plans to convert offices into inpatient care spaces, which would add more than 180 adult beds as soon as a year from now. The hospital also is adding 40 to 45 beds over the next six weeks, and is planning to install a 24-bed field hospital to help handle the patient flow from the closed hospital.

The closing puts Medicaid expan sion “front and center” in the political conversation, Haupert said. Kemp has proposed a limited plan that would offer access to the state-federal insurance program to people who can fulfill a work requirement or similar obligation.

His challenger, Democrat Stacey Abrams, has long made expanding Med icaid a top campaign issue.

“This is no longer a surprise,” Abrams said. “It is expected to hap pen because the Kemp administration refuses to take action.”

U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church, which is less than a mile from the hos pital, has also decried the closure and cited the strain on health care facilities caused by Georgia’s refusal to expand Medicaid. Wellstar officials have said that Medicaid expansion alone wouldn’t have kept the Atlanta facility open.

Earlier this year, Wellstar stopped providing emergency room and inpatient services at its hospital in East Point, just southwest of Atlanta. At the time, it said those patients could be seen at Atlanta Medical Center, about 8 miles away. Haupert estimated it would cost hun dreds of millions of dollars to modernize the soon-to-close Atlanta hospital, which is what made a rescue difficult.

The closures just a few months apart could help Abrams’ arguments for Medic aid expansion resonate with voters, said Andra Gillespie, an associate professor of political science at Emory University.

“An issue that was probably tailored more towards rural Georgia now all of a sudden becomes an Atlanta-area issue,” she said.

Gillespie cautioned that other issues, such as inflation, crime, and abortion, are likely to be more motivating to Geor gia voters.

Wellstar, based in suburban Mari etta, acquired AMC and the East Point hospital from Tenet Healthcare during an acquisition push in 2016, part of a $575 million deal that included three

other hospitals in the metro region.

Todd Greene, formerly a member of Wellstar’s community board for AMC, said the system put more resources into its suburban facilities.

“Wellstar’s suburban hospital-orient ed management approach unfortunately has resulted in large portions of Atlan ta’s black and brown communities not having access to proximate and critical health care services,” he said in a writ ten statement.

In Wellstar’s announcement of the closure, it said it had invested more than $350 million in capital improvements at the facility since 2016 and sustained “$107 million in losses in just the last 12 months, amid decreasing revenue and increasing costs for staff and supplies due to soaring inflation.”

The decision to close the hospital didn’t come as a surprise to some staff members, said Dr. Sulieman WazeerudDin, an emergency medicine physician at the hospital, who said doctors “were aware of financial losses.”

But the abrupt announcement caused a profound sense of grief among doctors, nurses, and other nonmedical employees, he said.

In the days since the closure an nouncement, Grady has offered jobs to a range of Atlanta Medical Center em ployees, from physicians and nurses to housekeeping and security staffers.

David Patton has lived in Atlanta’s Old Fourth Ward for 30 years and said Atlanta Medical Center has been a big part of his life.

His grandfather died in a nursing home on the campus, he has gotten care at the ER, and his son took swimming lessons at the hospital’s athletic club, all while he has seen the neighborhood transform from a “forgotten” part of the city to one that’s become a lightning rod for new development.

“It boggles my mind that an insti tution like that would just shut down virtually overnight,” he said.

This story comes to Appen Media through a reporting partnership with Kai ser Health News, a non-profit newsroom specializing in health issues.

SAM WHITEHEAD/KHN

Fourth Ward

Spotlight: Estate on banks of Chattahoochee

Through the ages, majestic waterways have inspired artists, musicians and writers. Banks of the Seine by Edouard Manet, The Blue Danube waltz by Johann Strauss are but two. Thus, it seems reasonable that a family devoted to art, music and entertainment would find their forever home on the banks of the Chattahoochee River. And you, too, will delight in the magic their elegant estate inspires.

This home is one of the stunning homes featured in the 49th Annual Dunwoody Home Tour set for Wednes day, October 12, from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. and is hosted by the Dunwoody Wom an’s Club. All profits of the home tour are used to implement the club’s chari table initiatives. Home tour tickets can be purchased now online at the follow ing link -https://www.dunwoodywom ansclub.com/ht-tickets/ In addition you can purchase tickets in other ways as shown at the end of this article.

Stone lions entice you to enter through leaded-glass doors into a grand, two-story foyer where a stun ning floral display on a marble-topped table invites you to explore further, and a sweeping curved staircase beckons you to the second floor where you’ll find the artist-owner’s studio, offices, and guest bedrooms. (Note the oneof-a-kind Dana Ross wood sculpture on the second-floor balcony.) To the right off the foyer is a richly paneled den with coffered ceiling, fireplace, and inset bookshelves. Here you will first learn that the family loves chess. You’ll also find a large outdoor chess set on

the back deck.

Ahead is a light-filled family room with gray granite fireplace, velvet seat ing, and a Steinway piano that can play music of your choosing. You only have to ask Josh. Through smart tech nology, Josh controls the home’s many TVs, music, lighting, and thermostat with but a polite command from the homeowners.

A gilded double Möbius sculpture atop a mirrored credenza captures your attention as you travel from the family room, through the spacious din ing room, and head into a bright, mul tifunctional kitchen with keeping room that goes from breakfast to cocktail hour with ease. This gourmet kitchen features professional grade appliances including two dishwashers and belowcounter coolers for water and drinks.

While the home has seven beautifully decorated en suite bedrooms, the master on main will take your breath away. It is an oasis of soothing off-whites, mirrors and gold. Its spa bath features his and hers walk-in closets, separate vanities and toilets, steam shower, and a free standing, clawfoot jet tub.

Centerpiece of the ground floor is a media room with plush leather seat ing and recessed ceiling twinkling with miniature lights, another full-service kitchen, billiard room, fully equipped ex ercise room, and (yes) another bedroom.

But there is more. Extensive deck ing sweeps the back of this home and a stone bordered pool invites a lap or two. And the property’s pipestem path to the mighty river’s edge encourages a

call for inspiration.

This year’s home tour will include three outstanding private homes; one in Dunwoody and two in nearby Sandy Springs. Once again the club is partnering with Southern Comforts Consignments in Dunwoody. Included on the tour is “Designing for My Best Life”– a home tour decorating event with Marc Jones our in-house Con signor’s Designer. Seating is limited so pre-registration is encouraged. Home Tour tickets are available now and can be purchased as follows:

• Online at: https://www.dun woodywomansclub.com/ht-tickets/

• From any member of the Dun woody Woman’s Club

• At the following locations:

Blooms of Dunwoody, Camelot Jewel ers, Face Haven, Lauderhills Fine Jew elry, Lookingood Hair Design, Southern Comforts Consignments, The Enchant ed Forest, and Under the Pecan Tree.

Tickets are $30 in advance and $35 on tour day. We look forward to seeing you at the home tour and appreciate your support. Buy your tickets today!

For more information about the Dunwoody Woman’s Club go to www. dunwoodywomansclub.com.

Blooms

Vernon Shopping Center,

Lauderhills Fine Jewelry at Orchard Park

Center, Lookingood Hair Design, 1841 Peeler Rd, Ste B, The Enchanted Forest at Dunwoody Hall,

the Pecan Tree in The Shops of Dunwoody, online at www.dunwoodywomansclub.com/ht-tickets/

from any DWC member.

Adams family has many branches across Dunwoody

built in the mid-1970s. Adams Road was paved around that same time.

VALERIE BIGGERSTAFF

From Nancy Creek to the Chat tahoochee River, much of the his tory on this land includes members of the Adams family. The earliest Adams in the area were Sarah and Salathiel Adams, who came from North Carolina and obtained land through the land lottery. Their proper ty included some of Murphey Candler Park and Nancy Creek Heights sub division. The family cemetery is on Oconee Pass Road in Brookhaven.

Salathiel and Sarah Adams had eight children. One of their sons, Jes se Adams, and his wife Anne Mitchell Adams had 10 children. One of those children was Martha Adilene Adams, who married William James Don aldson. The couple built a home on property they acquired from Martha’s father, and that home still stands as Donaldson-Bannister Farm at the cor ner of Vermack Road and Chamblee Dunwoody Road.

Another child of Jesse and Anne Adams was James Franklin Adams. He and wife Caroline G. Rainey had 10 children, and their son Robert Frank lin Adams and wife Eula Mae Adams had 10 children.

Their daughter Rosemary Adams Little has shared some of her fam ily history. Little grew up in a house where a Rite Aid Pharmacy was located for several years along North Shallowford Road.

She remembers an old house that once sat on the southeast corner of Peeler Road and North Shallow

Voted #1

Monroe Adams stands in front of the farmhouse owned by the family in the 1930s and early 1940s, located along what is now Dunwoody Club Drive.

ford Road. Her grandfather owned the house and land. Later her Uncle Samuel Howard Adams lived in the house. Little wandered through the woods and along the dirt roads of Dunwoody when it was still a farming community. Her family was related to many other local families, Wilson, Ball, Spruill, Warnock and Donaldson.

Adams Road off Peeler Road be tween North Shallowford and North Peachtree Road was once the land of William Oscar Adams. He and his wife Eula Womack Adams owned 100

All-Around Real Estate Brokerage

acres. They are shown in the 1930 census living on Adams Road in the Shallow Ford District of DeKalb Coun ty. They are listed as farmers, but there was also a small country store where Adams Road meets Peeler.

Carl Pahl remembered and docu mented the old store in his book “Vil lage Mill, the Early Years (1969-1974) and Other Beginnings.” He describes an old wooden country store, about 20 feet by 20 feet with a sign overhead that read “Adams Grocery.” He says it was demolished when Village North was

Richard Adams, son of Monroe Frances Adams and Eula Reed Adams, was born on a farm along Dunwoody Club Drive, formerly Old Lawrencev ille Road and County Line Road. The family’s farmhouse was near Ball Mill Creek where Grapevine Run subdivi sion is today. His grandparents’ home was on the left a little farther east on Dunwoody Club Drive.

During the Great Depression, like many struggling farmers, Monroe Ad ams operated a still and sold moon shine. According to Richard Adams, his father and two of his uncles also had moonshine operations.

Adams recalls the day Federal marshals came to his family home to search for liquor. All the bottles had been placed under a mattress where his mother lay pretending to be sick. Adams thought the marshals may have known where the bottles were hidden but did not disturb his mother. They also asked young Adams if he knew where the bottles were, but he knew to say nothing.

The next stop for the marshals that day was his Uncle Merc’s home. James Mercius Adams and Georgia Power Adams lived along Spalding Drive in a home that now has a Hewlett Road address. Several years ago, a large amount of broken glass was found be hind the home by the buyer.

Award-winning author Valerie Big gerstaff is a longtime columnist for Appen Media, the Dunwoody Crier and now, the Sandy Springs Crier. She lives in Sandy Springs. You can email Val erie at pasttensega@gmail.com or visit her website at pasttensega.com.

FROM THE COLLECTION OF VALERIE BIGGERSTAFF

A hero lived among us,

In a previous col umn we saw that Charles Mansell’s story is one of bravery and sacri fice. As a member of the celebrated Merrill’s Marauders, against overwhelm ing odds he fought the Japanese in the steaming jungles of Burma during World War II. The New York Times said at the time “no other American force anywhere has marched as far, fought as continuously or has had to display such endurance, as General Merrill’s swift-moving, hardhitting foot soldiers.”

In part 2 of his story, we will see that Charles was a very successful farmer after he returned to civilian life.

Soon after returning to the United States in 1944 and shortly before leaving the Army, Charles married Montez Haley (1918–2005) a neighbor and childhood friend. Once out of the Army he returned to his life on the land. He attended a two-year agri cultural program for veterans at the University of Georgia. He purchased

a 100-acre farm on Union Hill Road in Alpharetta where he grew award

winning corn and other produce and raised livestock. He also purchased 20 acres from his father’s farm on Cross ville Road in Roswell, initially grow ing vegetables and later devoting it to greenhouse tomatoes and vegetable plants. Together with his son Dean and his son-in-law Rubin Smith he started Mansell’s Produce, a business on Highway 9 near Lebanon Church (now gone) specializing in produce and garden supplies. The store was in op eration from circa 1969 to 1978 when Charles retired.

Charles and Montez raised one boy, Dean, and one girl, Connie, during their 52-year marriage. The shrapnel in his shoulder and chest caused problems for Charles as time wore on. The pieces of metal were finally removed with several surgeries in the 1970s. As he got older, he relied on a cane, the result of wartime bullet wounds to a leg and lingering ef fects of the damage done to his shoulder and chest.

Charles was an outstanding farmer and won numerous awards. He was the first farmer in Roswell and Alpharetta to use irrigation from lakes on each of his farms. Through crossbreeding he developed a variety of tomato called the

Mansell Tomato, a red, medium-size to mato with few seeds. Some members of the Mansell family still grow the variety with seeds carefully preserved over the years. Charles had a good partnership with his wife Montez. They worked to gether in the fields because farming was for them a way of life not just a way to make a living.

Local newspapers frequently wrote about him. A long article in the Atlanta Constitution in September 1944 titled “‘Marauder’ On Way Home To Roswell” highlighted his return to civilian life. A feature in the Atlanta Constitution Sunday Magazine Section in July 1966 claimed that Charles’ 20-acre farm in Roswell “produces more good eating than most 200-acre farms.” A Febru ary 1959 article in the same newspaper reported that Charles won the Ful ton County Corn Club contest with a yield of 153 bushels per acre while the average was 111 bushels. The famous columnist Celestine Sibley was a friend and wrote several columns about Charles in the 1970s. One of the nicest tributes appeared in a July 1947 article stating “Charles Mansell never gets tired

Can the pace of home remodeling continue?

Brought to you by – Remodeling Expo Center

Throughout 2021 home remodel ing seemed virtually unaffected by the Covid pandemic. Home sales continue to be robust, but the pace of home remodeling is even greater. New home buyers tend to remodel as soon as they move into their new home, but the remodeling craze seems to apply to everyone. “Our Kitchen and Bathroom remodeling business has experienced a 75% year over year increase” says John Hogan, president of Remodeling Expo Center, “and we don’t see any slowdown in sight.”

There’s been a rapid change to supply chains in our entire economy and while some businesses are suf fering, others are prospering. Demand for products and services are at record levels and businesses are required to re-think their supply chain from end to end; those businesses that creative ly maneuver around the supply chain

issues are prospering.

“Last year we re-focused all of our purchasing to those suppliers with local inventory, so we get instant ac cess to products, then we diverted custom built products to smaller, more nimble suppliers, and finally we began to inventory some items so our remodeling jobs could get started faster and eliminate job progress interruptions. These changes weren’t easy but without them we couldn’t be in the hyper-growth mode that we’re presently experiencing, says Bobbie Kohm, Vice President of Remodeling Expo Center, “Turnkey Design-Build companies, like us, keep the process very simple.”

Low interest rates are going to be around for a long time and investment in our homes is likely to continue. For more information on Remodeling Expo Center (RemodelingExpo.com), contact them at their showroom at 48 King Street in Roswell or at 404-910-3969.

Exterior shutter trends for 2022

Brought to you by – Dupbel Millworks, Inc.

Exterior Shutters plays an important part in the overall look and feel of your home. Let’s explore some of the popular trends we see for 2022.

Simplicity:

Try using simple designs for a pure, uncluttered effect to allow other beauti ful features on the outside of your home to shine. It is in line with minimalism, where you incorporate clean, refreshing looks, while adding a nice touch to your decor.

To follow this trend, use shutters with sharp lines, minimal details and neutral colors. Here we will propose something like a flat panel shutter, and/or a shut ter with one large single panel, or even a board and batten style with no battens (horizontal pieces).

Lighten up:

Color plays a big role in the overall ap pearance of your home, and while exterior shutters are typically dark colored, we’ve seen an uptick in lighter colored shutters. This works especially well when trying to modernize the look of an older build ing. Light colored walls, combined with shutters in a slightly darker hue seems to be the norm. Whites and greys work very well and is a trend that will be with us for a while.

Stick with the basics:

Exterior shutters should never overpower the look of your house and not all homes lend itself to the exotic. There’s nothing wrong with some tradi tional Raised Panel style shutters or even Louvered shutters to give a traditional, formal house a neat and tidy look. Board and Batten shutters works well on a house with a mix of exterior surfaces (brick and stone, or siding and shingles). For Raised Panel style shutters, make sure the panels mimic the windows, for Louvers you can try a wider slat, and with Board and Batten shutters we see a trend to use more, but narrower Boards (vertical pieces).

Add flair and personality:

Another subtle way of giving you home a one-of-a-kind appearance is to add custom cutouts to your shutters. Let your home’s personality shine with just about any shape you can imagine, from stars and crescent moons to palm trees and hearts. Go bold and tradi

tional with a full cutout, or subtle and interesting with only a small engraving on the outside corner. This obviously only works on paneled or Board and Batten style shutters.

The exterior of your home is the first impression for people coming up to your house. Shutters play a crucial role in making or breaking that first impression. It makes sense to ensure you incorporate the shutters to form a pleasant and uni fied appearance.

Dupbel Millworks Inc. manufac tures exteriors shutters using only weather resistant materials. Our core business is shutters made from a com posite wood material that is rot, insect and weather resistant. We manufac ture a series of shutters styles and are fully equipped to help you design the specific look you desire, and every shutter is custom made based on your house, windows and design.

Soleil Belmont Park celebrates 109 homes sold in nine months!

Brought to you by - Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices GA Properties

Soleil Belmont Park, a 55 plus com munity built by award-winning Patrick Malloy Communities, is an extraordi nary new home community expertly de signed for active adults. Conveniently located between Milton and Canton, Soleil Belmont Park will feature 471 low maintenance homes. This exciting new neighborhood offers an array of re sort style amenities including a 9,800 square foot community clubhouse with a coffee and cocktail bar, health and fitness center, catering kitchen, arts and crafts studio, club/card room and a community post office. Homeowners

will enjoy a resort-style pool, tennis and pickle ball courts, bocce ball, a community garden, and walking trails. In addition, Soleil Belmont Park will have its own lifestyle and travel direc tor.

With the focus on lifestyle and amenities, Soleil Belmont Park offers a lifestyle that appeals to a variety of buyers all with their own specific rea sons for choosing Soleil Belmont Park. Some were looking for a sense of com munity and a social lifestyle where they could meet new friends. Others wanted a lock and leave lifestyle to

enjoy traveling and visiting family and friends. Staying healthy is a quest for many and Soleil’s fitness centers and social sports such as pickle ball and tennis played an important part in their homebuying decision. And don’t forget the four-legged members of the family who enjoy the outdoors and the extensive walking trails. Whatever the reason, Soleil is quickly becoming the place for the ultimate in active adult living!

Next year the Soleil story will continue with the opening of Soleil Summit Chase. Located in Gwinnett

County’s town of Snellville, this sister neighborhood will open for sales this winter. To join the Soleil Summit Chase VIP list and to register for com munity updates, go to www.pmcommu nities.com.

Make plans to visit Soleil Belmont Park’s model home park featuring five designer models priced from the low $500s+. Visit www.SoleilBelmontPark. com or call 770.635.4080. Sales and marketing by Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Georgia Properties New Homes Division. Equal Housing Oppor tunity.

SOLEIL BELMONT PARK / PROVIDED

First Impressions…

Brought to you by - Peter Benedetto, Tuscany Fine Furnishings

First impressions are always important, at least I like to think that they are. Let’s talk about entrances, nothing extends a better welcome to your guests than a beautifully appointed exterior receiving area. Before one ever enters your home or business a visual impres sion is made and sets the expectations for both you and your guests. We are fortunate to live in a climate that is conducive to placing live seasonal plants at our entry doors. Topiaries that are placed in scale appro priate containers, which are healthy and manicured make a pleasing statement. When using potted annuals keep them fresh and current with the season, discard and replace those faded leafless plants that have over stayed their welcome. Be sure that your door mat is in mint condition, there are so many high quality options available, make sure it is appropriately proportioned to the space. It is essential to keep all glass doors and light fixtures sparkling. Regular pressure washing will be sure to keep your entrance mold free and inviting. If you choose to embellish the door with a wreath or similar object choose something that enhances the entry rather then one that becomes an obstruction or distraction.

Most of us are not afforded the luxury of having

a butler receiving our guests as we wait graciously in our salons, we are most likely to be the person greet ing them in our foyers making another first impression. Foyers easily define your taste and style when carefully chosen furniture, wall art, and accessories are appoint ed to the space. A beautiful size appropriate rug, or inlaid floor is sure to be noted. The area should remain free of clutter. A staircase can be dramatic and impres sive, however one cluttered with piled objects waiting to be carried up or down certainly has less of an appeal. A well placed mirror over a console table serves both you and your guests, vanity wins every time! When space permits a center table boasting a magnificent fresh floral arrangement is stunning.

An “empty” guest coat closet fitted with boutique style hangers, a shelf for handbags and a full length mirror attached to the inside of the door reflects a thoughtful host.

Powder rooms are another place in your home that are sure to impress your guests when they are perfectly appointed. If you are contemplating wall coverings this is the place to do it! Whether the room is glamorous or simple in style please be sure to anticipate your guests needs.

In the absence of a chamber maid providing a fresh linen hand towel be sure to have an ample supply of them available, no one wants to share a soiled towel.

Monogrammed disposable hand towels are always a nice touch. A decanter filled with mouthwash is often an appreciated surprise. Placing a simple bud vase with a fresh floral stem will define your attention to de tail. The powder room that has been wired with stereo speakers insures, privacy, comfort and is sure to make a positive impression.

Your home will continue to impress your guests as it unfolds before them.

Most importantly keep in mind that you should be the first one to be impressed with your environment!

Peter Benedetto, Interior Designer is an accom plished, award winning interior designers with Tuscany Fine Furnishings, providing …Lifestyle Driven Design... Furnishings for Every Room in Your Home, 1570 Hol comb Bridge Rd. Suite 315, in Roswell, 770-993-0640 ext. 2, Showroom Hours: Mon-Sat 10-6 p.m. Sun. 1-5 p.m… See why…26,000 Families Follow and Shop Tus cany on FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, WHATSAPP BUSI NESS, GOOGLE BUSINESS AND YOUTUBE... Everyday!

Deryle Allen

Pam Gillig

Wendy Mullins

Melanie Snare

The Haran Group

Christy Barnett

Laura Herrera

Cynthia Norcia

Michael Stevens

The McCown Group

Monica Blanco

Beanne Creeger

Katie Holmes

Michelle Porche

Susie Uhlich

Nixon Zygmont Team

Kirsten Bowen

Josh Dower

Mary Lou Lanaux

Tricia Quidley

Andi Cueny Ward

The Rutherford Group

Sheila Bowling

Rebecca Duncan

Beth Luther

Annemarie Russo

Kathy Whitehouse

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Lurine Craig Burke

Sara Ead

Pamela McArthur

Jenny Salter

Sheri Whitney

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Trisha Estes

Jane Mentzer

Karen Salter

Tracy

Shelley Carafano

Amy Etheridge

Te’A Metro

Pam Scudellari

Dana Banister Coleman

Ramsey Flint

Missy Ann Mulkeen

Jan

Mansell:

behind that mule. He just thinks about those 1,000 miles he walked across Burma, and that makes plowing easy.”

Charles Nephew Don Nix worked on Charles’ vegetable farm when Don was a student at Roswell High School. He recalls that from 1963 to 1970 Charles grew vegetables for all A&P stores in North Atlanta. Charles hired several nephews as well as other Roswell and Alpharetta teens. “He wanted to have influence on their outlook on life. His family was very religious, and he wanted to encourage that,” says Don.

Charles spoke very little about the war, Don recalls. “Occasionally he would say something. He would get teary eyed and would have to regain his composure.”

In 1962 Warner Brothers made a movie “Merrill’s Marauders” starring Jeff Chandler as Brig. Gen.Frank Merrill. The film is available on Amazon where it has received positive ratings.

The Marauders are generally consid ered the precursors to the elite U.S. Army Rangers.

Heroes inspire us with their cour age and accomplishments. They give us hope for the future. We owe them a debt that can seldom be repaid. Thank you, Charles.

Charles Mansell sits by an irrigation system on his farm on Crossville Road in the early 1960s. He was the first farmer to use irrigation from lakes on his properties in North Fulton.

Bob is director emeritus of the Milton Historical Society. You can email him at bobmey@bellsouth.net.

Charles Mansell and his family are shown on their farm on Union Hill Road in 1956. From left, front row, are children Connie and Dean; back row, Montez and Charles.

PHOTOS BY MANSELL FAMILY/PROVIDED

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DEATH NOTICES

Morris Francine, 84, of Johns Creek, passed away September 13, 2022. Arrangements by Leaf Cremation.

Barbara Hunt, 77, of Roswell, passed away September 22, 2022. Arrangements by Northside Chapel Funeral Directors & Crematory.

In Memoriam

William F. “Bill” Berens

William F. “Bill” Berens, 79, peacefully passed away on September 19, 2022, surrounded by his family. Bill was born in Lancaster, Ohio on October 8, 1942, and was the oldest of 10 children. He graduated from the University of Ohio in 1964 with a degree in Business & Accounting, and received an MBA at the Harvard Business School in 1966. He enlisted in the U.S. Army as a 2nd Lieutenant, implementing computer technology in Saigon and at other bases during the Vietnam War. Bill married Charlotte Paxton on December 14, 1968. His career included stints at Booz, Allen & Hamilton in San Francisco, McGrawEdison in Cincinnati, and ISA in Atlanta. He later founded and was CEO of two companies, Compro and PakStar. He held committee positions with YMCA Camp High Harbour, the High Museum of Art, and All Saints Catholic Church.

Bill was an avid ALTA tennis player who also loved to hike in Cashiers, NC and read to his two grandchildren. He is survived by his wife of nearly 54 years, Charlotte (Paxton) Berens, their two children and two grandchildren: Jason Berens, Abigail (Steve) Greene, Jackson and Vivienne Greene. He is also survived by his siblings of Lancaster, Ohio: Carol Short, Helen Berens, Angela Berens, Constance Berens, Kathleen Wingenter, Randall (Debbie) Berens, Richard (Becky) Berens, Bernard Berens, and Alan (Tricia) Berens. Bill is preceded in death by his parents William Franklin and Charlotte Spires Berens. A mass will be celebrated on October 21st at 2pm at All Saints Catholic Church in Dunwoody. Memorial contributions can be made to the Georgia Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association at //www.alz.org/georgia/ donate

CITY OF DUNWOODY FY 2023 PROPOSED BUDGET

Notice is hereby given that the proposed FY 2023 Budget for the City of Dunwoody is available for inspection online (www.dunwoodyga.gov) and with the City Clerk at Dunwoody City Hall, 4800 Ashford Dunwoody Road, Dunwoody, GA 30338, weekdays between the hours of 8:00 A.M. and 5:00 P.M. The City of Dunwoody will hold a Public Hearing at 6pm on October 10, 2022 at which time any persons wishing to be heard on the budget may appear. A second Public Hearing, as well as a vote to adopt the 2023 Budget, will be held at 6pm on October 24, 2022.

Helen Larkin, 98, of Alpharetta, passed away September 26, 2022. Arrangements by Northside Chapel Funeral Directors & Crematory.

Betty Myers, 66, of Cumming, passed away September 19, 2022. Arrangements by Northside Chapel Funeral Directors & Crematory.

Woo Park, 84, of Duluth, passed away September 21, 2022. Arrangements by Northside Chapel Funeral Directors & Crematory.

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