CrossRoadsNews, September 2, 2017

YOUTH

PEOPLE

International howdy

African films on screen

A new mural at DeKalb Schools’ International Student Center says welcome in seven of the languages spoken there. 4

Two films by African filmmaker Haile Gerima will be screened at Georgia Piedmont Technical College and the Decatur Library. 7

Let’s Keep DeKalb Peachy Clean Please Don’t Litter Our Streets and Highways

EAST ATLANTA • DECATUR • STONE MOUNTAIN • LITHONIA • AVONDALE ESTATES • CLARKSTON • ELLENWOOD • PINE LAKE • REDAN • SCOTTDALE • TUCKER

September 2, 2017

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Volume 23, Number 18

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DeKalb Schools investing $27 million in laptops for teachers and students

By Rosie Manins

based. Superintendent Dr. R. Stephen Green said that about 25 percent of students in urban school districts do not presently have access anytime, anyplace, anywhere.

“Knowing this, our district is taking proactive measures to close that gap,” he said.

“Even within the confines of their homes, our students will have access to the world.”

Research shows that 5 million U.S. families with school-aged children do not have internet access at home, yet 70 percent of teachers assign homework that requires web access, creating a homework gap that puts some students at an academic disadvantage.

DeKalb County School District is spending more than $27 million on new laptops that middle and high school students and teachers can take home.

The district says it is providing 80,285 “chromebook” laptops to schools through its two-year Digital Dreamers project, designed to ensure every child has equal access to modern education.

Students will get 74,085 chromebooks, and teachers, 6,200 at a cost of $27,194,450.

The laptops will allow students without a computer or internet access at home to keep up with their studies and homework, which are becoming predominantly computer- Please see LAPTOPS, page 4

Students at Oakcliff Elementary School use new laptops in the school’s media center. Middle and high school students will get chromebooks they can take home this school year. Some will also get hot spots so they can log onto internet from home.

DeKalb County School District

At long last, King statue unveiled at Capitol State sculpture honors Georgia’s famous son

Gov. Nathan Deal, state Rep. Calvin Smyre and Bernice King gaze at the 8-foot bronze statue of Martin Luther King Jr. after the Aug. 28 unveiling on the grounds of the Georgia Capitol.

By Rosie Manins

The long-awaited statue of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was unveiled Aug. 28 at the Georgia Capitol before a crowd of hundreds of state and local government officials, including DeKalb CEO Michael Thurmond, DeKalb Commissioner Larry Johnson and members of the DeKalb Delegation, civil rights leaders and family members of the civil rights icon.

The unveiling comes on the 54th anniversary of King’s famous “I Have A Dream” speech.

It is Georgia’s first government-sanctioned monument to one of the state’s most famous sons.

The 8-foot bronze statue ­– which captures King almost mid-stride with a book under his arm – stands atop a 36inch pedestal made of Georgia granite, inscribed with a key phrase from his famous speech, “I have a dream, that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed . . . that all men are created equal.”

It faces eastward towards MLK Jr. Drive and Auburn Avenue, where King was born, grew up, and became co-pastor with his father of Ebenezer Baptist Church.

Christine King Farris, King’s elder sister and only living sibling, said unveiling the $300,000 privately funded statue was a humbling experience.

“I’m very thankful and I’m very proud,” she told reporters after the ceremony.

Farris said Atlanta sculptor Martin Dawe succeeded in capturing King’s likeness.

Christine Farris “He did pretty good,” she said with a chuckle.

King’s youngest child, the Rev. Bernice King, who spoke last after speeches from Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed, state Rep. Calvin Smyre, and Gov. Nathan Deal, said the unveiling comes in the midst of the country’s turmoil over racial violence in Charlottesville, Va., and the debate over Confederate statues and monuments.

“It is apropos that today in the state of Georgia, which was once a Confederate state, that we are erecting a statue – Tyrone Brooks, a longtime advocate for the and we are unveiling, more importantly, a statue – to a man statue, absent from unveiling, p. 2 who represents liberty, justice, freedom, righteousness and equality,” she said.

King saluted all who fought beside her father for justice in “a sense of hope to a nation that is in turmoil once again.”

State officials admitted that the King tribute at Georgia the Civil Rights Movement, and said the unveiling provided

Rosie Manins / CrossRoadsNews

Capitol was long overdue.

For years civil rights leaders, led by former state Rep. Tyrone Brooks, fought for a public memorial honoring King in the city of his birth.

Please see STATUE, page 2

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Community

CrossRoadsNews

September 2, 2017

“When you have a vision and you know you have a calling to do something and you keep working at it, don’t give up.”

King statue advocate Tyrone Brooks absent from unveiling

By Rosie Manins

When the Martin Luther King Jr. statue was being unveiled at the Georgia Capitol Monday, the man who fought for decades to get it there was not among seated guests or standing in the crowd of about 1,000 people.

Former state Rep. Tyrone Brooks, who introduced the legislation for a King statue at the Capitol, was not invited to the Aug. 28 unveiling ceremony which marked the 54th anniversary of King’s “I Have a Dream” speech.

Brooks, a longtime veteran of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, co-founded by King, was instead at the Peachtree-Pine homeless shelter in Tyrone Brooks downtown Atlanta where he has volunteered for years.

“I was busy doing the work of Dr. King, my hero,” Brooks said Aug. 29.

“I was not invited to the unveiling, nor did I expect to be invited. It was the last day for the shelter to be open and I had promised to be there, and I felt like I wanted to be among the people that Dr. King fought and died for – the poor.”

Brooks, 71, also spent that morning giving a Skype lecture to students in Washington, D.C., about his experience there 54 years prior, as a 17-year-old King disciple standing in the crowd of more than 250,000 civil rights supporters as King delivered his iconic speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.

Brooks, who was 15 years old when he first met King, says he will soon visit the 8-foot bronze statue of his mentor near the Gold Dome on a quiet day when he can reflect on King’s life without the disruption of busy crowds and traffic.

“I’m so happy,” he said. “The most hated man in America is now standing at the Capitol grounds in his hometown, looking towards Auburn Avenue where he was born and grew up, the SCLC headquarters where he was president, and Ebenezer Baptist Church where he preached. And he’s staring at the building that trained students like me to grow up and be one of his disciples. I’m just honored to have been the one that God chose to introduce the legislation for the statue.”

Former state Rep. Tyrone Brooks lobbied for decades to have a monument to King erected at the Georgia Captiol.

Rosie Manins / CrossRoadsNews

Gov. Nathan Deal and state Rep. Calvin Smyre basked in praise Monday morning as various guest speakers credited their work to bring the King statue to fruition.

No mention was made of Brooks, who lobbied the Georgia General Assembly for decades to establish a King memorial on State Capitol grounds and finally introduced the King statue legislation (HB 1080) to the Georgia House of Representatives on Dec. 11, 2013.

Brooks says on that day, before entering the Capitol, he ran into King’s son Martin Luther King III at a rally for Georgia teen Kendrick Johnson whose body was discovered earlier that year inside a rolled up wrestling mat at his high school gymnasium.

“We talked about the rally and I told him I was heading inside to introduce legislation to bring his father and our leader to the grounds of the State Capitol,” Brooks said.

“I guess it was just a blessing in disguise that I was still in

the legislature, at the culmination of 35 years, and that God told me to do this. And lo and behold we got endorsement from Deal.”

House Bill 1080 was signed into law on April 29, 2014.

Brooks said he was not invited to the signing but he attended anyway.

Since then Brooks was sentenced in November 2015 to a year and a day in federal prison for tax, mail and wire fraud in connection with a charity he created to run a literacy program.

He was accused of diverting almost $1 million over more than 15 years to his personal bank account from funds donated by a labor union and four major corporations to Universal Humanities for Visions of Literacy, and the Georgia Association of Black Elected Officials, which he led for many years, for voter registration and anti-violence efforts.

Years earlier, Brooks had also introduced legislation calling for a Capitol collage of civil rights heroes, including King, but it was not approved.

The King statue, which stands atop a 36-inch pedestal made of Georgia granite, captures the slain icon almost midstride with a book underarm.

It cost about $300,000 and was privately funded through sponsors including Coca-Cola, the Atlanta Apartment Association, Georgia Apartment Association, and the Martin Luther King Jr. Advisory Council.

The statue’s pedestal is inscribed with the quote “I have a dream, that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed . . . that all men are created equal,” from King’s most famous speech delivered on Aug. 28, 1963, during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.

The statue, by Atlanta sculptor Martin Dawe, faces eastward towards MLK Jr. Drive, opposite Liberty Plaza.

Brooks says he first had the desire to see a King memorial on Capitol grounds following the leader’s assassination in Memphis, Tenn., on April 4, 1968.

“The idea started then in 1968, but I was only 22 years old and I never thought I would be a lawmaker or serving in the General Assembly,” he said. “When you have a vision and you know you have a calling to do something and you keep working at it, don’t give up. Fate will be on your side and make it happen for you.”

Heard at the King statue unveiling “This statue will hold this spot for generations, after all of us gathered here today are long gone from the earth. Millions will visit and reflect on how he changed the world.”

– Casey Cagle, Lieutenant Governor of Georgia

Casey Cagle

“We gather on this red hill in Georgia to immortalize a native son who was the conscience of a global generation, insisting that right be done as God’s will and as the heritage of our nation.”

“There’s an old saying that you can get anything done in life if you do it in the spirit of you don’t mind who gets the credit. I want to go on record giving credit and thanks Calvin Smyre to the leadership and members of the Georgia General Assembly and Gov. Deal for signing (House Bill) 1080 on April 29, 2014.”

– State Rep. Calvin Smyre, Chairman of the Dr. Martin Luther King Memorial Statue Tribute Committee

“There are some – Dr. Lawrence Carter Sr., out there who Lawrence Carter Dean of Chapel, Martin Lu- might say that this ther King Jr. International recognition by the Chapel, Morehouse College state of Georgia has been a long time

coming, that the “Much progress has been wait was too long. made toward the realization While addressing the of Dr. King’s dream, Kasim Reed civil rights of African but much yet remains.

Americans, Dr. King once wrote that the Our actions here today word ‘wait’ almost always means never. symbolize the evolved Well, today as we celebrate Dr. King on mindset of our state, as we the grounds of the Georgia State Capitol, continue to reconcile our that never has become now.” history and our hearts.”

– Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed –Gov. Nathan Deal Nathan Deal

Tribute is at former Liberty Bell site STATUE,

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Deal first announced the project in early 2014.

Until now Atlanta has only had a privately commissioned statue of King at Morehouse College, where he completed his undergraduate studies, that was erected in 1984.

At the Capitol, the only nod to King was an

oil painting on the second floor.

The King statue is located in the original location of Georgia’s Liberty Bell replica, which rang on Capitol grounds for special and patriotic occasions from 1950 until 1976.

It is now located in Liberty Plaza.

The bell, long since silent, rang out three times in tribute to King during Monday’s unveiling ceremony.

September 2, 2017

Community

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“Working as a team we can accomplish much more than we can working individually.

We cannot stand idly by and watch others starve to death.”

DeKalb collecting relief items for Hurricane Harvey victims

By Rosie Manins

As the nation watches the misery visited upon Houston and the Gulf Coast by Hurricane Harvey and the resulting flooding on their television sets, DeKalb residents are answering the call to help.

DeKalb Clerk of Superior Court Debra DeBerry and the DeKalb Sheriff ’s Office have launched separate collection drives to benefit people affected by the aftermath of the storm; and the Rev. Collette Gunby, pastor of Debra DeBerry Green Pastures Christian Ministries Inc., is hosting area pastors on Sept. 5 to discuss strategies for a “Triumphant Church Relief Fund” to aid families in Houston.

The storm, which first came ashore on Aug. 25 as a Category 4 hurricane, dumped more than 60 inches of rain on the city over four days, submerged entire neighborhoods and highways, killed at least 31 people, prompted more than 13,000 rescues, damaged more than 100,000 homes and busi-

nesses, and displaced thousands of people.

Through Sept. 14, DeBerry is collecting blankets, sleeping bags, air mattresses, pillows, towels, washcloths, sheets, diapers, laundry detergent, toothbrushes, toothpaste, lotion, shampoo, deodorant, water, non­ perishable snack foods, board games, crayons and coloring books.

Donations can be dropped off at Room G-140 on ground floor of 556 North McDonough St. in downtown Decatur.

The Sheriff ’s Office is collecting clothing, toiletries, food and other emergency supplies and directing cash donations to the American Red Cross.

Supplies can be dropped off at the Sheriff ’s Office, 4415 Memorial Drive in Decatur.

The jail’s lobby is open 6:30 a.m. until midnight, and the headquarters lobby is open 8.30 a.m. until 4.30 p.m. weekdays.

After seeing the destruction, Sheriff Jeff Mann said they had to help.

“We are partnering with the American Red Jeff Mann

Cross for the convenience of DeKalb County and nearby residents who want to support this emergency response effort,” he said.

Requested items include blankets, sleeping bags, air mattresses, pillows, towels, and personal toiletries such as toothbrushes, toothpaste, lotion, shampoo and deodorant, household cleaning products, laundry detergent, non-perishable food, board games, coloring books, playing cards and crayons.

Donated items will be transported to donation centers in areas of Texas impacted by the hurricane.

For more information, contact Lisa Wiley-Partridge at lwiley@dekalbcountyga. gov or 404-298-8282.

Church relief fund Gunby’s Triumphant Church Relief Fund meeting begins at 10:30 a.m. on Sept. 5 at Green Pastures Christian Ministries Inc., 5455 Flat Shoals Parkway in Decatur, She says that pastors and religious leaders are invited to attend “the meeting of the minds” on how to best unify efforts to meet the needs of the victims.

“Working as a team we can accomplish

much more than we can working individually,” Gunby said. “We cannot stand idly by and watch others starve to death.”

She said that Green Pastures Christian Ministries will serve as one of the deposit sites for nonperishable food, clothing, blankets, water, baby formula, toiletries, towels, paper goods, dog and cat food and so on.

To RSVP, contact rtriumphantchurchrelieffund@gmail.com or 770-987-8121, Ext. 100.

DeKalb Emergency Management The DeKalb County Emergency Management Agency has received hundreds of inquiries from residents wanting to know how to help the people of Houston.

The agency consulted its Texas counterpart and advises residents to avoid sending or transporting unsolicited donations, stick to requested items only, and wait for an invitation to volunteer as conditions in affected areas remain unsafe.

Residents are reminded to be wary of disaster relief and donation scams.

For more information, visit www.redcross.org, or www.nvoad.org.

Clarkston mayor, council members facing opposition

Beverly Burks

Ted Terry

Clarkston Mayor Edward “Ted” Terry is being challenged by City Council woman Beverly Burks.

The two are among 10 candidates who qualified for the Nov. 7 general elections. The other eight candidates – incumbent council members Jamie Carroll, Ahmed Hassan and Dean Moore,

and Yterenickia “YT” Bell, Christopher Busing, Laura Carol Hopkins, Grant Hassan Salaam and Jennifer Schliestett – are seeking three open council seats.

Terry, who was elected mayor in 2013, is a nonprofit development consultant.

Burks, who is the executive director of the

National Pan-Hellenic Council in Decatur, was elected to the city council in 2015. She has served as the vice-chairman of the city council’s Planning and Zoning Committee.

The deadline to register to vote in the election is Oct. 10.

Early voting takes place Oct. 16 to Nov. 3.

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Youth

2346 Candler Rd. Decatur, GA 30032 404-284-1888 Fax: 404-284-5007 www.crossroadsnews.com editor@crossroadsnews.com

Editor / Publisher Jennifer Parker Staff Writers Jennifer Ffrench Parker Angelina T. Velasquez Editorial Intern Rosie Manins Front Office Manager Catherine Guy Multimedia Editor Sharif Williams

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September 2, 2017

“I wanted to make sure everything was right so that [the students] can feel welcome when seeing their country and language represented.”

Multilingual mural welcomes international students

By Angelina T. Velasquez

Atlanta artist Ralph “ReN” Dillard’s mural is helping students feel welcomed as they enter the International Student Center in Decatur.

The colorful 9- by 15-foot artwork depicts the word “welcome” written in seven dominant languages – Spanish, Nepali, Swahili, Arabic, Somali, Burmese and English – spoken by students at the school.

Dillard, 40, spent the first week of August completing the mural, which features a globe filled with 50 flags rep- Ralph Dillard resenting the countries from which the students hail, surrounded by a rainbow ring of

12 people holding hands.

Students returned to school Aug. 7 and Dillard had an audience as he labored on the mural.

“It stretched me as an artist having people watch me as I worked,” he said. “The hardest part was the flags because I wanted to make sure people were able to recognize their country’s flag.”

During the 20 hours it took to paint the mural, Dillard, who is from Savannah, said students offered advice and helped him tweak the final product.

“I wanted to make sure everything was right so that [the students] can feel welcome when seeing their country and language represented,” he said. “It’s also emotionally pleasing and settling for students who may be new to the school or area.”

“ReN” Dillard’s mural includes the word “welcome” To see more of Dillard’s work, visit www. written in seven dominant languages spoken by students renswork.com. at the school.

Students get laptops, internet hotspots they can take home CrossRoadsNews is published every Saturday by CrossRoads­News, Inc. We welcome articles on neighborhood issues and news of local happenings.

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LAPTOPS,

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While the laptops will remain the school district’s, students and teachers can take them home for off-campus learning, research and assignments.

In addition, Sprint is donating 25,000 free wireless internet hotspots, for use by eligible students who get take-home laptops.

The hotspot donation is part of Sprint’s nationwide “1 million project” to provide free internet devices and services to a million low-income high school students.

Andre Riley, DeKalb Schools spokesman, says more than 5,000 hotspots will be activated for students during the 2017-2018 school year, and that students will begin get-

ting the computers in the coming weeks.

The hotspots can link up to five devices per unit and are equipped with safeguards to protect students online.

As part of that program, Sprint activated 300 hotspots at Cedar Grove High School on Aug. 22. Days later, the teachers received their new chromebooks.

The Ellenwood school has just over 1,000 students, the majority of whom lack internet access at home.

Shebrie Jones, a Cedar Grove High teacher and department chair, said the addition of computers and internet access will definitely help students to improve their test scores.

“Our kids are 21st century learners and this is a way to keep our kids engaged,” she

Cedar Grove High School teacher Shebrie Jones uses her new laptop in the school’s media center Aug. 25.

said Aug. 25. “We have to meet them where they are.”

Jones congratulated the district for making sure students are well-equipped.

“Now the kids have the same opportunity to learn as any student that already has internet at home,” she said. “They’re afforded that ability to be on the same level as everyone else.”

Eventually, the Digital Dreamers project will be expanded to elementary schools, which already have chromebooks laptops that students share for in-school use only.

100 Black Women seeks girls to mentor DeKalb high school girls can find out if the 100 Black Women’s Legacy Program is a fit for them at a Sept. 7 open house.

The Decatur-DeKalb chapter of the National Coalition of 100 Black Women is hosting the free event from 7 to 8 p.m. at DeKalb Medical Center at Hillandale.

The Legacy Program, established in 1996, mentors girls and teaches them leadership skills.

Nicole Lee, the chapter’s Legacy Program chairwoman, says the program seeks girls who are interested in community service and leadership development, and who work well in a team-oriented atmosphere.

Applicants must be able to attend monthly meetings and are expected to participate in the program throughout high school.

The application deadline is Sept. 15.

Selected participants will get access to information on economic development, college readiness, cultural awareness and scholarships.

The meeting will be in the community conference room at the Hillandale facility.

DeKalb Medical is at 2801 DeKalb Medical Parkway in Lithonia.

To download an application or for more information, visit www.ncbwdekalb.com or call Nicole Lee at 770-841-1518.

September 2, 2017

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Wellness

September 2, 2017

“We’re putting children in dirty car seats. This donation allows us to give a little bit more comfort to those children.”

Board of Health offering flu vaccines as peak season approaches Flu season is around the corner and vaccine is now available at four DeKalb health centers: Clifton Springs, T.O. Vinson, East DeKalb and North DeKalb.

Flu season runs November to March and on Sept. 15, and the DeKalb Board of Health is hosting a drive-through flu shot from noon to 6 p.m. at Northlake Mall, 4800 Briarcliff Road in Atlanta, near Macy’s.

The Board of Health says flu shots are available weekdays on a walk-in basis, except

on national holidays.

Shots are available 8:15 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at these centers: n Clifton Springs Health Center, 3110 Clifton Springs Road, Decatur. n T.O. Vinson Center , 440 Winn Way, Decatur. n East DeKalb Health Center, 2277 S. Stone Mountain-Lithonia Road, Lithonia. n North DeKalb Health Center, 3807 Clairmont Road NE., Chamblee.

Flu shots are recommended for healthy individuals who are 6 months and older, including pregnant women and adults 65 years and older.

They are also recommended for vulnerable individuals with asthma, neurological and neurodevelopmental conditions, chronic lung disease, blood disorders, endocrine disorders, metabolic disorders, kidney and liver disorders, morbidly obese people, and those with weakened immune systems who

are at higher risk.

Flu season generally peaks November to December., and the vaccine helps ward off the virus whose symptoms include fever, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, headache, chills and fatigue. One of the most pronounced flu symptoms is an overall feeling of achiness and malaise that comes on quickly.

For more information, visit www.cdc. gov/flu.

Precinct gets new child safety seats Safety tips for Labor Day travels The East Lake Family YMCA Health Wellness Coalition donated six new car seats to the South Precinct in Decatur on Aug. 28.

By Angelina T. Velasquez

DeKalb Police at the South Precinct now have six new car seats to transport kids.

The East Lake Family YMCA Health Wellness Coalition donated the car seats to the precinct in Decatur on Aug. 28.

Vivian Moore, who started the coalition in April to facilitate community resources, said that during the group’s second meeting at the South Precinct she noticed that the car seats being used by officers were in terrible condition.

“They were just damaged and dirty,” Moore said. “They were in really, really bad shape.” The coalition obtained the new seats from the Georgia Highway Department, Peach State Health Plan, and the DeKalb Health Department.

DeKalb Commissioner Larry Johnson and Police Chief James Conroy attended Monday’s ceremony.

“These car seats are apart of education and public health,” said Johnson, whose District 3 includes the South Precinct is located.

Police transport children when there is a

Millions of families will be celebrating Labor Day on Sept. 4 by traveling somewhere.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says Labor Day has one of the highest traffic fatality rates with 308 people dying on the roads between 2011 and 2015.

It is second only to Memorial Day which has the most fatal accidents a year.

Labor Day, which is in its 135th year, is the final fling of the summer and attracts a lot of people to various activities.

The first Labor Day was held on Sept.

5, 1882, in New York City. It was a move-

ment dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers.

As families plan trips and activities, keep in mind these tips from the Red Cross: n Take along emergency supplies including food and water, flashlight and a first aid kit. n Tell your destination, your route and when you expect to arrive. n Buckle up and obey traffic signs. n Avoid texting and talking on the phone while driving. n Don’t drink and drive.

For more tips on staying safe, visit www. redcross.org/news.

Blood drive at Scott Candler library The American Red Cross will collect pounds, and be in good health.

Scott Candler Library is at 1917 Candler blood from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. Sept. 5 at Scott Road.

Candler Library in Decatur.

For more information, call 404-286Eligible donors must be 17 years old, or 16 with parental consent, weigh at least 110 6986. domestic or safety issue in their household, when a child is needed as a witness, or is a special crimes unit victim.

Conroy says police don’t use the car seats often, and they are often thrown in a closet or trunk of a squad car until needed.

“We’re putting children in dirty car seats,” he said. “This donation allows us to give a little bit more comfort to those children.”

Conroy said that the department wants each detective to be able to have two car seats to safely and comfortably transport children when there is a need.

Emergency preparedness classes offered DeKalb residents can get free disaster preparedness training from the Community Emergency Response Team starting Sept. 5.

The nine-week CERT course will teach participants what to do before, during and after a disaster and how to care for family members and neighbors in the aftermath of a disaster. Topics include basic fire suppression, team organization, and terrorism, autism awareness and medical operations.

All participants are required to pass a background check.

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Ministry

The class begins Sept. 5 from 7 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at DeKalb Fire Rescue Headquarters, 1950 West Exchange Place in Tucker.

The second nine-week class for the deaf and hearing-impaired, with certified American Sign Language interpreters, begins Sept.

7 from 7 to 9:30 p.m. at DeKalb Fire Rescue Headquarters.

For more information or to register, contact Thomas Paige, Emergency Management Specialist, at tpaige@dekalbcountyga.gov or 678-406-7858.

MARKETPLACE RATES Place your MarketPlace line ad here – up to 20 words for $25. Additional words are $3 per block of five words (maximum 45 words). Boxed Ads (with up to 3 lines bold headline): $35 plus cost of the classified ad. Send ad copy with check or credit card information and contact phone number (if different from ad) to MarketPlace, CrossRoadsNews, 2346 Candler Road, Decatur, GA 30032, or e-mail to marketplace@crossroadsnews. com. Our deadlines are at noon on the Friday one week prior to publication, unless otherwise noted.

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September 2, 2017

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“I am honored to have the opportunity to represent DeKalb County and the state of Georgia on this national and international stage.”

Acclaimed filmmaker’s works to be screened at library, GPTC ested in African themes.”

Acclaimed filmmaker, writer and HowThe screening kicks off ard University professor Haile Gerima will the DeKalb County Pubscreen his award-winning film “Teza” at the lic Library’s new African Decatur Library on Sept. 12.

Films and Filmmakers seThe film, released in 2008, covers three ries, launched by Wesley decades in the life of an Ethiopian man Chapel-William C. Brown anguished about his country’s social and branch manager Monica political crises.

Foderingham.

The New York Times says Teza “soars Haile Gerima Foderingham says the thanks to Mr. Gerima’s bracingly direct storytelling,” and The Hollywood Reporter calls series will “showcase the rich tradition of the film “essential viewing for those inter- African filmmaking, which explores the

diverse history and culture of the continent through the cinematic lens.”

The library is hosting a welcome reception for Gerima at 4 p.m. The screening follows at 5 p.m. Both events are funded in part by the DeKalb Library Foundation.

The library is at 215 Sycamore St., in downtown Decatur. For more information, call Monica Foderingham at 404-286-6980.

be screened at Georgia Piedmont Technical College’s Clarkston campus on Sept. 11.

Gerima will teach a Community Master Class at 11 a.m., and after the screening of “Sankofa” at 5 p.m., will take questions from the audience at 7 p.m.

All events are free but registration is required. For more questions or to register to attend the class and screening, visit Eventbrite or contact Dr. Natoshia Anderson ‘Sankofa’ at Clarkston campus Anderson@gptc.edu or at 404-297-9522 Ext. Haile Gerima’s 1993 film “Sankofa” will 1239.

Thurmond over Confederate symbols Ramsey elected to national Bar group The historically all-white Stone Mountain Memorial Association, which governs Stone Mountain Park and the world’s largest Confederate monument, now has its first black member – DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond.

Thurmond, who lives in Stone Mountain with his wife Zola, is the first African-American member to serve on the state board that oversees the operation of Stone Mountain Park.

Thurmond, a DemoMichael Thurmond crat with a lengthy political and leadership career, was officially appointed by Gov. Nathan Deal Aug. 25.

Deal had earlier said he had not realized all 10 members of the board were white.

Thurmond, a lawyer, historian and

author, is a former state representative and Georgia Labor Department and DeKalb Schools Superintendent, and head of the Division of Family and Children Services.

His 2002 book “Freedom: Georgia’s Antislavery Heritage, 1733-1865” won the Lilla M. Hawes Award from the Georgia Historical Society and was named one of the “Top 25 Books All Georgians Should Read” by the Georgia Center for the Book.

The Stone Mountain Confederate Monument is in the spotlight at present due to a national movement to remove Confederate monuments, statues and symbols from public spaces.

Thurmond is also on a DeKalb committee, with county commissioners, set to ponder the county’s Confederate monuments, statues and symbols.

Currently such structures cannot be removed or altered under state law.

DeKalb Associate State Court Judge Ronald Ramsey is the new District 4 representative for the National Conference of Specialty Court Judges of the American Bar Association.

Ramsey, a judge in DeKalb’s State Court Traffic Division-D, was elected Aug. 12 during the NCSCJ’s annual meeting in New York.

He will have oversight of educational and membership resource for judges in Georgia, North Ronald Ramsey Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Puerto Rico, improving access to justice, and other wide-ranging topics affecting the judiciary, with limited or specialized jurisdiction. Ramsey was also appointed to the group’s Membership Committee and the

Legal Notices 08/12, 08/19, 08/26, 09/02

Notice of PUBLICATION in the Superior Court of DeKalb County State of Georgia

Civil Action Case Number: 17FM8047 Enid Moore PLAINTIFF VS Hampton Moore DEFENDANT To: Hampton Moore 3302 Tree Terrace Pkwy Austell, GA

By ORDER of the Court service for service by publication dated July 31, 2017. You are hereby notified that on July 29, 2017, the above-named Plaintiff filed suit against you for Divorce. You are required to file with the Clerk of Superior Court, and to serve upon the Plaintiff’s attorney whose name and address is: Enid Moore, 3255 Wyndham Park Lane, Decatur, GA 30034. Answer in writing within sixty (60) days of July 31, 2017.

Witness the Honorable Asha F. Jackson., Judge of the DeKalb Superior Court.

This the 1st day of Aug., 2017 08/12, 08/19, 08/26, 09/02

Notice of PUBLICATION in the Superior Court of DeKalb County State of Georgia

Civil Action Case Number: 17FM7986-9 Shwaye Kiflay PLAINTIFF VS Halemarim Kassa DEFENDANT To: Halemarim Kassa 204 Winter Creek Drive Doraville, GA 30360

By ORDER of the Court service for service by publication dated July 27, 2017. You are hereby notified that on July 25, 2017, the above-named Plaintiff filed suit against you for Correction of Birth Certificates of Minor Children.

You are required to file with the Clerk of Superior Court, and to serve upon the Plaintiff’s attorney whose name and address is: Donald M. Coleman, Attorney at Law, 246 Sycamore Street, Suite 120, Decatur, GA 30030. Answer in writing within sixty (60) days of July 27, 2017.

Witness the Honorable Mark Anthony Scott, Judge of the DeKalb Superior Court.

This the 27th day of July, 2017 08/12, 08/19, 08/26, 09/02

Notice of PUBLICATION in the Superior Court of DeKalb County State of Georgia

Civil Action Case Number: 16FM11012-5 Curly B. Ware, IIII PLAINTIFF VS Rossine Lewis DEFENDANT To:

By ORDER of the Court service for service by publication dated May 10, 2017. You are hereby notified that on Oct. 17, 2016, the above-named Plaintiff filed suit against you for modification of custody and child support. You are required to file with the Clerk of Superior Court, and to serve upon the Plaintiff’s attorney whose name and address is: Elizabeth Ann Guervant, Esq.; 246 Sycamore St., Suite 120, Decatur, GA 30030. Answer in writing within sixty (60) days of June 22, 2017.

Witness the Honorable Gregory H. Adams, Judge of the DeKalb Superior Court.

This the 9th day of Aug., 2017 08/12, 08/19, 08/26, 09/02

Notice of PUBLICATION in the Superior Court of DeKalb County State of Georgia

Civil Action Case Number: 17FM7122-8 Cassandra C. Moore PLAINTIFF VS

Terry L. Moore DEFENDANT To: 2100 87th St. Chicago, IL 60617

By ORDER of the Court service for service by publication dated Aug. 07, 2017.

You are hereby notified that on Apr. 7, 2017, the above-named Plaintiff filed suit against you for divorce. You are required to file with the Clerk of Superior Court, and to serve upon the Plaintiff’s attorney whose name and address is: Cassandra Moore 2844 Norfair Loop; Lithonia, GA 30030. Answer in writing within sixty (60) days of Aug. 07, 2017.

Witness the Honorable Linda W. Hunter, Judge of the DeKalb Superior Court.

This the 8th day of Aug., 2017 08/12, 08/19, 08/26, 09/02

Notice of PUBLICATION in the Superior Court of DeKalb County State of Georgia

Civil Action Case Number: 17FM8301-6 Sharon Evans PLAINTIFF VS Lonnie Evans DEFENDANT To:

By ORDER of the Court service for service by publication dated Aug. 08, 2017. You are hereby notified that on Aug. 02, 2017, the above-named Plaintiff filed suit against you for divorce. You are required to file with the Clerk of Superior Court, and to serve upon the Plaintiff’s attorney whose name and address is: Sharon Evans, 223 Pleasantdale Crossing, Doraville, GA 30440. Answer in writing within sixty (60) days of Aug. 09, 2017.

Witness the Honorable J.P. Boulee, Judge of the DeKalb Superior Court.

This the 9th day of Aug., 2017 08/12, 08/19, 08/26, 09/02

Notice of PUBLICATION in the Superior Court of DeKalb County State of Georgia

Civil Action Case Number:

Traffic Court Committee, and was named a presenter at the NCSCJ Traffic Seminar in San Diego, Calif., in March 2018.

Ramsey, a former Georgia senator, was appointed to the DeKalb bench in June 15

by Gov. Nathan Deal. He won election to a full four-year term in May 2016.

Ramsey, who marked 25 years as lawyer in February, said he is ready to serve a bigger stage.

“I am honored to have the opportunity to represent DeKalb County and the state of Georgia on this national and international stage to share some of the best practices we have achieved in our state and to continue to seek new ways to improve the administration of justice through the courts,” he said.

The American Bar Association, which was founded in 1878, is a voluntary professional organization with more than 400,000 members in North America.

of the following minor child(ren) from: Darius Josiah Ferguson to Darius Josiah Mosely. Any interested party has the right to appear in this case and file objections within 30 days after the Petition was filed.

Dated: June 22, 2017

is: Lynn Lockwood, 118 Greenwood Place, #F, Decatur, GA 30030. Answer in writing within sixty (60) days of Aug. 08, 2017.

Witness the Honorable Asha F. Jackson, Judge of the DeKalb Superior Court.

This the 17th day of Aug., 2017

08/26, 09/02, 09/09, 09/16

08/26, 09/02, 09/09, 09/16

Notice of Petition to CHANGE Name(S) of MINOR CHILD(REN)

17FM8216

LaToya Smith PLAINTIFF VS Calvin Smith DEFENDANT To:

By ORDER of the Court service for service by publication dated Aug. 09, 2017. You are hereby notified that Jul. 31, 2017, the above-named Plaintiff filed suit against you for divorce. You are required to file with the Clerk of Superior Court, and to serve upon the Plaintiff’s attorney whose name and address is: LaToya Shanice Smith, 10101 Fairington Ridge Cir., Lithonia, GA 30038. Answer in writing within sixty (60) days of Aug. 09, 2017.

Witness the Honorable Gregory A. Adams, Judge of the DeKalb Superior Court.

This the 9th day of Aug., 2017 08/12, 08/19, 08/26, 09/02

Notice of Petition to CHANGE Name of ADULT in the Superior Court of DeKalb County State of Georgia

Civil Action Case Number: 17FM8457-1 Leah Rae Joyce filed a petition on Aug. 7, 2017 in the DeKalb County Superior Court to change name from: Leah Rae Joyce to Leeroy Cameron Darling. Any interested party has the right to appear In this case and file objections within 30 days after the Petition was filed.

Dated: Aug. 04, 2017 08/26, 09/02, 09/09, 09/16

Notice of Petition to CHANGE Name(S) of MINOR CHILD(REN) in the Superior Court of DeKalb County State of Georgia

Civil Action Case Number: 17FM7346-3 DeLeon Mosely filed a petition in the DeKalb County Superior Court on July 12, 2017 to change the name(s)

in the Superior Court of DeKalb County State of Georgia

Civil Action Case Number: 17FM8758 QuaSheeka Miller filed a petition in the DeKalb County Superior Court on Aug. 15, 2017 to change the name(s) of the following minor child(ren) from: Madison Eileen Miller-Rhodes to Madison Alana Rhodes; Madelynn Elana Miller-Rhodes to Madelynn Elana Rhodes. Any interested party has the right to appear in this case and file objections within 30 days after the Petition was filed.

Dated: Aug. 04, 2017 08/26, 09/02, 09/09, 09/16

Notice of Petition to CHANGE Name of ADULT in the Superior Court of DeKalb County State of Georgia

Civil Action Case Number: 17FM8733 Sherry Ann Sands filed a petition on Aug. 8, 2017 in the DeKalb County Superior Court to change name from: Sherry Ann Sands to Sherry Ann Lewis. Any interested party has the right to appear In this case and file objections within 30 days after the Petition was filed.

Dated: Aug. 08, 2017 08/26, 09/02, 09/09, 09/16

Notice of PUBLICATION in the Superior Court of DeKalb County State of Georgia

Civil Action Case Number: 17FM8268 Lynn Lockwood PLAINTIFF VS Willie P. Lockwood DEFENDANT To:

By ORDER of the Court service for service by publication dated Aug. 08, 2017. You are hereby notified that Aug. 01, 2017, the above-named Plaintiff filed suit against you for divorce. You are required to file with the Clerk of Superior Court, and to serve upon the Plaintiff’s attorney whose name and address

Notice of PUBLICATION in the Superior Court of DeKalb County State of Georgia

Civil Action Case Number: 17FM5580-3 Siesta George PLAINTIFF VS Jeffrey George DEFENDANT To: Jeffrey George 3707 Church St. Clarkston, GA 30021

By ORDER of the Court service for service by publication dated Aug. 18, 2017. You are hereby notified that May 18, 2017, the above-named Plaintiff filed suit against you for divorce. You are required to file with the Clerk of Superior Court, and to serve upon the Plaintiff’s attorney whose name and address is: 3937 Underwood Rd., Conyers, GA 30013. Answer in writing within sixty (60) days of Aug. 18, 2017.

Witness the Honorable Clarence F. Seeliger, Judge of the DeKalb Superior Court.

This the 21st day of Aug., 2017 09/02, 09/09, 09/16, 09/23

Notice of PUBLICATION in the Superior Court of DeKalb County State of Georgia

Civil Action Case Number: 17FM8754 Tyanna Owens PLAINTIFF VS Marqious Muckle DEFENDANT To:

By ORDER of the Court service for service by publication dated Aug. 21, 2017. You are hereby notified that Aug. 15, 2017, the above-named Plaintiff filed suit against you for divorce. You are required to file with the Clerk of Superior Court, and to serve upon the Plaintiff’s attorney whose name and address is: Tiyanna Owens, 2103 Lown Farm Lane, Lithonia, GA 30058.

Answer in writing within sixty (60) days of Aug. 21, 2017.

Witness the Honorable Asha F. Jackson, Judge of the DeKalb Superior Court.

This the 23rd day of Aug., 2017

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