CITIZEN
.COM
We st
gwinnett Est. 1988 Covering Norcross, Lilburn, Peachtree Corners, Duluth, Berkeley Lake
Vol. 30 No. 6
Celebrating the arts page 3
FREE
APRIL 2018
www.gwinnettcitizen.com
Uncle Roy By Eric Bruce GwinnettCitizen.com
Spring in Gwinnett page 4
“Every so often I would wake up on the ground – passed out because of oxygen starvation caused by my collapsed lung”, recalls First Lieutenant Roy Hanna. It was February 1944, and the Allies were fighting the Germans in Italy during World War II. Hanna was with the 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment having landed in Naples and involved in continuous fighting for several weeks. The Third Battalion was holding a front line position, and the ‘H’ Company was ordered to attack but ended up being surrounded by the enemy. The Lt. Colonel directed Hanna and his Machine Gun Platoon to lead a patrol to make a flanking attack on the Germans. After surveying the situation and coming up with an attack plan, Hanna led his group of 25 soldiers down the backside of a railroad track toward a house that held German snipers. Using stealth and strategic cov-
See UNCLE on Page 14
Input on transit needed page 11
Roger Green Celebrating 30 Years of Service
Duluth’s 2018 Event Calendar Season
By Staff Reports
Death, taxes, and disability page 19 Special Photo
The City of Duluth draws crowds from all over the metro-Atlanta area
INSIDE Citizen Connection Gwinnett Pulse Health & wellness
PRESORT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID ABC DIRECT ECR-WSS POSTAL CUSTOMER
By Staff Reports
4 `6 `12
Duluth’s 2018 event calendar season has a little bit of something for everyone. From dancing characters, food trucks, and live music to rafting on the Chattahoochee River to camping underneath the stars at Rogers Bridge Park; residents can choose from an array of events that best suits them. “This year we tried to be more diverse with our events. Meaning we want to offer anything and everything you can imagine to our
Special Photo
Roy Hanna and Eric Bruce.
residents” said Event Coordinator Madison Chucci. Duluth events kicked off in March with the return of the crawfish festival, Muddbuggs & Music. The popular tailgate game Peach State Cornhole League will consist of three 8-week leagues and will be a fun edition to Fridays N Duluth. Fridays N Duluth kicks off May 4th alongside Food Truck Friday from 6-9pm. Food Truck Fridays will end on September 21st. Residents can expect to hear live music
See DULUTH on page 10
On February 24th, hundreds of guests, clients, friends, and family members attended Roger Green’s 30 Years of Service client appreciation celebration. The event was held at the Infinite Energy Forum, and special guests included Gary Galloway with Friends of Gwinnett County Senior Services, Debbie Brilling with the Auditory-Verbal Center, and Dr. James Merritt with Cross Pointe Church and Touching Lives Ministry. These are three charities near and dear to Roger’s heart that he devotes time, energy, and his earnings to support. Mr. Galloway and Ms. Brilling both spoke about the respective organizations they represented, while Dr. Merritt opened the event with a prayer and spoke about Cross Pointe Church and his Touching Lives Ministry. Entertainment was provided by comedian Henry Cho, followed by a fun celebratory evening of music, fun photos, and dancing. The highlight of the evening came when Roger, the president and CEO of Green Financial Resources in Duluth, made a surprise presentation of a new car to one of his longtime staff members. Roger went on to say, “I have been helping peo-
Roger Green
Special Photo
ple with their investment and financial planning for 30 years now, and have enjoyed great relationships with clients and staff members. For the past 19 of those years, I’ve been blessed by the devotion and servant heart of a sweet Christian lady whom I admire so very much – Betty Huff, our ‘office mom’. I jokingly said when she started working that if she stuck around for 20 years I might buy her a Lexus. Betty is planning to retire this
See
GREEN on page 16