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4 COVER STORY: KEEP CALM… MUSH, SEAN 11 Back Talk: Dad as Life Coach 14 City of Tucker Dedicates Park to Late City Councilman 17 Kroger Seeks Partnerships with Small Brands and Producers
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Our Town DeKalb
OurTown NE DeKalb Community and Family Magazine
A Shiny Inc Publication Editor Lizbeth A. Dison Shinycomm.com ldison@shinycomm.com Our Town DeKalb is published and direct mailed to
select homes in the Tucker / Northeast DeKalb area. Opinions expressed by the writers and staff are their Creative Director own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Jay Adcock the publisher. Our Town DeKalb reserves the right jay@adcockcreativegroup.com to edit or reject any editorial or advertising content. Our Town DeKalb is not responsible for errors in advertising beyond the cost of the space or for the Writers validity of claims made by advertisers.
Cindy E. Farrar Doug Reynics Lois Ricci Sanah Sayani Karl Schwartz Art Wood
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IN THIS ISSUE 4 KEEP CALM…MUSH, SEAN 6 The Bits in Between: Anyone Can Be a Father But… 7 Wellness In-Sight: Stretch Yourself 8 Age Friendly Tucker: Social Participation Connects You to the Community 9 Common Sen$e: What the Heck is PMI? 10 Food for Thought: Summer is Here - Plant Your Veggies Now! 11 Back Talk: Dad as Life Coach 12 Beauty Byline with Sanah: Real Men Get Facials 14 City of Tucker Dedicates Park to Late City Councilman 14 Tucker Residents Raise $36,000 to Help Restaurant After Fatal Explosion 16 TKR Summer of Fun Returns with In-Person Celebrations 17 Kroger Seeks Partnerships with Small Brands and Producers ON THE COVER: Iditarod musher Sean Underwood with three-year-old Blue, one of the star dogs on his 2021 team.
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On The Cover:
KEEP CALM…
MUSH, SEAN. Growing up in Tucker, Sean Underwood was a talented athlete even as a youngster. He played soccer in the Tucker Youth Soccer Association (TYSA) Triumph program, baseball and basketball in the Rehoboth Baptist Church youth sports program, and swam with Northumberland Swim Club. He started football in elementary school, but in high school at St. Pius X found tennis to be his favorite sport. His favorite sport, that is, until his global travels landed him in the Alaskan wilderness on the back of a dogsled. Underwood has always exhibited a sense of adventure, inherited, his mother thinks, from his Chilean The family farm in Chile. grandfather, with whom he developed a close relationship as a child. All of his grandfather’s siblings lived in Chile, and during frequent visits to the family farm there, he also became close to his many aunts, uncles and cousins who lived in the country. When Underwood graduated from college in 2014, with a bachelor’s degree in economics and a minor in Spanish, he took a seasonal job in Costa Rica, then continued to travel south from there, finally ending back in Chile on the family farm. His grandfather had passed away while Underwood was in college but his extended family warmly welcomed him. “Living on the family farm for that few months was the closest thing to inner peace I had ever known,” Underwood remembers. “I liked the quiet, I liked being outside, and I learned a lot from my cousins and aunt and uncle that live there.” Traveling through Chile and Argentina was expensive for a broke recent college graduate, but staying with various family members as he traveled helped with costs as well as gave him the opportunity to enhance his Spanish language skills. He explored the central third of Chile and hiked and camped in the Andes. As he bonded with his Chilean family, Underwood contemplated moving
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to the country for a longer residency but the visa process proved too complicated. He stayed with his family as long as he legally could before returning back to the states in 2015. Underwood’s restless spirit soon had him looking for a new adventure. He phoned an aunt and uncle who lived in Alaska, who bought him a one-way ticket to the state and hired him as a crewman with their commercial fishing business. He spent that entire summer set net fishing for sockeye salmon on the southern tip of Kodiak Island, where he lived off the grid with his aunt and uncle, caught his own food, and watched grizzlies walk through the backyard. Their closest neighbor was several miles away. Sean spent the summers of 2015 and 2016 in Alaska, and then decided to spend a winter there. Not knowing what he would do for work during the winter months, his cousins told him of their jobs working at a place with sled dogs. When they started talking about Iditarod, Underwood became interested, did some research and then contacted four-time Iditarod winner Jeff King for a job. King saw Underwood’s fishing experience and hired him because “he knew I could work long days and be ‘comfortable’ in poor weather conditions.” King also offered Underwood a place to stay and a monthly stipend for groceries. (The closest grocery store was over two hours north in Fairbanks.) Underwood learned much about dog sled racing and Iditarod with King over the next four years, and had completed qualifying races as a “musher,” or dogsled driver, with his goal to enter Iditarod 2021. However, five days prior to the 2020 Iditarod start, Underwood found out he’d be subbing for King, who needed emergency surgery for a perforated intestine. Since he had worked and trained King’s dogs for the past four years, and with the race team ready and drop bags in place, Underwood was the logical choice to fill in for his mentor. “I was just dumbfounded,” he said. “It was just super surreal, and you don’t really believe it, and you don’t know what to do with yourself afterwards. You’re like, ‘How do I proceed?’” In the rush to make last-minute preparations, there was little time for worry but emotions caught up with Underwood upon arrival at the starting point. “I was just overcome with emotion, like ‘Oh my gosh, it’s starting in like three hours,’” he said. Underwood quickly settled into “travel mode” on the trail, and his run times were better than expected. Race fans eagerly followed and cheered this rookie who came into the race as an unexpected favorite. Underwood’s confidence increased as days went by. But on the twelfth day of the race, just 34 miles from the finish line, Underwood, along with two other mushers, had to be rescued by helicopter when a sudden storm flooded their route CONTINUED on page 13
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The Bits in Between: Anyone Can Be a Father But…
OurTown NE DeKalb Community and Family Magazine
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Dad, Daddy, Pop, Papa, Pa…there are many names for ‘father’ in the English language, but does it matter what you call the men we celebrate in June? ‘Father’ might be termed more a biological term than a relationship one. A father contributes one-half the biological components necessary to make a baby. A father’s role is pretty much done at conception. A father doesn’t need to be present in a child’s life to be a father. Bur he does have to be in a child’s life to be a dad, or daddy, or any of those other familial roles. He doesn’t have to be a father to be a father-figure. Many children note stepfathers who are more dads than their biological fathers. Some uncles or family friends even step into a dad role. While any man can create life, it takes commitment and dedication to shape that life. Being a true dad requires more than just a man’s genetic makeup. Being a dad is less about biology but everything about time, emotional support, patience, and devotion. A popular greeting card sentiment reads “Anyone can be a father but it takes someone special to be a dad.” On June 20 this year, don’t just celebrate who made you. Celebrate who made you who you are.
Lizbeth A. Dison Publisher and Editor
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Wellness In-Sight: Stretch Yourself Cindy E. Farrar
June already? The ever-changing 2021 journey feels to be moving at warp speed. In addition to time swiftly passing, for the first time in several years, we had a full Spring season. Despite the speed and seasonal change, we are presented with many opportunities. Specifically, Spring is the time of renewal, planning and visionary clarity. The creative growth of Spring helps prepare us for the active season of expansive manifestation that is Summer. Our smooth transition from one season to another is made easier by our willingness to reflect upon our efficiencies. Some questions that may be useful to ask ourselves are: • How am I keeping up with the pace and associated demands? • How have I weathered the April showers and those that turned into May storms? • How have I responded to the unseasonably cooler temperatures we experienced in late April and throughout May? • Have I effectively employed existing skills for adapting and perhaps developed new ones? The person I credit with sparking my interest in working with the body, Dr. Ronald Weinstein, DC, shared with me early on in his mentoring of me, “In the absence of genetic conditions or trauma, most often back injuries are due to lack of flexibility rather than weakness.” Dr. Ron’s insight has repeatedly proved to be true in the three decades since, with my own back and body in general as well as in my experiences with my massage clients. Decreased flexibility indicates shortened or contracted muscles, resulting in limitation in range of motion. When expanded mobility is required the body is vulnerable to potential injury. The options we have, and we always have options, are to maintain the current state of our body, minimize the demand on our body to move beyond its current limitations, or we can engage in intentional stretching activities that may facilitate the lengthening of our soft tissues and increasing our range of motion thereby allowing for expansion in our bodies with the minimization of risk of damage. The function of the physical body described above also parallels an aspect of our mental and emotional self. We can get stuck in our mental programming
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and perspectives. This can have the potential to limit us on our path if we are unable or unwilling to think or consider beyond them. Last month we considered the role of non-attachment on our path to lightness and peace. Being flexible, the ability to adapt and adjust, often on the fly, is a vital component of non-attachment living. The term “neuroplasticity” is our ability to literally change our minds. Reprogramming the brain, resetting our mindset by the words we use, conscious awareness practices, acts of kindness and expressions of gratitude. We have the ability to create healthy neural pathways. Both our bodies and minds need to be intentionally ‘stretched’ for maximum healthy functioning and lighter travels on our journey. In the words of a friend, “Blessed are the flexible, for they shall not get bent out of shape.” Cindy E. Farrar, LMT, BCTMB, CLC is a licensed massage therapist, certified life coach and the owner of Massage Associates of Atlanta, LLC (Lavista Road in Tucker). In addition, she is a certified Qi Gong instructor and a nationally approved continuing education provider for massage therapy and bodywork. Cindy enjoys sharing insights on wellness and personal and community development as a speaker and writer.
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Age Friendly Tucker: Social Participation Connects You to the Community Dr. Lois Ricci The past fifteen months has redefined how we engage in social interaction, with so much of our participation occurring in the virtual world. Post-COVID, we now have to once again redefine how we interact with each other. While there is no clear definition of social participation, there are few people who could not tell you how a lack of it affects them. Most say their life has been negatively affected by the virus outbreak and some say looking at life before the pandemic is like looking in a time capsule. COVID has driven dramatic shifts in jobs, eating habits, childcare, and even a sense of time, with many of us even having trouble remembering what day it is. Over the past year, COVID has separated us from routine, activities and events that were planned and often eagerly anticipated. Normally busy people adapted to technology and found that daily time went by quickly. But those already experiencing loneliness and boredom before the pandemic now felt time slowing down which only exacerbated their depression. Recent surveys have shown many people have become more introspective over the past months. People remember 9/11 as traumatic at the time but for many the pandemic has completely turned lives around. We can only hope that the thoughtfulness and consideration that we saw during these last fifteen months will remain and we will more clearly define social participation. The Tucker Civic Association Lifelong Community Committee Age Friendly City Action Plan identified Tucker’s opportunities for social participation as a prominent part of socialization. Kathy Forster, the committee lead for this domain, listed the many activities and programs in Tucker that promote social participation. These provide emotional wellbeing, laughter and connectivity and lend a sense of meaning and belonging for all residents. The city has
hobbies, community events, volunteer activities, clubs and organizations for all ages, religion, community publications and sports. Many Tucker residents are unaware of the many programs and activities that are available here for all ages. The Tucker Rec Center offers pottery and woodworking classes, bridge, canasta and mahjong groups, as well as exercise and dance classes. The churches and the library offer book clubs, educational programs and social events. Lunches are served monthly for older adults at several of the churches in addition to their many social and civic projects. There are garden clubs, singles clubs, support groups and special interest groups. For singers, there is the Tucker Community Singers (based at First Christian Church of Atlanta but open to everyone). For civic and business interests, there are the Tucker Civic Association Lifelong Community Committee, the Optimist Club, Rotary Club of Tucker, the Lion’s Club and the Tucker Business Association, to mention just a few. Social participation can take several different forms. It is a prominent part of an initiative to involve and engage people in our community however they want to be involved. You can read the entire Age Friendly City Action Plan at tuckercivic.org/age-friendly-tucker. Or Google your particular interest in Tucker – I guarantee you will find a group that will welcome you to join! Dr. Lois Ricci is a longtime resident of Tucker, where she chairs the Tucker Civic Association Lifelong Community Committee. She serves as an adjunct faculty member at Kennesaw State University, where she teaches gerontology courses and the Professional Development in Gerontology Certificate Class. Ricci also serves as an official representative for American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), co-facilitator for the Rosalyn Carter CareNet, and on the board of the Atlanta Regional Commission Advisory Committee on Aging.
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Common Sen$e: What the Heck is PMI? Art Wood “What is PMI?” and “How do I get rid of it?” are two of the most asked questions I get when people are applying for a mortgage (just behind “What is my rate?”). Let me start by defining PMI. It stands for Private Mortgage Insurance. It is required on most loans where you do not have at least 20% equity. It serves to protect the lender’s interest in the property should a borrower lose the house to foreclosure. You can pay it in one of three ways: • You can pay it monthly in your mortgage payment. • You can roll it into your rate. (Think higher interest rate.) • You can pay it in one lump sum at closing. In each of the options, the PMI amount is determined by third-party PMI companies that utilize your credit score, debt to income, and loan to value to generate your payment. The more qualified you are, the cheaper your PMI will be. I often think that PMI gets a bad rap. For well-qualified borrowers, PMI can be cheap. Let’s look at a real-life situation. I have a client who is buying a $600,000 house and only putting 10% down. She is well-qualified, and the PMI is only $88 per month. Her choice was to either pay the $88 per month or put another $60,000 down to avoid the PMI. In some instances, a client may not have enough to cover the full 20% down, but in this situation, she would rather keep her $60,000 and pay $88 in PMI per month. So how do you remove PMI? There are three ways to remove PMI. The first way would be for it to fall off automatically when you reach 78% loan to value. If you do nothing other than pay your mortgage payment for the specified number of years, your PMI will fall off automatically once you get to 22% equity. The second way to get rid of PMI would be to request removal manually from your mortgage servicer. You could do this when you feel like you have 20% equity either from paying down the loan more aggressively, or, as in the current market, your home value has gone up faster than anticipated. Your mortgage servicer would order an appraisal at your cost, and if it comes back with 20% equity, they will remove it. There are some other stipulations that most companies have where you have paid PMI for at least two years and paid on time for the last twelve months. Finally, you can remove your PMI by refinancing. This only makes sense if there are additional benefits like lower rates. If you feel like you have 20% equity already and a super low rate, then you may as well call your mortgage servicer and request an appraisal like I suggested above. Rates are at historic lows now, so I have a lot of people doing refinances to reduce their rate at the same time they are getting rid of their PMI. This is just the tip of the iceberg. There are a lot of other variables to consider, the main one being FHA loans. That’s an entirely different story, mainly in that the FHA version of PMI is called MIP. ALL FHA loans will have MIP regardless of equity, and in most cases, the only way to remove it is with a refinance. If you have questions about PMI, I suggest a conversation with your favorite local mortgage guy so he can point you in the right direction.
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Art Wood (NMLS #118234) is the branch manager of the Art Wood Mortgage Team of Goldwater Bank, located at 2341 Main Street in downtown Tucker. “Tucker’s Mortgage Guy” for fifteen years, he is a former Tucker Tiger (Class of ’92), and co-founder and organizer of Taste of Tucker. Family guy, community guy, and definitely not your typical mortgage guy - it’s all that he does that makes Art Wood who he is. Contact him at 678.534.5834 or art.wood@goldwaterbank.com.
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Food for Thought: Summer is here - Plant your veggies now! Doug Reynics Winter is long past and the return of warm days means it’s a perfect time to plant your summer crops. As we navigate our way through the post-COVID world, I find that there is something healing in planting and harvesting my own produce. I’d like to share some ideas of crops to plant (even if you don’t have much space). If you have six or more hours of daily sun, the sky’s the limit for planting produce. If space is a concern, there are many things you can do in containers. Remember, it’s not always about how much you harvest. Just taking a bit of time to put your hands in the soil is healing. It reminds us that, with all that happens around us, planting and harvesting our own fresh produce is something we can control. For limited space, consider planting herbs. There’s not much you can’t plant together that won’t grow well. I like basil, rosemary, thyme, oregano and sage in the same pot. It not only fills out the planter but looks good throughout the season. You are only clipping parts of it over time, so the overall look stays pretty. Another container planting is tomatoes with an underplanting of marigolds. There are many tomatoes suitable for container planting. You can ask an assistant for patio- or container-specific varieties that will thrive. Just be sure to buy a sturdy staking system to keep the tomato upright. The marigold is a great companion plant that the tomato wants to have close to it! If you have a larger container (30” or larger), consider planting any variety of peppers. Hot peppers thrive with this type of container planting. Keep the hot peppers and sweet pepper varieties apart so they don’t cross pollinate and you get sweet hot peppers. Another idea is to plant potatoes - sweet or regular red or white potatoes. You can buy the starters at a
garden center. Once planted, there’s very little to do to keep them happy and healthy. I add one tablespoon of Epson salt to the base of each plant once per month and water in well. As for soil, I use Miracle Gro bagged soil with water grabber and fertilizer built in. I find it decreases my frequency of watering by one time weekly. Keep the containers well-watered during the hot spells. If you have space in the yard, you have more choices. For very large areas, fruits like watermelon or pumpkins are a fun, family-friendly planting. Either fruit can grow 20-30’ long so it’s best for larger areas. I plant in raised 4’x8’ beds in the Smoke Rise Community Garden. You can look into community gardens if you do not have the light or the space to plant. If you do plant at home, be sure to amend the area well with new soil, cow manure and a little fertilizer. Keep the plantings well-watered. Things that grow well at home in the ground include tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, peppers, beans (bush or pole) or herbs. My favorite herbs are basil and rosemary. Rosemary stays throughout the year and can be clipped into a pretty tree. Basil is planted in the spring and enjoyed until the freeze in the late fall. I hope you’ll consider planting your own crops - I welcome your questions, and hope you’ll send me photos of your plantings later in the season. Happy Planting!
Doug Reynics is a longtime Tucker resident and self-described “foodie.” Many know him as “Doug the Driver,” who provides rides to and from both the domestic and international airport terminals. (To date, his service has provided 1,450 airport rides!) If you have a food story or question you would like to see him write about, email him at dougthedriver1@gmail.com.
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Back Talk: Dad as Life Coach Dr. Karl Schwartz Last month, I celebrated the moms, the glue that holds the entire family unit together. However, as we progress into June, I am surrounded by news about the return to “normal” life post-COVID. Graduations are inperson again and everyone is busy with big plans for travel and vacation. Patients are enthusiastic about sports returning in full force; stadiums and arenas have opened up to full capacity, and the fans are returning in force with all the fervor, frenzy and enthusiasm we have all been missing. But with all the celebration around the end of COVID and the return to life as we knew it eighteen months ago, let’s not forget about the big holiday on June 20 - Father’s Day. I like to think of dads as grown-up boys with a lot more responsibility. Most dads love to relive their own youth and an earlier time when life was simple and centered primarily on competition. As we age, we often live vicariously through our kids and the sports challenges they face. Sports teach us many things: hard work, discipline, focus, teamwork, emotional support, and the grace of winning and sometimes the acceptance of losing. Many athletes become excellent business owners and entrepreneurs because they learned these valuable lessons as kids competing in a sport. Many people who are not interested in sports learn the same lessons in academic competition. The students with the best grades have a better opportunity to attend the most prestigious colleges, which in turn can lead to better job opportunities. Competition is important in all aspects of our lives. Hard work leads to higher respect and higher rewards, higher wages, and higher social status. Humans are genetically wired and culturally programmed to compete. There is a “survival of the fittest” is all aspects of our lives. Those who compete understand this, those that don’t are often left behind. So, here’s to all the dads, who love the competition and strive to become the best at whatever they do. Be it sports, education, politics or charity, be the best at what you do and instill that in your kids. This lesson will take your kids beyond mediocrity - it will propel them to their dreams. Dads instill the spirit of competition, camaraderie, discipline, problem solving, goals and planning. Sports are not just grown men getting paid to play a game. For any dad that knows what I am saying here, let’s keep you healthy so you continue to motivate your kids to be the best they can be!
Dr. Karl Schwartz is a graduate of Life University in Marietta, Georgia; he has been practicing chiropractic in Tucker for twenty-one years and a resident here for fifteen years. His office specializes in preventing sports injuries and maximizing performance by analyzing posture, weight bearing, and gait. If you have a question you would like addressed in a future column, please email karlschwartzdc@gmail. com. Note “Back Talk” in the subject line.
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Beauty Byline with Sanah: Real Men Get Facials Sanah Sayani You’ve heard of the phrase “Sun’s out, buns out” but let’s be real - when it’s hot, almost everything is out. With the extra exposure of skin, it is important to prepare it and repair it. Women tend to be more alert when it comes to taking care of their skin. Men, on the other hand, are just now starting to explore skincare. I always get asked, “Do men get facials?” And my response is always the same. “If he has skin, he needs a facial. Skin doesn’t look at gender. Skin is skin.” This rise in male use of spa services is forcing estheticians to expand their menus to better serve all clientele. Book. A. Facial. Now. A facial typically consists of cleansing the face, exfoliation and extractions, mask, serums and moisturizer. Did you know that men have larger pores than women? Large pores mean more acne and blackheads. Men also have thicker skin than women and constant shaving leads to razor burns, breakouts and ingrown hair. Estheticians will deep cleanse the skin, extract blackheads and ingrown hair, and use product to prevent future breakouts. If you have facial hair, shave it before your facial appointment for best results. I recently got a body scrub (facial for the body) and it was divine! Not only was the treatment relaxing, it was effective and informative. My skincare specialist immediately asked, “Did you know you have large pores and blackheads?” No, I didn’t - I can’t see my back! But it explains why there is discoloration (aka hyperpigmentation) which is a result of injury or inflammation such as acne. She pulled out her tools and went to work. An hour later, my back was cleaner and brighter, and I was rejuvenated! Men, take a look at body treatments especially if your job or lifestyle causes you to sweat. Just like the skin on your face, your body also needs to be
cleansed and exfoliated because breakouts, blackheads and ingrown hair can happen anywhere. Many spas are adding scrubs and body polishes to their men’s menus because let’s face it, we all need a little bit of help getting to those hard-to-reach areas. My advice to everyone - male and female - is get a facial and body treatment once every four to six weeks in addition to taking care of it at home. Late teens is a good time to start getting facials and no age is too old. If you have skin concerns, find a licensed esthetician or cosmetologist specializing in your concern. This person will let you know if you need treatments more often or every quarter, and use product and treatments tailored for your specific needs. It’s very important that you go to a licensed professional. These individuals are not medical doctors but they do study the skin and how to treat it. They will let you know if your skin concern needs a dermatologist or if their treatments can do the trick. Make me a promise: this summer you’ll prepare your skin by slapping on sunscreen and repair it at your neighborhood spa. Deal? Sanah Sayani is a master cosmetologist and owner of Thread Beauty Spa (4426 Hugh Howell Road in the Tucker Publix shopping center). Her monthly column seeks to answer readers’ beauty concerns; write to her at threadbeautyspa@gmail.com or drop by the shop to ask her in person!
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MUSH CONTINUED From page 4 part of the team that trains these dogs through the fall and winter again. I hope to along the coastline of the Bering Sea. be running it either in 2022 or 2023.” Seavey He spent much of the following spring and won the 2021 Iditarod, one of only two summer in a funk over his thwarted effort but mushers to win the Iditarod five times. ultimately decided to enter the race again Does Underwood see himself staying in for 2021. With a new team and new dogs Alaska long-term, or will his restless spirit (he worked with four-time Iditarod winner move him to some new adventure in the Dallas Seavey), he was hopeful of this time future? “My girlfriend is a huge part of my reaching his ultimate goal. Even though this plans and she just got into Veterinary School would be his second Iditarod, Underwood at St. Kitts in the Caribbean,” he said. “I was still considered a “rookie,” since he did plan on spending the next couple of years not finish his first Iditarod. “The biggest goal mushing and then she will be out of school. is finish the damn thing. The next goal is I think any way you spin it, Alaska will always to be as competitive as you can be without be part of our lives. Part of living this lifestyle jeopardizing finishing,” he said. is that I don’t have firm plans for the next ten On March 17, 2021, nine days, twenty hours years or even five years. But I can tell I’m not and forty-eight minutes after his dogs first Underwood at the 2021 Iditarod finish line in Deshka Landing. ready to walk away from this rewarding and fun bolted from the starting line, Underwood photo by Tess Morin lifestyle quite yet.” crossing the finish line in thirtieth place - a You can follow Sean’s adventures in Alaska on his website, mushsean.com or “rookie no more.” He was met with a cheering crowd, “raised his hands in victory on Instagram. (The title of this article comes from Sean’s Instagram handle – formation,” and credited his dog team for the achievement. keepcalmmushsean.) He also just launched a podcast on Spotify, The Other Is Underwood up for his third Iditarod? “Sign-ups for the 2022 Iditarod are 350, about life as a musher. this summer, but we haven’t decided as to whether or not I’m gonna do it this year with Dallas Seavey’s dogs,” said Underwood. “But I am planning on being
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City of Tucker Dedicates Park to Late City Councilman Our Town DeKalb Staff
Our Town DeKalb Staff Tucker’s Parks and Recreation Department honored late local businessman and city council member William “Bill” Rosenfeld by renaming the former Smoke Rise Bath and Racquet Club as Rosenfeld Park. Rosenfeld, who represented Tucker’s District 1 on City Council for more than four years, passed away unexpectedly in January of this year. A special dedication ceremony was Tucker City Council Member Pat Soltys, held on May 28 at the park, during Mayor Frank Auman and Corey Rosenfeld, which Mayor Frank Auman and city son of William Rosenfeld, unveil the council members unveiled a plaque commemorative plaque at the dedication of commemorating his many Rosenfeld Park. contributions to and lasting impact on the city. One of those impacts was helping Tucker acquire the park space, which added four tennis courts and a public pool to the Tucker Parks and Recreation system. Hundreds of Tucker and Smoke Rise residents attended the early morning ceremony. “Bill was always a champion for our Tucker parks,” said City Manager Tami Hanlin. “We are glad to join Bill’s family and so many of his friends and neighbors from the Smoke Rise community in dedicating this beautiful park in his honor.” Rosenfeld Park is located at 2088 Glacier Drive in Tucker’s Smoke Rise community.
Tucker Residents Raise $36,000 to Help Restaurant After Fatal Explosion Our Town DeKalb Staff Residents of Tucker were shocked in May when Mei Ying Chen, owner of Main Moon, was fatally injured in a kitchen explosion at the restaurant. The Chinese eatery was a long time favorite of locals, and many considered the family members who owned and worked it as friends. One of those customers, Doug Reynics, knew he had to do something to help the family. “I, like many others, was devastated hearing the news of the explosion at Main Moon,” said Reynics. “I immediately reached out to Min Lin, the woman who takes your order at the counter, to ask what we as a community could do to help.” Lin told Reynics that it was her mother-in-law who had perished in the accident, and the family not only had to deal with the funeral costs but also with lost income while the restaurant was closed for extensive repairs. Within a few hours of the accident, Reynics had created a GoFundMe account to help the family. Donations immediately began pouring in from customers and local businesses, eventually totaling over $36,000 by the time the fundraiser closed four days later. “It was the family that really made this place special,” one donor posted on
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the GoFundMe page. “I pray that the Main Moon family gets through this tragedy with the help they need and that the sadness of the loss of Mei Ying is equally matched by the strong love of our community.” “I’m humbled that our community stepped up in such a momentous way,” commented Reynics. “I know we will all be there when they reopen. Feeling the love today in a big way.”
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TKR Summer of Fun Returns with In-Person Celebrations Our Town DeKalb Staff The City of Tucker once again will be the summertime place to be as officials have announced the return of the popular “TKR Summer of Fun.” The three-event series, which first launched in 2018 and was held largely virtually a year ago, will be held in-person this year. “With the number of vaccinations going up and the number of infections going down, we think it’s time to regain this small piece of normalcy,” said Mayor Frank Auman. “I think it is important that patrons read up on the CDC guidance on mask wearing, especially as all three of these events will be held outdoors.” The Summer of Fun kicks off on June 4 with the beloved Movie on Main, this year featuring the classic musical “Grease.” That will be followed by the July 3 Celebration of Independence and Fireworks Spectacular. The fireworks show, which will launch from downtown Tucker, will feature live bands, plus the traditional playing of the national anthem and “God Bless America.” The
summer will wrap up on August 3 with National Night Out hosted at Midvale Elementary School. Photo courtesy of City of Tucker
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Kroger Seeks Partnerships with Small Brands and Producers Our Town DeKalb Staff Kroger’s Atlanta Division, which includes Georgia, Eastern Alabama and South Carolina, is working to advance supplier inclusion by helping small brands and producers learn how to establish and grow retail partnerships through Kroger’s Small Business Resource Guide. “In 2020, Kroger achieved $4.1 billion in diverse supplier spend, representing an increase of 21% versus a year ago,” says Felix Turner, manager of corporate affairs for Kroger’s Atlanta Division. Tucker is home to several small brands, such as “Our goal is to reach $10 Royal Thanaka beauty products. billion in diverse supplier spend by 2030. We are excited about the Small Business Resource Guide – and its potential to help us achieve this goal by more deeply engaging with small businesses as they seek to expand.” The recently released guide shares best practices on product development, pricing, supply chain, promotion, research and preparation, outreach, and partnership development. The guide also features success spotlights from companies like Cacique, 4Sisters Rice, TrueChoicePack, and True Shea. Kroger currently works with more than 1,600 diverse suppliers, ranging from food and beverage to health and beauty. Last year, Kroger introduced 107 new diverse suppliers, a 91% increase versus 2019. Of these suppliers, five played a leading role in supplying Kroger personal protective equipment during the peak of the COVID-19 public health crisis. The Small Business Resource Guide is part of Kroger’s Framework for Action: Diversity, Equity & Inclusion plan, featuring steps developed in collaboration with associates and leaders to accelerate and promote greater change in the workplace and in the communities it serves. It is available through a free download at thekrogerco.com/wp-content/ uploads/2021/05/Small-Business-ResourceGuide.pdf.
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