The Sports Pig

Here’s a claim from the authors of a new traffic report that Gwinnett drivers likely won’t argue with: Spaghetti Junction is the pits when it comes to congestion.

The American Transportation Research Institute released its list of the worst traffic bottlenecks in the U.S., and Spaghetti Junction — officially known as the interchange for Interstates 85 and 285 — made the top 5. In fact, it’s listed as the fourth worst traffic bottleneck in America.

Officially, the list looks at the worst bottlenecks for trucks, but in reality, congestion affects commuters just as much as truck drivers.

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Gwinnett-based Rainbow Village, a nonprofit dedicated to transforming the lives of families experiencing homelessness, recently announced the addition of three new board members.

The new members are Deon Tucker, Susie Collat and Deborah Latham. Deon Tucker is Georgia Power’s Metro North Regional Director. She leads the company’s external affairs activities for DeKalb, North Fulton, Gwinnett and Rockdale counties. In addition to her new role with Rainbow Village, Tucker serves on the board of directors for the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce, Council for Quality Growth, Georgia Gwinnett College Foundation and Gwinnett Technical College.

Susie Collat is the former owner of two highly successful businesses — Mayer Electric Supply Company, Inc. and Peachtree Awnings. Rainbow Village officials said she has a non-traditional perspective of retirement as she shifts her view from the corporate world to her community. In addition to serving as a Rainbow Village Board Member, she currently serves on the advisory board of the Special Needs Schools of Gwinnett Board of Directors — where she was president for five years.

Deborah Latham, who is newly retired, founded Georgia Tank Lines in 1996. As CEO, she helped fuel the expansion of her trucking company that transported gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, and ethanol.

In addition to her new role on the Rainbow Village board, Deborah has served on the boards of various nonprofit organizations — including National Association of Women Business Owners, Visions Anew and Good Mews, among others.

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The human remains found in Gwinnett this week were those of a teen who went missing last summer. 

The Mitzubishi Electric Classic returns to SugarLoaf this spring.

And Eric Godfrey has been named the North Gwinnett Head football coach weeks after leaving Parkview. 

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Gwinnett police said the human remains located Monday on Georgia Highway 316 near the Barrow County line were identified as Susana Morales, a 16-year-old who went missing from Norcross last summer.

Police said the remains were discovered around 6:30 Monday evening off Highway 316 between Downing Creek and the Barrow County line. Morales was reported as missing on July 26, 2022, police said.

A passerby discovered the human remains in the woods on Monday, and called police. Detectives and CSI responded to the scene, according to police officials, and the Gwinnett Medical Examiners’ office took possession of the remains, identifying them as Morales.

Detectives are investigating the manner and cause of death of Morales.

Gwinnett Clean and Beautiful and the Gwinnett County Department of Water Resources will hold a Household Hazardous Waste Collection Day on Saturday, giving county residents an opportunity to safely dispose of household waste items that is dangerous and requires careful handling.

The collection day will be held from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. at the Gwinnett County Fairgrounds, which is located at 2405 Sugarloaf Parkway in Lawrenceville. Residents will be able to bring hazardous household waste items to the fairgrounds and drop them off for free during the event. During the biannual Household Hazardous Waste Collection Days in 2022, 161,874 pounds of hazardous materials were dropped off by 1,422 Gwinnett residents. Those materials were diverted from ending up in landfills because of the events.

The long list of materials that people can drop off during the event ranges from automotive fluids, auto batteries, pesticides, and cooking oil and grease to mercury, paint strippers, cleaners, spray paint, and flammable fluids.

In all cultures, food is a way to connect with others when it is shared. The meal is a staple feature that encourages understanding, cooperation and togetherness.

Georgia Gwinnett College is harnessing that concept to celebrate its differences and to promote diversity, equity and inclusion in the higher education space through a series of dinners that began February 1. The dinners will continue weekly through March 2. Each week, a different school within the college will host the dinners featuring guest speakers from GGC and the community. Each speaker will discuss topics such as inclusive education practices; challenges, activism and advocacy; and creating an inclusive mindset in dealing with generational differences.

Dr. Maria Fernandez attended the first dinner where guest speaker Dr. Marshall Shepherd, from the University of Georgia, led a discussion about inequities associated with climate change. She thought it was a great first step towards introducing diverse perspectives on various topics.

 Gwinnett resident David Post has spent more than half of his life in law enforcement, and for the past quarter century he’s been dedicated to providing assistance to the families of police officers who are killed in the line of duty.

The Suwanee resident established his own security company in 1973 and served as a sworn reserve deputy for the Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office from 1974 until his retirement in 2021. He currently serves as chairman of Care For Cops, which was established in 1999 by the Metropolitan Atlanta Crime Commission and now is a nonprofit serving law enforcement families in Georgia.

Post said that to date, Care For Cops has provided assistance to more than 90 families. He noted that while assistance is immediate, it’s also short-term, although certain situations might involve additional benefits. In the early years of Care For Cops, fundraisers consisted of police-escorted motorcycle rides from Stone Mountain to Lake Lanier Islands, where a day of activities, competitions, food and music were offered. After a few years, the nonprofit raised money through golf tournaments, and Care For Cops’ present fundraising tool is 5K races. The next Care For Cops 5K is set for 8 a.m. on Saturday, March 25 at the Suwanee Town Center. Another 5K is scheduled for September.

Pêche (Pesh) is the newest restaurant at The Forum Peachtree Corners.

The restaurant is located at 5155 Peachtree Pkwy. Ste. 320 Peachtree Corners in the former location of Grace 1720.

The restaurant will have a "soft opening" this week with the official ribbon cutting ceremony scheduled for today.

The restaurant is self described as "modern coastal" and will emphasize fresh seafood entrees. They will continue to refine the menu this week, but included with the restaurant photos is a draft of the menu to give you an idea of what will be offered.

The restaurant group behind Pêche is the same that opened Stäge Peachtree Corners in 2021.

Gwinnett County officials will apply for two U.S. Department of Transportation RAISE grants, worth up to $25 million each, for mobility projects in the Gwinnett Place Mall area.

County commissioners voted on Tuesday to apply for the grants, which would be collectively worth $50 million. The RAISE grants are available under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law that went into effect last year.

One grant would help cover much of the cost to expand the Gwinnett Place Transit Center. The other grant would cover a significant portion of the cost for a multi-use path that will connect the soon-to-be-redeveloped Gwinnett Place Mall property with McDaniel Farm Park. The grants are part of ongoing efforts to revitalize the Gwinnett Place area. The county finalized its purchase of most of the area’s namesake mall in 2021 and plans are on the table for a mixed-use redevelopment that would include a cultural center, existing and new retail, green space and residential uses among other amenities.

The county has also been planning to overhaul and expand its transit center at the mall for years, gradually acquiring land for that project.

If Gwinnett’s grant application concerning the center is approved, the U.S. Department of Transportation would provide $25 million for the project while the county would provide a local match of $6.25 million.

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Gwinnett police said the human remains located Monday on Georgia Highway 316 near the Barrow County line were identified as Susana Morales, a 16-year-old who went missing from Nocross last summer.

Police said the remains were discovered around 6:30 Monday evening off Highway 316 between Downing Creek and the Barrow County line. Morales was reported as missing on July 26, 2022, police said.

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A driver was killed Sunday night when the vehicle they were driving left a roadway and hit a mobile home in Buford, injuring the people inside, according to Gwinnett County police.

Master Police Officer Hideshi Valle said Jordan Gonzalez was driving west on Horizon Parkway when he was unable to stay on the road as he was approaching Boulder Way. The intersection is located in the Countryside of Gwinnett mobile home community.

Gonzalez's vehicle went into the front yard of a mobile home on Boulder Way and hit a tree before slamming into another mobile home located down the street. The police department's Accident Investigation Unit is handling the investigation into the accident. Valle said in addition to the car's collision with the mobile home, debris from the vehicle and the tree also hit three vehicles that were parked in the driveway of the second mobile home.

When Gwinnett County Police Chief J.D. McClure saw the video of Memphis police officers beating Tyre Nichols, it stirred feelings he had not felt in more than 30 years.

McClure said the video of Nichols being beaten and sustaining injuries that he later died from shocked and upset him.

When was the last time he felt that upset over a video from a police beating? It was the video of Los Angeles police beating Rodney King in 1991 — although McClure said the Nichols video was worse. McClure, along wit other law enforcement personnel discussed issues facing law enforcement and how they have tried to make inroads in the community during the panel at the Gas South District Speakers series. Fox 5 anchor Courtney Bryan moderated the panel discussion. The panel discussed tools, such as an ATF database that Gwinnett police have used to help discover links between gun-wielding people they have arrested and crimes in other states, as well as outreach efforts to young people — such as the Sheriff’s Cup football game — to try prevent kids from being lured into joining gangs.

But, the event was held weeks after the death of Nichols, with news about Memphis police officers being fired and charged with crimes stemming from the incident coming out since then. Near the end of the panel discussion, Bryant asked the panelists about the Nichols case. GBI Director Michael Register stated that it angered him, and that few get more angry about seeing police brutality than those who have to get up and put on the uniform the next day and try to rebuild the trust in police that has been eroded. McClure offered an apology despite the incident happening in Memphis, and talked about how these officers actions undermined the trust that police have tried to rebuild nationwide in light of various police brutality issues.

Georgia lawmakers want to increase the sentence for gang recruitment activities as part of a tough-on-crime push under the Gold Dome this legislative session.

A new state Senate bill would increase the penalties for recruiting someone to join a gang or participate in gang activity through mandatory minimum sentencing guidelines that judges would have to follow in most cases.

Sponsored by Senator Bo Hatchett Senate Bill 44 has the backing of Governor Brian Kemp and Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones. The bill requires judges to impose at least a five-year prison sentence for violation of the law. If the person who has been recruited to the gang is under 17 years of age or has a disability, the mandatory minimum penalty is steeper — at least 10 years for the first offense.

The legislation provides some exceptions to the mandatory minimum sentences, including if the accused has not already been convicted of a felony or if the judge decides that “the interests of justice will not be served.” It also provides an exception to the minimum sentencing rules if the accused helps with identifying and convicting other gang members.

Not everyone agrees that the bill’s sentences for gang recruitment would help solve Georgia’s crime problem.

Senate Democrats would prefer to reduce the number of guns on the street in Georgia and increase community investments in mental health and violence-prevention programs, according to a legislative agenda released Tuesday.  The bill has a strong shot of success in what has been a slow start to the legislative session. Twenty-two Senate Republicans have signed on as co-sponsors.

 The top-seeded Georgia Gwinnett College men’s tennis team couldn’t capitalize on early victories in suffering a 4-3 loss to Number 2 seed Keiser University of Florida in a down-the-wire final of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association’s inaugural NAIA Indoor Championship on Sunday night in Overland Park, Kansas.

The loss ends the Grizzlies’ historic 173-match winning streak, which had been the longest active winning streak in collegiate sports and the history of collegiate tennis. Those winning ways spanned seven undefeated seasons and dual matches since April 3, 2015.

On the women’s side, The Georgia Gwinnett College women’s tennis team valiantly fought to the bitter end, nearly completing a dramatic singles comeback in a 4-3 loss to Keiser University during Sunday’s championship match of the Intercollegiate Athletic Association’s inaugural NAIA Indoor Championship.

The finale featured a matchup of the NAIA’s top two teams, which also happened to be the top two seeds in the weekend tournament. Sunday’s loss ended the Grizzlies’ 63-match winning streak, dating back to March 27, 2019.

The two teams look to start new winning streaks this weekend. The GGC women will host Emory at the GGC Tennis facility on Saturday, while the men will be hosting The Citadel.

Gwinnett Technical College recently named Amber Walden, Humanities Program Director, the school's Rick Perkins Instructor of the Year.

Walden, who was born and raised in Gwinnett County, now lives in Lawrenceville. She is an active member of the local arts scene and is currently organizing and developing a L.A.R.P. (or live-action role play) organization. Walden said she discovered her love of teaching during a graduate assistantship and quickly found that she loved teaching. Her passion, she said, is helping students to learn, grow, achieve, and succeed. The Rick Perkins Award for Excellence in Technical Instruction began in 1991 and is designed to recognize and honor technical college instructors who contribute significantly to technical education through innovation and leadership in their fields.

Less than two weeks after stepping down at Parkview, Eric Godfree is a Gwinnett head football coach again.

Godfree was announced Tuesday as the head coach at North Gwinnett, where he replaces the outgoing Bill Stewart. Stewart left North to become an analyst on the Georgia Tech football coaching staff.

Godfree accepted the North job when he resigned from Parkview, but the two sides couldn’t make the hire official until Tuesday when the Gwinnett County Public Schools’ school-to-school transfer window opened. Before taking the North job, Godfree had deep ties to Parkview, his alma mater. He was a Parkview assistant from 1999-2003 and spent the last nine seasons as head coach of the Lilburn school, going 70-37. He won two region titles in that span and led three of his teams to the state quarterfinals, including one Final Four team.

Parkview features a large number of Georgia’s top underclassmen recruits and figures to be one of the state’s top teams next season, but Godfree couldn’t pass up the opportunity at North. Godfree, a 1994 Parkview grad who played college football at Presbyterian, spent 10 years as head coach at Loganville before being hired at Parkview to replace legendary coach Cecil Flowe. His wife, Jenell, was formerly head volleyball coach at Parkview, and his daughters Jordan (a 2021 Parkview grad) and Brooke (a Parkview senior) played volleyball at the school. The couple’s youngest child, son Jacob, is a rising ninth-grader who plays football.

While Godfree said he wasn’t looking to leave Parkview when North reached out, the timing works out well for his family with his middle daughter graduating Parkview in May and his son entering high school in August.

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Wesleyan’s swimming and diving teams swept the Class AAA-A state championships Saturday night at Georgia Tech’s McAuley Aquatic Center.

The Wolves claimed the girls state title with 300 points, finishing ahead of runner-up St. Vincent’s Academy’s 282. Whitefield Academy was a distant third at 215. Hebron Christian’s girls, with five swimmers, tied for 11th with 70 points.

Wesleyan’s boys scored 252 points to top second-place Whitefield Academy and North Cobb Christian. Providence Christian’s boys took fourth at 193. Hattie Wasmuth starred for the Wesleyan girls with two individual state championships — the 200-yard individual medley in 2 minutes, 6.03 seconds and the 500 freestyle in 5:10.93. She also joined Vivian Hosier, Ansley Chapman and Caroline Stewart on a state title-winning 400 free relay. Wesleyan’s boys team won both the 200 free relay and the 400 free relay.

Many Gwinnett Chamber board presidents get it easy during their year leading the Board of Directors.

They may serve during a year when the chamber is taking on a major initiative or a leadership change, but, in the grand scheme of things, it’s nothing overly daunting.

Tammy Shumate, on the other hand, got to be board president in 2020, a.k.a the year a global pandemic hit and shut everything down. While that might sound like a tough time to be the board’s president, Shumate said it was a good experience in retrospect. She said she learned a lot in a short time, although the experience was similar  to “drinking from a firehouse” as Tammy put it. Tammy Shumate — who is the director of corporate development at her husband, Greg’s, company, Capital City Home Loans LLC — was feted at the Gwinnett Chamber’s 75th Annual Dinner at the Gas South District on Friday night as she was named the chamber’s Citizen of the Year. She strode up to the stage to accept her award while Shania Twain’s “Man! I Feel Like a Woman” played over the sound system. She picked the song out herself. Shumate has been involved with the Gwinnett Chamber for more than a decade. She estimated she has been on its Board of Directors for about at least 15 years.

Wherever you needed him, the late Scott Cramer was there.

Cramer spent the past 18 years as a basketball official with the Multi-County Basketball Officials Association based out of Gwinnett and Forsyth Counties and the longtime Lawrenceville resident was honored in between basketball games at Archer High School Friday night. He passed away unexpectedly last August at the age of 55, leaving a void in the community.

The decorated official had the honor of refereeing two state championship games in 2019 and 2021, but what he prided himself the most on was helping others. He spent countless hours training officials and served as the association's vice president of training up until his passing. Archer was the perfect place to honor Cramer. While he never got to referee a game there, it was at the school where his two daughters graduated. He also spent many Friday nights watching the Tigers football team from the stands. Cramer started his passion for officiating in college. He attended Western Illinois University and started officiating parks and recreation games as a freshman. A year later, he was working local high school games in the area and honing in on his craft.

After moving to Georgia, Cramer became a member of the MCBOA and remained with the organization. From parks and recreation games to high school games, Cramer went anywhere he was asked. Many of Cramer’s friends and fellow officials spoke Friday night, remember a good friend and someone who was always enthusiastic about his job, even training the young officials.

Gwinnett firefighters battled a fire at a large home located at the River Club in Suwanee Sunday morning for about two hours before extinguishing it.

Fire officials said firefighters responded at 3:35 a.m. to a neighbor’s report of a house fire in the River Club gated community. The 911 caller advised entire front of the home was on fire, fire officials said. On arrival, crews found a large 9,000 square-foot, two-story residence on a basement that was fully involved throughout the main portion of the home. Within two hours, firefighters had knocked down the main body of fire, Wilson said. Crews remained on scene for another five hours dousing hotspots and applying foam to smoldering areas. The home was completely gutted and is total loss. No injuries were reported. 

A fire investigator responded to the scene for origin and cause determination. The cause of the fire is currently undetermined and under investigation. 

According to the private security for the River Club subdivision, the homeowners were out of town.

Gwinnett County officials will give residents several chances in February and early March to learn about the new Ride Gwinnett transit routes and offer feedback on the service.

Ride Gwinnett, which was previously known as Gwinnett County Transit until it was formally renamed in January, will kick off a series of meetings with a virtual session from 9:30 until 11 a.m. on Wednesday.

The meetings come as the transit service prepares to roll out new local service routes that will serve the Snellville, Stone Mountain, Buford and Suwanee areas, adding a new connection to destinations such as the Mall of Georgia. It is also expanding its existing coverage in the Lawrenceville, Lilburn and Duluth areas.

Ride Gwinnett is preparing to roll out microtransit service in Snellville and Lawrenceville as well. Microtransit is a service where residents who live in a microtransit zone can use a mobile phone app to request a Ride Gwinnett shuttle pick them up and take them where they want to go within the designated zones.

Although some meetings will be virtual gatherings, there will be in-person events as well. In all, eight meetings have been scheduled to take place in a span of just over one month. For a complete list of meetings and locations, head over to Gwinnett Daily Post dot com.

Timely hitting was the key as the Number 7-ranked Georgia Gwinnett College baseball team won its opening weekend series with a 5-3 victory against Indiana Wesleyan University on Saturday afternoon at the Grizzly Baseball Complex.

Senior outfielder Blaze O’Saben hit a two-run single in the fourth inning to give the hosts a 3-1 lead. He collected two hits in the contest and registered a base hit in all three games in the series.

Sophomore Braxton Meguiar extended GGC’s lead to 5-1 with an RBI single that scored junior Jon Ponder in the sixth inning. Earlier, Meguiar put the team on the scoreboard with a two-out single in the third inning.

Sophomore starting pitcher Cameron Repetti registered six strikeouts across five strong innings to pick up the victory in his first Grizzly appearance. Junior Kyle Petri followed by striking out five opposing batters across two innings before seniors Jonathan Haab and Garrett Houston each recorded two strikeouts in tossing scoreless eighth and ninth innings. Pitchers for GGC combined for 46 strikeouts during the season-opening series, earning at least 15 strikeouts in each game. The Grizzlies are back in action Friday morning, hosting the #24th ranked Taylor Trojans.

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Gwinnett firefighters battled a fire at a large home located at the River Club in Suwanee Sunday morning for about two hours before extinguishing it.

Fire officials said firefighters responded at 3:35 a.m. to a neighbor’s report of a house fire in the 4700 block of Cuyahoga Cove NW in the River Club gated community. The 911 caller advised entire front of the home was on fire, fire officials said.

On arrival, crews found a large 9,000 square-foot, two-story residence on a basement that was fully involved throughout the main portion of the home, Lt. Justin Wilson said. 

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https://www.milb.com/gwinnett 

https://www.fernbankmuseum.org/ 

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The Maxwell Football Club named Mill Creek standout Caleb Downs on Thursday as the 2022 Maxwell Football Club National High School Player of the Year.

Downs starred on offense and defense last season as Mill Creek won the Class AAAAAAA state championship, the program’s first. The Hawks finished 14-1 with a No. 11 ranking nationally in the final MaxPreps Top 25. In a state finals win over Carrollton, the 6-foot, 190-pounder made 13 tackles and rushed for three touchdowns.

He finished the season with 83 tackles, five interceptions (two for TDs) and 10 passes defensed on defense, in addition to rushing 57 times for 383 yards and 20 TDs and catching 36 passes for 422 yards and three TDs on offense.

Downs graduated in December and enrolled early at Alabama, where the five-star recruit is expected to contribute immediately at safety. Downs joins past winners of the Maxwell high school honor that include Bryce Young, Trevor Lawrence and Derrick Henry.

Gwinnett County government and local tourism officials are investing half-a-million dollars in COVID recovery funds in efforts to improve security around county attractions and hotels, and to support arts recovery and film education programs.

The county announced the $500,000 investment that government and Explore Gwinnett officials will make into the programs on Thursday. The goal is to use the Coronavirus Local Fiscal Recovery funds to boost areas in the hospitality and tourism industry that were hurt by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The funds were made available to the county as a result of the American Rescue Plan Act.

There are three main areas that the funding will be spent on, including film education and training programs for high school students, a program to support nonprofit arts groups and efforts to improve security at the Gas South District District, Coolray Field and more than 100 hotels in the county.

The long-awaited return of the Hometown Holiday Parade is among the highlights included in the city of Lawrenceville’s 2023 events calendar, which was released in late January and includes nearly two dozen events.

The parade, which has not been held for several years due to the COVID pandemic, is scheduled for Saturday, December 2.

Also planned is the two-day “Around the World in the DTL” celebration, providing a variety of culturally-rich experiences and events in the city’s collaboration with the Atlanta International Nigh Market.

Also, the “Cultura Fiesta Latina” returns in 2023, offering a Latin heritage festival filled with food, dancing and music during National Hispanic Heritage Month. In addition, the “Live in the DTL” concert on June 16 will take place on the Lawrenceville Lawn as part of the Juneteenth Celebration.

The city will tip its collective cap to law enforcement during National Police Week in May with “Light Lawrenceville Blue” and on March 10 the Lawrenceville Legacy Leaders Youth Council will presents it inaugural youth-organized mental health awareness event on the Lawrenceville Lawn.

Events in the city are free to attend (although some may require pre-registration due to space limitations) and sponsorships starting at $500 are available.

Legislation establishing regulations for the fast-growing third-party food delivery industry in Georgia has been introduced in the General Assembly.

Senate Bill 34 is an outgrowth of a Senate study committee chaired by Sen. Elena Parent, D-Atlanta, that held several meetings last summer and fall to talk about an industry that has no federal oversight and only patchwork state and local regulations.

Third-party food delivery was virtually non-existent before the pandemic closed restaurants to in-person dining. Apps including Uber Eats and DoorDash sprang up so quickly and grew so rapidly that health regulators couldn’t catch up, resulting in complaints from customers of unsanitary practices.

The industry also ran afoul of restaurant owners, who complained third-party food deliverers were running ads featuring their names without authorization, touting relationships that didn’t exist. Senate Bill 34 would put an end to such practices in Georgia, prohibiting third-party food companies from advertising non-existent connections with restaurants and requiring them to enter into contracts with restaurants before picking up and delivering food from those facilities.

The legislation also would require vehicles used for third-party food delivery to be clean. No smoking or vaping would be allowed inside delivery vehicles, and pets would be prohibited unless they are service animals.

Food containers delivered via a thirty party would have to be closed, sealed and tamper resistant. Thermal containers would be required when necessary to keep food at the proper temperature.

Parent’s bill has bipartisan cosponsors, including Republican Sens. John Albers of Roswell and Frank Ginn of Danielsville. Democratic cosponsors include Sens. Harold Jones of Augusta and Sally Harrell of Atlanta.

Fernbank Museum continues to celebrate its 30th Anniversary this year with special exhibits, giant screen films, themed Discovery Days, nighttime nature adventures in WildWoods: AGLOW, Fernbank After Dark adult science nights and more.

Fernbank kicked off the year with the new giant screen film, “Fungi: Web of Life,” which opened on January 7. This film follows scientists to forests in Tasmania and China as they search for unique lifeforms, including bioluminescent mushrooms, that could help solve some of humanity’s most urgent problems. “Wings Over Water” opened on February 4 in the Giant Screen Theater. Audiences can fly alongside three different types of birds as they defy the odds and migrate to America’s largely unknown but awe-inspiring prairie wetlands. Guests will learn about the science of navigation, flyways, bird behaviors and this unique ecosystem. February will offer a vivid immersion into the science of color in the new special exhibit “The Nature of Color,” which opens Feb 11. “The Nature of Color” offers an in-depth exploration of the way color carries information in nature, including how organisms use it to find food, warn off predators and reproduce.

The exhibit also delves into the use of color across cultures, where different colors can signal a wide range of meanings, impact emotions and ultimately influence the society around us.

For more information head over to Fernbank dot org.

“I billed myself as a triple threat: attorney, author, and artist,” Darryl Hines, one of Tannery Row Artist Colony’s newest members, said. Yet at the “tender age” of 72, Hines finds himself totally immersed in one of these talents — creating works of visual art.

Hines has accomplished many things in his life, but art has been a constant “companion” that never left him. His journey to Tannery Row has been filled with experiences, an array of talents, a variety of schools and study, and successful careers outside the art world. Growing up in Cleveland, Ohio, his parents recognized his talents at as young as five. However, he was unsure about making a living in the art world. Utlimately, he started a law firm while commuting back and forth to Atlanta to support his wife’s broadcast career. While helping his son start a t-shirt company, his love for art was rekindled. In August of 2020, Hines enrolled at the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) and earned his MFA in 2022. “At the tender age of 72, I returned to metro Atlanta. Finding a studio space led me to Tannery Row at the suggestion of Carolyn Wright, formerly of The Lona Gallery in Lawrenceville.” He finds the atmosphere at Tannery Row encouraging. Hines has gained the interest of collectors like Hollywood filmmaker Michael Sherman who sits on the boards of the Baltimore Museum of Art and the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles.

Hines is hoping to spark interest in gallery owners and museums in Atlanta and elsewhere, pursuing several artist residencies and fellowships, and hoping to teach art as an adjunct professor.

If one is lucky, visitors might catch Hines in his area of Tannery Row, located at 554 West Main Street in Buford.

For more information be sure to visit www.bgpodcastnetwork.com

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https://www.foxtheatre.org/ 

https://guideinc.org/ 

https://www.psponline.com/ 

https://www.kiamallofga.com/ 

https://www.milb.com/gwinnett 

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North Gwinnett's girls' swim team won their first state title; Bryan Adams is coming to Gwinnet with Joan Jett; And South Gwinnett students won a national business competition. 

For more information be sure to visit www.bgpodcastnetwork.com

https://www.lawrencevillega.org/ 

https://www.foxtheatre.org/ 

https://guideinc.org/ 

https://www.psponline.com/ 

https://www.kiamallofga.com/ 

https://www.milb.com/gwinnett 

https://www.fernbankmuseum.org/ 

www.atlantagladiators.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.