Smart Choices on Smog Season Safety

Rebecca Watts Hull, of Mothers & Others for Clean Air, on how to reduce children's exposure to pollution during smog season.

When parents think about summertime in metro Atlanta, they probably picture relaxed evenings at the ball field, the laughter of children at neighborhood swimming pools, outdoor barbecues…. Unfortunately for Atlanta parents, summertime also signals ozone season, when intense sunlight and heat converts a mixture of tailpipe and power plant emissions with other chemicals resulting in unhealthy smog. The realization that many kids are not getting enough time playing outdoors and growing awareness of childhood obesity has encouraged many parents to look for outdoor summer options for their kids, from park-based day camps to outdoor summer jobs. Young children playing at home are encouraged to “go play outside!” which a growing body of research …

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Letters To The Editor

Spring Cleaning for a Good Cause

A day of service in Tucker for women with developmental disabilities.

Spring cleaning was the focus of a recent service project conducted by employees of Kaiser Permanente's Atlanta office. HealthConnect, the company's electronic medical records department, partnered with DeKalb Community Service Board (CSB) to volunteer for their day of service at a group home for women with developmental disabilities in Tucker.   The volunteers painted inside, cleaned the carpet and brought new housewares. In addition to raking leaves, cleaning gutters, and removing ivy from trees they also refreshed the sunroom by staining the wood furniture and buying new cushions. The residential manager at the LaVista Road facility is Janet Hawkins, who said, "This means the world to the ladies! We thank the Kaiser employees for the …

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Letters To The Editor

Tucker Middle Band Visits Washington, D.C.

Band performs at the Martin Luther King Memorial and gets a Congressional Proclamation.

I'm Lawrence Jennings, Director of Bands at Tucker Middle School. I would like to share some exciting news with you with hopes that you can post it in the Patch. On Thursday March 29, 88 students and 16 parents met at Tucker Middle School at 10 p.m. and loaded two charter buses to travel to Washington DC. The students were members of the Tucker Middle School Symphonic Band, Orchestra and Chorus. We arrived in Washington Thursday at noon and toured Union Station followed by a tour of the US Postal Museum. Later that evening we went to dinner at Buca di Beppo, an Italian resturant. After dinner we celebrated our arrival with a directors' party in the hotel ballroom. What I really want to share with you is the opportunity we had to perform at…

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New Tucker Farmers Market Starts Thursday

Opening tomorrow at 4 p.m. just off Main Street.

It’s officially springtime in Tucker. The first Tucker Farmers Market will take place Thursday, April 5, from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. in the Bank of America parking lot. It will be visible from Main Street, at 2333 Main Street. And this is just the first of many — Tucker Farmers Market will be hosting vendors of fresh, local produce, prepared foods, and homemade bath and body products every first and third Thursday from April to October. So look for it again April 19! The Tucker Farmers Market was started by Nancy Qarmout and Leanne O’Rear, owners of FeSTiVaL Unique Gifts and Fine Art. As small business owners and festival vendors themselves (hence the store’s name!), they are passionate about enabling other small business owners to reach more …

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Tucker Book Club Meets Local Author

Winner of the Indie Books List “Book of the Month” award joins local readers.