Author: On Common Ground News

DECATUR—A coalition of African-American faith leaders joined AME Bishop Reginald Jackson today (May 3) to hold a prayer rally and in the rain at The Home Depot on Snapfinger Woods Drive in Decatur. The demonstration was part of a national boycott against The Home Depot by faith leaders from across Georgia in response to voter legislation signed into law earlier this year by Gov. Brian Kemp The faith leaders say the legislation significantly diminishes the ability to request and submit absentee ballots, minimalizes voting opportunities across the state, makes it a crime to offer food or water to…

By Mark Brock Athletics Specialist DCSD   A combined 22 athletes and four relay teams from the DeKalb County School District’s (DCSD)Lakeside and Tucker boys’ and girls’ track and field teams are headed to the Class 6A Sectional B at Barron Stadium in Rome on Saturday (May 8) after their performances in the recent Region 4-6A Track and Field Championships at Godfrey Stadium.   The Lady Tigers finished third overall with 74 points behind Westlake (237.5) and North Atlanta (109.5) while Lakeside came in fifth (61).   Tucker’s Katelyn Mendoza lead the way with a gold in the discus (85.05.50)…

Gov. Kemp approves $1 million in grant funding to bolster tourism across variety of digital + print media ATLANTA— Explore Georgia, the state tourism office within the Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD), announced several new initiatives today(May 3) to increase visitation and support tourism recovery in the state. During a virtual event held at the Georgia Aquarium, Explore Georgia launched a new marketing campaign, ‘Ready. Set. Georgia.,’ unveiled the latest ‘2021 Explore Georgia Official State Travel Guide,’ and highlighted $1 million in new grant and co-op opportunities for the tourism industry made possible by Gov. Brian P. Kemp’s amended FY21…

Congressman Hank Johnson (GA-04) announced the winners of his 2021 Congressional Arts Competition and awarded four college scholarships worth a total of $35,000 on April 24 in a virtual ceremony. In this year’s competition, there were more than 36 entries from nine high schools in DeKalb, Rockdale, Newton and Gwinnett counties. The Grand Prize Winner was Jacqueline Campos-Zarare, a junior at Brookwood High School. Campos-Zarare won a $12,000 scholarship to Savannah College of Art & Design (SCAD) for her work “Somos Uno.” Campos-Zarare’s winning piece will be displayed in the U.S. Capitol, where it will hang with other award winners…

STONECREST, GA—Stoney and Pebbles may sound like family members of The Flintstones, the animated 1960s comical sitcom about a Stone Age family. But they’re not. Stoney, who weighs about 500 pounds, and Pebbles, who weighs about 350 pounds, are the newest members to join The Mall at Stonecrest security team. Mall officials introduced the two robots during a press conference held today (April 29) at the lower-level Dillard’s court. Patricia Edge, general manager of The Mall At Stonecrest, said the robots are being utilized in conjunction with several security upgrades, in addition to the mall’s continued partnership with the DeKalb…

Starting Monday, May 3, DeKalb County Public Library will offer one-hour book browsing appointments. Prior to entry, each patron must submit to a temperature screening and proper face coverings will be required. Patrons are encouraged to use self-checkout machines where available. Contact-free pickup for materials will transition to “grab-n-go,” where patrons can pick up their items inside the branch. Please call ahead to notify staff before arriving to pick up items. For more information, visit www.dekalblibrary.org

“Educational sessions by Wellpath, our inmate health services provider, have helped inmates make informed decisions about taking advantage of this opportunity while in our custody,” says DeKalb Sheriff Melody M. Maddox. “Requests for the vaccine are increasing daily.” Currently, there are no positive cases of COVID-19 among inmates in custody at the DeKalb County Jail. Since the beginning of the pandemic, there have been 284 positive cases among inmates and 125 cases among employees and vendors. The jail imposes a temporary housing quarantine on new arrestees as a precautionary measure before they can interact with other inmates. There have been…

ROCKDALE COUNTY, GA—The Rockdale County Sheriff’s Office has invited some local citizens to participate on Thursday (April 29) in its first training using the new Ti RECON CORE simulator. The training aide provides deputies with reality-based scenarios on a screen, allowing them to move in a room at 90-degree angles. “This will give citizens of Rockdale County a firsthand look into the split-second demands on law enforcement decisions in tense, uncertain, and rapidly evolving situations that require the human performance aspect of cognitive neuroscience and human psychology and are considered as a part of police and law enforcement methodology,” the…

By Mark Brock DCSD Athletics Specialist The 2021 GHSA State Baseball Playoffs begin on Wednesday (April 28) with eight DeKalb County School District programs competing and four with home best-of-three series. Druid Hills (16-7) opens Class 4A hosting Northwest Whitefield (20-9) in a doubleheader on Wednesday at 3:30 pm at Druid Hills Middle School. The Red Devils have not won a playoff series since 2003. A third game, if necessary, would be at the same site at 4:30 pm on Thursday. In other Class 4A action, the Stephenson Jaguars (9-7) hit the road to Ringgold to face Heritage-Catoosa (22-7)…