Author: On Common Ground News

https://youtu.be/3mvVOR9Qcp8 A processional led by hearses circled the Georgia Capitol today in protest of Gov. Brian Kemp’s order to reopen Georgia’s businesses and his order to rescind his sheltering in place mandate. Kemp is lifting the sheltering in place for all Georgians except the fragile and elderly on Friday. Protestors fear that reopening too soon is going to result in more covid-19 deaths.

Scammers are surfing the web pretending to be someone they’re not and their using stolen identities to send out messages for things like a great new cure for COVID-19, a fundraising request or perhaps a discount on toilet paper, face masks and sanitizers. The Better Business Bureau(BBB) is warning the public to be on the lookout for scams on social media. How the Scam Works While scrolling through Facebook, a message pops up in Facebook Messenger. It’s your friend, family member, or neighbor. At least it “looks” like them because the profile picture matches. From here, the conversation goes one…

Georgia Governor’s Honors Program 2020 canceled due to COVID-19 Plans underway to publicly honor the 659 finalists  It’s been a tough year for high school seniors. They’ve missed out on their proms, graduations and other end-of-the-school-year activities due the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, some may miss out on summer events as well. The 2020 Georgia Governor’s Honors Program is one of the milestone events that won’t take place this year. The program, which was scheduled June 14-to July 11 at Berry College in Rome, GA,  will be cancelled for the first time since its inception in 1964 due to the virus.…

The Division of School and District Effectiveness at the Georgia Department of Education provided an opportunity for districts to compete for a one time grant to support state- identified Comprehensive Support and Improvement (CSI), digital learning resources. The DeKalb County School District has been awarded $3,836, 800 from the Georgia Department of Education’s Digital Learning Grant to assist 25 schools in the county. Based on the technology needs survey and evidence-based research, the identified schools will receive grant funds to purchase devices for students in grades Pre-K- 5, Wi-Fi hotspots, and instructional software programs along with professional development. The…

The DeKalb County Sheriff’s Fugitive Unit, working with the Cobb County Police Department, arrested a second suspect on April 29 in the murder armed robbery of an Atlanta man. Eliyahu Benyamin, 19, and a 15-year-old, whose identity is being withheld because he is a juvenile, have been charged in connection with the shooting death of Reeves Vadorian McSwain, 21. Investigators said Benyamin and the juvenile  took money intended for the purchase of a weapon from the victim and shot him. Benyamin facilitated the shooting death of the victim, which took place on Longdale Drive in Decatur on April 22. According…

Video and photos by Glenn L. Morgan/On Common Ground News Pictured are firefighters at Station 24, 4154 Redan Road, Stone Mountain. https://youtu.be/QdqVWqB3bXo Transforming Faith Church delivers free lunches to DeKalb firefighters during COVID-19 pandemic    STONE MOUNTAIN—DeKalb County’s former CEO Lee May, pastor of Transforming Faith Church, was on the frontlines today—delivering lunches to firefighters at four stations May made stops at Stations 4, 16, 20 and 24, setting up a table where he and volunteers passed out chef-prepared lunches. Firefighters were able to choose from fish, chicken and steak meals. May said he wanted to serve those who…

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On April 24, Rep. Hank Johnson (GA-04) joined the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce on its monthly series “On Topic” to address the COVID-19 crisis and outline what the latest coronavirus legislation passed by the House on April 23 means for small businesses, community banks, healthcare facilities and COVID-19 testing.   To watch, click HERE.   Rep. Johnson joined Nick Masino, President & CEO of the Gwinnett Chamber & Partnership Gwinnett and Matt Hyatt, Founder & CEO, Rocket IT.   “Unfortunately, some of the funds allocated to the Paycheck Protection Program in the first CARES Act were made accessible…

                                                                 Photos by Glenn L. Morgan  Will restaurants make a comeback?   Georgia’s dine-in restaurants re-opened on Monday, April 27, but the traffic was sluggish at several spots. In order to reopen, dine-in restaurants must adhere to 39 guidelines under Gov. Brian Kemp’s executive orders, including limiting capacity to no more than 10 patrons per 500 square feet, taking employees’ temperatures and requiring staff to wear face masks at…

City of Stonecrest seeks creative ways to reach its hard-to-count population The U.S. Census Bureau is beginning to send reminder notice postcards to an estimated 69 million households that have not yet responded to the 2020 Census. Households will receive reminder postcards in the mail between April 27-May 9, census officials say. The Census Bureau pushed back the mailing to allow the paper questionnaire package to arrive several days ahead of the postcard. The postcard is one reminder in a series of reminders that the Census Bureau has mailed non-responding households since mid-March urging them to respond. About 53.4%…

The DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office has arrested a Decatur juvenile who was wanted for murder and armed robbery. According to warrants, a 15-year-old is suspected of shooting and causing the death of another person on April 22 in Decatur during an alleged encounter to sell the weapon to the victim. The suspect is also accused of taking money from the victim. The suspect was arrested without incident in Atlanta by sheriff’s investigators before being transported to the DeKalb Criminal Investigation Division. The suspect is booked into the DeKalb County Jail but will be housed at a regional youth detention…