Author: On Common Ground News

DeKalb County’s Fresh on DeK mobile farmers market is gearing up for a new season.  The community is invited to the kickoff on May 19, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the DeKalb County Extension, 4380 Memorial Drive, Decatur. There will be free food, free biometric screenings and prizes, as well as discounted produce while it lasts.  The mobile market was established to provide fresh produce and other goods in “food deserts.” Fresh on DeK is a program of the DeKalb County Cooperative Extension, DeKalb County Government, and the DeKalb County Board of Health.  The Centers for Disease Control and…

The 32nd Annual DeKalb County Senior Olympic Games featuring contestants ages 50 and older will be held May 2 – 11. The kickoff for the games will be Wednesday, May 2, 10 a.m., at Exchange Recreation Center, 2771 Columbia Drive, Decatur. The Olympic-style sports festival will include free-throw basketball, bowling, golf, horseshoes, track and field, billiards, swimming, table tennis and water volleyball. Events will be held at various venues across the county. The DeKalb County Senior Olympic Games, which is open to all residents of DeKalb County as well as residents from surrounding counties, is part of National Older Americans…

Congressman Hank Johnson, District 4, awarded four students scholarships worth $70,000 in the 2018 Congressional Arts Competition. Johnson announced the awards at the Lou Walker Senior Center in Lithonia during a reception for the winners on April 21 Arantza Pena Popo, a junior at Arabia Mountain High School in the city of Stonecrest, was named the grand prize winner. Popo earned a four-year scholarship worth $12,000 a year to attend the Savannah College of Art & Design (SCAD) for her “Cultural Portrait” piece.  Arantza described her work as a “cultural portrait of facial adornment from different cultures.” The Stone Mountain…

by Mackenzie N. Morgan Dr. Antoinette G. Alvarado has called on a chess champion to share success strategies with students at the Alpha School in Rockdale County on April 30.  Orrin “Checkmate” Hudson, founder of Be Someone Inc., in Stone Mountain, will lay the foundation for the screening of the film, “Queen of Katwe.” Hudson, a chess champion and motivational speaker, served as a Disney consultant for the movie. Disney picked Hudson, who grew up poor and learned chess from a teacher, a move that forever changed his life. “Queen of Katwe” tells the story of a poor, 10-year-old Ugandan…

LifeLine Animal Project presents our DeKalb County Pet of the Week, Momma.  With Mother’s Day around the corner, Momma would love to celebrate motherhood at home with her new family. This three-year-old girl is the perfect choice for anyone looking for a calm and gentle dog who is good natured.  Momma’s favorite things to do include taking long naps on a comfy dog bed, resting her head in her human’s lap and going for slow walks.  This wonderful girl is great on a leash, never pulls and sticks right by your side.  If Momma sounds like the pup for you,…

By Mark Brock, DCSD Athletics The No. 6 ranked Clarkston Angoras and the Tucker Tigers were the lone bright spots on a night when four DeKalb soccer teams’ seasons would end. The toughest loss would come as the No. 1 ranked Cross Keys Indians (15-2-0) would score an own goal that made the difference in a 2-1 loss to Grady at Adams Stadium on Wednesday night. The two teams played a scoreless first half, but with 34:51 left in the game Eduardo Dimas got behind the Grady defense on a nice pass from Jose Romero to give Cross…

The Office of the DeKalb County District Attorney is hosting a child support ‘settlement’ day for delinquent parents to become financially compliant with their child support court orders. The event will be held on Friday, April 27, between the hours of 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. in the Child Support Enforcement/UIFSA Division of the District Attorney’s Office. Notification letters have already been mailed to eligible parents outlining the amount due and other documents required to be presented in person. Parents who remit proper payments can have their driver’s licenses reinstated, if applicable. Delinquent parents who fail to appear or bring…

By Mark Brock, DCSD Athletics DeKalb County has seven of its 17 playoff teams in action tonight led by the No. 8 ranked Chamblee Lady Bulldogs who host North Springs at North DeKalb at 6:00 pm. Chamblee (12-2-2) rolled through its Region 5-5A schedule 7-0 and outscoring its region opponents 67-0. Juniors Teagan Furbish and Caiah Smith lead the charge for the Lady Bulldogs. Skye Bragan is the leader in goal for the defense. Chamblee is making its 10 consecutive state playoff appearance, but is looking to improve on its 3-9 record. It is the first playoff matchup between…

Atlanta Public Schools can confirm that there was at least one shot fired in the air in the parking lot of Benjamin E. Mays High School (3450 Benjamin E. Mays Dr. SW) this afternoon.  A female student got into a verbal altercation with a male acquaintance, who is not a Mays student, that resulted in the male breaking a car window and the student receiving cuts from the broken glass.  As the male acquaintance drove away, at least one shot was fired into the air in the parking lot.  No other injuries were reported. Several Atlanta Public Schools Police…

Eight students were injured this afternoon in an accident involving a DeKalb County school bus. There were 19 students from Champion Theme School and Cedar Grove Middle School on the bus, officials said. The school bus was soundbound on I-285 near Glenwood when the bus made contact with a tractor trailer, school spokesman Andre Riley said. The students were taken to the hospital and are being checked.