Press Release

DeKalb CSB presents the 6^th Annual Walk of Heroes

4/11/12

Contact: Michelle Potter

Phone: 404-598-7875

Email: info@dekcsb.org

Authors: David Schick, Armond Mortis, Daniel Chadwick, Cameron Johnson

__________________________________________________________

For Immediate Release

                    DeKalb Community Service Board will be hosting a 5K run/walk benefit on Saturday, September 22, 2012 to support and assist citizens with mental health, developmental disabilities, and substance abuse.

                    Early registration is $20 for the general public and $15 for anyone receiving treatment services. On the day of the race, the fee for the general public will be $25 and $20 for those receiving treatment services.

                    “Pre-registration is encouraged because the cost to sign-up on the actual run day will cost more,” said Michelle Potter, DeKalb CSB community relations manager. “This event is going to be very encouraging,” said Cassidy Lee, a participant planning on attending the event. "I missed last years event, so I'm trying to redeem myself by going to this one."

                    This year, the event has moved from its former Decatur location to the Kirkwood Center located in Atlanta’s Kirkwood community. "Although we are no longer allowed to hold the race in Decatur, we chose Kirkwood because it is scenic, family friendly, and showcases a more neighborhood environment,” said Potter.

                    Proceeds of the event will go to the nonprofit organization the Brighter Tomorrows Foundation, a nonprofit organization that works together with the Montgomery County Board of Mental Retardation and Development Disabilities to provide housing, lasting equipment, education, and recreation to those with developmental disabilities.

                    The tentative schedule is 7:45-8:45 a.m. for registration, and 9 a.m. for the start of the 5K walk/run. For an additional $7 fee there will also be a tot trot for kids at 10 a.m. Prizes such as gift cards, medals, and ribbons will be given at the end of the race.

                    For more information about how you can participate or get involved as a sponsor, vendor, or volunteer please contact Michelle Potter at 404-508-7875 or info@dekcsb.org.

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DeKalb CSB is a public, non-profit provider of behavioral healthcare and developmental disabilities services. Our mission is to provide the right services, for the right person, at the right time. 

Georgia Perimeter Bio: Jennifer McCord

GPC BIO

April 23, 2012

798

Johnson

Jennifer McCord

“Picture provided by Jennifer McCord”

                    When I first received this assignment, I initially had another GPC staff member who I was planning on interviewing. However, when that didn't work out, I turned to Mrs. Jennifer McCoy and I am very glad about my decision to do so. McCord is the Dunwoody campus bookstore supervisor and when I came to her with the hopes of being able to interview her, she was very eager to do so. As a wife and mother of three young children, she has a lot to juggle on a daily basis, and coupled with work, she has her hands full. However, there is one particular activity she enjoys doing on her “me” time. That glorious activity for her is cooking. McCord stated that “I realized I started enjoying cooking as teenager, but actually started cooking when I was 10.” 

During her middle and high school years, McCord took Home Ed classes and would experiment cooking meals at home. One day she thought to herself “I kinda like this” and from there on her love really began. On the weekends is when she would make everyone in her family a specific breakfast of their desire. According to McCord, “I cooked everyday”.

                    She cooked everything from fried chicken to grilled foods, to pancakes, eggs, and more. “I like cooking pot roast and roasted vegetables the most. My family goes nuts over my pot roast and roasted vegetables”, she said. She also enjoys making food from scratch, such as her homemade pudding.

Yet when I asked her if she would become a cook as a profession, I was surprised to hear her say no. For her, the stress would be overwhelming and trying to please everyone and use all the proper techniques would take the fun out of it. She stated that if there was no stress involved, then yes, she wouldn't mind going into the profession.

                   She went on to mention that she is inspired by many cooks, one of them being Paula Dean, who according to Huffington Post, is known as the Butter Queen and has now disclosed that she has type 2 diabetes. McCord enjoys Paula D. for her home style like cooking. McCord is also inspired by G. Garvin, a chef from Georgia who now has his own t.v. Show and has created some great recipes. She is also inspired by cooks who have not gone to culinary school, like Rachel Ray.

McCord is a very healthy eater and when it comes to buying her food products and brands she is very selective. Silk milk, Ezekial gluten free breads, and Farmer's Market brand foods are among her favorite brands of food. They still provide great taste, but provide a healthier portion of fats, sugars, and calories. While she does prefer these healthier food alternatives, there are some unhealthy brands of foods that she adores; Lays potato chips is one of her favorites.

                      When I spoke to her husband, James McCord, he said that “My wife's cooking is great. I think it is innovative.” He went on in further detail, saying that his wife will take regular ordinary foods and combine them into something new and creative. Jennifer McCord chimed in as well, saying that while some of her foods were different and creative, she still managed to make them tasty and healthy at the same time.

I jokingly asked her husband which of them was the better cook. He laughed, but quickly responded. “It all depends on what is being made”, he stated. I even spoke to Jennifer McCord's father, David Page, who stated that he loved his daughters cooking. “My favorite dish that my daughter makes is her roast” he said. He also mentioned that Jennifer really did cook everyday. Her mother was always to busy to cook, so Jennifer was the family's designated cook. According to him, her mother only cooked for special occasions such as Christmas and thanksgiving. But on a regular basis, Jenn was the one cooking. He chuckled, saying that it was a good thing that she enjoyed it.

McCord had a few more thoughts that she wanted to reveal to me, specifically about healthy versus unhealthy eating. She stated that people can still eat the foods they like, but in a healthier way. She used the example of fried chicken to explain her meaning. Fried chicken is typically cooked with very heavy flour, yet instead of regular flour, she uses rice flour, a lighter and less fattening substance. According to her, people are going to eat what they like and what they want. She ended our interview off on a final note. “Unhealthy eating would not exist if people changed the way they prepared their meals”.

Pepsi Next: Part 2

Pepsi Next

April 19, 2012

00:20

Johnson

ON MARCH 26, 2012, PEPSI HAS PLANS TO RELEASE A NEW MID-CALORIE

BEVERAGE, CALLED "PEPSI NEXT". PEPSI CLAIMS THIS NEW SOFT DRINK WILL

CUT SUGAR AND STILL PROVIDE THAT GREAT ORIGINAL PEPSI TASTE.

SAMPLINGS OF THE NEW PRODUCT WILL BE AVAILABLE AT VARIOUS WAL-MART

SUPER-CENTER STORES.

Pepsi Next: Part 1

Pepsi Next

April 19, 2012

00:10

Johnson

A NEW, MID-CALORIE SODA POP FROM BEVERAGE GIANT PEPSI, CALLED

"PEPSI NEXT", IS SET FOR RELEASE MARCH 26, 2012, NATIONWIDE.

Travel Piece: The Yellow River Game Ranch

April 18, 2012                                                      Possible Publication: Georgia Traveler

Travel Piece by, Cameron J. J.

The Yellow River Game Ranch

            Located two and one-half miles east on Stone Mountain High Way and planted on a hill, is the Yellow River Game Ranch, a place who Stephanie Ponteau, a previous customer of the establishment, describes as “Providing a zoo-like experience”.  At the YRGR, families travel along a mile long trail of 24 wooded acres and can physically interact with over six hundred animals indigenous to the state of Georgia, through what employees at the ranch call, a “nose to nose” basis.

             This means you can touch, feed, and pet all the people-friendly wildlife, from black bears to white-tailed deers, to bunnies. It  is fine for people to feed the animals foods such as saltine crackers and carrots, but the establishment asks that people do not feed the animals foods such as marshmallows and bread. Ponteau also stated that “the larger, more dangerous animals were in cages”. Aside from bringing food for the animals, customers can also bring their own snacks for themselves, which makes the Yellow River Game Ranch more economical.

             

                     Being there is scenic, but the beauty of being able to interact with animals people normally would not be able to interact with on a friendly level is so much more photo worthy than a zoo. It is highly encouraged for people to bring along their cameras and camcorders, as the experiences and feelings experienced there are going to create some priceless memories.

_________________________
      "Interact with the animals
         on a nose-to-nose basis"              
_________________________  Open seven days a week from ten in the morning to six in the evening, the convenient prices also make this place an excellent place to visit for a day. With the YRGR being wallet friendly, a mere seven to eight dollars a person, a family can go there and really get their money's worth. According to Aisha Newsome, former employee of the establishment, “Some people who were first time visitors at the YRGR were nervous about being so up and personal with the animals”. Ponteau, however, stated that she was “excited to see what it was all about and it turned out to be fun, inexpensive, and my kids enjoyed it”.

photo provided by Yellowrivergameranch.com

The Yellow River Game Ranch also provides other attractions, such as a playground for the kids to play on. The establishment is open year round, except for Easter, Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year's Day. This provides another level of convenience for people who have busy and hectic schedules. For more information please visit the YRGR main website, at “yellowrivergameranch.com”
 

February 15, 2012

For Immediate Release

Steve Fitzpatrick

Geology and Environmental Science

sfitzpat@gpc.edu

Author: Cameron Jelani Johnson

_____________________________________________________________

The Earth Club

The Earth Club is a student ran organization that just recently came back to life after the new election of a new student club president, Tony Hayes. This student club makes and forms all of its own decisions. 

According to Steve Fitzpatrick, Faculty Advisor of the Earth Club, "They participate in various earth-nurturing activities. Last Saturday the club participated in a stream clean up, where they were pulling out clothes and even televisions from within the streams". Furthermore, the club members would be selling flowers for Valentine's Day as a way to say "thanks" to mother nature. 

Fitzpatrick also stated that focused solar energy and wind are becoming the 2 fastest growing alternative energy sources today. He even mentioned a small restaurant called Six Feet Under, which in his words, "Is one of the few restaurants jointly getting energy from wind power".

With our reserves of oil and coal being used up rapidly, gas prices will continue to sky rocket and according to Fitzpatrick, "Once the oil has run out, it will take millions of years for the Earth to create another supply of it.". Alternative and longer lasting ways of energy must be found, as our time with oil will not last forever and will eventually, if not soon, run out. 

With Earth Day just around the corner, the Earth Club staff are making it their top priority to do what they can for Mother Earth. The Club meets every Wednesday from 2-4 P.M. in room CN-2120. For more information, please contact Faculty Advisor, Steve Fitzpatrick, at sfitzpat@gpc.edu

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Georgia Perimeter College, the third largest institution in the University System of Georgia, serves more than 21,000 students through five locations in metro Atlanta. For additional information, visit www.gpc.edu.