Poetic Tuesday
April 30 — Rough Draft Editor Collin Kelley launches his seventh poetry collection, “Wonder & Wreckage,” tonight at 7 p.m. at the Decatur Library. He writes about the book’s creation in his latest editor’s letter.
🌧️ Scattered thunderstorms and a high of 74° today.
☢️ The second of two new nuclear reactors at Plant Vogtle has entered full commercial operation.
🪧 University of Georgia Police arrested 16 protesters, including students, during a Pro-Palestine rally on the Athens campus yesterday. At Emory University, President Gregory L. Fenves said a previous statement about outsiders leading campus protests, “was not fully accurate, and I apologize for that mischaracterization.”
🗳️ At a stop in Atlanta yesterday, Vice President Kamala Harris continued the Biden administration’s push to court Black voters. Harris highlighted growth in Black-owned small businesses and spoke about the promise of “The Stitch” to reconnect downtown neighborhoods.
🚑 Brookhaven plans to petition the state to let it sidestep DeKalb’s ambulance services contract with AMR, making it the second city in the county to do so. “This is no longer a matter of if someone is going to lose their life…we are at a point where the question is how many more,” Mayor John Park said.
🏃♀️ An initiative to raise awareness about high suicide rates in the construction industry will make a stop in Dunwoody with the Construction Hike for Hope on Sun., May 5.
⚖️ Fulton Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee, who’s presiding over the Trump election interference trial, spoke about caseloads and judicial history at the Sandy Springs Rotary Club luncheon yesterday.
🏆 The Atlanta Press Club Awards of Excellence are tonight at the Gathering Spot at 6 p.m. Celebrating the best in journalism from 2023, the list of finalists can be seen here.
ELSEWHERE
➡ In Charlotte, NC, four officers were killed, four wounded, and a suspect died during a three-hour standoff while serving a warrant, marking one of the deadliest recent attacks on U.S. law enforcement.
⚖️ A court in Richmond, VA became the first in the country to rule that state health-care plans must pay for gender-affirming surgeries.
📺 Paramount CEO Bob Bakish resigned effective immediately as the company continues to evaluate a potential merger or sale.
🕖 Here’s what’s in today’s newsletter:
• Kamayan ATL
• ‘Psycho Beach Party’
• Around the State: GPB
AND
• Volunteer Opportunities
See you in May,
Collin & Sammie
💸 Join Decide DeKalb in celebrating local businesses during this year’s Economic Development Week, May 6-10! Decide DeKalb will be uplifting DeKalb businesses and hosting events starting on Mon., May 6 with Business Resources 101. This free, in-person event is focused on funding and educational resources available to support your business growth. Learn more and RSVP here.
SPONSOR MESSAGE
1. The Philippines’ most communal feast became the calling card for Kamayan ATL
🇵🇭 Mia Orino and Carlo Gan founded Kamayan ATL in 2018 to reconnect with the food of their native Philippines and the small population of Filipino people living around Atlanta.
They named the concept after a traditional feasting style in the Philippines called “kamayan,” where those gathered spread food along a table dressed from end-to-end with verdant banana leaves. Groups of people then stand or sit around the table and use sticky rice and their hands to scoop up bites of food.
Community has been at the heart of the Buford Highway Filipino restaurant since it started as a pop-up serving from a subdivision clubhouse in Metro Atlanta nearly seven years ago.
“Kamayan is coming together with the people you love and trust the most or have a strong bond with. Everything is eaten with your hands,” Orino explained. “It’s very communal and that’s important to Filipino people. The name fit for many reasons.”
➡️ Check out more about Kamayan ATL here.
OTHER FOOD NEWS
🍕 Vegan pizzeria Pizza Verdura Sincera opened over the weekend in the former Zesto space at the corner of Moreland and Euclid avenues in Little Five Points.
Looking for neighbors to test new products
SPONSORED BY NEIGHBORHOOD STUDIOS
💡 At Neighborhood Studios our goal is to make your neighborhood better with technology. We build fun products and are looking for Atlanta beta testers to try them before anyone else.
Here’s how our beta tester process works:
📲 Sign up here to be a beta tester.
📆 Receive monthly emails about a product we plan to test. There’s no obligation. Sometimes it’s just fun reading about new stuff.
🎁 Beta testers get perks while testing products that support their neighborhood.
Read more about being a beta tester for Neighborhood Studios here!
2. ‘Psycho Beach Party’ to play at Out Front Theatre
🏄 Charles Busch’s cult comedy “Psycho Beach Party” is coming to Out Front Theatre Company May 2-18.
“Psycho Beach Party,” which ran Off-Broadway in the 1980s, is a parody of 1950s psychological thrillers, 1960s beach movies, and 1980s slasher films – a high-energy, campy comedy that was later made into a film in 2000. The story follows “Chicklet” (played by Busch in the original production), a surfer girl a la Gidget who has multiple personalities and fears she may be responsible for a mysterious bout of killings in Malibu.
The production is directed by Paul Conroy, who is also the founder and producing artistic director of Out Front. Conroy has a special history with the play, which he shared in an interview before opening night.
🎭 Check out Sammie’s interview here.
3. Emory researchers have mapped lone star tick locations in Georgia
🗺️ A map created by Emory University researchers shows where lone star ticks are located in Georgia, giving researchers clues to understanding tick-borne diseases, while also showing the public where they’re likely to encounter the arachnids in the state.
The lone star is one of the most commonly encountered tick species in the state.
It transmits diseases such as Southern tick-associated rash illness (STARI), Bourbon virus, and the heartland virus – first discovered in 2009 – that has infected more than 60 people nationwide. The lone star tick may also be associated with a dangerous allergy to red meat, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
➡️ Learn more about the map on GPB.
🌆 Explore Atlanta’s Newest Landmark – The Midtown Art Walk. Join Midtown Alliance for a free event on Sat., May 11 to celebrate the Art Walk, a new corridor alive with public art for you to discover! The outdoor festival will feature an artist market curated by Georgia Vintage Goods, food and drinks for purchase, live music, and a sing-a-long led by Toronto-based Choir!Choir!Choir! RSVP here.
SPONSOR MESSAGE
4. Volunteer Opportunities
IN PARTNERSHIP WITH HANDS ON ATLANTA
Today is the last day of National Volunteer Month. Here are our weekly ideas for giving back to the community.
🍓 Berean Outreach Ministry Inc. needs food pantry volunteers on Wednesday morning in Atlanta. You will help with setup and cleanup of food distribution stations in addition to bagging and sorting food, registering clients, and potentially helping with clothing distribution.
📦 Atlanta Belvedere SDA Church Food Pantry is looking for help on Thursday morning in Decatur. Volunteers will sort and unpack the delivery truck and store food in preparation for distribution.
👟 Livable Buckhead’s sixth annual 5K returns to Atlanta on Sat., May 4 (pictured). Volunteers are needed Saturday morning to set up the event, check in participants, and encourage runners along the course.
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📧 Today’s newsletter was edited by Julie E. Bloemeke.