2008 Great Year for Roswell Recreation and Parks

Roswell has a wonderful Recreation and Parks department, and if you need proof, it’s in the numbers.  The department took in $4 million in fees, donations and grants in the fiscal year 2007 - 2008.  In another achievement for the department and city, Joe Glover, the director of the Recreation and Parks department, was named the Distinguished Professional of the Year by the Georgia Recreation and Parks Department. 

According to their Mission Statement, the Roswell Recreation and Parks Department: …continues to strive to meet the leisure needs of the Citizens of Roswell by providing quality comprehensive recreational opportunities and quality comprehensive Parks and Facilities.  We think they are doing a great job meeting this goal and are one of the top reasons Roswell is such a great place to live and work!

If you have lived in Roswell for any time, you probably know that the parks are one of the great amenities of our wonderful city.  You may have even attended a city sponsored event or two.  But did you know that the city has tons of great classes and programs for all ages, from infants to seniors?  They offer a wide variety of subjects like athletics, art, cooking, technology and more.  There are even Parents’ Nights Out where you can leave your children to have fun, crafts and pizza while you have a night out!  To see their 80+ page online brochure, Click Here.

 

Things To Do In Roswell During the Holidays

There is always a lot to do in Roswell, especially during the holidays! If you are looking for things to do with your friends and family, we have some great ideas for you. Have your own favorites that we didn’t mention? Be sure to post a comment, we’d love to hear from you!

Tour One of Roswell’s Historic Homes
Learn a little about the history of our wonderful city by taking a tour of one of Roswell’s fabulous Historic Homes. The houses are all decked out for the holidays, making this the best time of the year to visit. Plus, there are some neat special events, like High Teas!

Take In a Show
Spend a relaxing few hours enjoying a theatrical presentation by some of Roswell’s fine performers. Roswell is home to several first-rate playhouses and the Cultural Arts Center hosts wonderful theatre, music and dance productions. Here are some of our favorites for the holidays!

• Red Door Playhouse – Auntie Clause (An Interactive Christmas Play)
• Kudzu Playhouse – Showing three plays this holiday season: A Christmas Carol, The Worst Best Christmas Pageant Ever, and A Chris “Mess” Carol. Kudzu Family Playhouse and Sprouts Series shows are great for younger theatre-goers!
• Cultural Arts Center – Atlanta Dance Theatre’s Babes In Toyland

Strap On Some Blades
Technically, The Cooler is located in Alpharetta, but it’s so close to home, you don’t have to leave the area to participate in the traditional winter sport of ice skating!

Chop Down a Tree
Start a new family tradition by taking the family out to choose and cut your own tree from one of Georgia’s many Christmas Tree Farms.

Experience the Joy of Giving
North Fulton Community Charities has been helping folks in Roswell and the surrounding areas for over 25 years. This is one of the most challenging times of the year for them and donations are low, so consider giving a needed item to the food pantry or toy drive, or giving your time or making a cash contribution.

Roswell’s 6th Annual Decorating Contest

Is your house the envy of all your neighbors at this time of year?  Do you get really creative with your decorating, making your yard into a winter wonderland?  Do visitors have to wear sunglasses to approach your house at night because of all the lights?  If you love to decorate the outside of your home for the holidays and you live in Roswell, you should enter Roswell’s 6th Annual Holiday Decorating Contest! 

Residents, subdivisions, businesses, religious and civic organizations are all invited to participate.  Cash prizes are awarded to the 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners in each category, and for the first time this year a People’s Choice Award will be given.  (Might help pay for some of that electric bill come January!)

Entries must be submitted by Dec. 5th. 2008.  Judging will be done by an impartial panel between Dec. 8th and Dec. 11th.  Judges will base their evaluations on creativity, originality, thematic elements and overall design.

For more information or to enter, Click Here.

And don’t forget to participate in judging the People’s Choice Award.  Enjoy a nice drive, while viewing the best holiday decorations in the city.  Maybe you’ll even start a new family holiday tradition!  Click Here during the week of Dec. 8th through 11th for a map of entries, drive by the displays, then log on again to cast your vote!

For tips on decorating your home for the holidays, just hit the lights below.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Roswell - A Great Place to Bike

I love to bike on Roswell’s great trail systems along the Chattahoochee near my house. My husband takes a 20 mile bicycle ride nearly every morning, often before dawn, on streets that have wide bike lanes, for which I am thankful.

Now Roswell has gotten the recognition it deserves for it’s support of the Bicycling Community. From the City of Roswell’s website:

The City of Roswell has garnered the much coveted Bicycle Friendly Community designation from the League of American Bicyclists. This award is presented only to communities that show a remarkable commitment to bicycling.

Roswell is the only city in Georgia to hold the designation and one of only 63 across the United States.

Mayor Jere Wood said he is thrilled the City has earned the designation. “Bicyclists are always welcome on our City streets, on our bicycle trails, and in our parks. We celebrate the sport every year with the Nalley Historic Roswell Bicycle Criterium, my own ride the morning of the Criterium, and my annual Ride to the Capitol in support of Bicyling across Georgia. There is no better place for a cyclist to live in metro Atlanta than Roswell and this designation shows that.”

Andy Clarke, the chief executive director of the League of American Bicyclists, said Roswell has shown a tremendous commitment to improving conditions for bicyclists. “They are making the streets safer for bicyling, educating bicylists and motorists to share the road and promoting a wide range of bicyling activities.”

The Bicycle Friendly Community Award was initiated in 2003 and has recieved applications from more than 150 communities. Applicants must complete a detailed application with numerous questions in five key areas: engineering, education, encouragement, enforcement and evaluation/planning.

Taste of Atlanta - October 11th & 12th

Looking for something fun and tasty to do this weekend? Look no further than Atlantic Station for the Taste Of Atlanta, a two-day outdoor festival featuring over 70 of the city’s best restaurants, live cooking demonstrations and more! There will be a kid’s section, an area showcasing the local and sustainable food movement, and even special events like a wine tasting and a bowling and beer sampling! The Taste of Atlanta benefits a few local charities, so you can satisfy the foodie in you while helping some great causes. You may even discover a few new restaurants that will become some of your faves. I know my family always does! For more information, go to: http:tasteofatlanta.net

Results Are In…Atlanta Drivers Among the Worst

I am originally from a suburb of Chicago and have lived in the Atlanta area for a little over a year and a half.  I have always made comments about the poor driving of Georgians and their apparent disrespect for traffic laws as well as others (if you miss your turn, don’t hold everyone up while attempting to make a u-turn, simply go through the light and turn around at the next light!).  Having not lived or frequented too many cities in my young life, Atlanta has the worst driving that I have ever come across.  I’ve always said Atlanta has some of the worst drivers, but now I have proof!

Allstate Insurance looked at accident statistics from the nation’s 200 largest cities and compared the average number of years between accidents for drivers in each city.  The results are in and Atlanta came in at number 144 out of those 200 cities.

John Heid with Allstate says Atlanta drivers have an accident on average every 8.4 years.  That means Atlanta is about 19% more likely to have an accident than drivers in the average city.

There you have it…a little useless information that you can toss around at the next cocktail party you attend!

Fourth of July in Roswell

Show your patriotism by celebrating our Country’s Independence Day in Roswell with entertainmnet and a breathtaking fireworks display.  This year’s 4th of July Fireworks Extravaganza will take place at Roswell High School.

The activities begin at 4:30pm with Clark King (Teen Roswell Rocks 2007 Winners), then the band, Wichita, performs at 5:30pm and the popular Banks & Shane performs at 7:30pm  Moby, a popular local radio personality, will emcee the event.  At dark, a beautiful 40-minute fireworks display will be the highlight of the evening.

Bring your chairs, blankets and picnics and for an old fashion family outing.  Concessions will be available.  For more information, call 770.641.3705

Drive-in Movie Theater in Atlanta, GA

I came across a great post about drive-in movie theaters providing a great place for summer fun.  I couldn’t agree more, though I haven’t been to one in years.  The past two weeks I have attended Screen on the Green at Centennial Olympic Park (closest thing to a drive-in) and have had a lot of fun.  There is something to be said about watching a movie outside!

The Starlight Six is an Atlanta drive-in theater located near East Atlanta.  The theater is open 7 days a week, 364 days of the year and movies currently cost $7 for each adult, $1 for each child 3 to 9 years old and free for those under the age of two.  Be sure to have cash on hand, because that is the only form of payment accepted. 

Like most drive-in theaters you listen to the movie through your car’s stereo system by tuning your radio to a designated frequency. 

For an alternative to the norm, try out the drive-in…not only will you have a great experience, but the food is also less expensive than typical theaters!

Fulton County Residents Save on Prescriptions Using Free Discount Card

The Board of Commissioners’ Prescription Discount Drug Card saved Fulton County residents $348,326 in 2007.  The free program saves 20 percent on prescription related health costs to residents of Fulton County.

“We are pleased with the amount of savings residents received last year,” says Dr. Kim Turner, Interim Director for the Fulton County Department of Health and Wellness. “It is our hope that people will continue to use the card and that more will participate in the program.”

It is important to note that the card is NOT insurance.  Some discounts are greater than 20 percent and some are less, the discount depends on the drug and quantity being purchased.  Resident cardholders can also save on pet prescriptions too.  More than 57,000 pharmacies nationwide accept the card.

The card can be used by cardholders and their family members any time their prescriptions are not covered by insurance.

Cards are available at the following County locations:

• Senior Centers
• Health Centers
• Public Libraries
• Health Fairs
• Community Health Centers

For more information and where to pick up a card, go to the Fulton County Health and Wellness website.

To find a participating pharmacy, visit http://www2.caremark.com/naco/ or call 1-877-321-2652.

Steel Magnolias: The Beautiful Classic to Open at the Rosewater Theatre

The Rosewater Theatre proudly presents the beautiful comedic drama “Steel Magnolias”, which premiers June 6 at their new Roswell location.

“Steel Magnolias” is the wonderful classic story written by Robert Harling who is an American writer and film director. Harling was an aspiring actor when the tragic death of his diabetic sister inspired him to write the play “Steel Magnolias”. As his best friend and closest sibling, Robert found it incredibly difficult to cope with his loss. He was advised by many of his friends to write about his feelings as a coping method. It began as a short story and evolved into a full length play due to the complexity of the relationships and emotions that existed within the characters. Harling felt it important to include the way the characters utilized humor and light hearted conversations to assist them in coping with the seriousness of the underlying situations. He went on to adapt the screenplay for the film version of the play which was produced in 1989 starring Sally Field and Julia Roberts. He played a small role in the film as a minister.

Following the premier, performances are slated for every Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m., through June 28. “Steel Magnolias is such a wonderful and poignant story that we have wanted to produce for so long and now we have the opportunity”, said Sherouse Riley, Managing Director and co-owner of The Rosewater Theatre. “It is an extremely popular play that patrons just seem to love and the fact that it is based on a true story makes it all the more poignant.”

The action is set in Truvy’s beauty salon in Chinquapin, Louisiana, where all the ladies who are “anybody” come to have their hair done. Helped by her eager new assistant, Annelle, the outspoken, wise-cracking Truvy dispenses shampoos and free advice to the town’s rich curmudgeon, Ouiser; an eccentric millionaire, Miss Clairee, who has a raging sweet tooth; and the local social leader, M’Lynn, whose daughter, Shelby, is about to marry a “good ole boy.” Filled with hilarious repartee and not a few acerbic but humorously revealing verbal collisions, the play moves toward tragedy when, in the second act, the spunky Shelby (who is a diabetic) risks pregnancy and forfeits her life. The sudden realization of their mortality affects the others, but also draws on the underlying strength—and love—which give the play, and its characters, the special quality to make them truly touching, funny and marvelously amiable company in good times and bad.

The production stars a superb ensemble of Metro Atlanta based professional and seasoned actors including Giselle Frame, Erin Greenway, Linda Thompson, Kim Burdges, Julie Rhinehart and Donna Alred. “What an absolute pleasure it has been working with these six extremely talented and professional quality actors,” states Lisa Sherouse Riley, who is also the Director of Steel Magnolias.

Tickets for “Steel Magnolias” are $16 and $18. All seats are general admission. Group rates are also available. Tickets can be purchased at The Rosewater Theatre, or online at www.rosewatertheatre.com or by calling ahead to The Rosewater Theatre Box Office at 770-640-5500. The Rosewater Theatre, located at 633 Holcomb Bridge Road is easily accessible from Georgia 400. Parking is free. For more information go to www.rosewatertheatre.com.

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