New Online Reservations for Roswell Racquet Courts The Roswell Recreation, Parks, Historic & Cultural Affairs Department recently rolled out new online racquet court reservation software. The software enables residents to reserve City of Roswell-operated tennis and outdoor pickleball courts online up to seven days in advance. The service is available at a nominal fee. Our department is excited to implement this new online system in order to make this reservation process more convenient for our residents and participants, said Steven Malone, Roswells athletic services manager. The new reservation system will ensure everyone who is interested in upping their tennis game, or just learning the basics, has the opportunity to enjoy the courts. The reservation system can be found at RoswellGov.com/register by clicking the Racquet Sports tab.
New Arts Center in Alpharetta Alpharetta Recreation, Parks & Cultural Services is thrilled to showcase the new Alpharetta Arts Center located at 238 Canton Street. The 10,000-square-foot space includes many amenities with multiple visual arts and clay studios, a digital media studio, a black-box theater space, gallery exhibits, and art events. A wide variety of multidisciplinary classes, workshops, and lectures for children, teens, and adults will be offered at the center. Choose from ceramics, painting, drawing, sculpture, cartooning, theater, music, creative writing, and numerous special interest classes in everything from culinary arts to digital arts. The Arts Center is a creative and welcoming environment for students of any age who wish to perfect a skill, try a new technique, or simply learn something completely different. For the latest information on classes, lectures, and workshops, call 678-297-6135, or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..General Hours Monday-Thursday8:30am-8:00pm Friday 8:30am-4:30pmSaturday 9:00am-2:00pm/Open During Classes & EventsSunday Open During Classes & Events
Alpharetta Student Named One of Atlantas Top 10 Babysitters Alpharettas Ashley Melendez was recently named one of Atlantas Top Babysitters in 2019 by SitterTree, an Atlanta babysitting community that connects busy parents with top mom-rated sitters.SitterTree coordinators fill 99% of all sitter requests using the most rigorous interviewing and vetting process in the industry, only approving one in five applicants, which is why their sitters average 97% five-star ratings from Atlanta moms. We want to recognize the incredible college students and young professionals who care for the children and families in our community, so we launched the annual list of Atlantas Top Babysitters, said Jody Stephenson, founder of SitterTree. This milestone in our history gave us a special reason to celebrate those who made an exceptional impact on Atlantas families this year.Regarding her babysitting tasks, Melendez said, Ive learned how to be patient, solve problems, communicate with children, multitask, manage my time, and tap into my creative skills. I know how to build a fun and respectful relationship between myself and the children.
Roswell High School Student Receives Best Actress Award Jessi Kirtley, a Roswell High School student, recently won the Best Performance by a Leading Actress award for her title role in the spring production of Mary Poppins: The Broadway Musical. She was honored with a 2019 Shuler Hensley Award at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre, hosted by the ArtsBridge Foundation. Musical theatre students and schools were honored in 17 categories. The ArtsBridge Foundation is a nonprofit organization under the umbrella of the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre, which expands arts education for Georgia students and increases accessibility to arts experiences.The awards show featured performances by many of the honorees, including the other Best Actress nominees. Kirtley performed Practically Perfect from Mary Poppins before she was announced as the award winner.In 2018, Kirtley received the Shuler Award for Best Performance by a Supporting Actress for her role as Paulette Bonafonte in Roswell High Schools production of Legally Blonde. Some of her other past credits include Heather McNamara in Heathers and Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. In addition to theatre, shes been dancing for 13 years and has served as assistant choreographer in Roswell High Schools musicals. Im so incredibly proud of Jessi, said Rebecca Stern, the theatre director at Roswell High School. She is one of the most humble and kind students that I have ever worked with. She was, and is, such a hard worker and just emanated positivity throughout the whole rehearsal process.The winner in each Shuler Award category competes in New York City at the National High School Musical Theatre Awards (the Jimmy Awards), which will be presented by The Broadway League Foundation in a televised event on Monday, June 24, 2019. For more information on the ArtsBridge Foundations Shuler Hensley Awards, visit ArtsBridgeGa.org. For more information about the Jimmy Awards, visit JimmyAwards.com.
Foster Care Support Foundation Seeks Donations The summer distribution is fully underway at the Foster Care Support Foundation (FCSF) center in Roswell. This year, FCSF seeks to provide basic needs like clothing, toys, school supplies, and safe infant care equipment to at least 4,500 foster and displaced children to help them move forward in a more secure environment. Grandparents raising grandchildren are among the highest growing numbers of foster children in Georgia due to new policies in place. Since many of these families hadnt planned on extra children and do not receive foster care financial support like traditional foster parents do, many children and their families are in situations that place them at high risk. Donations to FCSF help provide children with what they need for everyday care, so they can overcome the challenges of abuse, neglect, and deprivation. FCSF seeks 5,000 people to sponsor a child at $25 or more per month to provide needed funds. Donations will help keep loving families together, so the children dont have to be placed into foster care. Please visit, FosterCares.org to sponsor a child or for more information about the program.
The Foster-Schmidt Dance Company Performs in New York City The Foster-Schmidt Dance Company (FSDC) for dancers with Down Syndrome performed on May 31 at the Manhattan JCC, in partnership with Sideways Contemporary Dance Company. Founder and Artistic Director Charlotte Foster-Williamson organized this trip for the dancers to experience the city and share their love of dance and message of acceptance. The dancers experienced dance master classes with Francis Roach (Luigi Jazz master) and the cast of Sams Room (up-and-coming Broadway musical about a non-verbal teenager). The dancers also visited Radio City Music Hall, toured the Empire State Building, and enjoyed Frozen the Musical on Broadway with a behind-the-scenes tour.On her experience with FSDC, Sideways company member Kaitlin Davis said, Working and performing with the incredible dancers of FSDC is easily one of the highlights of my career. The passion they have for dance and the joy they bring to an audience/the classroom each week is unparalleled. I am humbled by them. I am challenged to be the best teacher I can for them. I am so grateful for the opportunity to perform with them again. These dancers are capable of so much more than people realize!Based in Roswell, FSDC is dedicated to giving students with Down Syndrome an opportunity to develop self-confidence, leadership, and social skills through dance. Sideways dancers teach weekly classes to help these dance students work on muscle tone, balance, and coordination. Sideways also incorporates performances by FSDC dancers at its summer and holiday productions. For more information about FSDC and Sideways, please visit PhysioJazz.com and SidewaysDance.org.
Spring Fundraisers Raise Over $100,000 for North Fulton Community Charities North Fulton Community Charities (NFCC) spring fundraisers raised over $100,000 to help low-income families in need. More than 225 participants and volunteers supported two golf-themed events. The 11th Annual Swing Into Action Golf Tournament, presented by Northside Hospital, was held at the Country Club of the South. The NFCC annual golf tournament is a great experience, said Joe Rasper, regional vice president of DeKalb Office. Not only does the staff put on a fantastic event, but the dollars generated from the tournament go to a great cause. Play FORE Good, presented by Synchrony at Topgolf, was a new event for NFCC. The evening included Topgolf tournament play, dinner, drinks, and information about engaging with NFCC through volunteering and advocacy. This year, we held two golf-themed events to appeal to both our traditional golfers as well as the non-golfers that still wanted to come out to support NFCC, said NFCC Director of Development Holly York. As our community experiences an increase in suburban poverty, our mission at NFCC is more important now than ever before. Creating awareness in the community and raising money at events like these will help NFCC serve the more than 4,000 families we see each year. Founded in 1983, the mission of North Fulton Community Charities is to build self-sufficiency and prevent homelessness and hunger in the north Fulton community by providing emergency assistance and enrichment programs. The charity has served tens of thousands of individuals in north Fulton in the past 35 years.
Milton Fire-Rescue Department Welcomes Newest Fire Engine The City of Milton recently welcomed its newest resident, a 2019 Pierce Enforcer Pumper fire engine as part of the Milton Fire-Rescue Department arsenal, with a push-in ceremony. The push-in ceremony is a traditional way to welcome a new fire apparatus to community service. Years ago, the water pumpers were horse drawn, and when the firefighters returned to the station after responding to a fire, they would have to unhitch them and physically push the pumper back into the station, explained Milton Fire Chief Robert Edgar. A push-in ceremony is a long-standing tradition in fire service. The Department acquired the new Pierce Enforcer Pumper as part of their overall fleet plan, which was designed to serve the current and future needs of the community. The new pumper will take the place of one of the 2007 engines as a front-line emergency response vehicle. The new engine, which will become the primary response vehicle for Station 41, cost $571,000. The engine it is replacing will be auctioned, and the city anticipates recouping about $100,000. This is the first of three new engines being purchased to replace those original to the department, which began in 2007. The two additional sister trucks are set to arrive in Milton in the fall. Once they do, one of the original fleet engines will be auctioned, and the other will become a legacy unit and put into reserve status in case of an emergency. These new engines have additional safety features, such as clean cab technology, which meets the new National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) cancer prevention standard, and is cleaner burning to meet the most recent Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) emissions standards. They also come equipped with additional airbags.
ArtAround Roswells Museum Without Walls ArtAround Roswell is a partnership between the City of Roswell and Roswell Arts Fund initiated to bring the benefits of public art to the City, including community involvement and enrichment. The Museum Without Walls collection features nine extraordinary temporary sculptures on loan to the City of Roswell from artists around the United States in addition to 10 permanent sculptures purchased from previous seasons.
Northside Hospital Wins Award for Best Company Outlook Northside Hospital recently won an award for Best Company Outlook for 2019 from workplace culture and compensation monitoring site, Comparably. Northside ranked 17th on the list of top large companies (more than 500 employees) across the United States, was the second highest Georgia company ranked, and the only hospital.Northside strongly believes in creating an environment where our employees are empowered, appreciated, and supported, so they can provide the best health care to our patients, said Bob Quattrocchi, president and CEO of Northside Hospital. Comparablys annual Best lists showcase companies that receive the highest ratings on Comparably.com throughout the year based on anonymous feedback from employees about work environment, compensation, leadership, and more.Winners of Best Company Outlook were determined based on a combination of scores measured by responses to questions such as How confident are you about the future success of your company? Are you typically excited about going to work each day? and How likely are you to recommend working at your company to a friend?This is the third award Northside has received from Comparably in recent months. The hospital previously was recognized with awards for Company Culture and Company for Women. For more information about Comparablys Best Places to Work lists, visit Comparably.com/blog/best-outlook-2019.