Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta Donates Cookies, Letters to U.S. Troops

MABLETON, Ga.–For the first time ever, Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta has taken “Project Cookies 4 Troops” – a new service initiative to support troops overseas by providing Girl Scout Cookies to U.S. military men and women abroad – to the Web and launched a letter writing campaign, “Letters from Home”, for Girl Scouts to show their support of our military.

Now, patriotic, Girl Scout Cookie lovers can donate to soldiers via Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta’s Web site and help the Council to reach its record goal to send 650,000 boxes of Girl Scout Cookies to U.S. troops overseas. Moreover, Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta will send “Letters from Home” to accompany the Girl Scout Cookie shipments.

“Serving overseas and being away from your family can be hard,” said Retired Col. John Durkin. “But, receiving the Girl Scout Cookies and witnessing the generosity of the public and Girl Scouts can bring a soldier a much needed taste of home.”

Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta, spanning 34 counties throughout northwest Georgia and a portion of Polk County, Tennessee, and representing approximately 41,000 Girl Scouts, will also launch “Letters from Home” to send letters to U.S. military men and women. The hand-written letters will be included in the cookie shipments the Girl Scouts will help pack for transport by plane to the U.S. troops serving abroad.

“Being a Girl Scout is about more than selling cookies, it’s about the characteristics and lessons the girls learn in completing each activity,” said Morgan Coffey, Girl Scout of Greater Atlanta member and 2009 National Young Woman of Distinction award recipient. “‘Project Cookies 4 Troops’ is a fantastic project that not only contributes to the morale of our U.S. troops serving overseas, but also builds character and compassion in our Girl Scouts.”

For every $3.50 donated, Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta will send one box of Girl Scout Cookies. To learn more about Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta’s “Project Cookies 4 Troops” or to make a donation, visit http://www.gsgatl.org/donate/project_cookies_4_troops.asp.

“This year, we hope by using the Web for ‘Project Cookies 4 Troops,’ it will be more accessible for everyone to donate and help us reach more U.S. troops with our goal to send 650,000 boxes of Girl Scout Cookies,” said Marilyn Midyette, CEO of Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta. “Everyday, people are utilizing the Internet to communicate about Girl Scouts and our military troops, it’s our plan to engage with these users and mobilize them to donate to ‘Project Cookies 4 Troops’ and to help Girl Scouts support our military men and women.”

Connect with Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta, Inc. on Facebook by visiting http://www.facebook.com/pages/Girl-Scouts-of-Greater-Atlanta/46268322786. Also, follow the Council on Twitter at https://twitter.com/gsgatl and join the conversation about “Project Cookies 4 Troops” with the official campaign hashtag #cookies4troops.

About Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta, Inc.

Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta, Inc. is the premiere leadership development organization for girls, serving over 41,000 girls with almost 18,000 adult members in 34 counties in the greater metropolitan Atlanta area, northwest Georgia and Polk County, TN. Our mission: Girl Scouting builds girls of courage, confidence and character, who make the world a better place. For more information on how to join, volunteer or donate to Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta, Inc. call 800-771-4046, or visit www.gsgatl.org. For information on the national organization visit Girl Scouts of the USA’s Web site at www.girlscouts.org.

For more information about Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta, Inc., contact Gary Key at (770) 702-9194 or email gkey@gsgatl.org.

Help Bring Green Space to Mableton

The voter approved 2008 Parks Bond Fund will soon spend $40 million on the purchase of potential park lands throughout Cobb County. The Board of Commissioners appointed 15 citizens to an Advisory Board, who are using a set of 10 criteria to come up with the final recommendations of the original 340 parcels nominated. The final meeting for public input is on September 14.

A local community action group is appealing Cobb County to purchase 20 acres of land located between Concord, Floyd, and Hicks Roads and attempting to garner as much community support for this parcel as possible before that final meeting. Below is a link to the petition and information regarding this effort.

http://www.gopetition.com/online/30384.html

Petition:

We, the undersigned, request the Cobb County Citizens Advisory Committee and Board of Commissioners act to purchase the nominated Mableton property (#92) bounded by Floyd, Hicks, and Concord Roads with approved Parks Bond funds.

This 19.78 acre property is surrounded by residential neighborhoods. Purchase of this land would fill an immediate need for a centrally-located, easily-accessible, multi-functional green space in the heart of Mableton.

This parcel is located in close proximity to the ongoing Historic Mableton Preservation and Improvement Plan and the Mableton Livable Centers Initiative study area. It is convenient to two major Cobb County thoroughfares; the East-West Connector and Veterans Memorial Highway. It is bounded by a primary Mableton corridor, Floyd Road, and by a major connecting road to the Smyrna community, Concord Road. This space would serve as a park within walking distance to the surrounding residential community, and also be easily accessible to Austell and Smyrna residents.

The Silver Comet Trail, with a trail head at Floyd Road, is a quarter mile north. Also within the immediate vicinity are the Mable House Arts Center, Barnes Amphitheater, and numerous public and private schools. The property is relatively flat and has already been cleared of single-family homes, leaving old-growth trees, dogwoods, and azaleas intact, allowing for low-cost incorporation into park landscaping. This accessibility and amount of cleared space make it immediately usable as a passive park, with the possibility for future recreational enhancements such as; picnic tables, pavilions, trails, benches, playgrounds, dog parks, community gardens, etc.

This property is under imminent threat of becoming another medium-density residential development in an area of Cobb County already lacking green spaces. We the undersigned urge the committee to recommend the preservation of this ideal pocket park land before this opportunity is lost forever. Thank you for your consideration.

If you would like to get involved directly, have questions or feedback, or wish to receive print ready materials, please email: concord.floyd.hicks.park@gmail.com

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Preservation Grant Awarded to Mableton Battlefield

Today, the National Park Service announced the award of 33 grants totaling $1,360,000 to assist in the preservation and protection of America’s significant battlefield lands. This year’s grants provide funding at endangered battlefields including one in Mableton granting $45,000 for a cultural resource inventory for the Johnston’s River Line Battlefield Park to be developed as a tool for guiding preservation of the unique “Shoupade” fortification system designed by Confederate Brigadier General Francis Ashbury Shoup. The Shoupades were characterized by Federal Major General William Tecumseh Sherman as “…one of the strongest pieces of field fortifications I ever saw,” but were never built at any other site.

Real Estate Listings

Mableton real estate agents: list your properties for sale here. Contact us for details.

An Evening with Francine Reed & Family

Hot off her summer tour with Lyle Lovett, the “most beloved singer in the city” and “queen of the blues” Francine Reed is excited to return to the Atlanta stage for the first time in two years to perform “An Evening with Francine Reed & Family.” It will be a dual homecoming for the artist who has recorded with Willie Nelson, Delbert McClinton and has opened for powerhouses Roy Orbison, Miles Davis, Etta James among others.

Date:
Saturday, September 26, 2009 from 8pm to 10pm

Address:
Mable House Barnes Amphitheatre
5239 Floyd Rd.
Mableton, GA 30126

For more information, call (770) 819-7765.