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Community Corner

🌱 Biden, Harris In Atlanta Today + UGA Beats Tide For CFP Title

The quickest way to get caught up on the most important things happening today in Atlanta.

Kathy Cioffi, Community Contributor
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(Patch)

Up and at 'em, Atlanta! Here's everything you need to know to get this Tuesday started off right.

First, today's weather:

Plenty of sunshine, but chilly. High: 48 Low: 30.

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Here are the top 5 stories today in Atlanta:

  1. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are set to visit Atlanta today to speak about election integrity and the "urgent need to pass legislation to protect the constitutional right to vote." Although details about specific times had yet to be announced, the White House said Biden and Harris will speak on the grounds of Clark Atlanta University and Morehouse College from the Atlanta University Center Consortium. The two are also planning to lay a wreath at the burial place of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mrs. Coretta Scott King at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change, after which they will pay a visit to the Historic Ebenezer Baptist Church. (11Alive.com WXIA)
  2. The Georgia Bulldogs broke a 41-year title drought and were crowned NCAA football champions by defeating SEC rival Alabama 33-18 to win the College Football Playoff Monday. The Dawgs totaled 20 points in the fourth quarter and topped off the scoring with a pick-six interception by Kelee Ringo with 54 seconds remaining. UGA avenged the loss of the SEC title game to the Crimson Tide in Atlanta last month, Georgia's only defeat this season. While there were more points scored in the fourth quarter than in the previous three, the Dawgs' storied defense stymied the Alabama offense when it mattered. (CNN.com)
  3. After paying a former employee his final paycheck in more than $900 worth of pennies and not paying employees overtime, a suburban Atlanta auto repair shop owner is now being sued by the federal government. According to court records, the U.S. Labor Department filed a federal complaint against Miles Walker, the owner of A OK Walker Autoworks in Peachtree City, claiming that he violated the Fair Labor Standards Act for not paying nine employees an hourly wage or overtime. Additionally, in January 2021, former employee Andreas Flaten contacted Labor's Wage and Hour Division to report not receiving his last paycheck. After Labor Department staff reached out to Walker, his response included, "You know what? I've got plenty of pennies; I'll use them." The Labor Department said that on March 21, 2021, Walker left a pile of 91,500 pennies on Flaten's driveway in nearby Fayetteville with a paycheck on top of the mound of coins. Now Labor Secretary Martin Walsh is demanding three years of back pay for the nine employees who weren't paid hourly and overtime wages, along with an additional amount "as liquidated damages."(Atlanta Patch)
  4. After an abnormally warm December in 2021 across much of the United States, records were broken in many locations, including Atlanta. Monday, the National Weather Service in Peachtree City tweeted that for the first time in recorded history, Atlanta never had temperatures fall to the freezing point for the entire month of December. The lowest temperature recorded last month was 34 degrees on Dec. 23. And Georgia had plenty of warmer-than-average company. According to a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration tweet, December 2021 was the warmest December on record for the United States, with temperatures 6.7 degrees above average. The month's toastier temps helped make 2021 the fourth-warmest year on record for the nation as a whole, according to NOAA. (11Alive.com WXIA)
  5. If you're looking to honor the animal-loving Betty White by adding a furry family member to your household by Jan. 17, what would have been White's 100th birthday, the Atlanta Humane Society can help. Check out photos and information about nearly 50 cats and dogs waiting for their forever homes. And, for even more options, go to https://atlantahumane.org/ (WSB Atlanta)


Today in Atlanta:

  • Take and Make: I Have A Dream Journal at DeKalb County Public Library (10:00 AM)
  • FCS Board Work Session - Fulton County Schools (Noon)
  • Skate the Station at Atlantic Station's ice rink (4:00 PM)
  • Prepare for the FAFSA at the DeKalb County Public Library (6:30 PM)
  • Mastering Our New World, Transforming Fear & Anxiety into Strength & Faith, online (8:00 PM)

From my notebook:

  • HEADS UP from MARTA: Streetcar service will be suspended today from approximately 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. at the direction of the US Secret Service during President Biden's visit to the King Center. (Facebook)
  • According to the Atlanta History Center, throughout the civil rights movement in Atlanta, soul food restaurants were hubs of change where civil rights leaders could convene, converse, and strategize. The Busy Bee Café 🐝 opened in 1947 and was located on Hunter Street (now MLK Jr. Drive) due to Jim Crow laws that restricted the location of Black-owned businesses. Despite this constraint, there were more than enough patrons in the area for the Busy Bee Café, which still thrives to this day because of its rich home cooking and equally rich history. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. visited the café frequently and was said to have been a fan of the ham hocks. President Obama, President Biden, and Sen. Bernie Sanders have visited in recent years. Learn more about the restaurants that fueled the civil rights movement. (Facebook)
  • Looking for the upcoming schedule of in-person yoga programs at the Isha Institute of Inner-sciences? Here are details and more information. (Facebook)
  • Welcome back to in-person learning from Atlanta Public Schools! If you haven't done so already, please review how we plan to keep students and staff safe + complete the surveillance testing consent form. (Facebook)
  • Nextdoor Neighbor, Campbellton Road: "Help the Sons of Atlanta Task Force to erect a monument in Piedmont Park to the 240 Sons of Atlanta and Fulton County who made the ultimate sacrifice while serving their country in the Vietnam War. Purchase a brick or bricks in someone's memory or purchase a brick for your business. You can also just make a donation to sonsofatlanta.org. Thanks for your support." (Nextdoor)

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You're officially in the loop for today! I'll catch up with you bright and early tomorrow morning with another update.

— Kathy Cioffi

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?

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