Norcross High School Foundation for Excellence 2016 Hall of Fame Inductees

Each year since 2006, the NHS Foundation for Excellence has held a spring Gala to raise money for the Foundation and honor selected members of the NHS community who have made significant contributions to the success of our school. We are excited to announce that Martha Cook and Debbie Mason have been named as our 2016 Hall of Fame inductees. Please join us Friday, April 29, 2016 at The Carlyle House in Downtown Norcross from 7:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m. to honor these two great contributors to our school and community.

Martha Cook - Martha served as the Fine Arts Chairperson at Norcross High School for six and a half years, from 2006-2012. Under Martha's leadership, Atlanta Magazine selected Norcross High School’s Fine Arts Department as one of the top 10 Fine Art Programs in the Atlanta area. With others, Martha helped found “La Voz” (which means "The Voice"), an after-school club for Hispanic students at Norcross. She co-sponsored La Voz and sponsored the La Voz Art Club for nine years. Martha retired from Norcross in 2013 to pursue her passion for working with clay full time as a studio artist. She currently works as a Studio Assistant at Callanwolde Fine Arts Center in DeKalb County and teaches adult pottery classes at The Hudgens Center for the Arts in Gwinnett County.

Debbie Mason – Debbie initially began volunteering at her sons’ schools as Room Mom and Chaperone. She became the Vice President of the PTSA and then ultimately the President of the PTSA at Norcross High School. There, she led several initiatives, which became hallmark activities at Norcross. They include the Taste of Norcross, Ghost Out, and creating the now ‘Blue Devil Bulletin’ newsletter. She led many fundraising campaigns for Project Graduation, which continues today as a successful event for Norcross High School seniors. She also started Heart Screens for Teens, which allowed teens to get heart screenings at the school at a reasonable cost and funded the first AED (Automated External Defibrillator) at Norcross High School.

After both of Debbie’s sons graduated from Norcross High School, she focused her attention on involvement in her homeowner’s association and the United Peachtree Corners Civic Association (UPCCA). As part of the Beautification Committee, she chaired the Peachtree Parkway improvement project. She was recognized by Gwinnett Clean and Beautiful as the 2014 Volunteer of the Year.

Debbie led the “Yes” campaign, which ultimately, led to the creation of the City of Peachtree Corners. She helped create two local non-profit events, Peachtree Corners Festival in 2010 and Christmas in the Corners, Inc. (Parade) in 2013.

Tickets to the Gala are $50 a piece and they are available for purchase in the front office of the high school. Everyone is welcome

Go to our website for more information – norcrosshighfoundation.org