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Thousands of dollars
in Black Friday
savings inside
Church’s festival displays more than
1,000 Nativity sets, get out, 4B
ehe eftne
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2018 | $2.00 | GAINESVILLE, GEORGIA | gainesvilletimes.com
Happy
Thanksgiving
Turkey and tamales
Latino immigrants
combine American,
native traditions in
Thanksgiving meal
BY JOSHUA SILAVENT
jsilavent@gainesvilletimes.com
Diego Covarrubias proudly showed off the
hundreds upon hundreds of tamales his staff
at Carniceria Tapatia on Browns Bridge
Road in Gainesville were rolling in prepara
tion for Thanksgiving, or “dia de action de
gracias.”
Customers have been coming in all week
to the grocery to get what has become a
staple of Thanksgiving meals in Latino
households.
The tamales can include a choice of
meats, such as beef, chicken or pork (or
even vegetarian) wrapped in corn husks,
which are steamed for two hours.
Covarrubias said his staff makes about
3,000 tamales weekly, but that number is ris
ing this week.
He also has stalks of sugar cane on hand,
which are used to create a popular fruit
punch enjoyed by many Latino immigrants.
Born in the United States to Mexican
immigrants, Covarrubias said Turkey Day,
an all-American holiday, fits perfectly with
the love for family, food and fiestas that
characterize many Latino traditions.
“We have made it our holiday,” Covarru
bias said. “We take it as family time and we
integrate both cultures.”
Covarrubias said he is expecting about 30
relatives at his home on Thanksgiving, so
he was using his grocery, which includes a
butcher’s shop and restaurant, to prepare
some of the food.
So, it’s turkeys and tamales. It’s classic
stuffing paired with barbacoa and tortillas.
And it’s pumpkin pie alongside fried pastries
topped with cinnamon and sugar.
“There’s endless possibilities,” Covarru
bias said.
Nataly Morales Villa, a student at the Uni
versity of North Georgia in Gainesville and
a naturalized U.S. citizen who was born in
■ Please see TAMALES, 8A
scon ROGERS I The Times
Guadalupe Torres covers a pot of tamales Tuesday, Nov. 20, before steaming them at
Carniceria Tapatia in Gainesville. Tamales are a popular item for Thanksgiving among Latinos.
Hall County re-evaluates parks programs
to adjust for growth, community need
BY MEGAN REED
mreed@gainesvilletimes.com
Hall County is mapping out its
future plans for parks, and offi
cials want your input.
Residents can go online and
take a survey about the parks
and facilities they currently
use, as well as what they would
like to see more of as the county
expands its parks programs and
looks at how to move forward.
“That input would include
what people are thinking about
the programs we offer right now,
what they’re thinking about ath
letic programs, how they feel
about the parks and community
centers themselves, and their
opinions and ideas for what they
would like to see in the future,”
said Becky Ruffner, who works
in marketing for Hall County
Parks and Leisure.
Ruffner said as of Tuesday
afternoon, about 1,100 people
had already taken the survey.
There will also be four public
meetings where people can pro
vide input in person or ask ques
tions about the master plan.
“The master plan is really
kind of a road map of sorts that
is a plan for our future for the
next 10 years or so for parks and
leisure,” Ruffner said. “It’s criti
cal to have public input, whether
you have it through the survey or
through public meetings.”
The last time the county did a
parks master plan was in 1999,
and that plan was updated in
2009. According to Census data,
Hall’s population was about
134,000 in 1999, compared to
■ Please see PARKS, 8A
Businesses
ready for
holiday
shopping
season
BY JOSHUA SILAVENT
jsilavent@gainesvilletimes.com
Kristen Redmon was busy this week
staking signs around the downtown
Gainesville square encouraging people
to buy local this holiday sales season.
It’s an initiative that has broad
ened in recent years as Main Street
Gainesville, the city’s marketing arm
for downtown that Redmon manages,
looks to unite local businesses and
entice customers to treat Black Fri
day and Small Business Saturday as an
experience that includes shopping, din
ing and family time.
“We’re all about economic develop
ment downtown,” Redmon said. “And
what we’re doing this year is a little bit
different than what we’ve ever done
before.”
Main Street is offering a coupon
book for $5 that offers deals at shops
and restaurants on the square.
For example, Upsy Daisy, an inspi
rational gift shop whose motto is “shop
for the soul,” is offering 30 percent off
fall items and 20 percent off one Christ
mas item.
It’s an incentive with a “little special
touch to it,” said owner Dawn Parks.
“If people are looking for deals,
which we all are, we want to be able to
give that to our customers,” she added.
The buy-local campaign has united
downtown businesses, who are encour
aging patrons to make an experience of
the shopping season.
“And when they come to see us, we
hope they’ll shop at all the other local
shops,” Parks said. “We can feed off of
one another.”
Naomi Gnome, manager at Atlas
Pizza on the square, said the vener
able restaurant has never advertised
or offered specials because the place is
always busy and the prices reasonable.
But, Gnome said, “We want to
■ Please see SHOPPING, 8A
Main Street Gainesville
coupon book
Shoppers can purchase a coupon
book with special deals at
retailers and restaurants on the
downtown Gainesville square for
$5 by visiting the city’s tourism
and marketing office at 117 Jesse
Jewell Parkway, Suite 100.
The revenue generated from the
coupon book is pumped into Main
Street Gainesville’s event planning
and fagade grant programs.
The coupon book comes with
a shopping bag, map of local
establishments and visitors guide.
For more information, visit www.
gainesville.org/main-street-
gainesville
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Lake Lanier level: 1,070.55 feet
Full pool 1,071. Down 0.12 feet in 24 hours
Jack Farley, 60
John Henry Forrest, 60
Andrew Murray Gallup, 23
Betty Ann Harbin, 75
Hazel Pittman Hudgins, 89
Dell S. Huey, 89
Barbara Austin Knox, 81
Liem Mai, 88
Brenda McDonald Masters, 74
Royce McDaniel, 75
George Guy McDearmon Jr., 93
Charles Medlock Jr., 83
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Ruth H. Owens, 83
Thomas H. Paris Jr., 79
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Hazel Geneva Ward, 80
Mary Pryor Winn, 95
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