4A Tuesday, December 1, 2020
The Times, Gainesville, Georgia | gainesvilletimes.com
LOCA^LIFE
Dahlonega planning parade as
part of Old Fashioned Christmas
Riverside Military Academy
receives $1 million donation
to fund student scholarships
BY DANIELA CARRASCO
dcarrasco@gainesvilletimes.com
BY KELSEY P0D0
kpodo@gainesvilletimes.com
Holiday cheer has already settled in
Dahlonega for its annual Old Fashioned
Christmas.
The town’s tree and square now illu
minate the cold night, and will continue
until Sunday, Jan. 10.
Like every year, shops in down
town Dahlonega will keep their busi
nesses open longer to welcome holiday
shoppers.
Starting Wednesday, Dec. 2, Cathy
McLendon, information specialist at the
Dahlonega Visitors Center, said horse-
drawn carriage rides will run each day
— not including Christmas — until the
end of December. Weather permitting,
she said three carriages will be on the
square at a time to give people a tour of
the town’s historic district.
Dahlonega Carriage and Horse Rides
will offer the experience on a first-come,
first-served basis. Tickets are $10 for
adults and $5 for children 13 and under.
Dahlonega Christmas Parade
The annual Christmas parade will
kick off at 4:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 12, in
downtown Dahlonega.
Angelia Wilson, who coordinates
the parade, said the floats and other
vehicles will start at Dahlonega Bap
tist Church, located at 234 Hawkins St.,
move through the square on East Main
Street past the Dahlonega Gold Museum
and turn around at the “annex building”
on Enota Street. The parade will loop
back and end at the church.
Wilson said the path has changed into
a loop this year to keep the crowd size
down and encourage people to space out
on both sides of the street. A map of the
route can be found at dahlonegachrist-
mas.com/christmas-parade.
Wilson said Dahlonega has held its
traditional parade for over 20 years. In
years with good weather, she said thou
sands of people have gathered for the
event. For Dec. 12, she asks that people
practice social distancing.
“We would encourage people to stay
within their own family groups,” Wilson
said. “We want people to enjoy them
selves, but be safe. It is a community
event.”
The deadline for parade entries is
Tuesday, Dec. 1. To register your vehi
cle or float, call Wilson at 706-892-9741
or email her at info@dahlonegachrist-
mas.com.
Cash prizes of $150 will be presented
to participants who win in the four cat
egories: walkers/animals, golf carts,
vehicles and floats. A grand prize of
$250 will be awarded for “Best Overall
Parade Participant.” The judging will
take place at 3 p.m., and the winners will
be announced during the parade.
“They’re judging on originality and
just having that community involvement
with Christmas,” Wilson said. “We call
ourselves ‘Old Fashioned Christmas’
because Dahlonega is an old town. We
like that hometown feeling.”
Other festivities happening
during Dahlonega’s Old
Fashioned Christmas:
■ 6-8 p.m. Dec. 12 and Dec. 19. Live
nativity in front of Dahlonega Methodist
Church at 107 South Park St.
■ Visit Santa, while keeping a dis
tance, at the Dahlonega Visitors Cen
ter at 13 South Park St. To view Santa’s
schedule, go to dahlonegachristmas.
com /santa-schedule.
■ All day from Dec. 5 to Dec. 31. The
nm
Photos courtesy Angelia Wilson
Dahlonega plans to hold its Old Fashioned Christmas, which includes a parade on
Dec. 12 and other activities throughout December.
Dahlonega Christmas
Parade
When: 4:30-5 p.m. Saturday,
Dec. 12
Where: Along East Main Street in
Dahlonega
To participate: Call Angelia Wilson at
706-892-9741 or email her at info@
dahlonegachristmas.com
For parade route:
dahlonegachristmas.com/
christmas-parade
Festival of Trees invites people to walk
among decorated trees, sponsored by
members of the community, in Hancock
Park, located on Hawkins Street.
■ Tours at four wine tasting rooms in
Dahlonega’s historic district throughout
December.
■ 4-6 p.m. Dec. 12 and 2-4 p.m. Dec.
13. Learn about the history of coffee and
preparation methods with local coffee
Carriage ride schedule
When: Wednesday, Dec. 2 through
Thursday, Dec. 31 (excluding
Christmas)
■ 3-8 p.m. Monday, Tuesday and
Wednesday
■ 3-9 p.m. Thursday
■ 2-10 p.m. Friday
■ Noon to 10 p.m. Saturday
■ 1-8 p.m. Sunday
Where: Dahlonega’s square
How much: $10 for adults, $5 for
children 13 and under
aficionado, Bryan Garris, at The Little
field Cottage, located next to Canvas and
Cork on 78 North Meaders St.
■ Dahlonega Gold Museum’s Christ
mas Music Escape Room will take place
throughout December.
For more information and to view
an updated schedule for Old Fashioned
Christmas, visit dahlonegachristmas.
com.
Riverside Military Academy is getting an early
Christmas present this year with a $1 million donation
from alumnus John Phelps.
Phelps is the second person to donate $1 million to
Riverside in the past 18 months.
“We are incredibly grateful for the generosity of
this gift as well as the timing,” Col. Stas Preczewski,
president of Riverside, said in a press release.
Phelps donated the money to create The John F.
and Ann L. Phelps Endowment to fund student schol
arships. He decided to give the money earlier because
of the “financial hardships” brought on to many
because of the pandemic. Phelps entered Riverside
his junior year after the death of his father. He gradu
ated in 1956, just 18 months after joining and went on
to run an office supply and printing store in Pensacola,
Florida.
“John Phelps’ story is an excellent example of what
RMA does for young men,” Ellen DeFoor, Riverside’s
vice president for advancement, said in the release.
Dunkin’ coming to Flowery Branch
BY JEFF GILL
jgill@gainesvilletimes.com
A Dunkin’ doughnut shop is coming to Flowery
Branch next to the McDonald’s restaurant off Spout
Springs Road.
Grading has begun at the site at 5915 Spout Springs
Road, which is between Interstate 985’s Exit 12 and
Hog Mountain Road.
Other details about the project weren’t immediately
available on Monday, Nov. 30.
Rich Atkinson, Flowery Branch planning director,
said Dunkin’ plans are being reviewed by Donald Bow
ers, the city’s building inspector.
“I recall that it did have some minimal seating on
the inside,” Atkinson said.
A sign on the property depicting a site development
permit shows Donuts Holdings LLC as the owner. Com
pany officials couldn’t be reached for comment.
The Dunkin’ and McDonald’s will be on a site once
occupied by Rite Aid pharmacy. The Rite Aid building
was torn down as construction began in early 2020 on
the McDonald’s.
JEFF GILL I The Times
A Dunkin’ doughnut shop is coming to this site in
Flowery Branch next to the McDonald’s restaurant off
Spout Springs Road.
TALKS
DEC. 8
AT NOON
Women Source’s annual
luncheon goes virtual
BY KELSEY P0D0
kpodo@gainesvilletimes.com
WomenSource has found a new way to
empower ladies for its annual Motivating
Women Luncheon.
From 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., Tuesday, Dec.
8, the nonprofit will hold its program online
to keep attendees safe during the pandemic.
“It stinks that we can’t do it in person, but
we’ve made the best of allowing people to
still participate,” Elizabeth Burnette, execu
tive director of WomenSource, said. “I hope
when the program ends, that they have a
renewed sense of ‘I can do this, and ‘we
can do this, especially if we work
together.’”
Darlene Drew is the afternoon’s
keynote speaker. For 11 years,
Drew served as the warden of three
different facilities with the Fed
eral Bureau of Prisons. She was
the first female to work as warden
at the United States Penitentiary
in Atlanta. Burnette said Drew,
who lives south of Atlanta, is now
retired from the penitentiary sys
tem and runs her own motivational speaking
platform.
“She has a truly powerful career story
where she is the only female warden for
the penitentiary in Atlanta,” Burnette said.
“She was told, ‘You’ll never be able to do
this job.’ People didn’t know how to refer to
her because a female had never been in her
position before. She has a very exciting story
of fighting for her place in where she knew
she belonged.”
Burnette said WomenSource has held
the luncheon on and off since the nonprofit
became established in 2007. With each
event, she said the speakers are asked the
question: What can women do to take that
next step to advance their lives personally
and professionally?
“We ask speakers to share their successes,
but also share their learning experiences
and the failures where they grew,” Bur
nette said. “This year in particular,
we have asked Darlene to really
focus on women and resiliency,
and persistence knowing that we’re
all having to put one foot in front of
the other. It’s more of a message of,
‘Hang in there, we can do this, and
we can do this together.’”
The deadline has passed to
become a sponsor of a table for
eight and have food delivered to
your home or business. However,
individuals can still purchase tickets up until
the morning before the luncheon.
Tickets cost $25 per person. People can
register by visiting womensource.info/get-
involved/ mwl2020. A Zoom link will be sent
to those who sign up for the event.
Drew
WomenSource’s Motivating Women Luncheon
What: Virtual luncheon featuring motivational speaker Darlene Drew
When: 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 8
Where: Via Zoom
To register: womensource.info/get-involved/mwl2020
How much: $25 per person
More info: womensource.info/get-involved/mw!2020
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