Talk Back: Kingsley debates continue ► PAGES 3-4 Januar y 29, 2026 | AppenMedia.com | An Appen Media Group Publication | Ser ving the community since 1976
Wildcats’ Smith splashes with 8 straight 3-pointers
SARAH DONEHOO/APPEN MEDIA
Volunteers clear a garden bed at the Dunwoody Community Garden in Brook Run Park on MLK Day, Jan. 19.
Volunteers honor MLK with service projects By SARAH DONEHOO newsroom@appenmedia.com DUNWOODY, Ga. – Dozens of volunteers gathered Jan. 19 at the Dunwoody Nature Center to lend a hand planting 84 trees on behalf of Trees Atlanta. Before the project began, Michael Lupsha, a senior manager for Trees Atlanta, thanked the volunteers for their assistance. “This is a unique and fun volunteer experience. It’s a really
great way to engage with fellow community members and with nature,” Lupsha said. Volunteers, he said, should take pride in turning out. “Take a moment today to sit back and take it all in. You’re in nature and with some like-minded people who are passionate about this,” he said. One of three service projects organized by the City of Dunwoody in partnership with the Dunwoody-Atlanta chapter of Jack and Jill of America, the tree
planting drew students, families and residents, all primed to create new connections. Groups of three to four people dug holes for a native tree species to be planted, then settled it with topsoil and mulch before pouring water around the newly planted tree. Community service on Martin Luther King Day is big in Georgia, said Nancy Longacre, Dunwoody Nature Center executive director.
See SERVICE, Page 7
DUNWOODY, Ga. — The Dunwoody Wildcats boys basketball team secured their 10th win of the season Jan. 20 against Lakeside High. Senior guard Brendan Smith stood out, shooting nearly 73 percent from beyond the arc. He made eight straight 3-pointers to start the game. Wildcats announcer Steve Foman said he has never seen anything like Smith’s performance. He has followed the team since 2002 and has held the announcer role since 2010. Other spectators called
the feat “amazing” and “sick.” The Wildcats handed the Vikings a brutal 71-40 beatdown. Smith wasn’t able to continue his streak as the starters were pulled for most of the second half due to the wide lead. Fellow senior Holden Verlander was the second leading scorer for the Wildcats with 11 points. Dunwoody is currently sitting at fifth in Region 4 of 5A and needs to unseat either Decatur, Woodward, Tri-Cities or Chamblee to make it to the state tournament. — Annabelle Reiter
ZAC BLONDHEIM/PROVIDED
Dunwoody senior guard Brendan Smith celebrates after connecting on a 3-pointer at Dunwoody High School Jan. 20.
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