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Dog Fashion Show takes over Fowler Park

Sarah Brecher puts a wig on her dog Sky Blu before the Dog Fashion Show & Contest at Fowler Park in Cumming on Friday, Sept. 18. Sky Blu won first place at the event for her costume, “Doggy Parton.”

PHOTOS BY KATHERINE DAVIS/APPEN MEDIA

Bella, dressed as a fairy, is pushed down the runway by her owner, Christine Moore, during the Dog Fashion Show & Contest at Fowler Park in Cumming on Sept. 18. Moore drove all the way from South Carolina for the event after seeing it listed on BringFido, a pet travel resource.

► SEE STORY AND PHOTOS ON PAGE 7

ROI

matters.

William Conley wears a matching farmer costume with his dog, Sargent, during the Dog Fashion Show & Contest at Fowler Park in Cumming on Friday, Sept. 18. Sargent won third place for the event.

Collection adding fitness facility By JON WILCOX jon@appenmedia.com FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. — A major mixed-use destination in southern Forsyth County expects to expand its recreational offerings with a fitnesscentered 40,000-square-foot indoor facility. At a Sept. 17 meeting, the Forsyth County Commission approved variances for the project, which is adjacent to The Collection at Forsyth, 410 Peachtree Parkway. The variances increase the maximum number of parking spaces from 166 to 285 and reduce landscaping zones. The project is the latest in a series of recreational asset expansions at the mixed-use center. Located just off Ga. 400 several miles south of Cumming, The Collection at Forsyth bills itself as a 561,000-squarefoot premier outdoor lifestyle destination with shopping, dining and recreation attractions. The shopping center includes numerous retail, restaurant and recreation businesses from Victoria’s Secret to The Cheesecake Factory to a Build-A-Bear Workshop. Owned by CTO Realty, The Collection has recently added numerous entertainment and activity assets. In 2025, it welcomed The Picklr, a membership-based pickleball club, joining Pilates studio Bodyrok, indoor play area Giggle Town and True Rest Float Spa, which allows clients to meditate in sensory deprivation pods.

See COLLECTION, Page 12

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Forsyth, Alpharetta police reports: DUI, scam, slap 770-442-3278 AppenMedia.com 319 N. Main Street Alpharetta, GA 30009 HANS APPEN Publisher RAY APPEN Publisher Emeritus CONTACT NEWS TIPS Contact reporters directly or send story ideas to newsroom@appenmedia.com. LETTERS, EVENTS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS Send your letters, events and community news to newsroom@appenmedia.com. See appenmedia.com/submit for more guidance. ADVERTISING For information about advertising in the Forsyth Herald or other Appen Media properties, email advertising@appenmedia.com or call 770-442-3278. CIRCULATION To start, pause or stop delivery of this newspaper, email circulation@appenmedia.com or call 770-442-3278.

By JON WILCOX jon@appenmedia.com These reports are compiled from information provided by local law enforcement agencies and are matters of public record. They do not imply guilt, and those described are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

Dahlonega man faces reckless driving charge FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. — A 42-yearold Dahlonega man was arrested Sept. 7 on reckless driving charges on Georgia 400. The Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office said a deputy was conducting speed enforcement on northbound lanes near Peachtree Parkway when the man’s vehicle was clocked at 95 mph in a 65-mph zone. The vehicle was quickly changing lanes and slowed before accelerating to about 100 mph. The deputy said the driver was operating with little regard for other drivers. After the deputy activated emergency lights to signal a stop, the driver allegedly stopped violently, nearly causing a collision. The man was arrested on reckless driving, speeding and improper lane change charges. He was taken to the Forsyth County Jail.

Forsyth couple defrauded in mortgage scam FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. — A 50-yearold Cumming woman and 58-year-old Gainesville man reported Sept. 11 they were defrauded of $7,200 in a mortgage scheme. The Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office said a man purporting to represent their

APPEN MEDIA FILE PHOTO

mortgage company contacted them in April for a loan modification. At the time, their mortgage was 30 days in arrears. The man said their mortgage would be back in compliance if they paid $1,200 per month. The money was sent via a transfer app. The homeowners said they realized they had been scammed after a friend notified them their home was listed in a foreclosure auction. The incident was classified as a felony theft by deception.

Clinic altercation ends in arrest ALPHARETTA, Ga. — A 19-year-old Pleasantville, New Jersey, woman was arrested Sept. 8 after allegedly slapping another woman at a Webb Bridge Road clinic. She was arrested on a warrant charging her with simple battery and transported to the Alpharetta Detention Center. Alpharetta police said officers were sent to the business about 7:30 p.m. after a physical altercation was reported. A 19-year-old Fort Mitchell, Kentucky, woman reported she was slapped in the face by the Pleasantville woman during an argument about touching per-

sonal property, police said. A 37-yearold New Brunswick, New Jersey, woman said she witnessed the alleged assault. Officers also reviewed a security camera recording of the incident.

Alpharetta man charged with DUI, fake tag ALPHARETTA, Ga. — A 61-year-old Alpharetta man was arrested Sept. 4 on an intoxicated driving charge after officers allegedly determined his vehicle registration decal was fraudulent. Alpharetta police said officers stopped the driver on North Point Parkway near Executive Drive after determining he had no insurance. A later investigation also determined his registration sticker belonged to another vehicle, police said. Officers began an impaired driving investigation after allegedly smelling alcohol on the man’s breath. The man admitted to drinking several beers, police said. During the tests, officers observed he lacked balance, and his eyes showed signs of intoxication, police said. He was arrested and taken to the Alpharetta Detention Center. A search of his vehicle allegedly found an open container of beer. Officers also charged the man with alteration of a license plate.

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AppenMedia.com/Forsyth | Forsyth Herald | September 24, 2026 | 3

STORE CLOSING

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4 | September 24, 2026 | Forsyth Herald | AppenMedia.com/Forsyth

Subdivision, tree service spar Contentious public halts Forsyth over noise in Forsyth County comment commission meeting By JON WILCOX jon@appenmedia.com

FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. — The drone of a mulcher at a Forsyth County tree-processing company carries different meanings depending on which side of the property line you are on. To nearby Blackwell Manor subdivision residents like Whitney Frink, the sound is a scourge, polluting backyards with a dull roar. “We wanted land. We wanted space, and we just wanted a quiet life,” she said. “And now it’s very loud.” But to Atlanta Classic Tree Service, that mulcher is an essential part of its family business, which settled in its Atlanta Highway location years before the homes sprouted around them, said land-use attorney Ethan Underwood, who represents the business. “Atlanta Classic Tree Service has a right to continue its operations on its property,” Underwood said. The issue between Blackwell Manor and the business is one that is increasingly common within Forsyth County amid a demand for homes to house new residents. Since 2010, the county has added about 105,000 residents, an almost 66% increase. Frink said when she moved into her home about eight years ago, her backyard was an oasis

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of suburban peace. “I thought, ‘Oh, this is perfect. We have so much privacy, so much peace and serenity,’ and that lasted for five years,” she said. She said that quiet atmosphere has since been invaded by the drone of a mulcher, a sound that regularly fills her backyard. Her young children shout over it when playing. It enters her home, interrupting virtual meetings she has in her job as a television producer. “I have to mute myself because it would be so annoying,” Frink said. “They say, ‘What is happening at your house?’ And I’m like, ‘It’s this loud wood chipping company behind my house.’” She said the noise even allowed her to successfully challenge an increase in her home’s appraisal value. “I played the audio for them, and I said, ‘This is what I have every day,’” she said. Chris Kelly, another Blackwell Manor resident, agreed, saying he just wants peace and quiet. Kelly, who loves to host get-togethers at his backyard pool, said he wants to be able to relax without raising his voice to talk over the sound. But he also said he thinks a compromise will be reached that works for both parties. “We should coexist,” he said.

FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. — A Forsyth County Commission meeting was interrupted after a commissioner responded to a public comment Sept. 17. During the meeting’s first public comment period, a man addressed commissioners, saying he was concerned about Israeli influence in federal, state and local governments. He said commissioners should have been forbidden from voting because of that purported influence. The man at times raised his voice and used profanity. Commissioner Todd Levent responded during the comment although Forsyth County rules prohibit commissioners from speaking directly to public commenters. “I think your level of racism is off the chart,” Levent said. Levent attempted to make further comments to the speaker, and they got into a brief back-and-forth. Chairman Alfred John admonished Levent’s response, and the board called a five-minute recess. Afterward, John apologized to the crowd and explained rules governing public meetings and public comments. He said commissioners must listen to opinions. “Public comments are a time when the public can come and address the board. Sometimes, it goes in ways we don’t expect,” John said. “But the courts have deemed that we have to sit here and sometimes accept what is delivered to us.” ATTENTION - Double check ad for ALL content. Phone, web, address, coupons, etc. Assume nothing Reply back that ad is approved once ALL ITEMS HAVE BEEN CHECKED FOR ACCURACY.

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6 | September 24, 2026 | Forsyth Herald | AppenMedia.com/Forsyth

NEWS

Voters have until Oct. 5 to register for general election By JOSHUA WILSON joshua@appenmedia.com ALPHARETTA, Ga. — Georgians have until Oct. 5 to register to vote ahead of the Nov. 3 general election, according to the secretary of state’s office. The deadline applies to residents who want to cast a ballot in the general election, which will decide federal, state and local races across the state. Advance voting for the election runs Oct. 13-30. To register, Georgia residents must be U.S. citizens, legal residents of their county and at least 18 years old by Election Day. Applicants cannot be serving a sentence for a felony conviction involving moral turpitude or have been declared mentally incompetent by a judge. Residents can register online — download a postagepaid paper application to mail in — through the Secretary of State’s website at registertovote.sos.ga.gov. Those who have already registered

can confirm their status, find their polling place and check ID requirements through the state’s My Voter Page at mvp. sos.ga.gov. Voters who move must update their address with their county’s board of registrars or submit a new registration application before the deadline. Anyone who submits a registration and does not receive a precinct card within three to four weeks should contact their county elections office. A precinct card is not required to vote, but it shows where a resident’s polling place is located. Polling places will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Election Day. Voters must bring a valid photo ID, such as a driver’s license, passport or state-issued voter ID card. If the Nov. 3 election requires a runoff, that election is set for Dec. 1. The registration deadline for the runoff is also Oct. 5 for most contests, though voters registering solely for a federal runoff race have until Nov. 2.

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AppenMedia.com/Forsyth | Forsyth Herald | September 24, 2026 | 7

Dog Fashion Show takes over Fowler Park in Cumming By KATHERINE DAVIS newsroom@appenmedia.com CUMMING, Ga. — Dogs in princess dresses, silly hats, overalls, and other outfits hit the runway last night at Fowler Park for the Dog Fashion Show & Contest. The event, organized by Lambert High School junior, Sritha Ganti, benefited the Forsyth County Pet Adoption Center and the Humane Society of Forsyth County. Spectators attended for free, while dog participants paid a $25 entry fee. Dogs taking home prizes included second-place winner Sarge, dressed as a farmer, and honorable mention Oscar, dressed as an influencer. Sky Blu won first place for her Dolly Parton costume. Sky Blu and her owner, Sarah Brecher, won a $480 certificate for a weekend retreat at Pet Lodge Pet Resort.

Third-place winner Clotile, a toy cavapoo, is no stranger to dressing up. Clotile is a therapy dog and often wears outfits when she goes to school with her owner, Vicky Creighton, a teacher at New Hope Elementary School. Creighton saw a flyer for the contest at Pet Suites, where Clotile attends doggy daycare, and decided to sign Clotile up for her runway debut. When explaining why she decided to dress Clotile as a princess, Creighton said, “She’s a diva and she loves pink.” Beyond the competition, Creighton said she enjoyed seeing kids and the community come out to the event. “I think this is a great event,” Creighton said before the winners were announced. “It’s great for the community to come together in a fun way.” — Photos by Katherine Davis

A woman walks two dogs, dressed as a chef and a lobster, down the runway during the Dog Fashion Show & Contest at Fowler Park in Cumming on Sept. 18. Vicky Creighton and her dog, Clotile, show off their matching painted nails during the Dog Fashion Show & Contest at Fowler Park on Sept. 18. Clotile is a therapy dog and won third place at the event. Mohana Osgood poses at the photo booth with her dog, Ivy, during the Dog Fashion Show & Contest at Fowler Park in Cumming, Georgia, on Sept. 18. Ivy was dressed as the North Star.

Commissioner Laura Semanson laughs during the Dog Fashion Show & Contest at Fowler Park in Cumming on Sept. 18. The event benefitted the Forsyth County Pet Adoption Center and the Humane Society of Forsyth County.

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September 24, 2026 | Forsyth Herald | 8

Medical science can sometimes help us step back in time and understand the past as though centuries no longer separate us. Homer's The Odyssey has received renewed attention through Christopher Nolan's recent film adaptation, providing an opportunity to revisit medicine in Homer's world. By understanding the effects of two plants—nightshade and snowdrops—modern pharmacology sheds light on one of the epic's most perplexing episodes: the transformation of Odysseus's men into swine. Christopher Nolan's adaptation includes the startling scene in which the sorceress Circe turns Odysseus's men into pigs. In Homer's original epic, Circe poisons the soldiers' drink. The god Hermes gives Odysseus an antidote in the form of a plant called Moly, described as having a black root and a white flower. Odysseus consumes the herb, drinks Circe's poisoned brew without harm, then confronts Circe and rescues his men. To modern audiences, Circe's potion seems fantastical. But to ancient listeners familiar with local plants and traditional healing, it may have suggested something far more recognizable. One influential interpretation proposes that Circe's potion was inspired by poisonous plants of the nightshade family, which profoundly affect the nervous system. Normally, the body shifts between "rest and digest" and "fight or flight" through the action of acetylcholine. Nightshade blocks acetylcholine, pushing the nervous system toward "fight or flight." In larger doses, the consequences become severe. Poisoning by nightshade produces the classic symptoms: "blind as a bat, mad as a hatter, red as a beet, hot as a hare, dry as a bone." Victims may suffer blurred vision, impaired sweating, confusion, hallucinations, and delusions. Nightshade is among history's most famous poisons, appearing in Homer, Shakespeare, and countless ancient texts. Homer's audience would likely have recognized its effects. Nightshade could leave Odysseus's men as helpless as pigs—or even convince them they were pigs. Medical historians have suggested

that Moly may have been the snowdrop (Galanthus), which has a white flower, dark roots when freshly dug up, and which contains galantamine, a compound that increases acetylcholine activity and largely counterPROVIDED acts the effects of nightshade. But snowdrops are not harmless. In excessive doses, they can slow the heart, weaken breathing, lower blood pressure, and become poisonous themselves. Only a master herbalist or a hero with Hermes as his guide could have chosen the proper balance. For ancient audiences, the story likely gained another layer of suspense now largely lost on us. They may have recognized that Moly itself was dangerous. Once Odysseus swallowed it, the clock began ticking. Odysseus had to drink Circe’s nightshade before the snowdrop killed him. The antidote became the poison, and the poison became the antidote. When Odysseus consumed Moly, ancient listeners may have experienced the same suspense we feel watching heroes race to obtain an antidote in modern films. When Odysseus swallowed one poison in preparation for another, ancient listeners, too, were likely on the edge of their seats. Almost any substance can be a medicine at one dose and a poison at another. That paradox—and the knowledge that Hermes' "gift" was both antidote and toxin—deepens our understanding of the peril Odysseus faced. Between Circe and Hermes, nightshade and snowdrops, he navigates a medicinal Scylla and Charybdis in which each plant is both poison and cure. A knowledge of ancient herbal medicine and modern pharmacology makes sense of a scene of soldiers turned into pigs and helps us appreciate a moment of tremendous danger and suspense for our great ancient hero Odysseus.

EMPTY NEST • Sponsored Section

AppenMedia.com/Forsyth | Forsyth Herald | September 24, 2026 | 9

Medicare insurance changes on the horizon Brought to you by – Senior Source Medicare For anyone on a Medicare Advantage Plan or a Stand-Alone Prescription Drug Plan, you should be receiving your ANOC right about now. This is your Annual Notice of Change. How will these plans change for 2027, you ask? On Prescription Drug Plans, expect higher monthly premiums and higher deductibles. Many drug plans will be using the standard $700 deductible on brand name medicines. And then, there is always a possibility of formulary changes on the prescriptions you take. For example, the drug that is currently at a lower Tier 3 cost could now be Tier 4 in 2027. For those do-it-yourselfers, the easiest way to verify these tier level changes is by visiting Medicare.gov and using the Prescription Drug Plan Finder Tool. On Medicare Advantage, there is a divide between companies that “want the business” (based on how competitive their Medicare Advantage benefits are designed) and companies that believe they are “too big to fail” (a 2008 reference for those of you that remember). Let me be frank, most Medicare Advantage companies are of sound finan-

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OPINION

10 | September 24, 2026 | Forsyth Herald | AppenMedia.com/Forsyth

Our trip down the Danube – river of dreams My wife, Christina, and I celebrated our 40th wedding anniversary on one of those riverboat tours floating down the Danube. We started in the Czech Republic, in Prague. RAY APPEN Publisher Emeritus But before the boat, ray@appenmedia.com we celebrated with a vow renewal at our church, Alpharetta Presbyterian — a most wonderful openhearted church with broad welcoming shoulders. It was a fitting celebration of a first pass at this thing called life together, and the beginning of a second wind — looking and moving forward into the unknown. A river of dreams, then. Sometimes full of light, but other times without light — like banks of dark and threatening thunderheads wrapped in chaos. Black dogs, the old name for the darkness that settles over a person and won't lift. The light or the darkness, both reflections in a mirror. One is a point in time — "now," this hour, this minute. The other is sometimes a

thousand years prior, like a matrix in concurrent but unequal layers. Since we have only limited travel experience, these nearly two weeks on the Danube with Gate 1 Travel guiding our itinerary were all new. Everything. I think we went through five countries — the Czech Republic, Austria, Germany, Slovakia and Hungary — ending in Budapest. The boat crew numbered about 30. We passengers were around 125. By the end, we all knew one another, and we made friends we will see again. In each city, our guides lectured as we walked and listened and tried to absorb where we were, how and why. Our guides made the trip. Their knowledge — the canvas for the paint — provided the context, the beating hearts of the humanity we witnessed. It's so different from reading about or studying history and geography, or people, from books or via lectures in a classroom. This, in contrast, was in many ways real time — see it, touch it, feel it, sense it, imagine it. Thousand-year -old churches that changed sides every few centuries

See APPEN, Page 11

Ray and Christina Appen at the Lennon Wall in Prague. © IP86, LLC 2026

PHOTOS BY: RAY APPEN/APPEN MEDIA

YOU’RE INVITED TO

Epcon’s Fall Tour of Homes

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T H U R SDAY, SEPT EMB ER 24S U N DAY, SEPT EMB ER 2 7 | 12-6pm

You’re invited to Epcon’s Fall Tour of Homes, where you’ll explore luxury ranch homes and discover the freedom of a low-maintenance, lock & leave lifestyle. Step inside homes designed for single-level living in low-maintenance communities, where landscaping is taken care of so you can spend less time on chores and more time enjoying the seasons. Scan to learn more about our Fall Tour of Homes and find participating communities.

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678.647.7179 © IP86, LLC 2026

©️ 2026 IP86, LLC. Although all floor plans, features, illustrations, and specifications of the homes and communities are believed correct at the time of publication, the right is reserved to make changes, without notice or obligation. Windows, doors, ceilings, layout, colors, finishes and room sizes may vary depending on the options and elevations selected. This information is for illustrative purposes only and not part of a legal contract. Some communities may be age-restricted, in which no less than eighty percent of homes in the community must have at least one permanent occupant fifty-five years of age or older.

Appen: Continued from Page 10 or so. Narrow cobblestone streets. Church organs with thousands of pipes. Stained-glass windows of infinite color. Kings and queens, wars and empires. Plagues. All close, all almost within arm's reach. All somehow personal, relevant. Our guides took us to Terezin — known to the Nazis as Theresienstadt — about 40 miles north of Prague, where we passed through iron gates to tiny cells with and without light. We walked the hard stone floors. We saw the photographs: in the ghetto, the condemned Jews awaiting transport; next door in the Small Fortress, the Gestapo's political prisoners, the Czech resistance fighters and the others who fought back or opposed. All of them chattel, crated, boxed, packaged, ready for disposal. Terezin was a "transit" concentration camp through which prisoners passed on the way to the extermination camps, including Auschwitz, Treblinka and Chelmno. It was the camp where 51 prisoners, primarily young resistance fighters in their 20s, were executed May 2, 1945, over a two-hour period — three

OPINION days before the SS guards abandoned the camp and six days before Soviet troops liberated it. Karl Rahm, the last commandant of the ghetto, was hanged in April 1947. Heinrich Jöckel, who ran the adjoining Small Fortress, was hanged in October 1946. Walking through Terezin was chilling. We saw things made of stone and steel, as well as ideas made from values and faith. And we saw the spoils of those who won and those who lost — the things that obscured, the cataracts of history. We just had no idea. We were blindsided by Hungary, where we spent a day touring the shelters, the bunkers, the radiation-proof underground escapes that were everywhere in Budapest. Today, we listen to the news about the war in Ukraine daily; we all do, I think. There are the wars in Iran and Gaza, too. But those wars, and that trauma for all the humanity involved, stay remote, out of reach, impersonal — and almost not real. The shelters we experienced in Budapest erased much of that distance for us. Many of the bunkers in Budapest were built during World War II. Some were large enough to hold 20,000 people for weeks, if not months. Many others were built during the Cold War of the 1950s and '60s in anticipation

AppenMedia.com/Forsyth | Forsyth Herald | September 24, 2026 | 11

of a nuclear war. There were bunkers for the military and civilian leaders, and they tended to be better equipped. There were bunkers for the general population. Underground hospitals, schools, kitchens, power stations, food storage, living quarters, water storage and systems and dining halls. We spent more than an hour in one of the bunkers, going through it room by room. What made these bunkers so powerful to me was twofold. No. 1: the sheer quantity of the shelters. Our guide told us Budapest alone has an estimated 3,000 shelters today, with the capacity to hold about 490,000 people. No. 2: the bunkers and shelters, especially those built during the Cold War, are only roughly 60 to 70 years old. That is, this "way of life" — this living in the shadow of a probable nuclear war, as evidenced by the bunkers — is, or was, so real and so much a part of life, especially for baby boomers in Budapest and Hungary, today. Our travel brought us closer to a reality that was not - and never has been - on our personal radar. It drove home that we — the US — is not the center of the universe. It helped us recognize that we are collectively one village - a village that aspires, lives, and dies the same way.

Plzen, also known in English and German as Pilsen, is a city in the Czech Republic

12 | September 24, 2026 | Forsyth Herald | AppenMedia.com/Forsyth

Collection: Continued from Page 1 Elizabeth Weiner, project management director for CTO, said her company is in discussions with a tenant for the 40,000 square-foot space. She said she couldn't specify the company's name but added it is fitnessbased. The project is located on about 10.6 acres at the western edge of The Collection. Built in 2008, The Collection was acquired by CTO in 2022. Weiner said during her career she has come to realize adaptation is a constant necessity for commercial centers. As times change, so do consumer tastes, requiring mixed-use centers to adjust. “It is fluid. It's a living beast, and it changes with how we are as a people,” Weiner said. “Whatever our interests are and whoever has got the dollars in their pocket, that is what drives it.”

FORSYTH COUNTY/PROVIDED

A Forsyth County parcel map shows Atlanta Classic Tree Service’s property, outlined in blue, bordering the Blackwell Manor subdivision on Atlanta Highway. Residents say noise from the company’s tree-mulching operation has disrupted their neighborhood.

Noise:

Continued from Page 4 Underwood said Atlanta Classic Tree Service understands the residents’ concerns, but he added the mulcher is a vital part of its operation. For about two decades, the company has operated at 4975 Atlanta Highway. It has made a business of shredding trees to make animal bedding. “The family that owns the business is interested in being a good neighbor,” Underwood said. “They are very interested in the community.”

Atlanta Classic Tree Service has the county. already taken measures to mitigate its “This is becoming more common, noise, investing hundreds of thousands particularly in places like Forsyth of dollars, he said. County,” he said. “It was once very The company soon hopes to employ rural, where you had more businesses a shredder that will vastly reduce the that would operate in rural areas, and noise, he said. They also have begun then the residential development has installation of a new berm to block the moved adjacent to those operating busisound. nesses.” Previously, they relocated machinery County Commissioner Todd Levent, to dampen the sound arriving at the who represents the area, said he agrees. homes. He has met with residents and represen“They’re trying to be better neighbors tatives of the business to find a solution and accommodate the concerns of those that suits both groups. adjoining property owners,” he said. “We are constantly trying to mediate The issue is one that Underwood said and get people to compromise because is occurring with increasing frequency in theDeath land is running out,” he said. T:\Obits Death Notices\2026 Notices

DEATH NOTICES James Exparza, age 91, of Alpharetta, GA passed away on September 7, 2026. Arrangements by Northside Chapel Funeral Directors & Crematory.

LuAnn Gumkowski, age 73, of Roswell, GA passed away on September 15, 2026. Arrangements by Northside Chapel Funeral Directors & Crematory.

Clement Pereira, age 81, of Roswell, GA passed away on September 7, 2026. Arrangements by Northside Chapel Funeral Directors & Crematory.

Karen Freeman, age 87, of Milton, GA passed away on September 14, 2026. Arrangements by Northside Chapel Funeral Directors & Crematory.

Pauline Hahn, age 97, of Alpharetta, GA passed away on September 13, 2026. Arrangements by Northside Chapel Funeral Directors & Crematory.

Tyler Preston, age 30, of Roswell, GA passed away on September 9, 2026. Arrangements by Northside Chapel Funeral Directors & Crematory.

Puzzles

Dunwoody Crier 9/10/26 Connect-It

Connect-It

Forsyth Herald .............................September 24, 2026 | 13

Dunwoody Crier 9/10/26 Crossword

Across

1 Figure out 6 Ice cover 11 Bawl 14 Bay window 15 Dog-___ 16 Hasten 17 Falling stock prices, at times 19 Belief 20 Sphere 21 Pick up the tab 22 Evita role 23 ___ gin ﬁzz 25 Soft leather 28 Boy 31 Cockpit reading (Abbr.) 32 Honey maker 33 Self-image 34 Walk through wet snow 37 Wedding rings 40 Harbor boats 42 G.I. entertainers 43 Stir up 44 18-wheelers 46 ___ cotta 49 Altdorf is its capital 50 Broke bread 51 Nurse a drink 52 Asian holiday 53 Medical image 57 1961 space chimp 59 ___ Baba 60 Heart valves 62 French possessive 65 Apart (Preﬁx) 66 Certain sweaters

17 20 23 29

50 55

4 39

56 61

62 67

Creators

64 68

8 Mountain nymph 9 Brawl 10 Six-pointers, for short 11 Back down from a ﬁght 12 Hindu sage 13 Red Sea land 18 Coral reef 24 ___ Tunas, Cuba 26 Abate 27 Scorch 28 Permits 29 Chills and fever 30 Zealots 35 Compass pt. 36 Roughhousing

9/10/26 Kakuro PuzzleJu How to Solve: Each line in the puzzle Dunwoody above has Crier three clues and three answers. The last letter in the first answer on each line is 1. first Pooh creator. Nervous. Tempest. the letter of the second answer, and so on. The connecting letter is outlined, giving you the correct number of letters for each answer (the answers in line 1 are 4, 5 and 5 letters). The clues are numbered 1 through 7, which each number containing 3 clues Kakuro, alsoLittle known as Cross Sums, is a challenging number puzzle, a crossword grid. The rules are easy: 2. Resting place. English race place. Lulu for 3 answers on thepuzzle, line. Buteach here’s the catch! The clues are creator. not in order - so the first clue in Line solved 1 mayin(or may not) style actually To the solve the Sudoku row, column and above the diagonal line in a black square is the sum of the white squares to the right of it. A number below the diagonal lin be the second or the thirdnumbers answer in1that line. Got it? Good luck! boxformust contain to of 9. the white squares in the sequence below it. You may only use the digits 1 to 9, and a digit can only be used once in any 3. Not crazy. Addy Capp creator. Former spouses. 4. School assignment. Frost. Popeye creator.

1 See 11 Across 2 Creme cookie 3 Yarn spinner 4 Action words 5 Stately tree 6 Uncover through investigation 7 Gardening tool

Down

1. Pooh creator. Nervous. Tempest. 2. Resting place. English race place. Little Lulu creator. 3. Not crazy. Addy Capp creator. Former spouses. 4. School assignment. Frost. Popeye creator. 5. Dracula creator. Burden of proof. Ready to pick. 6. Large sword. Out for the night. Garfield creator. 7. Sherlock Holmes creator. Ballet attire. Everglades wader. PuzzleJunction.com

Dunwoody Crier 9/10/26 Sudoku7 58

69 Rodent 70 On the briny 71 Eagle’s home 72 Sharp curve 73 Microscopic 74 Feather

CREATORS

Each line in the puzzle below has three clues and three answers. The last letter in the first answer on each line is the first letter of the second answer, and so on. The connecting letter is outlined, giving you the correct number of letters for each answer (the answers in line 1 are 5, 5 and 4 letters). The clues are numbered 1 through 7, with each number containing 3 clues for the 3 answers on the line. But here’s the catch! The clues are not in order - so the first clue in Line 1 may (or may not) actually be for the second or third answer in that line. Got it? Good luck!

PuzzleJunction.com

38 Calamitous 39 Buttonhole, e.g. 41 Grabs a chair 45 Dry, as wine 47 Wash cycle 48 G.I.’s address 53 Inner circle 54 Assumed name 55 Critical 56 Hospital ﬁgure 58 Girder material 61 British gun 63 Beige 64 Remove cream 66 Make lace 67 40 winks 68 Behold

65. Dracula creator. Burden of proof. Ready to pick. 6. Large sword. Out for the night. Garfield creator. 97. Sherlock Holmes creator. 3 7 Ballet attire. 1 Everglades 5 wader. 3 4 5 1 3 8 6 9 7 5 1 2 5 4 3 2 4 How to Solve: Kakuro, also known as Cross Sums, is a challenging number puzzle, solved in a crossword style grid. 7 1 The rules are easy: A number above the diagonal line in a Copyright ©2026 PuzzleJunction.com

See puzzle solutions on Page 14

How to Solve: To solve the Sudoku puzzle, each row, column and box must contain the numbers 1 to 9.

black square is the sum of the white squares to the right of it. A number below the diagonal line is the sum of the white squares in the sequence below it. You may only use the digits 1 to 9, and a digit can only be used once in any sequence.

Solution

Is Your Company Hiring? Solution

6 9 5 7 4 1 3 2 8

1 2 7 3 6 8 9 4 5

3 4 8 2 5 9 6 1 7

5 6 1 9 3 2 7 8 4

4 3 9 5 8 7 2 6 1

8 7 2 6 1 4 5 3 9

7 8 6 1 9 3 4 5 2

2 1 3 4 7 5 8 9 6

9 5 4 8 2 6 1 7 3

Submit your opening at appenmedia.com/hire

6 9 5

14 | September 24, 2026 | Forsyth Herald | AppenMedia.com/Forsyth

1 5 SOLUTIONS Solution 3 4 1 Join today 8 3 for $16/month 9 7 6 PuzzleJunction.com 10/26 Kakuro 5 2 1 DC Aiken Big Sky Franchise Team David & Michelle Bertany 5 4 3 MaryAnne Browne Amour & Duane Carthy Scott Childress 2 4 7Connect-It1 Solution 3 7

C R Y F R O S T S O L V E H I E E A R E D O R I E L I S M B E A R M A R K E T S C H E T R E A T O R B D O E S K I N S L O E B E E A L T L A D B A N D S S L O S H E G O R O I L U S O T U G S U R I T E R R A S E M I S T grid. The rules are easy: A number T E style S I inPa crossword E puzzle, solved A Tnumber Cross Sums, is a challenging S of it. A number below the diagonal line is the sum E toNtheOright A Nsquares C white of the T S A sum e in a black square Cis the S can only be used once in any sequence. the sequence below P S1 to 9, TandEa digit S digits U the I may onlyCuse A it.L You PuzzleJunction.com /17/26 Connect-It T U R T L E N E C K S D I S A E R I E A T S E A R A T P L U M E T E E N Y E S S

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7 D O Y L E G R E T U T U

6 9 5 7 4 1 3 2 8

9 5 4 8 2 6 1 7 3

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To join go to appenmedia.com/join and follow the prompts to select your membership level and select your t-shirt size! Questions? Email Hans Appen at hans@appenmedia.com or call 770-442-3278.

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Support Local News Join Appen Press Club

Join today for $16/month

MEMBER (CONT.) Paul Huth Jeffrey Hyde J. Craig Inman Sandra Jacobs Susan Jacques Lynn Johnson Tyler Jones Zach Jones Patricia Kachur Amy Kanderis Arthur Kebanli Laura Keck Mark Kelly Nancy Kennell Randall Kent Carol Kerr Sally Klaskala Allison Kloster Dyna Kohler Brett Koutnik Larry Krueger Jess & Chris Kysar Malinda Lackey Sarah Lamm Daniel Lashinsky Richard Lapin Christine Law Brandon Leach Dennis Lee Ken Leffingwell Carol Lehan Melissa Libby

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THE FUTURE OF LOCAL NEWS

Diana O’Sullivan Anne Pappas Lynn Pennington Jonathan Peters Kurt & Leslie Phillips Mary & Jan Phillips James Potts Debra Powell Seth Price Joyce Provissiero Chuck Pugh Douglas Quat Patricia Rackliffe Robert Radloff Raj Rajagopalan Pankaj Rajankar Ashwin Ramaswami Cheryl Rand Manu Rao James Rasmussen Paula Rattray Lori Rausch Jean Rearick Joseph Reed Scarlett Reynolds Righteous PR Angie Rigney Sean Riley Neil Robertson Rory Robichaux Kimberly Robinson Matt Rohs

Continued innovation in digital media has changed the ways in which people buy, sell and interact with products and services. It has caused businesses to reassess the ways in which it communicates with potential customers and advertises its products. It has been well documented that these changes have had a destructive impact on local newspapers, which continues to be a primary source for local news, but is no longer a primary source for local advertising dollars – historically the lifeblood for reporters and their coverage. At Appen Media Group we want to address this conflict head on, and build new and innovative approaches to monetizing local news and creating a sustainable future for local journalism in metro Atlanta.

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Donald Spencer Melissa Spencer Jordan Spivack Jan Stephens Judith Stewart Wesley Stewart Cathryn Stovall Celeste Strohl Diana Sullivan Andy Sumlin Kathy Swahn Carol Tall Mike Tasos Candice Teichert The Small Business Advisor Suzanne & Bob Thomas William Tietjen Lisa Tilt Michael Townes Trunnion LLC Matthew Tyser Edward Votta Linda Wabler Ollie Wagner Lewis Walker Elizabeth Waller Valerie Walters-Gold Ann Marie Warning Terry Warnke Jonathan Washburn Michael Watson Deborah Weiss

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THE APPEN PRESS CLUB

One solution is the creation of a membership driven organization called the Appen Press Club that is dedicated to recruiting people and companies to join as members. Members pay recurring monthly or annual dues that are 100% dedicated to sustainable journalism. By providing predictable revenue, Appen Press Club members and partners help fund the salaries and expenses of local reporters who will no longer be subject to the whims of marketing budgets and an ever changing advertising world. In turn, those reporters will provide the readers they serve with highly researched and qualified journalism focused on subjects that directly affect their quality of life.

To join go to appenmedia.com/join and follow the prompts to select your membership level and select your t-shirt size! Questions? Email Hans Appen at hans@appenmedia.com or call 770-442-3278. Scan QR codeto join the Appen Press Club

16 | September 24, 2026 | Forsyth Herald | AppenMedia.com/Forsyth

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