Community
Looking Up: Two Peachtree Corners residents show enthusiasm for things that fly
One hot Saturday in July, a cloudless sky burned deep blue above an isolated field hidden among the woods behind a private high school in Atlanta’s northern suburbs. About 20 cars, pickups or SUVs lined the edge of the grassy field and families gathered beneath tents or tarps they’d pitched beside their vehicles, like tailgaters at a football game. In the middle of the field, a pair of model rockets sat side by side on launch pads, waiting the electronic command to blast skyward.
One belonged to Maddie Cain, a 9-year-old from Peachtree Corners who enjoys flying rockets with her dad. She and Nicolas Ruthruff, a 7-year-old friend from Acworth, planned to launch their rockets side-by-side in a “drag race,” a competition to see how well each rocket performed. The winner would be the last rocket to hit ground. Jorge Blanco, president of the Southern Area Rocketry club (SoAR), stood in the shadow beneath a tarp next to the launch area. Blanco counted down from five to zero and the rockets zipped into the sky. After just a few seconds, they headed back to earth. Nicholas’ rocket won. The two rocket racers ran across the mowed grass to collect their models so they could fly another day. “Good race,” Maddie said.
Maddie learned about model rocketry from her dad, David Cain. Cain, a 61-year-old software interface architect, first flew model rockets as a boy who was, as he put it, “growing up in the Space Age.” He moved on to other interests as a teenager, he said, but picked up the hobby again a few years ago as a common interest with his children, Maddie and her 12-year-old brother Jim. This year, Cain took over as vice president of the 400-member SoAR.
These days, he and another Peachtree Corners resident, Moreno Aguiari, are working to help introduce metro Atlantans to machines that fly.
New kind of aviation museum
While Cain engages in model rocketry, Aguiari, a 44-year-old commercial pilot and publisher of a magazine about vintage warplanes, wants to help create a new museum and education center built around Georgia’s aviation history and industry. The new Atlanta Air and Space Museum is proposed for 18 acres on the eastern side of the DeKalb-Peachtree Airport, the county-owned airport in Chamblee usually referred to by its call letters, PDK. The property, once used for a runway but now abandoned, offers a close view of PDK’s working runways and airport facilities.
Aguiari is a founder and board member of the Inspire Aviation Foundation, a nonprofit created about three years ago to create the museum. “The purpose of this museum would be to acquire, restore and conserve historic aircraft, spacecraft, technology and related artifacts, while creating innovative visitor experiences that are educational and entertaining,” the foundation said in a press release.
Aguiari puts it a bit more simply. The museum’s proponents, he said, don’t want simply to create another building full of old airplanes, like plenty of other aviation museums scattered around the country. “We are not going to build your typical box full of planes,” Aguiari said as he sat in a conference room at PDK once recent afternoon. “That’s an old concept of a museum.”
Instead, they see exhibits that are interactive and engaging to young people. They want the DeKalb School System and perhaps even Georgia Tech to be involved with the aviation campus to create a place where students can learn about aerospace careers and flying.
The foundation wants to create a place “designed to build aspiration for a life in Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM),” it said in its press release. “But the platform will go further than aspirations to nurture an interest in aviation throughout someone’s entire life. The [foundation] wants to offer a tangible path from childhood all the way through an aerospace career and beyond.”
Aguiari realized the PDK museum should be different when he was taking his own children to see other aviation museums. He liked looking at the old planes, he said, but his kids soon were bored. “My 5- and 6-year-old kids were telling me, ‘Dad, can we go someplace else? Nothing moves here.’”
Fellow foundation board member Latessa Meader, a C-130 pilot in the U.S. Air Force Reserve, got excited about and signed on with the project last year because of its educational components. She’s a former high school math teacher who says she became an aviation mechanic and then a pilot because she thought the most interesting teachers were those who had done other things during their lives.
“We don’t want static airplanes with placards in front of them,” she said. “All of us have a passion for aviation and we want to inspire that in students from age 1 to 100.”
She said she wants the project to showcase careers in aviation and aerospace and show students how to pursue jobs as engineers, air traffic controllers, mechanics or baggage handlers. “Anything you enjoy doing can be [related to aviation],” she said. “One of my long-term goals in this is to capture their passions.”
The museum would tell the story of aviation in Georgia. Georgians have built airplanes at Lockheed Martin and Gulfstream, flown them for Delta Air Lines and operated the busiest airport in the world. “Georgia has an incredible aviation history [stretching back] almost 120 years,” Aguiari said.
Georgia’s aviation heritage
Georgians were building and flying airplanes soon after the Wright brothers showed it was possible. One of the nation’s aviation pioneers was Ben Epps of Athens, whose descendants made flying a family tradition that continues. His youngest son, Pat Epps, started Epps Aviation, the fixed based operator still in business at PDK.
The land that would become PDK was part of the site of Camp Gordon, a World War I army training base. The property was sold at auction after the war to a private owner, and then in the 1920s and early 1930s, aviation enthusiasts thought the land would make a good airport, according to the PDK webpage. In 1940, DeKalb County bought the land and dirt runways and opened it in 1941, the webpage says.
During World War II, the property was home to a U.S. Naval Air Station. “Many young men, not only from Georgia but from all over the United States, began their flying careers during the next few years, while the Navy was using the airport for pilot training,” the PDK webpage says.
After the war, the Navy continued to operate the airport as a Naval Air Station until a new facility that could handle jets opened at Dobbins Air Force Base in Cobb County. PDK returned to full civilian use in 1959.
One of the first collections the aviation museum has received is composed of memorabilia from retirees of the Naval Air Station. The collection includes photographs, logbooks, newspaper clippings and other artifacts that had been displayed during annual meetings of the retirees. The foundation is having the items photographed so they can be preserved digitally, Aguiari said. With the items, the museum can showcase the air station’s history so “the guys who served here will not be forgotten.”
Efforts to pull together the aviation museum and to develop the campus are expected to take at least three to five years, Meader said. The foundation is conducting a feasibility study for the project and for fundraising for the millions of dollars needed for the project, Aguiari said. He remains hopeful.
“I’m just a regular Joe with a big vision,” Aguiari said. “It’s not like we have millionaires or big companies behind it. It’s just a bunch of regular guys trying to build something incredible.”
Soaring high
David Cain pursues a different vision. He still regularly fires small kit rockets similar to ones his daughter Maddie and Jim build and fly, but he’s also looking up to see just how high some of his models can soar and survive.
SoAR organizes launch days for small rockets every month. (The launches are open to anyone who wants to fly rockets, not just members). But its members also take part, a few times a year, in high altitude flights from fields in south Georgia, Alabama or other places far from the flight paths of airplanes. Cain has taken part in a few of those outings. He said his collection now includes three high-powered rockets, three middle-level ones and seven smaller ones. His personal best flight went up about a mile, he said.
Still Cain likes flying rockets, no matter what size they are. After all, not all launches work. Some rockets sit dead on the launchpad. Others blow up or reach only a few feet before heading back to ground. Others end up in the trees surrounding the range and can’t be recovered.
“I have never lost the thrill of seeing my rocket go up there,” he said. …“It is a challenge. It’s the joy of watching it fly.”
The hobby also allows him to indulge other passions. He likes to operate a 3-D printer to make things, he said, so now he creates his own rocket parts. At the range in July, he flew a model of the Space-X rocket that he had built from a kit he bought from Space-X, he said. The largest rocket he’s built, he said, stood about six feet tall “…and looked like a length of black hose. I have gotten to a point that my teenage self would not recognize the rockets I do now.”
These days, flying rockets also connects him with his kids. “There’s not just one reason I enjoy it,” Cain said. “I discovered when I did it with my boy that I still enjoyed it. I just hadn’t done it in a while. As a hobby, it allows me to integrate my different interests…. It’s a great way to spend time with the kids and to give them experience building things with their hands.”
Cain said building and flying their rockets gives rocketeers the feeling of personal satisfaction and achievement that video gamers feel when they finally conquer a difficult level in a game and “level up.” “Rocketry delivers a similar kind of thing,” he said. “It’s a ‘level-up’ experience when you do something like fly your rocket to 5,700 feet and then then get your rocket back.”
Maddie sees that, too. “I’m enjoying myself pretty much,” she said after a few launches on that hot Saturday in July. “Today, there is a breeze going and there are kids here. … The main reason I’m here is to hang out with my dad and have fun flying rockets.
“It’s kind of cool to watch your rocket go up and realize, ‘Hey! I built this thing and it’s working!’”
Find Out More
Learn more about rocketry and the museum project at:
Atlanta Air & Space Museum — atlantaairandspacemuseum.org
SoAR Rocketry —soarrocketry.org
Peachtree Corners resident, Alex Everett traveled to Italy this past September — not as a tourist but as an athlete. The 28-year-old accountant and liver transplant survivor, served as goalkeeper on Team USA as they competed in the first-ever Transplant Football World Cup.
The event — part of the larger World Transplant Games — promoted giving the gift of life through a week of connection and sportsmanship, showcasing how people with organ transplants can live a normal, active life.
“I first heard about the US Transplant World Cup team a few years ago through a social media post,” said Alex. “The first Transplant World Cup was originally going to take place in 2022 but was postponed due to the uncertainty around international travel and COVID. Fast forward to 2024 and Team USA had an interest meeting via Zoom to discuss details about the tournament and fielding the American team.”
Team USA
All together, they had 14 people from around the United States (hailing from Georgia, Ohio, New York, New Jersey, California and Hawaii) join the team, which traveled to Cervia, Italy in September to compete.
“There were 10 other countries that were represented in the World Cup, and we were split into two groups, one of five and one of six,” Alex explained.
“It was an incredible experience representing the US at an international level, competing against other transplant recipients from around the world. We not only were able to share our passion for soccer but also our stories of transplantation and what obstacles we had to overcome to be where we were.”
Coming together to compete
Team USA played well in their matches but placed 9th out of the 11 teams. Because players came from all over the country to join the team, they hadn’t had the opportunity to practice together — or even meet in person — before the tournament started.
“The first time we met face to face and kick a ball as a team was our first game against France,” said Alex. “While that outcome was not what we wanted, we progressively got better as the tournament went on. Eventually ending with a win in a penalty shoot-out against Wales and a normal time win in our final game against Northern Ireland.”
“It was an incredible experience, and I would highly recommend anyone who’s involved with transplantation to reach out and get involved with not only Team USA but also with the Transplant Games of America (TGA), which is an Olympic-style competition for people who have received transplants or living donors,” he added.
Most states in the US have their own TGA team, including one here in Georgia.
World Transplant Games 2025
The next World Transplant Games will be held in Dresden, Germany on August 17-24, 2025.
Over six days, athletes and teams from 60 countries will meet to compete in 17 different sports. The US Team is excited to be part of it again and are currently looking for more players interested in taking part.
Leave a lasting legacy
Alex is also involved with the Peachtree Corners-based organization LifeLink® of Georgia, a division of the LifeLink® Foundation.
Established over 40 years ago, the foundation’s mission is to inspire new organ donor registrations and celebrate those who have decided to save lives as a registered organ, eye or tissue donor. The mission is carried out locally through education programs and community awareness campaigns.
Earlier this year, LifeLink of Georgia launched The Infinity Campaign, a state-wide educational effort aimed at motivating and registering new organ donors. The campaign is represented by the infinity symbol, to demonstrate the lasting impact of organ and tissue donation.
About LifeLink of Georgia
LifeLink of Georgia partners with hospitals to support and guide families as they establish their loved one’s legacy through organ and tissue donation.
They carry out the decisions of registered donors or their families and honor the life of each donor by providing organs and tissue for transplant to as many patients as possible.
In 2023, 457 men, women and children gifted a legacy of life through organ donation with LifeLink of Georgia, yet there are still nearly 3,000 patients in the state awaiting an organ transplant and thousands more that could benefit from tissue transplantation.
“When you become an organ donor, your life story continues through the lives you save, ensuring that your legacy lives on indefinitely,” says Katie Payne, executive director, LifeLink of Georgia. “Life is an invaluable treasure, a lesson we learn anew each day from our donor families. Thanks to their generosity, LifeLink of Georgia saves thousands of lives every year, and we are deeply honored to continue this extraordinary mission.”
The Infinity Campaign
The Infinity Campaign features a series of real stories from registered donors, each telling what inspired them to register and emphasizing the effect this decision has on saving lives. By sharing these stories, LifeLink aims to motivate more people to register as organ, eye and tissue donors and spread the message of hope and life.
“The decision to become a donor was deeply personal. It is an opportunity to give the ultimate gift — the gift of life,” said Adán Bean. “I get to continue to tell the story for others, be a little bit of ink in their pen and help them write what they want to write.”
As part of the launch, LifeLink has created the website mystorycontinues.com, which spotlights stories from donors and recipients and offers innovative tools, including the opportunity to upload a photo to share your support and spread the word on social media about the importance of organ, eye and tissue donation.
Become a donor
Being a donor is an incredible way for individuals to make a difference and have an impact on the lives of others. One organ, eye and tissue donor can potentially save or improve the lives of more than 75 people.
The need for organ and tissue donors is greater now than ever, given the growing numbers of people on transplant wait lists and increasing numbers of people with diabetes and kidney disease.
Currently, there are about 3,000 people in Georgia on the organ transplant list and thousands more on the tissue transplant list.
There are several simple ways to register your decision to be an organ, eye and tissue donor:
- Visit mystorycontinues.com and sign up today.
- Register when renewing or receiving a driver’s license or identification card at the Georgia Department of Driver Services.
- Register when obtaining a hunting or fishing license through the Georgia Department of Natural Resources.
For more about LifeLink of Georgia, visit lifelinkfoundation.org/our-story/#llgeorgia.
New experiences await at this season’s Walk Through Bethlehem
An annual must-see holiday event, Walk Through Bethlehem, presented by Simpsonwood United Methodist Church, will take place over three evenings, December 13–15.
With 1,200 luminaries, Simpsonwood Park is transformed into Bethlehem on the night of Jesus’ birth. After being welcomed by live camels and a census taker, visitors are invited to interact with shopkeepers and witness a live nativity.
Visitors can also enjoy a fire with stories from shepherds, pet live animals and watch as wisemen bring gifts to baby Jesus.
Before your journey ends, enjoy a photo opportunity with a Roman Guard and hot chocolate and cookies.
The details
Walk Through Bethlehem transforms several acres of Simpsonwood Park into Bethlehem Village on the night of Jesus’ birth. After being welcomed by live camels and a census taker, visitors are invited to interact with shopkeepers, witness a live nativity and watch as wisemen bring gifts to baby Jesus.
The special holiday event is presented by Simpsonwood United Methodist Church with the help of more than 300 community volunteers.
What to expect
- 1,200 luminaries welcoming guests to Bethlehem
- Live camels and Roman guards at Bethlehem’s entrance
- Shopkeepers in costume interacting with guests
- Interactive village with more than 12 individual shops
- Animal petting area with donkeys, sheep and more
- Shepherds sharing stories around a fire
- Live nativity with wisemen bringing gifts
- Attendees donating canned goods to Neighborhood Cooperative Ministries
- Attendees enjoying hot chocolate and cookies
Make plans to attend
Dates and hours
- Friday, December 13, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
- Saturday, December 14, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
- Sunday, December 15, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Location: Simpsonwood Park, 4511 Jones Bridge Cir NW, Peachtree Corners, GA 30092
FREE admission; accepting canned food donations for Neighborhood Cooperative Ministries.
For more information, visit simpsonwoodumc.org/walk-through-bethlehem.
The Peachtree Corners Business Association (PCBA) awarded a check for $500 to the United Way of Greater Atlanta (Gwinnett County) at their Business After Hours networking event in November.
The local organization was chosen by PCBA’s Outreach Committee because of their commitment to providing assistance and bettering the lives of children within the community.
United Way of Greater Atlanta
The mission of United Way of Greater Atlanta is to engage and bring together people and resources to drive sustainable and equitable improvements in the well-being of children, families and individuals in local communities.
“Greater Atlanta is one of the most vibrant regions in the country, but the region has significant barriers to realizing its potential in the future because of its continued ranking at the bottom of the list of metro areas in income mobility,” stated Vanessa Roussell, United Way senior director of corporate relations.
“Children born in low-income households have only a 4% chance of getting out of poverty in their lifetime,” she continued. “We at United Way of Greater Atlanta don’t like those odds. Our work is about changing them so that children — regardless of where they’re born — have the chance to realize their potential and build lives that sustain themselves, their families and their communities.
Assessing needs within the county
The organization’s goal is to help every child unlock their full potential, by improving education, healthcare, resources and economic mobility in the communities where they live. Their “every child program” includes every child in Gwinnett.
Based on the 2023 census track for Gwinnett County, 94,308 people living in Gwinnett County are at risk, particularly in and around Sugar Hill/Buford, Duluth, Norcross, Lawrenceville, Lilburn and Snellville. The highest-need residents are located in the I-85 corridor, mainly around Duluth, Norcross and Lilburn.
Giving back to support the community
“The PCBA is proud to donate a check for $500 to United Way of Greater Atlanta (Gwinnett County),” said PCBA President, Lisa Proctor. “Our outreach committee and board are committed to supporting our community, and investing in the well-being of the children in our community aligns with our core principles. We know that our dollars will be targeted to help those at highest risk … We are glad to have the local Gwinnett chapter located right in our community.”
Funds for the PCBA Community Outreach Program are raised throughout the year from PCBA membership, sponsorship and an annual charity event. Donations and scholarships are awarded at their monthly events so that members have the opportunity to learn more about the community organizations and their programs.
Over the past 12 years, the PCBA has awarded 19 scholarships to outstanding graduating high school seniors and donated in excess of $165,500 back into the community.
About Peachtree Corners Business Association
“Where businesses come to grow,” the Peachtree Corners Business Association (PCBA) is a business membership organization that focuses on innovative approaches, programs, shared resources, community outreach and opportunities for member businesses and professionals to connect, develop, grow and prosper.
The PCBA is made up of businesses of all sizes and types who want to expand their reach and grow their business within Peachtree Corners and the greater metro Atlanta area.
For more information visit peachtreecornersba.com.
Life in Motion: The Gift of Organ Donation Fuels Active Lives for Recipients
Fun for All Ages: The Neighborhood Christmas Train 2024 Experience
Final Restaurants Announced for New Politan Row Food Hall at The Forum
The High Museum to Showcase “Thinking Eye, Seeing Mind”
Final Restaurants Announced for New Politan Row Food Hall at The Forum
The High Museum to Showcase “Thinking Eye, Seeing Mind”
Fun for All Ages: The Neighborhood Christmas Train 2024 Experience
Life in Motion: The Gift of Organ Donation Fuels Active Lives for Recipients
Furkids Wraps Up Successful Year with Open House Event and More
The Dec/Jan Issue of Peachtree Corners Magazine is Out Now
Shaping Peachtree Corners: New Vision for the Central Business District [Podcast]
Take A Walk Back in Time For The Holidays
Light up the Corners [Video]
Capitalist Sage: Business Leadership in Your Community [Podcast]
Cliff Bramble: A Culinary Adventure through Italy
Top 10 Brunch Places in Gwinnett County
A Hunger for Hospitality
THE CORNERS EPISODE 3 – BLAXICAN PART 1
Top 10 Indoor Things To Do This Winter
The ED Hour: What it takes to Remove Barriers from Education
