Finally, A Paid Journalist!

Alas, all of my hard work was not in vain! The story that I was working on at the time of my last post was published on GeorgiaHealthNews.com.

Words cannot describe how it felt to finally see my name in print in a news source as credible as Georgia Health News. The hard work, the “blood, sweat & tears” labor that I felt put into this story, was more than worth it. I was extremely proud to finally distribute the link to all of the child abuse prevention advocates and sources who made my story possible, knowing that it was a piece they would find informative, honest and enjoyable.  Moments like this make grad school almost seem like it’s worth it!

Check out the multimedia piece I made to accompany this heartbreaking story:

Obsessive Compulsive Reporting

For our final feature in JRMC 7355, I decided to report on the closing of Prevent Child Abuse Georgia – a long-standing, non-profit agency in the state that closed its doors on March 15th. Up until its closing, PCAG was the sole agency in the state dedicated to the prevention of child abuse in all forms.

I had every intention of localizing the story to my assigned county (Walton), but as you may have read, I haven’t been the most favorite reporter to walk that way. So, instead I decided to get really good sources and hand in a story that would make my professor proud.

For my first draft (of about 400-500 words or so), I did background research on the agency and on child abuse in Georgia, I spoke with a former employee and trainer for the agency, and a former service provider for one of PCAG’s subsidiary program, First Steps.

As any editor would, Pat Thomas (my professor and acting editor) handed me back my first draft (as we were landing from our AHCJ trip to Philadelphia) with a lot, and I mean a lot, of probing questions: Why is this important? How will this impact Georgia families? What happened here, and why?… Followed by a list of notes that took up the entire white space of the last page: Try to speak with so & so about so & so… All non-profit agencies are required to file IRS form 990s – track the finances, etc.

So during the next class work session, I got busy reporting and investigating. I analyzed 990s (not having a clue what they meant for the first 2 hours), looked over members of the board and attempted contacting the CPA. I got busy sending emails and performing my own calculations of total assets over the year, trying to decipher just what happened with this agency.

To my surprise, as I slowly got carried away and completely overtaken with the story – I started getting responses. What I previously found to be a “tight-lipped” situation had turned into a bunch of former employees, board members and child advocates eager and happy to speak with me. All other stories, papers, projects and reports took a backseat to my need of answering the question: What happened here?

Now multi-sourced and just over 900 words, I submitted a second draft of my story, sure that I had filled in the gaps. I had reached out to national sources, but with my luck this semester I wasn’t holding my breath on those. When, again, to my pure astonishment, I received an email from the national manager of chapter services just as I was leaving my evening spin class. A mixture of glee and gloom as I realized my obsession with this story had just caught its second wind! There was no way I could avoid getting answers from a national source – one who was  sure to make my story (now 900+ words I remind you) complete!

And then, the red.

Another edited version of my story, received via email with a body paragraph that merely read:

“This story is still evolving so I have not graded it yet. Multimedia is fine.”

I mentally banged my head against the wall screaming:

Why, oh why, has this story taken a hold of me?! And why, why won’t it let me go… let me live??!!!

Even as I type, I still have the exceptional quotables that I transcribed about an hour ago from my interview with the national sources this morning running through my head. When I get home tonight, I will be calling another former PCAG board member to get at yet another layer of what happened.

I realize… this class is now preparing me for the real world unlike any other.

This is my journalistic fate.

A Professional Girl in a Professional World

Last weekend I traveled to Philadelphia for my first professional experience as a “working” (yet not paid) journalist. I attended Health Journalism 2011 held by the Association of Health Care Journalists (AHCJ)- my first professional development association! It was a class trip for JRMC 7355, Health & Medical Journalism, sponsored by UGA’s Knight Program for Health & Medical Journalism, and the entire class of seven budding health reporters was in attendance. After countless sessions, frantic note-taking, endless networking and a few late-nights exploring the city (of course!), I returned with the following “professional” lessons:

• Notebooks will be provided. Although I successfully packed light for the trip, I did fill my fashionable laptop case with about two notebooks for scribbling and reflections, along with books to read and reflect on in the hallways between sessions. On the way home, I found myself at the airport trying to figure out how to re-pack and rearrange all my old notebooks with the 5+ journals, reporter’s notebooks, handouts, etc. that I had accrued during the conference. As for the literature that I brought for my ‘down time,’ it never left my hotel room. During moments in the hallways, I was busy exchanging business cards or taking notes from other practicing reporters on how to do the craft – a far better way to learn than reading about it in the pages of some ‘how-to’ text book.
• Social media is a God-send. In addition to the wonderful workshop I attended on the latest in social media and blogging, the entire conference was a Twitter-fest. Using the hashtag #ahcj11, I was able to be omnipresent during the conference, getting the best tips from each session live. Also, during the down time in the hallway, if I wasn’t busy networking, I had the opportunity to catch up on the Twitter feed and see which workshop handouts I should pick up at the handout table. Lastly, Twitter was also a great way to tune in and see if there was a workshop that was going on that might have been more valuable to me, which brings me to my next point:
• Don’t be too shy to tip out. Health Journalism 2011 had a variety of sessions that were interesting to me on the agenda; however, with four sessions running consecutively during each time slot it was almost like a coin toss to figure out which one I would actually attend. At first, I was too shy to leave a session when I felt it was something that I already knew or couldn’t benefit from, but after a day or so of watching others tip-toe out I realized that it was about making the most out of your conference time and becoming a better journalist. Tuning into Twitter helped streamline that process and I knew exactly which sessions to go to when/if I decided to tip-toe out.
• One night out on the town is enough! Being in a new place for the first time boasts the temptation of going out and exploring nightly, trying to take it all in. However, I learned that no matter how ambitious you are, taking in an entire city in a few days is impossible… and tiring! For the most part, you’ll spend your precious late night hours trying to discover what there is to do and where to go, and then by the time you arrive, you’ll be wishing you stayed in the comfort of your luxurious hotel bed resting up for the delicious conference breakfast the next morning. Plan ahead, talk to locals in passing, and develop an itinerary for one great night that you won’t regret – you’ll leave the city a lot less tired and with all the memories you need!

My First Almost-Hate Mail

After working extremely hard and celebrating the publication of my first story for JRMC 7355, I was (to say the least) upset when the county newspaper’s editor informed me that a letter to the editor about my story would run in a Sunday (the most read) issue of the paper. Apparently I ruffled some feathers…

I wanted to respond to Felicia Harris’s misinformed comments on health care posted in The Walton Tribune’s forum on Feb. 23. 

 As a physician who volunteers time serving patients at the Healing Angels Clinic, I was appalled by her lack of understanding of the real world when it comes to sick people.  The clinic does what it can to accommodate those that cannot or choose not to pay for their health care. While unfortunate stories as those that were mentioned do occur, much of that is the exception to the rule. A lot of effort is put forth by the staff at Healing Angels to accommodate the callers. Most of the health-related problems these people have lie within themselves. It is difficult to give quality care of any kind when the patients choose unhealthy lifestyles and seem not to care. We see the supposed inability to pay for a doctor visit as the main reason for coming, while the purchase of cigarettes, alcohol and cell phones by these people is easily done. Most of the patients drive to their appointments. On my last evening in which I worked at the clinic, 25 people were scheduled and only nine came to their appointment. 

//

Converse to what Ms. Harris reported, public support for the repeal of Obamacare has ranged from a low of 50 percent to a high of 63 percent since Democrats in Congress passed it last March (Rasmussen, February 2011). If Obamacare’s goal was to get affordable health insurance to those who could not afford it, due to unhealthy habits or simply being unlucky, one may think better of the plan. Now that the details of this scheme have been read, nothing could be further from the truth. The bottom line is that in spite of the unaffordable cost, about 50 million people will now have an insurance card in their pocket, while the other 250 million will have to give up at least part of theirs and still this will leave about 30 million that have nothing! This number indicates there will still be a need for free clinics such as Healing Angels. 

There is no doubt some sort of health care and medical tort reform is needed but criticizing free clinics dealing with problems on a daily basis and trying to offer medical assistance to those in need is not helping the problem.

Dr, John S. Carr,

Loganville

Notice, I took the leisure of placing emphasis on some of the comments that I feel display pretty accurately the attitude and personal character of Dr. Carr. I shared a few tears over the fact that (and bracing myself for future dealing with) people truly live in such bliss that allows them to confidently share their misinformed, but entitled, opinions. I decided that I would address Dr. Carr, and all the other “Dr. Carr”s here on my blog with the following points:

• My understanding of the “real world”, whichever world that may be, comes from being a real person living in this world. How I see and what I see may be different from others but it is definitely a reality. I am a person who has really been sick, and who has even been sick without insurance, and who has suffered and paid full prices and visited free clinics. That is my experience of this “real world.”
• The idea of choice is, in my opinion, a funny little thing. You see, people discuss choice as if we all have the right to make choices. According to Dr. Carr, we can “choose” whether or not to have insurance, or “choose” our healthy and unhealthy lifestyles. But, if you’ve never seen Unnatural Causes, I will tell you this: If your “choice” lies in stretching $5 for food over the course of 2-3 days, would you choose 4 double cheeseburgers or one sub sandwich? Living a health lifestyle is costly and harder than many a “Dr. Carr” would have others to think. The idea of having “choice” is far from any reality I’ve known.
• As for criticizing free clinics, frankly, why would I do that? The issue in my story was the act of repealing health care reform and how some people may be affected by that decision. Period. Surely, we will all be affected in some shape or form, the story I told was through the voices of those people in the waiting room on that particular day – which is definitely a “reality.”

Communications Outreach to Vulnerable Populations during the H1N1 Pandemic

Presenters:
Gail Williams, MPH, CHES
David Ramsey, MPH, CHES
Sara Dodge, MEd

In the spring of 2009, H1N1 became sensationalized in the media. Fear of the unknown, as a result of seemingly mysterious deaths and images of surgeon-masked people on subways, was well on its way to becoming hysteria. It was during this time that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) began a vigorous communications outreach campaign to disseminate important, factual information on how to handle the pandemic.

In Wednesday’s interactive session, “Communications Outreach to Vulnerable Populations during the H1N1 Pandemic,” presenters reviewed the tactics the CDC’s Joint Information Center implemented to target vulnerable populations and opened the floor to engage conversation about ways to improve communication outreach in the future.

Migrant and seasonal farm workers, children, homeless, deaf and hard of hearing, Native Americans, and culturally and/or geographically isolated populations helped comprise the list of targeted audiences of the H1N1 pandemic. Socioeconomic status, age, access to healthcare, and lowered immunity were determinants that helped pinpoint vulnerable populations.

To educate and inform these populations, the CDC made it a priority to develop messages that were in plain language and able to be readily translated in up to five different languages— sometimes in less than 24 hours. The need for rapidly available plain language messages resulted in a Plain Language Workgroup and even a plain language guide titled “Simply Put,” which can be found on the CDC’s website.

In addition to translation, messages had to be transmitted in a format that was effective for specific audiences. For example, messages for deaf and hard of hearing individuals was translated into American Sign Language (ASL)— their first/native language.

The CDC reached out to several national partners including the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Consumer Advocacy Network, the National Center for Farmworker Health, Harvard University, and leaders of community and faith-based organizations to ensure the effectiveness of their message.

With the help of these partners, the CDC developed webinars, web resources, public service announcements, and distributed a variety of printed resources that accurately dispersed H1N1 information around the globe.

Post-H1N1, a two and a half day after-action meeting was held in Atlanta to evaluate communications outreach. In the future, partners agreed that the CDC should collaborate more closely with Health Resources and Services Administration and Migrant Community Health Centers. Other concerns included the availability of funds for outreach, the effectiveness of social media, and capitalizing on non-traditional partnerships. Currently, the CDC is working with Harvard University to conduct research on the effectiveness of communication efforts throughout the pandemic.

From the audience, participants shared communication efforts that were effective in their communities, including the use of web metrics (i.e., “Did you find what you were looking for today?”), working with school family resource centers, emergency hotlines and websites to reduce call volume, and social media sites.

Williams concluded the session with a push for participants to sign up for the Government Delivery list, stay in touch, and continue to share resources in order to remain prepared. After all, she says, “Tomorrow, we don’t know what emergency will hit.”

Felicia Harris is a graduate student at the University of Georgia pursuing her Master’s Degree in Journalism and Mass Communication.

Repeal Health Reform? Depends on who you ask.

“If you already got insurance, I don’t think you should have a right to make a comment,” said Evelyn Anderson.

She’s referring to the debate about repealing the Affordable Care Act, which has now been challenged by Republican leaders in 26 states, including Georgia. Anderson weighed in from the 11-chair waiting room at Healing Angels Medical Clinic of Monroe, Ga. – one of three free clinics in Walton County.

When visitors to the Walton Tribune’s website were asked last month whether the health care bill should be repealed, 83 percent said yes. There were 300 responses between January 19 and January 26.

The accuracy of these results is hard to judge because some people may have voted many times, said Brian Arrington, Managing Editor for the Walton Tribune. There is also no way to tell whether poll participants live in Walton County. Still, the results showed a staggering difference from the most recent national poll conducted by Gallup, which indicated that only 46 percent of Americans favored the repeal, with 40 percent opposing and 14 percent unsure.

For uninsured Walton County residents like Anderson, the local poll results are hard to believe.

Anderson has a liver condition that brings her to Healing Angels roughly twice a month, where she typically waits for about three hours before seeing one of the volunteer doctors who provides free care. Returning to her home county after 15 years of incarceration, she’s been unable to find a steady job that offers health insurance. As a result, she relies on the free clinic. It took her seven months to get her first appointment.

“I support the act 100 percent,” said Anderson, “…everybody could go to the doctor and there wouldn’t be a need for clinics like this.”

Healing Angels is a non-profit, volunteer-based clinic that opens its doors to patients on Thursdays from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Patients can only be seen if they’ve called and left a message on a voicemail system that is checked only on Thursdays.

When the volunteer who handles the front desk comes in Thursdays, there are usually 20 to 25 calls to be returned. Demand for appointments always exceeds the slots on the schedule, meaning that volunteer doctors are never able to see all the people who need care.

In the waiting room, with plenty of time to share, the stories abound. Many, like Anderson, wait months for their initial appointment and struggle with the two-hour availability on Thursday evenings. Unable to find or afford health care elsewhere, they live with risks in between.

“I’m lost in the shuffle; that’s what I call it,” said an elderly woman identified only as Janet.

“I see a different doctor every time I come in here,” said Janet, who has high blood pressure that has proved difficult to bring under control. She waited four months for her first appointment, and three different volunteer physicians have since prescribed three different blood pressure medications, each with its own set of side effects.

Over Christmas break, the free clinic was closed and Janet didn’t see any doctors. For longer than two weeks Janet toiled with the idea of taking some of her new medications but feared she might have a stroke.

Nearby is another patient with hypertension. Chiquita Johnson, a single mother, was laid off last summer and lost her eligibility for health insurance. Diagnosed with high blood pressure in 1997, she went six months without proper medication before her first appointment with Healing Angels.

During that time, Johnson tried a free program offered through the local health department but the medicine prescribed for her caused bad side effects. She was told to “seek out a regular physician” and handed the phone number for Healing Angels. Three months later, she had her first appointment.

From across the waiting room, a Monroe resident chimed in to describe her own quest for health care. She traveled to Snellville, Loganville, and other area towns, looking for low-cost medical care. The final straw for her was making a trip to a clinic and being told there was a $185 charge just to see the doctor; after that, she left a message on the Healing Angels voicemail and has been coming back ever since. On this particular day she waited more than an hour for a routine blood pressure check.

Among the patients in the waiting room, one thing is clear: they all want insurance but don’t know how or where to obtain it.

One patient reminisced on former working conditions in the state of New Jersey where, according to her, even part-time employees are offered insurance policies. “Even if I have to pay, at least I get the option,” she said.

The new Affordable Care Act requires states to set up health insurance exchanges, which would make affordable insurance coverage more accessible to everyone. Last April, Georgia became the first state to publicly challenge the Act, even though 19 percent of Georgians are uninsured.

“They think they’re going to have to pay for it,” said Johnson, referring to people who oppose the new federal law, “and they don’t want to pay for our health.”

The First Journalist Asked to Leave…

I never imagined that I’d ever be asked to leave the premises of a medical clinic. In retrospect, I don’t quite know why I never imagined this; after all, I am a journalist. And last Thursday, for the first time, IT happened.

My latest beat is covering Walton County, Ga. for my Health & Medical Journalism course this semester. The range of stories is completely open as long as they pertain to health – mental health, public health, health disparities – all areas that I’ve tapped into. However, it was a poll on the Walton Tribune’s website about health care reform that caught my eye. On the day I visited the site, the poll showed that 81% of its respondents believed that the Affordable Care Act should be repealed. Immediately, I wanted to know how the county’s uninsured felt about such an overwhelming percentage, in addition to finding out more about the poll and more about how Americans felt about the Act nationwide.

After doing some research and getting in touch with the newspaper’s editor, I drove about 20 minutes away to Healing Angels Medical Clinic, the only free clinic in the county, for the final piece and the voices in my story. The clinic is only opened for two hours on Thursday evenings which meant a few things: 1.) I had to do as much as possible in two hours, 2.) There wasn’t really a good way of informing the clinic that I was coming (although I did leave a message on a voicemail that’s only checked on Thursdays) and 3.) That I was going to be two days late for my Wednesday deadline! As you can imagine, I had a lot on my mind when I walked into the doors of Healing Angels.

To my suprise, the volunteer receptionist (who told me her name was Katie), was extremely nice. She had received my voicemail and my name was on the lower half of the 20 to 30-something people she was going to call back that evening. She took my name and said a doctor would be able to speak with me in a moment and that I was welcomed to sit in the waiting room. I asked Katie if it was okay if I talked to some of the patients in the waiting room while I waited and her response was “sure, if they’ll talk to you.”

And talk, we did. A little bit under an hour later, I had scribbled notes about patients being laid off, complications with medicines, health department programs available to the uninsured (which may or may not be working), health care eligibility in other states, the problems with working for temp agencies, etc., when I was called to the back by Dr. Alice Edwards.

I don’t quite remember all the details of what happened next and I’m sure that’s because my cognitive thinking process was thrown off by feelings of confusion and anger. We shared brief introductions; I told her who I was and told her I would like to know a little bit more about Healing Angels and some of the challenges of being a free clinic or a volunteer physician, stuff like that. However, as I was talking, Dr. Edwards’ face was that of complete skepticism. I assured her this wasn’t a filthy piece or a story about the clinic in general, I told her I was being completely transparent with the patients and didn’t have any ulterior motives. Her response was “not today.”

Dr. Edwards didn’t have the time (or, in my opinion, the want) to talk to me on “that” Thursday. Then, in reference to the patients I had begun speaking with in the waiting room, she didn’t know if “that” Thursday was the right time for that either. Initially, she had asked me to produce some sort of permission forms for them to speak with me (remember, we’re talking about casual conversation in the waiting room here). When I asked her to explain what type of form that would be (because from my understanding they were adults), her response was, paraphrased, something that showed that they understood what was going on because some of them can’t even read or write and she feared they might not understand what we were talking about.

I had to catch the overly dramatic ”Excuuuusee me?” waiting to erupt from my mouth and recompose myself.

She went on to say that she wasn’t comfortable with a “journalist” talking to patients in her waiting room even if it was just a free clinic. Which somehow, she imagined that maybe I had diminished the value of (ha!). Then a minute after that, she changed her mind completely and simply concluded again “not today,” and said they would contact me after she had some time to think about it and when (or if) there was a better time.

Bewildered, I exited the back and walked through the waiting room, where the patients had been continuing our conversation about health care amongst themselves and were eager for my return. I explained to them that Dr. Edwards had asked me to leave because she didn’t feel comfortable with me talking to them (which irritated them as well) and left my contact info with each of them.

Driving home, Dr. Edwards’ condescending tone and view of her patients continued to infuriate me, in addition to the fact that I drove that long to be turned away with almost nothing after being a day late on my assignment! After class, I shared my frustrations and almost shame of being asked to leave with Professor Pat Thomas, who left me with these words: It’s an accomplishment! You’re my first journalist to be thrown out this semester!

Back on the Beat!

It’s February and I’m back for round 2!… The second semester of grad school that is.

Last semester, I devoted this blog to becoming a Classic City Mom: investigating, probing and reporting on all there is to know about the ‘parenting scene’ here in Athens. I’m so proud to announce that my feat did not go unrewarded; as of February 1, 2011, Omari is now an Athenian as well!

Now, I’m in a second round of classes that require even more learning, reporting, thinking and reflecting than ever. Oh, and blogging too. So, in order to encompass all of this in one locale, I changed the name of this blog to ‘Fabulously Journalistic’ (gotta love WordPress) in hopes of soon being just that – a journalist who is still FABULOUS!

There’s much more to come so ENJOY!

An ACC Profile

Caroline Self, Arts Education Curator/Programs Specialist for the Lyndon House Arts Center

Who owns my heart? Is it love or is it art?… Caroline Self, Art Education Curator and Programs Specialist for ACC Leisure Services’ Lyndon House Arts Center, hums along with the lyrics of the Miley Cirus song that serves as soundtrack to the video of last summer’s Project Runway-themed fashion show.

In the video, ‘tween girls pounce down the runway constructed in one of the Lyndon House art galleries displaying tie-died fabrics and revamped garbage bag looks they designed during one of Self’s many summer day camps.

Self, a three-year program planner for ACC Leisure Services, knows that in order to get children involved – and keep them involved – with the arts, she has to plan outside of the typical Crayola box.

“I try to do whatever fun thing I think is current to try to get the kids involved,” said Self.

This includes fashioning summer camps off of popular television shows or turning an entire art gallery into a life-sized replica of the ocean, complete with a 40-foot whale and 8-foot-diameter octopus.

“I love it when children see their art become something so big,” said Self, who factors seeing the light bulb of creativity going off in children’s minds as one of the major benefits of her role.

As Arts Education Curator, Self is responsible for programming all of the art classes – for children and adults, activities, outreach, and maintaining the Lyndon House’s eight art studios and display galleries. All in all, a highly demanding position, but Self says she wouldn’t have it any other way.

Self, a self-proclaimed lover of all things art, finds herself at home within the corridors of the Lyndon House. The door to her office – adorned with painted, sketched, sculptured and framed works of art – opens directly into the Children’s Studio and faces a wall-sized mural of children’s art made into a depiction of the earth.

Down the hall, one of the galleries proudly displays two of Self’s own pieces of art, titled V and VI, within the collection of local artists’ work for sale through the gallery store.

Although Self is currently pursuing her Master’s Degree in Arts Education, she has no plans of leaving the Lyndon House to begin a career as an educator.

“I feel like I have a greater chance to reach more people in this capacity,” said Self, “this way I have the opportunity to reach children throughout the community.”

Bringing together children, art and the community is one of the unique abilities Self demonstrates in her role, says Par Ramey, a local watercolorist and volunteer for the Lyndon House.

“She is able to go out and get a collection of local artists to come in here and actually teach what it is that they do,” said Ramey.

According to Ramey, Self’s determination of finding local artists, interviewing them and forming practical lesson plans is what drives the success of many of the center’s art classes and continuously brings students back.

“Everybody can do artwork, but, they can’t teach it,” said Ramey.

“I have an insatiable appetite for art,” said Self. An appetite that not only requires her constant immersion in the world of art, but also fuels her hunger for sharing art appreciation with others.

“I love bringing art to everybody, because I think everybody’s an artist,” said Self.

Watch my YouTube video highlighting Self below:

ACC Leisure Services

ACC Leisure Services is a Boon for University Parents

It’s Saturday in Athens and the city is alive. Drunken frat boys and alums slosh beers, lug coolers and light grills for tailgating throughout downtown. Fans pummel about by the thousands in a sea of red and black. And here you stand, clinching the tiny fingers of your two-year-old, attempting a family outing on Game Day.

Parents of infants and toddlers might survive one or two of these  “Saturday-in-Athens” experiences, but this stress-inducing ritual quickly becomes overwhelming. Whether you’ll be calling this college town home for two years, five years, or indefinitely, you need family-friendly Athenian alternatives not only for football Saturdays, but year-round and on weekdays as well.

Luckily, these aren’t hard to find and they’re affordable, too.

ACC Leisure Services provides, and simplifies, access to many local programs, events and attractions.

Divisions of this award-winning local agency provide programs and activities in the arts, athletics, recreation and natural resources, according to Beth Deroshia, facilities supervisor and program planner for the past two years.

Several ACC Leisure Services programs are designed specifically for infants and toddlers.

Babies and Beasties is a series held seasonally at Sandy Creek Nature Center where children age 18 months to 2 years can get up close and personal with wildlife and learn about nature while accompanied by their parents. Better yet, the fee for the program is only $7 for ACC residents.

On weekends Bear Hollow Zoo opens its gates on Saturday and Sunday for exhibits and tours, all of them free. The list of innovative and affordable programs goes on for pages.

“We try to put a different twist on things,” said Deroshia, “Instead of breakfast with Santa, we’ve had breakfast with the Grinch.” Deroshia dreams up programs that are inherently interesting to toddlers, that are paced for their attention spans, and that offer something they can’t get elsewhere. Like the Grinch.

“I try to do whatever fun thing is current to get the kids involved,” said Caroline Self, who organizes programs at the Lyndon House Arts Center. During a recent musical workshop, children made instruments from around the world; during a camp fashioned after the Australian Outback.

“We try to include cultures from everywhere,” said Self. “We’re trying to go around the world.”

During the summer, when fees for labor-intensive sports clinics or extended arts programs can be pricey, scholarships are available to make sure that ACC Leisure Services activities don’t exclude children from low-income families.  Developed by the mayor and commission a few years ago, these scholarships cover from 20 percent to 100 percent of program fees depending on income level and family size, Self said.

“The philosophy is that all programs should be affordable to all children,” said Deroshia.

And so, whether you’re along-time resident, a college student parenting on a budget, or a professor with a busy toddler, fret no longer. There’s much ado in Athens on Saturdays, and throughout the week, thanks to ACC Leisure Services.

For more information visit www.accleisureservices.com for a list of ongoing activities.

Watch the YouTube Video I created on ACC Leisure Services event Babies & Beasties below: