With Southerners often having to put up with pretty warm springs and blazing hot summers, it’s nice to hear that one of the local utility companies, Cobb Electric Membership Corporation, has reduced its rates yet again to help ease what could turn out to be fairly high electric bills. “We are always looking for ways to improve our operational efficiency and to take measures to pass along savings to our members by lowering rates,” says Chip Nelson, President and CEO of Cobb EMC.

Cobb EMC’s Board of Directors approved the rate reduction during a monthly board meeting at the close of 2013. This most recent rate reduction went into effect Jan. 1 and was the third the group has passed in the last year. The other two were in January and July of 2013. Cobb EMC anticipates that almost every customer will see lower bills this year, specifically for standard residential and small commercial members, and the average annual savings will run around $75. The company serves about 175,000 residential and commercial members in Cobb, Bartow, Cherokee, Fulton and Paulding counties.

In addition to the rate reduction, Cobb EMC is also sharing tips on how to save even more on utility bills.

These free energy-saving tips can keep your home cool and comfortable during warm months:

• Your dishwasher, washer, dryer and oven generate heat and make your air conditioner work harder. Try to use them only during cooler evening hours.
• Keep your kitchen cool by using a microwave, rather than an oven, when possible.
• Line dry clothes outside and take advantage of warm weather.
• Bathroom and kitchen ventilation fans pull cool air out of your house. Turn them off 10 minutes after your shower is finished or cooking is done.
• Keep your thermostat at 78 degrees.
• Check air filters monthly and clean or replace them if they are dirty.
• Keep air vents clear of furniture and window coverings so you don’t block airflow.
• Close window treatments during the day to block the sun’s hot summer rays.
• Fans use considerably less energy than air conditioning.
• Lock your windows to create a tighter air seal and trap in cooled air.

Cobb EMC also offers free in-home energy audits to help its customers find ways to save. For more information, visit cobbemc.com/energymatters.

I’d like to start off by saying that I do not have a degree in education, never have or doubt I ever will, and that all I know about education is what I’ve read and reported on in the last 10-plus years of my journalism profession and what the last two generations of teachers in my family have taught me.

With that being said, I wish that the individuals—parents, politicians or advocates who make it look like they have a vested interest in education—would quit trying to “educate” the masses about what should or should not be going on in a classroom. I personally believe that our public education system is broken and I don’t think it’s because there isn’t enough money in a district’s piggy bank or that the teachers don’t have a doctorate degree. It’s because people who have no idea what they’re talking about are trying to dictate what happens in a classroom, and they never seem to remember the most important part of this whole thing—our kids.

I remember as a child, which was longer ago than I’d like to admit, the size of a classroom, the amount of money the district had in its budget or the number of degrees a teacher earned, didn’t determine my success. I did well because my teacher encouraged me, both in the classroom and even on the playground. My parents were there to tell me what is right from wrong and when it was time to do my homework and not play a video game or with my Barbies. I also had people in my community who knew my name, asked how my day was when they saw me in the convenience store or acknowledged that I wasn’t just another kid, but a child who held the future of our country in her hands.

I understand that not every child has loving and supportive parents like I did or a community that wants to support them 100 percent, but that’s the problem. Whether you know a child or not, it’s important for us to recognize that they need our support. If you are no longer a parent, volunteer to read at an area school, sign up to be a high school mentor or attend a Board of Education meeting. If anything will open your eyes up to what some might describe as chaos—that will. Advance warning: some of the board meetings can be crazy long, but all in all I believe the information we need to be better parents, mentors or advocates for education unfolds there. Remember, we voted these people in office—at least those of us who cared enough to participate in the election.

We all need to set aside standardized testing, put down the tablets and think about what made each of us successful. I bet $100 that we wouldn’t say it was our third-grade ITBS tests, the curriculum in our eighth-grade Georgia history class or whether we had a new or old textbook. It was a person. Miss Dixon in first grade, Coach Glanton from fifth-grade P.E. or Mrs. Helms from 11th-grade Trigonometry. These are the reasons I have succeeded and what I believe have made me a dependable and responsible person.

We need to go back to the basics of being a part of the classroom, knowing what’s going on in our communities and getting our heads out of the clouds and off Facebook or blogs so that we can be a part of these young people’s future. If we don’t get our acts together, we’ll be the reason our children fail, not succeed.

Now that the economy is starting to pick up, news of companies relocating to Cobb County and nearby areas are more prominent every day, and for residents that are still in the thick of the often-dreaded job search, networking is more important now than ever. With resources like LinkedIn, online self-promotion and marketing are certainly more prevalent and utilized than in recent years, but few efforts can really make an applicant stand out more than personal professional referrals—that’s where community networking comes into play.

The Coalition of Cobb County Business Associations, which comprises of 10 area business associations—Austell, Acworth, East Cobb, Kennesaw, Marietta, Northeast Cobb, Smyrna, South Cobb, Vinings and West Cobb—offers an advantage to residents in the form of networking events and training, because sometimes the key to finding and securing the right job for you really is all about who you know. For Chuck Burge, who serves as membership chair with the Marietta Business Association, “The only way to improve your chances is to leave the comfort of your computer search for a job and be seen. No matter how well your resume is put together, it is just paper.”

Barbara Hickey with the Cobb Coalition agrees, saying that in such a competitive job atmosphere, business owners, corporations and members of the nonprofit community are relying on recommendations before they take the leap and hire a new member of the team. “Hiring the wrong person, who does not fit with the pace, demand or overall atmosphere, can be a costly mistake,” Hickey says. “You never know where your next job, client or idea may come from. When you build relationships with people you share your plans, skills and other personal information that may spark an idea that they suggest.”

For Bonnie Ross-Parker of Xperience Connections, formerly The Joy of Connecting, “The trust building and relationship building is significantly increased when you have face-to-face opportunities. It’s not just about the body language and the eye contact; you just get a feel for somebody when you have the opportunity to shake a hand.” With so many opportunities around Cobb to go out and meet other professionals and expand your network, the time has come to utilize the tools and people available to you.

Go Beyond the Web

Personal websites, online portfolios and LinkedIn profiles have the ability to make a big impact when searching for a job, either positive or negative. For prospective employers, credibility is everything in a new hire. When networking, if a person can feel the credibility and value you bring, the degree to which they can potentially further you in your job search deepens significantly.

“Sometimes it’s just being visible, letting people know what you’re looking for, showing up in a way that is very professional—those are the kinds of things that I think can really help an individual find a position much different than just filling out a piece of paper online. That’s not nearly as effective as really having a referral from someone else,” says Ross-Parker.

“It is an opportunity for a live interview without having to go through the process of scheduling one with a difficult-to-reach owner or HR person,” Burge adds. “The more people you meet face to face, the better your opportunity to be known—and when you are known, you create referrals for yourself. When you are referred, you are walking in warm, not cold. Plus, you never know when you may walk up to the person that needs exactly what your skill set provides.”

Many networking professionals agree that social media can help as easily as it can hurt. For Burge, resources like LinkedIn can work if you are aggressive and ask for recommendations to meet the people you connect with. “Posting is permanent. It can hurt you if you haven’t established some credibility throughout your online communication,” Ross-Parker says. “In the job search arena, the degree to which individuals post content and information of value that clearly demonstrates their expertise is a great way for somebody to land a potential opportunity. The same is true in the reverse.”

Cobb’s Networking Resources

The Marietta Business Association, like many area groups, has several opportunities for networking, including Networking Opportunity Weekly (NOW) and NetEx, an expo held the second Monday of every month, complete with a meet and greet where the key to success is always getting involved. “The idea is to put you in front of that person for a cup of coffee or lunch and to be there for the introduction,” Burge says. “Through that process, you have helped two people meet someone new that might further their business. That is powerful.” Additionally, members can take part in monthly after-hours events and Business & Biscuits.

The Cobb Coalition also brings together 10 business associations that promote networking events every month, where you can attend as a guest and meet business owners, public officials and government personnel alike. Hickey addresses The Etiquette School of Atlanta as another prime resource for helping to level the job playing field. “After our classes from Making A Good First Impression to Dining Etiquette, we send off our students of all ages with the confidence to handle interviews, difficult people, conflict resolution and just make a difference wherever they are,” she says.

Ross-Parker’s Xperience Connections is open to all women for an intimate meeting once a month, as space allows. “I don’t want any woman who is truly committed to a professional or entrepreneurial endeavor to go through what I went through and not be taken seriously,” she says, having worked in networking for more than 30 years. She started hosting events at Atlanta Bread Co. for several years without charging a fee before starting her organization, The Joy of Connecting, which was officially 11 years old last August. The first event was held in her home in 2002, and since then more than 3,500 women have participated. The program has never changed. Everyone walks away with solid opportunities for growth, and every woman gets the chance to showcase, distribute content, promote what they do and talk about their endeavors.

“On any one day at any one time, Atlanta is so robust in terms of opportunities for women and networking in general,” says Ross-Parker. “For a woman to start a business here or make connections to foster opportunities is pretty significant. I think women deserve and have earned the right to be respected, appreciated, valued for the contributions they make in their communities.”

No matter your age, doctors have always stressed the importance of staying both mentally and physically fit. As we age, they say it’s even more important because it allows you to be more independent for longer, and that’s why we are encouraged to get out there and exercise both our minds and bodies on a regular basis.

“One of the major problems as we all age is the fear of loss of independence and this can happen by losing physical mobility and freedom to make our own decisions in case we have dementia,” says Dr. Shravantika Reddy, who specializes in family and geriatric medicine with WellStar Medical Group in Marietta. “Therefore, it is important that we reduce these fears by helping ourselves be functionally independent for as long as we can by keeping physically and mentally active.”

To build physical well-being, Reddy recommends aerobic exercises, muscle strengthening, balance and gait training, in addition to maintaining healthy nutrition. In continued efforts to improve mental fitness, she advises seniors to remain socially active with friends and family and learn new activities and practice activities like crossword puzzles that stimulate the brain.

Lou Alice Coffin, an 84-year-old who lives at Presbyterian Village in Austell, agrees with Reddy. She walks daily, in addition to stretching and flexing, and participating in strength circuit exercising in her community. “Remaining active and healthy allows me to do all the things I want to do on a daily basis, and to enjoy life to the full,” Coffin says. Presbyterian Village offers a number of well-rounded programs for its residents so that they can help stimulate their minds, bodies and spirits.

Like Presbyterian Village, the wellness director at Sterling Estates in Marietta, Christine Walsh, says they offer a variety of daily aerobic classes like water therapy, stretching class and personal training, in addition to balance and fall prevention. She also enjoys games with the residents and they participate in music therapy.

“Staying healthy is not just done with exercise,” Walsh says. “You must incorporate every aspect of wellness into your routine. Whole-person wellness is our main goal here. We strive to encourage our residents to add improvement in every type of wellness.

Sterling Estates resident Bettie Ruth Cox Hudson agrees. The 77-year-old performs stretching exercises in her bed each morning before getting up and reminds herself to be active every day. “I take the Sittersize class four to five times a week, as well as the balance bar class and water aerobics to stop back pain, knee pain and shoulder pain,” she says. “I have never been so pampered in my entire life, ever, ever, ever.”

Aspen Village Senior Living, which serves seniors in west Cobb and surrounding counties, offers similar programs for its residents, especially to help stimulate the mind. The staff and management believes that those in the 55-plus community should engage in “meaningful” activities that they already enjoy to help promote cognitive health while they age.

“It might be chess or backgammon, crossword puzzles, Scrabble games with friends, reading, participating in a club, building models or any number of activities,” the Aspen Village staff says. “Keep in mind that the activities require active engagement, not passive engagement such as watching television.”

In 2017, the east Cobb community will see a new development in Isakson Living’s Continuing Care Retirement Community on Roswell Road. It too will cater to the well-being of the senior community.

“The proposed development helps to create a lifelong community that will afford east Cobb residents an opportunity to remain in the area as they grow older,” Kenn Isakson says. “The residential community will also be an attractive option for others who may relocate to be close to children and grandchildren in the area.” The community will offer independent homes with on-site amenities like dining, activities, entertainment, fitness and wellness, in addition to assisted living, memory care and skilled nursing.

On-site senior care isn’t the only way to help strengthen one’s mind, body and soul. Vince Clifford, who owns Serenity Adult Day Care Center in Powder Springs, welcomes seniors to their facility during the day so that they can participate in multiple activity programs, health monitoring and socializing with others.

“At Serenity, we are helping mentally and physically impaired adults by providing cost-effective care while supporting individual autonomy, allowing individuals to ‘age in place’ and enhancing the quality of life for both participants and family caregivers,” Clifford says. Guests at Serenity can enjoy snacks and meals, while also participating in light exercise programs and recreational activities such as BINGO, arts and crafts, sing-a-longs and day outings.

Aging gracefully isn’t just about exercise and mind games but also about what you eat. “The combination of unhealthy eating and physical inactivity is responsible for the second highest percentage of preventable deaths in the United States,” says Phil Graiser, who owns and operates Comforting Arms with his wife Julie. “Health related problems are exacerbated by poor nutrition and inactivity.”

At Comforting Arms, they work with seniors by going into their homes, rehab facilities or assisted living residence. Graiser says their licensed dietitian, Judy Whitehead, conducts nutritional assessments for each client and creates a meal plan to help maintain a proper nutritional balance that is necessary for seniors.

“Caloric intake and making proper choices of foods is critical to consuming the proper amount of calories recommended for those more than 50 years old who get less than 30 minutes of moderate physical activity per day,” Graiser says. “Getting the right combination of carbohydrates, protein and fats is important. If someone refuses to eat certain foods that are necessary to maintain a good balance, replace that item with one of similar nutritional value.”