Montgomery Advertiser – Beer lovers wait for action on bills

Montgomery Advertiser – No decision on relocation of probate, revenue office

Montgomery Advertiser – Officer will seek open council seat

Huntsville Times – Preservation commission rejects large, ornate home on Huntsville’s Echols Avenue

Huntsville Times [...]

Montgomery Advertiser – Study: Redstone has $11.47B impact on state

Montgomery Advertiser – Biologists find creek is full of life, diversity

Montgomery Advertiser – ‘There’s a reason I’m still here’: Mom of three recovering from severe burn wounds

Huntsville Times – New school start law has [...]

Montgomery Advertiser – Farmers keep eye on worsening drought

Montgomery Advertiser – Just Saying: Education cuts affect everyone

Montgomery Advertiser – USDA predicting record corn harvest this summer

Huntsville Times – Failed UAB/UAH legislation ‘serving notice that we are not satisfied’

Huntsville Times – [...]

I came across a great painting by Celia Gray at the Ackland Museum Store in Chapel Hill.  Her paintings are made with encaustic (wax mixed with pigment) applied in soft, ethereal tones.   I love the way they almost seem to glow…         -Robert   images: Celia Gray  

Each season we gather trends from High Point Furniture Market- this year we were uplifted by a trend with staying power- one that we don’t see going anywhere anytime soon: bold geometric patterns. There is something energizing about the rhythm of these patterns. We saw this trend from walls, to floors to pillows, to upholstered furniture covered [...]

Recently, Hilaire traveled to Whistler, British Columbia, Canada (home of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games) and fell in love with not only the landscape but the art as well. For Hilaire the art within her home speaks to her travels and  life experiences.   After an afternoon strolling the Whistler galleries, below are some of [...]

One of my favorite places to look for inspiration is the collection of the Metropolitan Museum in New York.  They have much of their collection online, including everything from modern photographs to historic drawings.  I like to browse the historic drawings to inspire my own projects.  Take a look:   Get some inspiration of your [...]

Elizabeth Matheson is one of North Carolina’s most important photographers.  Her work is subtle and quiet, taking as its subject the old homes and landscapes of the South. In her interior shots, Matheson masterfully captures images that seem frozen in time. Born in Hillsborough, North Carolina in 1943,  she studied with John Menapace at the [...]

At market, Judy and I discovered Lucy Smith Designs! We immediately hit it off with Lucy and fell in love with her hand-crafted custom metal furnishings.  Having a 122 year old family-run steel fabrication business and over 10 years of experience as a design professional, this girl knows her metals and the desire for one-of-a-kind pieces. All the product is hand made [...]

This week, I wanted to share the work of Katharina Grosse, a prolific German painter and installation artist. She is known for the vibrant palette and exuberant gestures of her large-scale canvases and raucous installations which merge painting, sculpture, and architecture. Wielding a spray gun instead of a brush, Grosse often paints directly on the [...]

We can all appreciate American made products and Schoolhouse Electric & Supply Co. makes beautiful hand-blown shades and light fixtures. They definitely have a classic old school feel but can be perfect for any transitional space. This is the Lowell Pendant (above) and runs about $119.00 for just the fixture.

I love architectural drawings, especially historic ones of the hyper-realistic variety.  So you can imagine my delight when I came across the work of Matt Woodward, a contemporary artist whose drawings are inspired by historic examples of architectural ornament. Much of Woodward’s work is a reflection on Louis Sullivan, the famous Chicago Architect who coined [...]

Congratulations to John C. Inscoe and his book, WRITING THE SOUTH THROUGH THE SELF, for winning the Georgia History Book of the Year from the Georgia Historical Society. The recipient of the 2012 Malcolm Bell Jr. and Muriel Barrow Bell Award, WRITING THE SOUTH THROUGH THE SELF was named as the best book on Georgia history published in the previous year. “The Awards Committee was impressed by how John Inscoe approached southern and Georgia history through autobiography and memoir to reveal fresh insights into the southern temperament,” said Dr. Paul Pressly, chairman of the committee. 

Congratulations to Linda LeGarde Grover and Melinda Moustakis! Both of their books, THE DANCE BOOTS and BEAR DOWN, BEAR NORTH, have made the 2012 William Saroyan International Prize for Writing Shortlist. "The awards are intended to encourage new or emerging writers and honor the Saroyan literary legacy of originality, vitality and stylistic innovation. The Saroyan Prize recognizes newly published works of both fiction and non-fiction. A prize of $5,000 will be awarded in each category. Winners will be announced this summer."

Two of our books have tied for first place for the Harry T. and Harriette V. Moore Award from the Florida Historical Society. SOUTHERN PROHIBITION by Lee L. Willis and SOUTHERN CIVIL RELIGIONS by Arthur Remillard have each earned this year's Moore Award. This award is for a book relating to Florida's ethnic groups or dealing with a significant social issue from an historical perspective. The award will be presented at the society's Annual Meeting & Symposium Awards Luncheon on May 24th. Good luck to both authors!

Congratulations to Joan Maloof! Her book, TEACHING THE TREES, won the Senior Prize for the Silent Spring Essay Contest. Co-sponsored by the British Council, the International Consortium of Environmental History Organizations, and the Consulate General of the United States, Munich, this contest was launched to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the publication of Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring.

WEIRDING THE WAR and the just-released RUIN NATION by Megan Kate Nelson. Writing for the News & Observer, John David Smith praises WEIRDING THE WAR "not because its characters exhibited oddities or peculiarities, but rather because of their intensely human, commonplace experiences, strengths and weaknesses. Their mundane stories remind us of the 'weirdness' of war generally and the connection between individuals in the past and ourselves."

UGA’s Stephen Berry named Gregory Chair in the Civil War Era

May 16, 2012

Writer:Sam Fahmy

Contact:Stephen Berry

Athens, Ga. – Noted historian Stephen Berry has been named the inaugural holder of the Amanda and Greg Gregory Chair in the Civil War Era in the University of Georgia Franklin College of Arts and Sciences.

Berry, the author of four books on the Civil War era, joined the university’s department of history in 2007 and was selected as the Gregory chair after a national search.

“I can think of no UGA scholar more worthy of this honor than Steve Berry,” said UGA President Michael F. Adams. “He is a historian of the first order, and his research and writing have helped not only thousands of students but also many people, like myself, who have an ongoing interest in the Civil War. I am deeply grateful to the Gregorys for their generosity to the university and support of this important position in the history department.”

Berry’s first book, All That Makes a Man: Love & Ambition in the Civil War South (Oxford University Press, 2003) was a finalist for the 2004 Peter Seaborg Award for Civil War Scholarship. Princes of Cotton: Four Diaries of Young Men in the South, 1848-1860 (UGA Press and the Southern Texts Society, 2007) was described in one review as “an extraordinary contribution to Southern history.” House of Abraham: Lincoln & the Todds, A Family Divided By War (Houghton Mifflin, 2007) was a Book of the Month Club main selection and received a Publisher’s Weekly starred review. A reviewer of Berry’s most recent book, Weirding the War: Stories from the Civil War’s Ragged Edges (2011, UGA Press), wrote that “saying something truly new about the American Civil War seems impossible, but here is a book that offers an explosion of new perspectives and insights, often surprising and sometimes disturbing.”

In addition to authoring several articles in scholarly journals, Berry has written for magazines such as Civil War Monitor and North and South. He has given presentations at more than 20 conferences as well to historical associations, civic groups and primary and secondary school teachers.

“Steve Berry has developed in a short period of time a national reputation as a leading scholar of the Civil War era. His work brings a fresh perspective to one of the defining periods in our nation’s history,” said Hugh Ruppersburg, interim Franklin College dean. “The support of the Gregorys continues to elevate a department with established strengths in Southern history to the great benefit of our students and faculty.”

Berry has received fellowships from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History and Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. His honors include the Organization of American Historians Distinguished Lecturer Award and the Parks-Heggoy Award for Excellence in Teaching Graduate Students, which is voted on by graduate students studying history at UGA.

In addition to their gift to establish the Gregory Chair in the Civil War Era, the Gregorys have supported research in Civil War era studies for graduate students and faculty members and funded an annual lecture series that brings prominent historians to UGA to conduct seminars with students and to deliver a public lecture.

The Gregorys have strong ties to UGA. Greg earned his bachelor’s degree from the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, while Amanda received a bachelor’s degree from the College of Education. Greg has served as a member of the Terry College of Business board of advisers and delivered guest lectures to Terry students. He currently serves as a trustee to the UGA Foundation and is a member of the Franklin College Dean’s Council. In addition, he serves on the advisory board that oversees George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate, Museum and Gardens.

Greg retired as president and CEO of the commercial real estate firm Industrial Developments International in 2007, and Amanda taught in public and private elementary schools in Atlanta for more than a decade.

Before joining the faculty at UGA, Berry was an assistant professor at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke. He earned his master’s and doctoral degrees from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and earned his undergraduate degree in history from Rollins College.

I don't know about you, but anger doesn't usually give me a chance to think or pray. Now, I'm not making excuses. If the Word of God says, "Refrain from anger" then it is entirely possible to do so. What I am considering is: how do I get the "refraining" spirit and attitude active in me?

Maybe I should think about what ignites my anger. Is it an action? Is it a person? Is it a habit? Is it me? Is it selfishness? If we ask enough questions and answer them honestly, we will find the correct answer.

If I can refrain from it, then the anger resides in me. If I can turn from wrath, then I control the wrath boiling up in me. If it's me that is fretting, then I must take responsibility for any evil that comes from me. After all, self-control is a fruit of the Spirit.

How much damage has been done by angry people? How many lives have been lost because of human wrath? How many relationships have been destroyed by fretting people?

The Scripture clearly indicates that what we humans fret about is not worth the damage done by the resultant actions of anger and wrath. Fretting leads to anger which results in wrath. "It only leads to evil." That is enough reason to let go of it and refrain from it.

Dear Father, thank you for the exhortation of your Word. Strengthen us that we may refrain from anger and wrath. This I pray in the name of Jesus. AMEN

Be strong and courageous today in your restraint,

His miraculous work should have convinced them of his identity. And anyone who believes in him will do similar work and even greater miraculous work than he did. Belief in him is the key for both who he is and what he promised.

Dear Father, thank you for showing yourself to our world. Empower us to believe who you are and what you have promised. This I pray in the name of Jesus. AMEN

Be strong and courageous today and believe,

Much of our lives is best sufficiently tucked away in the dusty cellar of past history and covered by the blood of Calvary. And when we repent, God forgets our sins. How does an all-knowing God forget? Of course, the only possible answer is, He chooses to forget. How God forgets is not important . . . only that he does!

Throughout most of my childhood I was scared to death by the threat of an all-seeing eye watching me. I think it is interesting that no one ever said, "There's an all-hearing ear listening to you." Yet, Malachi records that God listened to those who "feared the Lord" and heard their encouraging words spoken "often to one another." 

What an exciting thought! Our all-knowing God has someone making notes about us so that He remembers when we "thought upon his name" and gave reverence to him. Is it possible that God enjoys reviewing the record and reminiscing about us? Of course, it doesn't matter that God requires a written record or even why. It is encouraging to simply know that God considers us important enough to record our thoughts about him and our reverence for him.

Dear Father, thank you for remembering me. Empower me everyday to think of you and encourage others. This I pray in the name of Jesus. AMEN

Be strong and courageous today as you remember the Lord and encourage someone,

And we see it's reality in Christ Jesus, our Lord and Savior. Of course, our critics would accuse us of straining at the proverbial gnat. Yet, we have turned our eyes upon Jesus and are looking full in his face. And instead of troubles and sorrows, we see every thing in subjection under his feet. Instead of death we see life! Instead of suffering we see deliverance! Instead of guilt and punishment we see mercy and grace! Instead of doubt and fear we see hope!

Unfortunately from time to time, we may succumb to the worries of this world. Like Peter on the lake, we stop looking at Jesus and look at the raging waves around us. We forget to maintain eye contact with the One who tasted death for every person. Not surprisingly, those who keep their eyes on him are better equipped to walk on the waters of this life, especially when the issues are gnats that look like camels.

Dear Father, thank you for putting all things in subjection to Christ. Empower us to keep our eyes on him and his work for us. This I pray in the name of Jesus. AMEN

Be strong and courageous today looking at Jesus,