Blast from the Past
Past articles published in the May issues of The Atlanta Lawyer in previous decades .
their children out of their sight , and national focus turned to a perceived crime problem in our city . And in the midst of the chaos , fear , and national attention , some important members of our community were not receiving the recognition they deserved - the law enforcement officers who are our first line of defense against crime , and who ultimately caught the killer . For this reason the Atlanta Bar Association during 1980 launched " Give Our Police A Hand ," a yearlong campaign designed to honor and encourage community support for the men and women who protect our safety .
May 2003 The Grandparent / Relative Caregiver Project At 52 , Ms . L has been caring for her six grandchildren , who range in age from three to 16 , for almost three years . The childrens ' mother was addicted to crack cocaine and was unable to take care for the children because of AIDS . The mother is now deceased . The father of the oldest child is unknown . The father of the five younger children has provided minimal support because he also has a drug addiction and is in and out of prison . Ms . L wants to provide a stable , secure , and permanent home for her grandchildren . She has finalized the adoption and is waiting to hear whether she will receive the monthly adoption assistance subsidy .
In the late 1990s , the Senior citizens Law Project and the Family Law Unit at the Atlanta Legal Aid Society began to see an increasing number of clients like Ms . L taking full responsibility for rearing their grandchildren and other relatives . The children in these families usually have been left without proper parental care due to their parents ' drug addictions , the AIDS epidemic , homelessness , and other factors .
May 2010 Bringing Joy to the Practice of Law There are a few times in the course of a lawyer ' s busy day that he or she can actually provide a moment of special excitement all around , especially if the matter is one being handled in court . That is why the Family Law Section enthusiastically embraced the idea of providing lawyers on a pro bono basis to handle adoption proceedings , where cameras are truly welcome in the courtroom and the judge is preening to get in the pictures . It started when a Section member was approached by a director on the Board of Bethany adoption services to discuss the great things Bethany was accomplishing .
May 2010 Trying to Do Our Part To paraphrase a Jewish proverb , " To help one life is to help the world ." While we cannot cure the ills of the world , much less the community in which we live , we should try to do our part . The Atlanta Bar Foundation certainly strives to do its share .
When it was founded 25 years ago , the Foundation ' s initial goal was to support the children of Atlanta Police officers who were killed or disabled in the line of duty . Since that time the Foundation , with the support of the Atlanta Bar , has broadened the scope of its mission to include providing assistance to needy children and families in the Atlanta community .
www . atlantabar . org THE ATLANTA LAWYER 23