A proud graduate of Frederick Douglass High School and Georgia State University, Kesha Crockett currently operates an advertising agency (raesigns.com) in Clayton County and serves as the Forest Park High School Council President. She has managed advertising campaigns for companies like Willie A. Watkins, Fortune Metal of Riverside, Subway (Forest Park) and more, and she has created youth training camps to introduce teenagers to careers available in the advertising industry.

A rural Southwest Georgia native and four-year resident of Forest Park, Dr. Bambie Hayes-Brown is the President & CEO of Georgia Advancing Communities Together, Inc., a statewide membership organization of housing and community development agencies. She has 24 years’ experience in rural and urban housing, community and economic development and is a licensed and ordained minister in Forest Park.

Beverly J. Martin is a lifelong Forest Park resident. She worked for City Archives for seven years, where she helped set up and run the City of Forest Park Museum and assisted in writing “Images of America: Forest Park.” She also served on the planning board for the city’s Centennial Celebration. Ms. Martin graduated from Forest Park High in 1982 and attended Clayton College and State University. She is retired and spends time caring for others.

Wande Okunoren-Meadows is a nationally recognized early-childhood advocate and executive director of Forest Park’s Little Ones Learning Center, a holistic early-childhood education program where 175 children, their families, and staff grow, eat, and learn about local and sustainably grown food. Her mother, Olutoyin Okunoren, purchased the Center in 1994. She is also executive director of Hand Heart and Soul Project (HHSP), founded in 2018 to serve Clayton County through actionable training, resources, and support.

Photos: Who does the Atlanta State Farmers Market really serve?

Nicole Buchanan is a documentary photographer based in Atlanta and a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design with a BFA in photography. Nicole is an enthusiastic, young photographer utilizing her skills to explore innovative ways to invoke emotional insight into cultural and political events that shape our world.

Illustrations: The Forest Park Issue Cover

Sean Fahie (pronounced FOY) is a contract graphic designer, illustrator, creative consultant, and author based out of Atlanta. He specializes in print-based media with extensive experience in design, illustration, branding, marketing, and apparel. Fahie also has published three books, written one short film, and coproduced one full-length feature.

Floyd is a Canopy Atlanta cofounder, media strategist, cultural producer, writer, and documentarian from Atlanta. He has worked across the media spectrum and has produced hundreds of podcast episodes covering art and culture, including projects for WABE, the High Museum, Flux Projects, the Spelman College Museum of Fine Art, and WonderRoot.

Photos: The past and future of Forest Park’s schools

Rita Harper is a documentary photographer/photojournalist born, raised, and based in Atlanta. Her work is set to amplify the voices and narratives of the everyday working-class Black individual, and minority groups across the diaspora, as a reminder that all our lives serve purpose and importance no matter what stage in our transition to greatness.

Beth McKibben currently serves as the editor and reporter for Eater Atlanta, part of the Eater network of digital city publications under the Vox Media umbrella. Based in Atlanta, her work has also appeared in Atlanta magazine, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and Liquor.com.

Photos: State of flux

Audra Melton is an editorial and commercial photographer based in Atlanta. Her work is a combination of storytelling and portraiture often with a focus on social issues.

Stories: Waiting for the Train

Hannah S. Palmer, a native of Forest Park, is the author of Flight Path: A Search for Roots beneath the World’s Busiest Airport. Since 2017, she has led a campaign to restore the urban headwaters of Georgia’s Flint River. She also serves on Canopy Atlanta’s board of directors.

Stories: The Southside

Stephannie Stokes reports on housing issues for WABE 90.1 FM, the NPR station in Atlanta.

Stories: State of flux

Sonam Vashi is an award-winning freelance journalist who’s written for the New York Times, ProPublica, Atlanta magazine, National Geographic, and several others. She is a cofounder and Operations Director of Canopy Atlanta.

Stories: Who does the Atlanta State Farmers Market really serve?

Muriel Vega is an Atlanta-based journalist who’s written for the Washington Post, Atlanta magazine, Delta Sky Magazine, Apartment Therapy, Eater, and several others. She focuses her writing on technology, culture, and food, with a special Atlanta lens.

Photos: The Southside

Kavi Vu is a Vietnamese American storyteller and community organizer from Atlanta. In a society driven by statistics and analytics, she lives to tell stories that foster empathic and inclusive communities.

Stories: Back to school in Forest Park

Atlanta native Jewel Wicker is an award-winning journalist who covers entertainment and culture for publications such as GQ, Teen Vogue and Atlanta magazine. Her work focuses on often-overlooked Black southern experiences.