Local Salute

LOCAL SALUTE BY: Mickey Goodman

Covering the Globe with Color

Rony Delgarde, founder of Global Paints, was honored as one of the participants in the NASDAQ Entrepreneurial Center’s Milestone Makers program.

Repurposing surplus paint

In 2010 when Rony Delgarde founded Global Paint for Charity, he never imagined it would become the world’s largest provider and exporter of free latex paint to communities in need around the world. It was also a surprise to have his picture flashed across the giant screen on New York’s Times Square to mark his completion of the NASDAQ Entrepreneurial Center’s Milestone Makers three-month program for selected entrepreneurs.

GPC’s mission is two-fold: to help beautify and preserve public buildings by providing colorful paint to impoverished communities around the globe and to keep unused paint out of U.S. landfills and waterways. The organization also offers paint to artists so they can create murals in public places such as the Atlanta BeltLine. “Paint is a major polluter,” Delgarde says. “It only takes one gallon to pollute up to 250,000 gallons of drinking water. Over the past decade, we’ve collected more than 320,000 tons of paint that was intended for the landfills.” Seventy percent is distributed in over 40 countries with the remaining 30% re-donated to U.S. residents for community projects.

Disposal of unused paint can be difficult and expensive for homeowners and businesses, and GPC offers an easy and environmentally safe alternative by picking up cans. Donations come from homeowners, construction projects and paint stores.

l For more information, visit globalpaints.org. Whitney Oeltmann created the Dementia Spotlight Foundation to support people caring for loved ones with Alzheimer’s and dementia.

Dementia Dilemma

Care for caregivers

When Whitney Oeltmann’s father was diagnosed with dementia in 2012, she and her mother, Linda DeMarlo, tried desperately to find resources and support in the community. They came up empty handed. Even the doctors were of little help.

Instead of wringing their hands, they decided to take action and founded Dementia Spotlight Foundation, whose mission is to offer advocacy, the arts, dementia education and programs for caregivers. With a master’s degree in social work from Tulane University, the Brookhaven resident was qualified to take the helm.

“Our motto is ‘life before loss, rights before research and care before cure,’” Oeltmann says. “We offer numerous online education programs, seminars and webinars for caregivers who have become like family to one another as they navigate the everyday challenges and emotional struggles of caring for loved ones.”

The organization also offers programs for patients. The most popular is the Memory Café where people with dementia connect with others and offer support, camaraderie and advice at 46 virtual meetings worldwide.

Having “been there,” Oeltmann knows how stressful caregiving can be, so the nonprofit provides funds for caregivers who need a short respite from their duties while their loved ones are being well cared for. Author and dementia advocate Gary LeBlanc is director of dementia education and manages the respite program and online groups.

l For more information, visit dementiaspotlightfoundation.org.

Atlanta Hawks guard Cam Reddish is doing his part to combat food insecurity in children.

Brain Food

Filling the gap

It’s no secret that the pandemic has had a devastating effect on people already experiencing food insecurity, particularly children who lack access to free lunches and snacks usually provided by schools.

To help fill the gap, Atlanta Hawks guard Cam Reddish has joined the Atlanta Hawks Foundation and State Farm in a partnership with Goodr, an organization committed to reducing food waste and ending hunger, to expand the Snack Pack Program to qualified kids attending Atlanta Public Schools, and Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb and Gwinnett County schools.

“My mom was the principal of an elementary school and saw first-hand how a lack of food impacts learning,” Reddish says. “I’m happy to do everything in my power to be involved in the Snack Pack program.”

Snack Packs will be distributed weekly through June 30 at different sites within the school systems. Each provides three meals, five snacks and three beverages. Goodies include smoothies, fruit, sandwiches, cookies and more.

The Atlanta Hawks Foundation and State Farm also teamed up with Goodr during 2020 to host 10 pop-up grocery stores to supply more than 220,000 meals to seniors and low-income students.

l For more information, visit nba.com/hawkscommunity.

Want to nominate a volunteer, company or nonprofit that makes Buckhead, Chamblee, Dunwoody Sandy Springs, Brookhaven or the Westside a better place to live? Please contact: editor@simplybuckhead.com