by Stephen Valrie OLD FOURTH WARD — The Intown Academy held its second annual Winter Breakfast on Saturday, Feb. 9. The event allows the students to recognize and reflect on the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his iconic I Have a Dream speech. We had a great turn out from the community, including representatives from the following neighborhood associations: 4th and SAND Fourth Ward West Fourth Ward Neighbors Fourth Ward Alliance We also had representatives from Atlanta Public Schools and Atlanta Police Department come out and show their support. Entertainment included performances from …

EAST LAKE — One of the philosophies that Coan Middle School Principal Betsy Bockman has is that children should have a clear understanding about their choices and how their actions affect their futures. It's one of the reasons she instituted year-long one-on-one conferences with parents, teachers and students to get the kids to understand their success and achievements here help build the foundation for a successful future. Part of that also is showing what success looks like and the importance of — even at a young age — of setting goals and personal benchmarks. Yesterday was College Day for …

by Eric Antell On Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2013, Athens-based punk band Burns Like Fire played a very high energy show, in Atlanta, at the Drunken Unicorn. The band returned Jan. 12 to play at the Masquerade. From the minute they hit the stage and the mics were on, these 4 Athens punk rockers were there to entertain and play a high energy set. For around 45 odd minutes, the band belted out one song after another, with a spastic stage show rarely seen these days. In between songs they were either full of "over the top" shenanigans or the exact opposite. I got an interview with Burns Like Fire, which…

Scores of the metro Atlantans came out to support For the Kid in All of Us, the local non-profit organization For the Kid in All of Us said its 10th annual Toy Party & Silent Auction on Sunday. All contributions – toys and gift cards – were donated to 24 non-profit agencies that serve Georgia’s children. In the communities of East Atlanta Patch they included: AGAPE Community Center AID Atlanta Atlanta Children’s Shelter CHRIS Kids East Lake Foundation Families First Jerusalem House Sheltering Arms In 2003, a group of friends founded For the Kid in All of Us, the all-volunteer non-profit …

Residents and friends of the Old Fourth Ward met one Saturday morning recently to clean up the Boulevard corridor between Freedom Parkway and Decatur Street/DeKalb Avenue. The Oct. 27 initiative, led by Kwanza Hall, Atlanta city councilman representing District 2, was part of his yearlong Year of Boulevard program, which looks to address the social and economic concerns facing residents on that street. This is thew dayu in pictures.

by Eric Antell The Biters opened the event at the Tabernacle, which also featured Lindi Ortega and headliner act, Social Distortion. Right out of the gate, the Biters proved to be no stranger to getting a crowd excited! Playing one explosive hit after another, this band was a real life example of "How to Energize a crowd!" Having recently released their fourth EP, Last of a Dying Breed, on Pipeline Records, this band keeps pumping out great songs, with excitement, feeling, and attitude. I was told by the band after the show that theywill be touring in Europe early 2013. On the road to support…

Brasfield Square in Glenwood Park hosted a costume party Thursday for kids big and small. Even man's and woman's best friends jumped in on the action. Halloween 2012 was another good year of costumed fun. These were some of our favorite pictures. What did you dress up as for Halloween this year? Upload here to share your pix and don't forget also to enter our Best Halloween Costume in America contest and your chance at $5,000.

Costumed kids, a brass band, a parade and pumpkin carvings — all hallmarks of the third annual Halloween Hootenany at the East Atlanta Village Farmers Market on Oct. 25. East Atlanta resident Jessica Hollomon snapped up some pictures of the day, which also included bobbing for apples and facepainting.

by Kyle Brooks I finished painting two concrete uprights under Highland Avenue in Atlanta’s Inman Park on Oct. 17. This painting was in collaboration with Art on the Atlanta BeltLine 2012. This year I painted on the eastside trail. I spent a week painting. One day was for priming and six full days were spent painting colors. I rode around in a green lift. I painted eyes and faces and friends. I painted bright colors and big bold shapes. I was reminded that an expensive brush is much better that a cheaply made one. I saw many people and dogs. I saw many bikes and carts. I saw many joggers and …

The Burgess-Peterson Academy Parent Teacher Association hosted the entire BPA family — students, teachers, their families and the East Atlanta community — an afternoon of fun and games at its annual Fall Festival on Oct. 19. The PTA worked hard to planning the festival which included costumed kids (and some grown-ups, too) and prepared carnival games, a student art show, costume contest, arts and crafts, a nail and beauty salon and, of course, face painting. This was the day in images, as captured by BPA booster Crystal Hicks.

Monday was a milestone for the Atlanta BeltLine: The opening of the Eastside Trail. The trail, which comprises a 2.25-mile-long stretch of the Atlanta BeltLine, connects Inman Park and Old Fourth Ward to Midtown and Virginia-Highland. It also connects with the first two trails on the Atlanta BeltLine - the West End Trail and the Northside Trail. Monday's opening day festivities featured a host dignitaries from metro Atlanta including Mayor Kasim Reed and Atlanta City Councilmen Kwanza Hall and Alex Wan, to bicycle and walking enthusiasts. This was the day in pictures.

Everyone loves a parade. And the East Atlanta Strut, which was Saturday, features one of the city's favorite, and quirkiest parades. We know some of the floats and costumes had you whipping out your cameras and smart phones to capture your favorite moments. You can also share your favorite snapshots by uploading them here to our gallery. We hope you enjoyed the Strut!

Atlanta got a chance to walk the Atlanta BeltLine's Eastside Trail on Saturday and showcase its creativity with BeltLine's Lantern Parade. The route, which went from Inman Park to Midtown, gave participants an early look at the trail, which officially opens to the public next month. Inman Park photographer David Feldman threw a pre-parade party at his home and then attended the walked the trail, snapping these pictures that he shared with East Atlanta Patch. Did you take pictures? What was your favorite lantern design? Upload and share with Patch.

Art, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder. In Chosewood Park, following the completion of a mural that was part of this year's Living Walls project, there's quite a lot to behold. The artist Hyuro, an Argentinean-born street artist known for her stark, black and white depictions, painted this mural on the eastern wall of what had been the sprawling, 40-acre General Motors Lakewood Plant. Her mural, located on the corner of Sawtell Avenue and McDonough Boulevard, depicts a nude woman in a series of stances. At one point she is clothed and as the viewer's eyes travel from left to right, …

Hilton Worldwide employees, in a joint partnership with Hands On Atlanta, spent the day Friday at Benteen Elementary School on a beautification project to spruce up the school's playground. Hilton picked Benteen Elementary, a Title 1 school, for its beautification day because of its need for a play area. The Hilton employees refurbished the play area with sidewalk games, newly painted outdoor seating, planted flowers and other beautification improvements. "We just really wanted a project where we could make a substantial difference," said Tamekia Massaline, spokeswoman for Hilton Atlanta.

Burgess-Peterson Academy was all aflutter Saturday with kids, parents and fun as the school opened its new, outdoor classroom. The Spring Butterfly Festival featured arts and crafts, face painting and petting zoo for the kiddies, food trucks and of course, butterflies. The school dedicated the outdoor classroom to Kevin Hester, the school's well-loved custodian who died last school year. A couple of our East Atlanta parents, Susie Boggs Antell and Beth Hogan, snapped up some pix from the day.

by Theresa Wolf The children of Inman Park United Methodist Church spent their time in December learning what it means to be a refugee and how we are called to do what we can to take care of others in need if we have the resources to do so. We are called to help even if it means making a sacrifice of our time, strength and money to do so. The church family and Inman Park neighborhood came through in a big way to help our young people collect all of the needed supplies to help a family from Bhutan escape an unsafe homeland to come to a safe place here in the United States. We will work all …

A salon on Boulevard boasts a veritable flock of Christmas inflatables. Sister Louisa's reminds us of the reason for the season. Subtle signs of the Christmas season adorn the Edgewood Animal Clinic. Here are a few interesting decorations in the area--things that remind us that it's December, even if the weather doesn't feel so seasonal.

Scores of people came out Saturday for Trees Atlanta's 12th Annual Tree Sale. The sale of native and exotic trees, plants and vines, goes toward Neighborwoods program which plants trees in communities all over parts of metro Atlanta that are inside the Perimeter. The plantings, which go from October through March, result in 2,000 trees being put in the ground each year. The other program proceeds go toward is restoration efforts. That's where Trees Atlanta staff and volunteers plant trees in an effort to spiff up an area. The first such planting this fall is scheduled for Oct. 15 in Decatur …

If you went to Oakland Cemetery Sunday, you'd have taken a step back in time to the Victorian Age. The historic cemetery, where Atlanta's favorite sons and daughters are buried, including Mayor Maynard Jackson and writer Margaret Mitchell, welcomed Fall with its annual Sunday In The Park. Vistitors came to the event, an annual tradition since 1975, dressed in period costumes reminscent of Oakland's founding 161 years ago.