The

Peachtree City Commission on Children and Youth has

downsized while in the process of reorganizing and taking

another look at its mission and overall goals.

With the

nature of the commission's business being what it is,

board members can often have a difficult time reconciling

the time required for their duties with the other

obligations in their lives that make them good candidates

for appointment in the first place.

"Like

all other commissions, it's manned by volunteers,"

said CCY coordinator Bernice Wassell. "The people

who serve are usually parents who have children at the

age where they need attention - usually school-age

children. Many times, the commissioners find that

balancing a commitment to the CCY, their families and

their children's activites outside of school turns out to

be a bit of a juggle."

The fact

that board members are often professionals in legal,

medical or other fields adds to the time crunch.

"We,

of all the commissions and boards, are real hands-on, and

that turns out to be a big-time commitment on the

commissioners," said Wassell.

The CCY is

normally comprised of eight people, but a few have

stepped down due to the reasons listed above, and two

members' terms expire Aug. 31. That leaves only three

members, making it impossible to have a quorum (five) as

designated in the city ordinance that organized the

group.

The City

Council, at the CCY's request, temporarily solved that

problem at its July 1 meeting by reducing the membership

from eight to five. Official City Council action was

necessary for the CCY to be able to carry on its business

and have access to the fiscal budget that was

appropriated by the city.

Nick Harris

is the current chair of the CCY, with Tonya Curry serving

as vice chair and Teresa Vannier as treasurer. Lynn Grant

will step down next month, as will Willie Kellings.

Wassell

says the board is content to go with three members for a

while while it regroups.

"They're

going to look at their master plan that they developed

last year, and once they've come up with what they feel

the community needs based on the master plan and perhaps

some input from the community, then they will advise the

City Council to go on and approve new members," she

said.

One major

event that's right on schedule is the annual Last Fling,

set for August just before school starts back.

"It's

a family event totally funded by the city," said

Wassell. "This will be the tenth anniversary. We

usually have anywhere from 2,000 to 3,500 people

come."

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