Shelby Barker

had to wait until the very end of a tense Peachtree City Council meeting

last Thursday before his turn came to take the podium.

Slightly nervous,

with proverbial hat in hand, he asked the council for $800 to top off

the funds needed to stage a Battle of the Bands night at the Fred Brown

Amphitheater next month.

Barker, the

stepson of city Councilman Dan Tennant and a rising senior at McIntosh

High, was representing the Peachtree City Youth Council, which hopes to

build a better sense of community among the city's teens through such

events.

But gee, they

needed another $800 on top of the $1,000 in donations already received

if they hoped to "put on a show."

Barker was

Oliver Twist, and the council held the gruel.

Though sympathetic,

the panel towering before him was hesitant to fork over the dough to just

a ... well, a bunch of kids. Weren't there other sources? In-kind donations?

Civic groups with fat bank accounts?

"I applaud

this youth council's efforts, but I'd like more information," said

Annie McMenamin. Storm clouds grew darker on the horizon.

Shelby's mother,

Robin Tennant, jumped up and ran to the defense of the teens. "Please,

the kids have worked so hard," she pleaded with the city's elected

brass, her husband among them.

"We've

got a lot of hoops to jump through to make money like this available,"

Mayor Steve Brown tried to explain in his most fatherly manner.

"Check

with the Rotary, other civic groups," suggested a kind but firm Murray

Weed.

"Yes,

there are other sources of these kinds of funds," added McMenamin.

"But we've

tried other sources," Barker told them. His eyes grew downcast. Hope

was fading fast.

And then, just

as quickly as one might utter the phrase, "There's no place like

home," a voice spoke up from the back of the room.

"Hold

on! We've got $400 in pledges right here," announced Bob Lenox, former

mayor, jumping to his feet and waving a check in the air.

Not missing

a beat, a grinning Barker turned