Must-reads coming in Sunday's AJC

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The AJC is committed to following the big stories long after other media have moved on. For this Sunday’s AJC, we visited with survivors of this fall’s disastrous flood who have created a community out of the chaos:

Here's an excerpt:

When you’ve lost almost everything, some thanks are in order for what’s left.

On a chilled October afternoon, Nikisha Miller leaned over the stove in her new, cramped kitchen. The scent of Swedish meatballs filled the air. Chicken salad, spinach dip, chips: The food filled a table just big enough for four.

As newfound friends and neighbors watched, Miller smiled and presented the bounty to her guests, a reminder that bad times come, but they go, too.

They are survivors, left homeless by the floods of 2009. They’re also friends, their relationships forged by adversity and shared sorrows. Forced to flee rising waters last month as creeks and rivers across the metro area overflowed, they met at the Cobb Civic Center, where they sought shelter.

Now, they’ve relocated to a Mableton apartment complex to begin the process of rebuilding their lives — of buying furniture to replace ruined couches, of lacing windows with curtains that were on the shelf last month. Of believing that life will be joyous again.

The full story on the front page of Sunday’s AJC.

Also in Sunday’s AJC:

-- Part 6 of our Atlanta Project on challenges facing city: Atlanta is a business town so why has attracting big business prospects proved so difficult?

-- Gov. Sonny Perdue’s ban on state employees taking gifts hasn’t stopped hundreds of government workers from being wined and dined by lobbyists for companies doing business with their agencies.

-- What would you be willing to accept to cut crime in Atlanta? How about hundreds of video cameras installed throughout the city? There’s a plan is in the works.

-- For 6-year-old Jonah, costumes aren’t about candy. They’re about the superhero strength they give him after his recent liver transplant. A heartwarming story.

-- Are rides at your county fair safe? Find out in our Spotlight column, which explains how rides are inspected and how often something goes wrong.

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