A.M. ATL: 👏 Here’s to the heroes

Morning, y’all, and welcome to (gasp!) December. Temperatures are (gasp!) around 30 degrees this morning and highs won’t get out of the 40s.

• President Joe Biden pardoned his son Hunter last night, sparing him a possible prison sentence for federal gun and tax convictions.

Today’s newsletter also offers the latest on Atlanta’s inspector general fight, a Georgia couple’s ambitious oyster enterprise and a wild weekend of football.

But first: good people doing good things!

***

COMMUNITY CHAMPIONS

We — both the AJC and … pretty much everyone else in society — write and talk a lot about politicians. And business leaders. And all the other people with capital-P power.

Which is good! Accountability is key.

But can I tell you a secret? It’s the regular ol’ Joes and Jills doing their best that make Atlanta great. The “normal” folks who dedicate their time and hearts to something a little bigger than themselves? That’s who creates a community.

• Which brings us to this year’s installment of Everyday Heroes — the AJC’s annual endeavor to give the do-gooders out there their props.

With the help of media partners across the state, we’ve highlighted 48 Georgians doing their best to give others their best.

The list includes folks like Anthony “Spark Plug” Thomas, who started picking up litter along a Fayette County highway 20 years ago and never stopped. Folks like Penny Miller, who turned her Winder ranch into a paradise for aging pups.

Like Dunwoody’s Mady Cohen, who raised money to put Narcan in schools after a classmate died, and Malek Jandali, who’s helped park hundreds of pianos in public places across the city.

• “When we put a piano in an unexpected place, we change the narrative,” Jandali said.

And isn’t that what all this is about? Changing things — making things better, in ways big and small — starts with action. Noticing something wrong, or lacking, or inconvenient, and doing what you can to shake things up.

That can mean starting a garden. Making art. Or simply picking up trash.

It doesn’t matter. Everything is something.

So while I hope you’ll cruise through our Heroes’ stories, know that this isn’t only about celebrating them.

• It’s also about inspiring other folks to do what they can, too. Maybe that’s you, or your neighbor, or the least favorite relative you saw last week.

The more the merrier.

We need all the help we can get.

Not signed up yet? What’re you waiting for? Get A.M. ATL in your inbox each weekday morning. And keep scrolling for more news.

***

THE WEEK AHEAD

Shannon Stillwell, left, and Deamonte Kendrick are the two remaining defendants in the lengthy "Young Slime Life" trial.

⚖️ Today: The jury in Fulton County’s “Young Slime Life” trial resumes deliberations. Plus it’s Cyber Monday! Buy more things on the internet!

✅ Tuesday: Election day for the handful of local races undecided after November’s voting.

• It’s also GivingTuesday, when you’re encouraged to donate to your favorite community organizations and nonprofits.

🤘 Wednesday: Creed and Three Doors Down bring some early 2000s rock nostalgia to State Farm Arena.

🎸 Thursday: Roots music pros The Wood Brothers play The Eastern.

🏈 Friday: High school football playoff semifinals. Will this dude run for 605 yards again?

• LeBron James and the Lakers come to town to take on the Hawks, too.

***

‘CONCERNS OF CRONYISM’

Atlanta Inspector General Shannon Manigault during a September meeting of the task force established to review her office's role.

As the battle over Atlanta’s internal watchdog rages on, columnist Bill Torpy writes that Inspector General Shannon Manigault warned officials about the “concerns of cronyism” accompanying a security contractor with deep political ties.

• The City Council may send another $1.5 million to the contractor later today.

***

CRIME WATCH

» Atlanta police arrested a teenager they say shot and killed a 70-year-old man during an attempted carjacking outside a liquor store off Metropolitan Parkway.

» The Georgia State Patrol says a trooper suffered injuries during a shootout with a pair of alleged street racers in Rockdale County.

***

SHUCKING AROUND

Chef Chris Hathcock pours dozens of oysters into a case while harvesting at the Tybee Oyster Co. farm on the Bull River near Tybee Island.

Meet the Tybee Oyster Co., a first-of-its-kind Georgia oyster farming operation that involves acres and acres of underwater baskets — and has the folks in Savannah salivating for “Salt Bombs.”

• “We often feel like we’re building a plane while we fly it,” cofounder Laura Solomon said. “We took off with one wing and no landing gear, but we’re still airborne.”

***

DAY CARES & DISABILITIES

A Smyrna day care recently settled a federal complaint alleging it refused to enroll a toddler with autism.

Ryan Buchanan, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia, tells the AJC his office found a number of day cares similarly violating the Americans with Disabilities Act in recent years.

• Have you had such an experience? Let investigative reporter Katherine Landergan know.

***

YEESH, KIRK

Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins greets Chargers counterpart Justin Herbert after Sunday's game.

Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins threw four interceptions in Sunday’s 17-13 loss to the visiting Chargers — and hasn’t completed a touchdown pass in about a month.

That’s enough for columnist Michael Cunningham to officially declare Cousins a problem for the team, which suddenly sits at 6-6. But head coach Raheem Morris says he’s not mulling a move to rookie Michael Penix Jr.

• Flags and fisticuffs: Georgia and Georgia Tech’s eight-overtime affair didn’t end with a midfield flag-plant, but just about every other rivalry game did. The AJC’s Ken Sugiura says such celebrations should be fair game.
• Kennesaw State: The Owls hired Jerry Mack, a running backs coach with the Jacksonville Jaguars, to lead their football program.

***

FEEL-GOOD FILM

Craving a family-friendly Christmas movie that doesn’t involve a City Girl moving back home and falling for the handyman with a golden heart?

• Maybe try “Festival of Trees,” a locally shot comedy involving rival interior decorators trying to trim the best tree. A portion of the proceeds goes to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, too.