Good to be here, Buckhead!

Hello, Buckhead! I have lived very close to this great community for the past several years and am very excited to say that I am now part of it.

While I have worked for both Smyrna/Vinings and Douglasville Patches and very much enjoyed my time there, those who live in Buckhead (and even those that don’t) know that this is where the action is.

My life has been a very interesting journey thus far. While I am very much entrenched in Atlanta lifestyle and culture now, I was born and grew up in Cedartown, a small, very “southern” community in Northwest Georgia. A trip to Atlanta for someone from my town was always a special occasion, and when you found yourself in Buckhead — this unique community in Atlanta that had its own mystique, well, that was even more of a treat.

I’m not just a “small town” guy, though. I was blessed to be able to tour all over the country as a guitar player and through that, I learned a lot about people from many different regions and backgrounds. It very much molded who I am today.

That, however, is another story altogether.

I decided early on that I loved to write. This passion for writing led me to the University of West Georgia where I earned my degree in Mass Communications. Pretty quickly after attaining my first job in the newspaper industry I discovered a joy in telling stories about interesting people doing interesting things. Whether these people were making a difference in the community or just had a great tale to tell, I found that I loved helping others be aware of it through the written word. I am eager to tell the stories of people and places in Buckhead, which I would wager has some of the most interesting people doing some of the most interesting things around.

Of course, Patch is also a great resource for the people who live here and I intend for Buckhead Patch to report the news that has an impact on your day to day lives and to be a place where you share what's important to you. 

Traffic and transportation issues. Check.

Growth and development issues. Check.

Police and crime. Check.

Education ... well, you get the point.

I want Buckhead Patch to be a place to get the news you care about and also the news you had no idea you’d care about so much.

As you see me out and about in the community with my “Patch” laptop, don’t hesitate to say hello. As I said at the very beginning, I want to be a part of this community, not just report about it. While we’re at it, lets turn Buckhead Patch into a great, online community of its own together. As my friend Hunt Archbold, Editor of Midtown Patch said, “Patch is just a vehicle for many of the conversations already happening in the streets.”

If you don’t see me in person, feel free to email me at michael.packer@patch.com and let me know your story, or a story that you think should be told. Here at Buckhead Patch we have a chance to turn those conversations happening on the streets into something special.