"Have Pink Suitcase, will travel!" That's the motto of the Pink Suticase Sisters, a sisterhood of women travelers out of West Cobb. This unique group of women was formed so that women who wanted to travel and see the world could do so without having to "go it alone."Two years ago, travel agent Traci Hildreth was having a conversation with a client who had just returned from Egypt with her husband. They were talking with Traci and the lady mentioned that she had always wanted to go to New York City.
Traci thought it was odd that this lady had now been to Egypt, but had never been to NYC. Traci couldn’t leave it alone, she just had to ask the client why she didn’t go. The client replied, “My husband would NEVER go to New York!” Well, Traci wondered, “Why don’t you just go with your girlfriends?” The client responded that she just didn’t have any girlfriends that would feel comfortable going by themselves. This conversation gave Traci an idea, why not form a women’s group for traveling? The wheels started turning and Traci emailed another travel agent friend, Kathy Lowery, about the idea. Instead of Kathy emailing her back with her thoughts about this plan, Kathy emailed it to all the ladies on her contact list. Immediately 15 people wanted to join! Traci and Kathy then sat down, ironed out all the details, and scheduled their first Open House Feb 4th 2008 at Bubbalini’s….and the "Pink Suticase Sisters" were born! They expected around 25 people to show up and were overwhelmed when they had 75 ladies sign in and 68 to join that first night!
Since then, the Pink Suitcase sisters have traveled all over the world and are still going strong…but they are much more than just a travel club. “We are consistently told how much our group has meant to some of these ladies and we have met some great friends that we would have never met, otherwise.”
No story about the Pink Suitcase Sisters would be complete without mentioning how much fun they have! They plan trips to destinations all over the world. The PSS organizes the group airfare, hotel and transportation into the city. Once you are there, you can do whatever you wish to do. Once a year, they even plan a trip with the husbands. Last year, 28 couples and members had the trip of a lifetime in Alaska.
The Pink Suitcase Sisters also host many local events. “We try to help out the local economy.” This year at Christmas, the PSS had a “girl’s night out on the Marietta Square”. The shops opened just for them and they had a couple of hours of shopping and eating snacks that the shops provided. Afterward, the Marietta Historic Trolley picked them up for a trip to see the Lights of Life. The sisters also periodically host Open Houses where members can bring their friends and potential members can find out what the PSS is all about. The next Open House will be February 25th, 2010 at the Gem City Grill.
My sister, Casy Walker, Miss Cobb County 2009, is also the Cobb County representative for the 
November 18, 2009 marks the third anniversary of A Cup of The Word! We are overwhelmed by the love, encouragement, prayers and support we have received over these years.
Hello! My name is Sara Teate, and I am a recent Georgia Southern University graduate with a degree in Music Education/Vocal. I currently teach Voice and Piano at the Fine Arts Academy located at McEachern Methodist in Powder Springs. I have been privately teaching for 5 years, and I teach a variety of musical genres. Such as: Classical, Musical Theater, Religious, and Pop music. My teaching philosophy is for my students to understand the musical language and to produce a healthy and relaxed singing voice. I also hope to instill the confidence and love for music that I have! I have been in many Opera and Musical Theater productions such as Susanna (Le Nozze di Figaro) Lauretta (Gianni Schicchi) Sandy (Grease) and Elsa Schrader (Sound of Music). I have recently been casted for the Stone Mountain Park’s Christmas musical Sleigh Ride as a Victorian Caroler. If you are interested in Voice or Piano lessons you may contact me at 
For those of you who listen to Dave Ramsey, you have to know that he would be shaking his head at this and telling us that we should be cutting up all of our credit cards anyway. 