More than 200 local children with special needs and their families attended the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey’s Circus on Friday thanks to a special gift from Gas South and its community partners.

This is the fourth year in a row that Gas South, one of Georgia’s leading natural gas providers, has teamed up with the Metro Atlanta Mayors Association, the Georgia Municipal Association and circus producer Feld Entertainment to host a night of circus magic for some special families.

The night included free admission to the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey’s Circus’ DRAGONS and the Magical Journey event, a private pre-show on the arena floor where the children interacted with the circus animals and performers and received special circus souvenirs.

Feld Entertainment, which has produced similar pre-show events across the nation, designed the Atlanta event specifically for the special needs of the young attendees. Special access for wheelchair and other mobility devices were available.

An additional 200 children are scheduled to attend a second Magical Journey event on Feb. 22 at the Arena at Gwinnett Center.

“We are honored to work with Georgia’s cities, community groups, and Feld Entertainment to help bring this magical experience to even more children this year,” said Kevin Greiner, President and CEO of Gas South. “This has proven to be a great community partnership that is creating special memories for some very deserving kids and their families.”

The Metro Atlanta Mayors Association and Georgia Municipal Association worked together with agencies in their 32 respective communities to distribute the tickets to local children with special needs. Some of the local mayors arranged for special transportation for the children including, families from Henry County who had a special police motorcade escort them through rush hour traffic on Interstate 75.

“This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for many of these children. I am delighted that local mayors are able to work with Gas South and Feld to give these families a priceless gift,” said Norcross Mayor Bucky Johnson, who serves as chairman of the mayors’ association.

The children are from Acworth, Atlanta, Alpharetta, Auburn, Avondale Estates, Chamblee, Clarkston, College Park, Dacula, Decatur, Douglasville, Duluth, Dunwoody, Fayetteville, Johns Creek, Kennesaw, Lake City, Lawrenceville, Lilburn, Lithonia, Milton, Mountain Park, Norcross, Palmetto, Peachtree Corners, Riverdale, Roswell, Sandy Springs, Stockbridge, Sugar Hill, Suwanee and Union City.

About Gas South

Gas South is one of Georgia's leading natural gas providers. Based in Atlanta, the company currently serves more than 250,000 residential, business and governmental customers throughout Georgia. Gas South seeks to distinguish itself through competitively priced rate plans, locally provided customer service and active engagement with the communities it serves. Gas South has been Georgia's fastest growing natural gas provider since 2008. For more information, visit www.gas-south.com. 

About Feld Entertainment

Feld Entertainment is one of the worldwide leaders in producing and presenting live entertainment experiences that lift the human spirit and create indelible memories, with 30 million people in attendance at its shows each year. Feld Entertainment's productions have appeared in more than 60 countries on six continents and include Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey®, Feld Motor Sports, Disney On Ice, and Disney Live.

About the Metro Atlanta Mayors Association

The Metro Atlanta Mayors Association (MAMA) was created in 2003 as a cooperative alliance of the mayors of 65 cities in the 10-county metro Atlanta region. MAMA’s purpose is to foster communications among cities in the metro Atlanta region, support public policy decisions beneficial to them, coordinate activities among the cities that benefit the entire region, and communicate identified needs to federal, state and regional agencies and organizations and to the citizens of the region.

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