Blog

October 2026 Meeting

 Join us for lunch and on Thursday, October 15, from 12:00–1:30 p.m. at the Downtown Capital City Club.

Historian Amy Durrell, founder of History Afoot Atlanta, will take us inside the Atlanta History Center’s centennial project, Atlanta in 100 Objects. Durrell was a member of the project’s research and writing team, contributing essays on more than 40 of the objects selected to tell Atlanta’s story.

For the Atlanta Business Roundtable, she’ll narrow that collection to 10 compelling objects, sharing some of their lesser-known stories and offering a behind-the-scenes look at why these particular artifacts help illuminate Atlanta’s history.

Through History Afoot Atlanta, Durrell offers walking tours that explore what exists in Atlanta today, what came before, and how the two come together—connecting the city’s history to our lived experience today.

September 2026 Meeting

The Atlanta Business Roundtable is back! Join us for lunch and a chance to reconnect on Thursday, September 17, from 12:00–1:30 p.m. at Capital City Club.

Our guest, Jonah McDonald—author, TV host, storyteller, and park ranger—walked 2,172 miles from Maine to Georgia and has been collecting stories ever since. With books including Hiking Atlanta’s Hidden Forests and Secret Atlanta, Jonah brings an explorer’s curiosity to the city we call home.

Come catch up with fellow members and meet someone who may inspire you to see Atlanta a little differently. Jonah will also have copies of his books available for purchase—perfect for planning your next Atlanta adventure.

March 2026 Meeting

The March 2026 meeting is at the Capital City Club downtown at noon on March 19th. This meeting is open only to members and guests of members.

We pleased to have as speaker the popular AJC columnist Bill Torpy.

Bill writes about metro Atlanta for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and joined the newspaper in 1990. He writes the metro column and has covered politics, government and countless stories about police, courts, the justice system and humanity in general. The Chicago native graduated from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Ill., and previously worked for the Daily Southtown in Chicago

February 2026 Meeting

The February 2026 meeting is at the Capital City Club downtown at noon on February 19th. This meeting is open only to members and guests of members.

Our speaker is Kaseem Ladipo, Executive Director of Soccer in the Streets, a nonprofit organization that promotes access to soccer across Metro Atlanta. The organization’s mission is to give everyone a chance to grow through playing the Beautiful Game. He speaks with certainty that soccer can teach lessons, open worlds, transform lives. It did just that for him as a born-and-raised Atlantan from the West End.

Ladipo has lived every level of the sport, from youth leagues to select clubs, collegiate to semipro and even coaching. Now, he’s an executive who has made a career of devoting his time and energy towards bringing people into the game and building communities in the process.Ladipo has lived every level of the sport, from youth leagues to select clubs, collegiate to semipro and even coaching. Now, he’s an executive who has made a career of devoting his time and energy towards bringing people into the game and building communities in the process.

Mr. Lapido has an Electrical Engineering degree from Syracuse University and an MBA from University of North Carolina.

January 2026 Meeting

The January 2026 meeting is at the Capital City Club downtown at noon on January 15th. This meeting is open only to members and guests of members.

Our speaker is Georgia O’Donoghue, Chief Operating Officer of the Atlanta World Cup Host Committee. In addition to her World Cup work, Ms. O’Donoghue is Vice President of Business Operations for Atlanta United Football Club. She joined AMB Sports & Entertainment in 2017 and has served as Director of Strategy and Operations for Atlanta United.

Starting in June, Atlanta will host eight World Cup games, including a semi-final. The city could experience the equivalent of “eight Super Bowls in 39 days”.

Georgia O’Donoghue has degrees in marketing and economics from the University of Georgia. She, her husband, and young son live in Buckhead.

November 2025 Meeting

The November meeting of the Roundtable is  at noon on Thursday, November 20th, at the downtown Capital City Club.  This meeting is for members and guests of members only.

We’re honored to have as speaker, Darin Schierbaum, Chief of the Atlanta Police Department.  Chief Schierbaum joined the Atlanta Police Department in 2002 after ten years with the Johnson County Illinois Sheriff’s Department.  

Upon graduating as class valedictorian of Academy Class 180 he was assigned to Zone 5 where he held several assignments including Beat Officer in the Midtown neighborhood and plainclothes detail officer. Schierbaum took a variety of assignments within the department and rose through the ranks to Deputy Chief in 2020. In 2022, Mayor Dickens appointed him Chief.

An Illinois native, Chief Schierbaum holds a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from Herzing University and a master’s degree from Columbus State University in Public Safety Administration. He is a resident of Midtown and enjoys spending his off time at bookstores and exploring historically significant sites in and around the city.

September 2025 Meeting

The September meeting of the Roundtable is at noon on Thursday, September 18th, at the downtown Capital City Club. This meeting is for members and guests thereof.

Our speaker is Cassandra Kirk, the first Chief Magistrate Judge appointed by Governor Nathan Deal and elected two times by the people of Fulton County. Tasked to create Fulton’s newly independent Constitutional court, Judge Kirk used her 27+ years of legal experience as a jurist, prosecutor, defense attorney, civil litigator, and administrative director to redesign how the Court serves its community.

Judge Kirk was named one of Atlanta Business Journal’s Top 25 Extraordinary Atlantans as well as a Georgia Legal Trailblazer by the Daily Report. Her BA is from Williams College and her J.D. is from Washington and Lee University School of Law.

May 2025 Meeting

The May meeting of the Roundtable is at noon on Thursday, May 15th, at the downtown Capital City Club. This meeting is for Roundtable members and invited guests.

Our speaker is Rebecca Grapevine, an investigative reporter focusing on the politics and business of healthcare in Georgia and across the country. Rebecca has published articles in a number of news outlets, including the AJC, Kaiser Health News, and Capitol Beat News Service.  She has appeared on NPR and Georgia Public Broadcasting.  

Rebecca has a PhD in history from the University of Michigan. During her studies there, she received a Fulbright fellowship for research on the history of the English legal doctrine in India. She has studied Family and Constitutional Law at Delhi University. Rebecca is fluent in Hindi and reads Urdu.

Born and raised in Atlanta, Rebecca graduated from Chamblee High School and Washington University in St. Louis.