Lee’s photo of the day: Maurice Snook

By Lee Shearer

The amazing Maurice Snook, a community treasure if there ever was one.

Here he is setting up his model train layout in the Athens-Clarke County Library on Baxter Street, a three day job.

There will be a special bedtime story time at the library at 6 p.m. Monday, Aug. 12 - tomorrow, as I write this; and two more special train storytimes Tuesday, Aug.13 and Wednesday, Aug. 14, at 9:30 a.m. and again at 10:30 a.m. The trains will also be running for anyone to observe this weekend, Saturday, Aug. 17 and Sunday, Aug.18, from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m.

All those buildings that will be lining the tracks, he made them.(With a couple of exceptions) And this is just one of the things Snook has done for many years to bring wonder and science to us, the public, and especially to children. For decades, he’s performed a magic science show (and it really is something magical) at elementary schools in Clarke and every surrounding county on a regular rotation so that every elementary school student has the opportunity to see one of the shows by the time they move on to middle school.

And then there are all the astronomy programs he organizes, when he and some friends bring out their telescopes to share the wonders of the cosmos with anyone who cares to come see.