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Volume 5 | Issue 42011 | December 2011 | December | w
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HOOVER in Riverchase Plaza • 444-2282 INVERNESS Hwy 280 in Inverness Plaza • 408-0020
neighborly news & entertainment
December Features
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Here comes Santa Claus By KATHRYN ACREE
Holiday Recipes | Section B Editor’s note
A4
Holiday events
A6
Amelia’s Spicing Pecans
A9
People you should know
A10
Holiday Gift Guide
A12
Christmas essays
A14
Ministry Spotlight
A15
280 Business Happenings
A16
Restaurant Showcase
A18
Business Spotlight
A19
Ornament swap
B1
Christmas gift recipes
B2
School House
B4
Sports
B8
Columns
B9
Library Happenings
B10
Calendar of Events
B12
Music Listings/Classifieds
B14
Perched on top of a ladder truck and fire engine, Santa will be making an early visit to a street near you on Saturday, Dec. 17. Be sure to come out to wave and catch the candy he throws, all courtesy of the Cahaba Valley Fire Department. For nearly 20 years, the firefighters of the CVFD have personally escorted Santa through the residential areas of the department’s district in North Shelby County. “Santa has his toss down pretty good by now,” said Commander Grant Wilkinson, the district’s public information officer. “He makes sure the candy goes into the yards so that kids don’t run out into the street toward the truck. Safety is still top priority.” Wilkinson would not divulge how the CVFD is on such good terms with Saint Nick, but he did drop the hint that often rookies to the department are involved. He arranges Santa’s route on two trucks to make sure he visits all the children he can, no matter their age. The board that directs the CVFD’s operations budgets for the purchase of candy for Santa to share with onlookers. “We usually make one big shopping trip to prepare for Santa’s ride and spend $500 to $700 on candy,” Wilkinson said. Santa’s fire trucks leave the station at 8 a.m. and continue en route through the
Santa will ride the Cahaba Valley Fire Department Truck around North Shelby County on Dec. 17. See page A6 for his complete route. Photo by Madoline Markham.
evening, usually around 4 or 5 p.m. He follows a reindeer map designed by the department, but Wilkinson noted that the schedule may be affected by traffic and the times are approximate. “If there is an emergency, Santa has kindly consented to release his reindeer for
that purpose and will attempt to complete his route as best he can,” Wilkinson said. For further information on Santa’s route, visit www.cahabavalleyfire.org or call 991-5267.
See SANTA’S ROUTE | page A6
A land of festive fantasy By MADOLINE MARKHAM
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Greystone Elementary fifth grader Carolena Miller rehearses for her role as Marie in The Alabama Ballet’s The Nutracker. Photo by Madoline Markham.
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A place on a throne with a prince surrounded by sweets. A battle against giant mice and a mouse king. A ride on a sleigh in a land of sweets. It’s the dreamcome-true for the Marie in The Nutcracker. For Carolena Miller, the story has the same effect. “It feels almost real with all the props and scenery,” she said. The Greystone Elementary fifth grader will play the role, known as Clara in other versions, in the George Balanchine ballet at Samford University’s Wright Center. Carolena looks forward to practice every day: eight hours a week at rehearsal and countless more at home she dedicates in front of the DVD of the ballet she rented from the library. She has even taught herself other ballerinas’ roles in the play and goes through her moves in her head before bedtime each night. Carolena first became entranced by the
See NUTCRACKER | page A15
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