280 Living
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neighborly news & entertainment
February Features
Volume 5 | Issue 2012 6 | February 2012 | February |
Now Open at the Narrows on Hwy 280 Dr. Jenny Sobera & Dr. Kristy Curl, Board Certified Dermatologists, Shelley Winzeler, PA-C
Specializing in Medical, Surgical, and Cosmetic Dermatology Call 877-9773 or visit www.villagedermatology.net
And then there were nine A story of love & mended hearts By MADOLINE MARKHAM
National Champ. Photos
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People You Should Know
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School House
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Sports
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Barclay Simmons first noticed Shawn Campbell and her five children at Valleydale Church in 2006. A single parent with two kids, he noted that she was both attractive and had no wedding ring on her finger. Barclay began to look for her every Sunday and hope for an opportunity to talk to her. He wrote his phone number on a business card and carried it in his Bible for months, just in case they were to meet. Little did Barclay know that Shawn lived a few streets over from him in Brook Highland or that her husband had left her the same month in 2004 that his wife had passed away. Little did he know that he would marry her five years later. Shawn was not interested in dating and was determined to tell Barclay no when he finally found a
High School Correspondents 18
See LOVE | page 24
Brenda Ladun Run- pg. 6 Editor’s note
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Local events
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Date night recipes
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Ministry Spotlight
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Restaurant Showcase
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Business Spotlight
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280 Business Happenings
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Kari Kampakis
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Library Happenings
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Paul Johnson
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Rick Watson
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Calendar of Events
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Music Listings/Classifieds
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In December Brook Highland residents Barclay and Shawn Simmons married, bringing all seven of their children to live together under one roof. Photo by Madoline Markham.
Remembering Fire Chief O’Connor
The one that didn’t get away: 280 area lands B.A.S.S. By KATHRYN ACREE
By BROOKE BOUCEK Michael O’Connor was the “epitome of health and wellness,” according to North Shelby County Batallion Chief Mark Turner. The 56-year-old North Shelby Fire Chief loved to exercise and ran or swam nearly every day. He ran 11 marathons and was proud to complete three Ironman triathlons. Yet on Jan. 2, O’Connor passed away from a sudden stroke caused by a brain aneurism, leaving behind the fire department as well as his wife, Nelle, and daughter, Laura. “Mike took care of us,” Batallion Chief Bart Wilkerson said. “His demeanor and positive influence will be remembered at the fire department.” O’Connor grew up on Long Island in New York and played goalie on the varsity
See FIRE CHIEF | page 9
Fire chief Michael O’Connor at an Ironman Competition in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. Photo courtesy of Nelle O’Connor.
B.A.S.S., the largest membership organization of bass anglers in the country, moved their corporate headquarters from Orlando to the Highway 280 area in recent months. Their headquarters at Colonial Center Blue Lake on Blue Lake Drive is a stone’s throw from the Colonnade and the Summit. The relocation brought approximately 50 jobs to the area, and the company plans to continue to hire more people. Oak Mountain High School alum Helen Northcutt began working as an editorial assistant with B.A.S.S. on Nov. 1. After writing for AU’s student newspaper, The Plainsman, for four years, Northcutt interned with National Geographic in Washington, D.C. When starting her job search, Northcutt hoped to stay in her hometown. “I really wanted to find something in Birmingham, but since I was hunting my first job, I didn’t know if that would
See BASS | page 25