Discover The Essence of St. Clair October and November 2023

Raetta Young of Springville and her horse, Fancy Rae, try out a horseback riding trail at Big Canoe Creek Nature Preserve, expected to open by late October or early November.

Photo by Mackenzie Free

NUMEROUS

Writers AND Photographers

Carol Pappas

Carol Pappas is editor and publisher of Discover St. Clair Magazine. A retired newspaper executive, she served as editor and publisher of several newspapers and magazines during her career. She won dozens of writing awards and was named Distinguished Alabama Community Journalist at Auburn University. She serves as president/CEO of Partners by Design, which publishes Discover and LakeLife 24/7 Magazine®.

Graham Hadley

Graham Hadley is the managing editor and designer for Discover The Essence of St. Clair Magazine and also manages the magazine website. Along with Carol Pappas, he left The Daily Home as managing editor to become chief operating officer and vice president of the Creative Division of Partners by Design multimedia company.

Roxann Edsall

Roxann Edsall is a freelance writer and former managing editor of Convene Magazine, a convention industry publication. She has a degree in (broadcast) journalism from the University of Southern Mississippi, worked as a television news reporter in Biloxi and as a reporter and assignments editor in Birmingham.

Elaine Hobson Miller is a freelance writer with a B.A. in journalism from Samford University. She was the first female to cover Birmingham City Hall for the Birmingham Post-Herald, where she worked as reporter, food editor and features writer. She is a former editor of Birmingham Home & Garden magazine and staff writer for Birmingham magazine.

Scottie Vickery

Scottie Vickery is a writer with a degree in journalism from the University of Alabama and was a reporter for The Birmingham News Her first assignment was covering St. Clair and Blount counties. She has more than 30 years of writing and editing experience and her work has appeared in a variety of publications. She also has worked in the nonprofit industry.

Paul South

Paul South, a native of Fairfield, is an Auburn graduate with a degree in journalism and a double minor in history. He also has a Juris Doctorate degree from the Birmingham School of Law. Although sports writing was always his first love, he had a versatile career as reporter, columnist and first full-time sports information director at Samford University.

Mackenzie Free

Mackenzie Free is an experienced and nationally published photographer with a bachelor of fine arts degree. She is a Birmingham native now cultivating life on a farm in Steele with her husband & 4 daughters.

Richard (RT) Rybka

Richard is a full-time professional photographer based in the Springville area and owner of Natural Light Photography LLC. His 50+ years of experience behind the lens of a camera includes working as a photojournalist for a global technology company. His credentials include many magazine cover shots and standing as a Canon Image Connect Photographer.

Elaine Hobson Miller

From the Editor County never loses its luster

After chronicling all the comings and goings, triumphs and challenges of St. Clair County for the past 30+ years, you would think the county would lose a bit of its Wow! factor for me. But it hasn’t.

With each issue of our magazine, I discover something new or rediscover something reimagined. And all I can say about it all is … well … Wow!

Topping the list this issue would have to be the opening of Big Canoe Creek Nature Preserve. After 14 years, the day we have waited for has finally arrived. It opens in October and once you see the trails and what’s in store, you’ll be echoing my sentiments. The creek, the trails, the forest – it’s all here and more in 422 acres of nature on display.

Nearby, we have another wonder drawing rave reviews for its uniqueness – Bear Claw Treehouse in Springville. Situated on Big Canoe Creek, this vacation rental is not your typical sheets of lumber nailed into the top of a tree. It’ a bonafide vacation spot for the more rustic-loving vacationers.

In Pell City, Boomer Meason is creating works of art and nature all rolled into one as he grows and trains tiny trees in containers called bonsai. It’s an ancient art from the Far East, and Meason is making it a homegrown hobby.

Along Veterans Memorial Parkway, you’ll see the handiwork of dedicated citizens seeking to preserve the honor of those who serve our country. The Blue Star Memorial erected there years ago had been neglected, and these volunteers brought it back to life and are ensuring – just like the service of our veterans – it won’t be forgotten.

Others are making sure our veterans get the honor they deserve, too. Moody Crazy Quilters put their skill to work making quilts for veterans at Col. Robert L. Howard State Veterans Home – a symbol of comfort for the veterans and a labor of love by the quilters. And Museum of Pell City is planning a salute to veterans in November with its War and Remembrance oral history premier, special programming and expanded service exhibits.

Check out the McCain Memorial Library, now celebrating its 50th year of connecting the community. Read all about how a community is coming together in its Run 4 the Parks in Springville, raising money for its park system and greatly enhancing the quality of life in that city. Visit the Sewing Machine Mart, which moved to Springville and is drawing crowds from all over for its classes, its fabrics and of course, how it got its name – the sewing machines.

Business is booming these days. Take a trek to Quik Trip, the mega gas and convenience store that opened at the Eden interchange of Interstate 20. It isn’t just a single business opening up, it paves the way for the entire interchange to be developed thanks to a public-private partnership.

Perhaps the biggest Wow! factor to hit Pell City in years is the opening of Pell City Square. Big name retailers are now calling Pell City home, and shoppers are delighting in all it has to offer.

All this and more are in store for you in this edition. Turn the page and be wowed along with us!

Carol Pappas Editor and Publisher

Bear Claw Treehouse

Off the grid in a childhood dream

Story by Roxann Edsall

Photos by Richard Rybka

Whether it’s the spirit of adventure we remember from Swiss Family Robinson or the memories of reading the Magic Treehouse children’s books, thoughts of treehouses often elicit smiles and fond memories.

That sense of wonder and freedom, of resilience and self-reliance often makes us remember times long gone. A treehouse is pure childhood magic.

Now imagine that treehouse on the edge of a creek saturated in history, a place steeped in the natural beauty of woods and wildlife. Sitting on a small rustic overlook, you watch the water for movement. It could be fish, turtles, beaver or otter. Beyond the creek, you hear a noise and barely catch a glimpse of a doe and her fawn slipping back into the woods. It is transformative, experiencing the wonders of nature all around.

There is such a treehouse, and as a guest here, you’ll be immersed in nature throughout your stay. Even though it’s called Bear Claw Treehouse, you most likely won’t see a bear. You will see plenty of other wildlife, if you’re quiet enough, including turkey, beaver and eagles.

The last sign of a bear, though, was over 10 years ago. They say he did leave a distinct bear paw print in the mud at the edge of the creek. And, so, Bear Claw Treehouse began.

Situated in Springville between Barker Mountain and Washington Valley, this unique rental property is owned by Jim and Melany Harrelson. Featuring a translucent roof for stargazing and firefly viewing, this one-bedroom treehouse is simple, but outfitted with all the absolute necessities.

There’s a queen-sized bed and a kitchenette with an air fryer, microwave and coffee press. Guests can catch a hot shower in the 40-gallon oval tank from Tractor Supply with water provided by a Zodi shower pump.

The toilet facilities are two-fold. More delicate matters are dispersed by a pit latrine style leach system. There’s a freshly serviced port-a-potty for the more serious matters.

Front of the Bear Claw treehouse

While they currently use a generator to power the lights and air conditioning for up to 10 hours a day, Jim Harrelson says things are about to be upgraded. “We have gotten clearance to get electricity hooked up at the treehouse,” says Harrelson. “I put in the order last week, so it’s coming soon.” Since there is no refrigerator and no running water, Harrelson keeps visitors stocked with both water and ice in coolers on the porch.

Dining alfresco is the order of the day here. Just 50 yards away, there is a grilling and eating platform near the creek. A sign nearby reminds visitors of the history that was made on the ground beneath their feet nearly five centuries before. One could almost imagine encampments of explorers and, later, soldiers eating their rations on these very banks.

Hernando DeSoto’s team of explorers is believed to have entered Alabama near Piedmont and traveled down the Coosa River on their quest for gold. DeSoto and his band of nearly 700 followed the Coosa through the state for several months before heading west to Mississippi. Bear Claw Treehouse sits on the edge of Big Canoe Creek, a tributary to the Coosa.

Because of its abundance of available natural resources, including food and water, historians believe those conquistadors would have fished and camped nearby.

Less than three centuries later, General Andrew Jackson’s forces likely fished and camped in the same area as they headed to the nearby Creek village of Littafatchee to battle the Red Sticks in

Bedroom

Shower and bathroom Kitchen area

Table and grill by the water

Creek-view deck

Rear view of the house and deck

Jim and Shep by the creek

the Creek War of 1813-1814.

“There is really a great spirit on this land. There’s just so much history here,” says Harrelson. It’s something he wishes he had known more about in 2013 when he tried to get the Animal Planet series, Treehouse Masters, to design and build it. The premise of the former reality TV show was that people who wanted to have treehouses built would submit applications and if the situations were interesting enough, they might be chosen to be one featured as an on-air build.

In 2012, the Harrelsons purchased seven acres and divided it into two plots. They built their own home on five acres and saved the adjacent two acres to build an income property later. As they contemplated what type of structure to build on the two-acre plot, they received the unwelcome news that they wouldn’t be able to have a septic system. Still believing the property was perfect to support the activities of outdoor enthusiasts, the idea for a treehouse was born.

Being a fan of Pete Nelson and his Treehouse Masters show already, Harrelson submitted his application with pictures of the land. The producer interviewed them on Zoom and got back to them later with the news that they did not make the cut, ending up 26th on the list that only needed 18 for the show’s broadcast season. “Had I known the full history of the land, I believe I would have done a better job of pitching it to them,” says Harrelson.

In 2019, with his own vision in mind, Harrelson framed and built the treehouse on weekends as he had time and money. Subcontractors came in to help with specialties he couldn’t do. In October of 2021, the Harrelsons hosted their first guests, a couple from Illinois who were coming to visit relatives.

Since then, the Harrelsons have listed the property on Airbnb, VRBO and Hipcamp and have had a steady stream of guests. Guests are encouraged to bring fishing gear and fish in the creek or take the available canoe for a long explore in the water.

Apparently, guests are taking that advice to heart, as evidenced by a recent guestbook entry that reads, “We enjoyed sunset on the nightfall porch, swimming and fishing in the creek and lazing in the hammock chair while the boys fished. We loved watching daybreak through the ceiling each morning!”

Sitting on that nightfall porch, Harrelson fights back tears as he recounts the difficult journey that brought him to this peaceful place. It was another story of lives changed by the string of tornadoes that tore through the state on April 27, 2011.

The same system that brought tornadoes to Cullman and Hackleburg and devastated parts of Tuscaloosa obliterated most of the Harrelson’s neighborhood in Pleasant Grove.

Thankful to be alive and eager to leave that chapter behind, the couple found a property off Highway 23 in Springville. That’s where they are today, on a beautiful little property in the same valley that, at first sight, took away the breath of one 17-year-old Jim Harrelson, as he made his way on Highway 59 on his senior trip from Long Beach, Mississippi, to Niagara Falls, Canada.

“I was so moved when I saw the beauty of this valley, I said I’d live here one day,” says Harrelson. And he does. He offers you the chance to do the same, two nights at a time, in the magical whimsy of a treehouse. l

Bear claw print on blinds

Handmade signs point the way

Holladay Sisters

ICONIC SINGERS PERFORM WITH EASY STREET BAND FOR HOME CROWD

Story by Carol Pappas

Photos by Richard Rybka and submitted photos

A pair of sisters who grew up singing in the choir of First Baptist Church of Pell City and family sing-alongs in the 1950s and 60s traveled thousands of miles from home and recorded with the biggest names in music for decades before returning home to a local audience once again.

The Holladay Sisters – Ginger and Mary – sang with scores of the biggest names in the music industry over the years since the mid-1960s, including the king himself – Elvis Presley. The two joined talented local singer Teresa Carden with the Easy Street Band in August at Pell City Center for Education and Performing Arts for “An Evening with the Holladay Sisters.”

The show was produced by Easy Street’s leader Ed Jones and Frank Shikle, the band’s manager. Easy Street headlines at Birmingham’s The Club and private and corporate events with Carden as a featured singer. Jones had known Ginger and asked if she would be interested in returning home for a performance at CEPA. “She said, ‘Sure, if you’ll buy my plane ticket,’ ” Carden said. “It helped her have vacation with family and a reunion.”

The group got two rehearsals in before the concert, but it was plenty enough to delight a sold-out audience. “Everybody seemed to love the relaxedness of it,” Carden said. “The Holladay Sisters just glow from the stage. They radiate. They’re just fun.”

Carden’s own performance met with reviews that glowed on their own. Her rendition of At Last was reminiscent of the artist who made the iconic soulful

song famous, and in an unforgettable moment of connection, she walked into the audience to deliver a memory lane performance of Where the Boys Are

“It was an honor to share the stage with those two ladies who made it in the music world, who had connections to the top vocalists in the world,” Carden said. “They gave me a ‘just go for it’ attitude.”

Easy Street musicians made their own mark as each was featured on songs, including Soul Man, Put Your Head on My Shoulder, Come Go With Me, Mack the Knife, To Love Somebody and Just the Way You Are. And the Holladay Sisters’ duet, Sweet Inspirations, was yet another poignant moment of the evening.

Ginger, now living in Washington, and Mary, at home in Cropwell, have toured the world – from Las Vegas to Europe to Elvis Week in Memphis. But for an evening, they were just home, reliving through song and story the adventures of

Ginger (left) and Mary with ‘The King’

Singer Teresa Carden (right) joins the Holladay Sisters –Ginger and Mary

a lifetime.

Influenced by the Lennon Sisters, Pell City classmates Mary Holladay and Susan Coleman Pilkington were members of a quartet while attending Auburn University in the late 1960s. In their junior year, they met Jeanie Greene, whose husband, Marlin Greene, produced the mega-hit, Percy Sledge’s When a Man Loves a Woman. Jeanie hired them to record backup vocals at Muscle Shoals with various artists on the weekends.

When Mary and Susan graduated from Auburn in 1968, they headed to Tennessee to sing with other artists – Neil Diamond on the album, Brother Love’s Traveling Salvation Show; Boxtops, Cry Like a Baby; and B.J. Thomas, Hooked on a Feeling.

The quartet eventually got the call that they were going to record with Elvis Presley, but the day before, Susan developed laryngitis and was unable to sing. At the last minute, they substituted Mary’s sister, Ginger. Still in high school back home in Pell City, Ginger flew to Memphis and stepped in to harmonize on Elvis’ In the Ghetto, Suspicious Minds, Loved on Look, Long Black Limousine, Rubber Neckin’, Cold Kentucky Rain, Gentle on My Mind, Only the Strong Survive and Any Day Now

Suspicious Minds was Elvis’ biggest hit and since it was Ginger’s first recording, she jokingly claims credit for its success. And it presented a tough act to follow as a backup recording artist – starting at the top with a Number 1 hit. “I catapulted in the music business from that,” she said in an interview with local radio station 94.1 The River.

The sisters went on to sing You’re No Good onstage with Linda Ronstadt, who was opening for Neil Young’s rock ‘n roll tour in the 70s and recorded with a host of greats on songs like, Ray Stevens’ The Streak, Jimmy Buffett’s Cheeseburger in Paradise and Jerry Reed’s When You’re Hot You’re Hot

You might recognize a few of the jingles they added their sound to, ones with lyrics like: “You deserve a break today” –McDonald’s; “Two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles on a sesame seed bun” – Big Mac; “Fly the Friendly Skies” – United Airlines; and “Scrunchious when it crunches” – Nestle Crunch.

They readily admit that Elvis was the one that stands apart from all the rest. Their harmony is background to 62 songs by Elvis, “the one that still pays,” they said in the interview, referring to the royalties.

Most of the time, Elvis was surrounded by a group to protect him from being mobbed by fans, but he was himself when he was in the recording studio. “We saw the real Elvis recording in the studio,” Ginger said. “He felt at home.” l

The Easy Street Band

Recording backup

A fun evening

A community connection

Ashville Library celebrating five decades of service

Story by Scottie Vickery

Photos by Richard Rybka

When you consider what a public library has to offer residents, the most obvious answer is books.

If, however, you ask Paula Ballard and Gail Walker what the library in Ashville offers their community, they give a completely different answer. The most vital gift it provides, they say, is connection.

The McCain Memorial Public Library in Ashville, formerly known as the Ashville Public Library, turned 50 last month, and Ballard and Walker were among the many who celebrated its five decades of connecting patrons to information, book lovers to adventure and people to people.

“The town of Ashville is surrounded by rural communities, and people do come here to make connections,” said Walker, who lives in Shoal Creek Valley and is on the library’s board of directors.

Ballard, who has served as the library’s director for nine years and is only the ninth librarian in its 50-year

history, said it’s not unusual for older residents to spend time in the library visiting with each other. “For some, it may be the only time they see other people that day,” she said. Ballard loves watching young mothers connect with each other while their children become friends during story time and other activities.

The library, one of seven in St. Clair County, moved to a new and larger location last year and offers nearly 18,000 items for circulation. In addition to books, there are DVDs, magazines, audiobooks, board games and learning tablets for children. They offer programming for adults as well as children, and many residents who don’t have access to a computer or who have spotty Internet service make use of the facility’s computer stations.

“We fill a lot of needs, so we’re more than just books,” Ballard said, adding that she provides computer assistance every day. “You can’t walk in and apply for a job on paper anymore; you’ve got to do it online. We scan, make copies and fax so people don’t have to drive to Gadsden or Birmingham. We have DVDs because not everyone has reliable streaming. We have people who sit in the parking lot to use Wi-Fi even when we’re closed.”

Gail Walker, Paula Ballard and Amy Heckman

The first chapter

Although those who worked so hard to make the town’s library a reality in 1973 couldn’t have known the many ways the library would change lives in 2023, chances are good they would be pleased with the impact it makes. After all, their goal from the very beginning was to “improve the environment of our town.”

Members of the Ashville Garden Club got the ball rolling in the summer of 1972, according to a narrative written by Mattie Lou Teague Crow, who served as the Garden Club’s Environmental Improvement Program chair at the time and later became the first librarian. Ballard discovered the narrative in an old scrapbook during last year’s move.

Until then, the “library” consisted of several shelves of books provided by the Alabama Public Library Services, and they were housed in the Town Hall. One employee worked one afternoon a week, checking out books and writing overdue notices. The town clerk was responsible for the books the rest of the time.

“The collection had grown and was crowding the town’s office space,” Crow wrote. “The Garden Club had enjoyed a rewarding experience with our House Pilgrimage in 1972. Our bank account reached an all time high, and we were searching for a worthwhile activity.”

After meeting with the mayor and Town Council, it was eventually determined that the library could be housed in the previous Town Hall building, which had been empty for several years. Before it was over with, members of the community joined forces to make the project a success, and in a bit of foreshadowing, they built connections while they worked together.

According to Crow’s narrative, the town purchased two library tables, a desk, typewriter and filing cabinet, and the Garden Club members “reworked an old desk and chairs given by one of the schools.” They also provided new shelving, magazine racks and a card catalog cabinet. Local civic clubs bought sets of encyclopedias, and the mother of a soldier (James Robert Heard, Jr.) who was killed in Vietnam, donated the flag that was draped on his casket. In addition, local artists displayed their works at the library.

“By the time we were ready for our Open House, the entire town had become involved in our project,” Crow wrote.

Move-in day was Sept. 1, 1973. “The place had been made lovely with soft green walls, wall to wall carpet, new lighting and year-round air conditioning,” Crow added. “In a few days, all was in apple-pie order and the public began using the new library.”

Happily ever after

While that first library served Ashville well for decades, history has a way of repeating itself. In recent years, the library had begun to outgrow its space, parking was limited on the downtown square, and the city owned a building on US 231

Paula Ballard at work

The library sign with flag pole in the background

that had been empty for a few years.

In addition to city funding, a generous donation from David and Louisa McCain, made in honor of the four generations of McCains who have called Ashville home since 1878, helped bring the project to fruition. The McCain Memorial Public Library opened in April 2022.

In addition to an ever-growing collection of books for adults, teens and children, there are study rooms and a computer lab. A grant from the Alabama Public Library Service, made possible by the Library Services and Technology Act, will allow the library to soon have six new computers for public use, a new staff computer, catalog station, and an iPad station for the children’s area.

Programming has grown, as well, with the library’s multipurpose room. Larger events, like the annual Father-Daughter Dance fundraiser, are held offsite but having a dedicated space for programs has opened up a world of possibilities, Ballard said.

For adults, there’s a Book Club and weekly exercise classes. A group meets to crochet together twice a month, and adults and teens have enjoyed events like Harry Potter Trivia Night, ceramics classes, a beekeeping program, henna tattoo class and a hair tinsel tutorial.

In addition to weekly story time on Tuesdays at 10:30, children enjoy the summer reading program, which continues to grow in popularity. During the summer, kids enjoyed a variety of activities, including science demonstrations offered by the McWane Center, a visit from a llama, a rock painting activity and reading to dogs as part of the Greater Birmingham Humane Society’s Reading Buddies program. A monthly Lego Club is a big hit, and students’ creations are displayed each month between meetings.

“We’re proud of our new facility and what it enables us to do,” Ballard said. “We wanted this space to be inviting and cozy but look new and fresh. You want people to leave happy and wanting to come back.

Walker and Ballard, both avid readers, hope that children visiting the library today develop the same love for books they’ve enjoyed.

“I’ve always loved books,” Walker said. “My sister and I would each check out the maximum number of books, and then we’d share. It always opened up our imaginations. I think a love of reading is the single most important thing a child can have to be successful. If you can read, you can do anything.”

Ballard’s mother, Susan Kell, was the librarian at Ashville Elementary School for years, so reading has always been a part of her life. “I remember coming to the library all the time in the summers,” she said, adding that she feels fortunate that reading a wide variety of genres is now part of her job. “I read everything from young adult fantasy to psychological thrillers to romantic comedies.”

Knowing that Ballard is now guiding a new generation of readers would likely make Crow – Ballard’s great-aunt –proud. In fact, the words Crow wrote in 1973 still reflect the impact the library continues to have on the community she loved so much.

“Without a doubt, the library has improved the environment of this whole community,” Crow penned. “First it has furnished reading materials for inspiration and information and entertainment to people in every walk of life. It has brought civic groups together in greater harmony and cooperation. It has become one of the leading institutions for our small town, and our citizens are appreciative of the services.” l

Library computers

Children’s reading area Gail and Paula show off wall art

Pell City man creates living art Bonsai master

Story by Roxann Edsall

Photos by Mackenzie Free

Blame it on Valentine’s Day. That’s when Boomer Meason received a gift from his wife, Melody, that would end up changing his life. The gift was a “bonsai growing kit,” which, he admits was a challenge for a man with the “brownest thumb ever.”

Thinking it would be fun, but not expecting them to survive, he dutifully planted the seeds. A couple of weeks later, after returning from a trip out of town to their home in Pell City, the couple was surprised to see the seeds thriving in their growing pots.

“At that point, I had no idea what to do with them,” Boomer confesses. “So, I got on YouTube and figured it out. I watched tons of videos and learned a lot. I learned that it’s not just what you can create, but that what you can do is limitless.”

Bonsai is not a type of tree, but rather, the cultivation of a plant and its aesthetics to fall within a specific set of conditions. Bonsai is considered both a horticultural practice and an art form. The goal is for the grower to cultivate a plant or a tree to be a healthy version of itself, but small enough to be grown in a shallow dish. In fact, the word, bonsai, literally means “tree in a dish.”

There is so much more than that, however, to understand bonsai. It involves learning as much as you can about each of the species that you are working with. It involves clipping, wiring, and weighing down the branches that need manipulation.

A bonsai artist must first see a vision for the plant. Then he sets about figuring out how to make the plant fulfill that vision.

Most of all, bonsai requires patience. Each of the phases of growing and training the plant requires grooming, then waiting for the plant to recover, waiting for changes to take effect, rewiring, pruning again, then waiting for the right season to make the next change.

A centuries-old art form made popular in Japan, bonsai evolved from the ancient Chinese art of “penjing,” which includes landscapes or scenes in a pot. The Japanese art put more emphasis on the tree itself.

Traditionally, bonsai are trees or bushes that are pruned to create a smaller version over several years. The mission of the bonsai artist is to create a tree that looks like a tiny version of a mature tree, but without obvious evidence of human intervention in the process.

A typical tree in nature can live to be hundreds, sometimes thousands of years old. In contrast, a well-cared for bonsai can live indefinitely due to the constant care and promotion of new growth given by the artist.

Boomer received those first seeds in 2020, shortly before the pandemic changed so much in the world. “I always ask people if they have a COVID hobby,” he laughs. “My wife’s is kayaking. Mine is bonsai. We couldn’t do a lot of the things we normally did, but we spent a lot of time working on these. I spent the whole first year trying to not kill the trees.”

He took to the hobby like a duck to water. His “brown thumb” now a thing of the past, he has close to 300 plants in various “pre-bonsai” stages. It has taken more than three years to accumulate that many plants to work with to create bonsai. He has more than two dozen that are in shape to be considered officially show-ready bonsai.

Although both his mother, Leah Whatley Meason, and his grandmother, Evelyn Whatley, were artists, he has never had

When people with extraordinary talent and passion are given the technology, the facilities, and the support, they achieve great things. The discoveries taking place today will help shape the future of treatments and lead to cures – benefitting not only our patients and families, but people across the country and around the world for years to come.

an outlet to develop his artistic talents. He admits that his career in manufacturing does not always engage his artistic side. It does, however, make it possible for him to fuel his passion financially.

Buying that many plants at nurseries to work with can be costly, but Boomer gets about 20% of his plants from the wild, a practice known as “yamadori.”

Typically done in the spring, just before the plant’s growing season, a bonsai artist digs up plants from the wild, along with dirt from around the plant, brings it home and nurtures it to help it recover from the shock of transplanting. When the plant is ready, the pruning and training begins.

Another technique involves creating new plants from established ones from cuttings and air layering. A propagation technique similar to grafting, air layering is the practice of cutting a branch and wrapping the “wound” with special moss to encourage the growth of a new plant.

“You do everything in bonsai according to what the species needs and what the tree is telling you to do,” says Boomer. “Bonsai people probably know more about roots than most botanists do. The texture and nutritional details of the root systems are so important. When you do serious work on a tree, and you reduce the root system, you must reduce the canopy to make sure it can still survive.”

The deeper Boomer dug into his new hobby, the more information he craved. He began messaging questions to some of the YouTube video creators. He read all he could find on the subject.

World-renowned bonsai master Peter Chan’s book Bonsai Beginner’s Bible became his go-to guide. He spent countless hours watching channels like Chan’s Herons Bonsai. “His videos are geared toward people who want to get into it, but not spend a lot of money,” Boomer explains. “The way he works on his trees really helps you. And he speaks to you in a way that’s easy to understand.” Another bonsai expert, Ben Kirkland of Appalachian Bonsai, strongly suggested that Boomer get in contact with his local bonsai society.

At first, Boomer wasn’t ready to share his artistic efforts with anyone else. After picking his way along the path for three years with only the internet as his teacher, he finally reached out to the Alabama Bonsai Society (ABS).

The group meets for monthly workshops and to encourage each other and share the progress of the plants they’re working with. They also hold an annual show at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens. Boomer can’t say enough about how the group

Boomer shows a bonsai he cultivated from an azalea from his mom’s yard

Melody wins award for her serissa bonsai

Boomer’s azalea bonsai at its finest

has helped him. “I’ve never worked with a more positive group of people,” he adds. “Their support and advice were so helpful in building my confidence.”

Through the Alabama Bonsai Society, Boomer met John Walker, who curates the Meyers Bonsai Terrace at Aldridge Gardens in Hoover and is one of the best trained bonsai artists in the state. Boomer buys some of his plants through Walker’s company, Walking Tree Bonsai, which sells mature bonsai and plants ready to transform into bonsai. He also admits to “hanging out at Hazelwood’s” (nursery) at least twice a month scouting for plants to transform.

Sometimes treasures can literally be found in your back yard, like the Chinese privet Boomer dug up from his yard in 2021. The plant was still healthy, but not thriving, so he put it in a container and began working with it. Over two years later, he entered it in the ABS annual bonsai show and won his intermediate level in the broadleaf evergreen category.

“I have a lot of American Elm trees, wisteria, flowering plants, red maples and azaleas that have come out of my yard and from my mom’s yard.” says Boomer. He says the easiest to work with is the Chinese privet but added that he’s had the most fun with ficus trees because one of his mentors, Nigel Saunders, works with them and has given him a lot of inspiration.

A bonsai can be created using almost any plant with woody stems. Generally, one can expect to spend a minimum of two years pruning and cultivating a tree to get it small enough to thrive in a shallow dish (a requirement of bonsai).

ABS’s bonsai show director Anika Paperd explains. “Some species like a trident maple that grows quickly, you could do it in as little as two years. You’re going to begin refining it to develop the branches and shape. We use wiring and pruning techniques to cause the branches to split to make them spread and form a canopy on the tree.”

One of the most fascinating aspects of bonsai art is that it is never finished. That’s because the tree continues to grow and react to its environment. The artist must continue to maintain it and adapt it as conditions change. “It’s much like being a sculptor where your sculpture is breathing and continues to grow,” Paperd emphasizes. “It’s a constant progression.”

From start to that continued progression, a bonsai is all about the vision in the mind of the artist. It is nature inspired and human coerced. “Every time you work on it, you’ll either find a new inspiration or another aspect of it that changes it. Or you just keep working on the original plan you had envisioned,” says Boomer.

“You are trying to create the aesthetic of a really old tree in something you can pick up and carry around,” Boomer concludes, holding up a tiny juniper bonsai that is springing from a crater in a softball-sized rock. “My wife found this rock while kayaking. We both thought it would make a great container for a bonsai. So, I planted a Chinese juniper in the hole, and it’s pretty cool.”

Melody has now joined her husband in his hobby. She has developed her skills to the point that she, too, brought home an award at the spring bonsai show for her serissa plant, a deciduous evergreen.

Boomer’s quite a few years shy of retirement, but he says bonsai will be important in his future plans. He looks

forward to the additional hours to devote to his art. As to whether he will ever be able to see a profit from his work, Boomer admits that he’s not sure if he’ll ever be able to part with his creations. “There’s a little bit of me in each of them.”

And those Valentine’s Day seeds? One of the black spruce seeds lives today as a beautiful bonsai on Boomer’s back deck. Not bad for a guy with a brown thumb. l

Editor’s note: Next year will be Alabama Bonsai Society’s 50th Anniversary. Their mission is to bring awareness to the community and to share the art form of bonsai. For more information about bonsai and the Alabama Bonsai Society, check out alabamabonsai.org.

Boomer’s privet bonsai wins award at Botanical Gardens show

Pencil drawing by Boomer’s grandmother, artist Evelyn Whatley, included with the display at the bonsai show

Building a communitybetter

Take a look around Pell City, and chances are the good works you see in just about every corner result from people serving others for a greater good. In these parts, they call them Rotarians, where the principle, “service above self,” guides their actions.

See for yourself.

A nurse, a doctor and staff now tend to patients at a community clinic, a scene unaffordable for so many and non-existent just a few years ago.

A food pantry is well-stocked, giving those in need an opportunity to feed their families during hard times.

An adult learns to read for the first time through a literacy program, and high school students are learning to help one another cope with depression and suicide through creative, powerful podcasts.

Meals are delivered to first responders on the job as a thank you for jobs well done.

A museum opens, capturing the oral histories of the city’s citizens before their voices are lost to subsequent generations.

The list is long. The needs are longer. That’s why Pell City Rotary Club dedicates its efforts to serving the community year after year, acts that have been ongoing since 1974 when a group of business leaders founded the club with only 25 members.

Today, membership has more than tripled, and the growth continues. So does their service.

In many instances, Rotarians roll up their sleeves and go to work, volunteering for a variety of causes –building a playground, stocking the shelves at the food pantry, helping with local festivals or donating a pint of blood.

They also serve by raising funds for thousands of dollars in grants designed to make the community a better place. Those grants are funded by three major fundraisers and an endowment begun by a Rotarian who envisioned the club’s potential impact.

The Father-Daughter Dance headed by Rotarians of the Year, Blair Goodgame and Meg Clements, is a source of tremendous pride and anticipation throughout the city. Little girls spend quality time with their ‘dates’ – their daddies – for a magical evening. And the smiles seen throughout are memories that last a lifetime.

The Pell City Rotary Charity Golf Tournament Ray

Having fun at FatherDaughter Dance

Rotarians deliver meals each month to first responders on the job

GOLF TOURNAMENT

ALFA-Brooke Tollison

AOD Federal Credit Union

ASC Allen Service Company

Adam Bain

Bain and Company

Barnett, Jones, Wilson LLC

Dr. James Bedsole

Serge Brazzolotto

Sarah Brazzolotto

BSE Industrial Contractors

Byron Woods Municipal Consulting

Coosa Valley Mortgage

Patricia Couch

Dot Wood Appraisal

Douglas Mfg. Company

St. Clair Economic Development Council

Eden Family Dentistry

Ellison Land Ventures, LLC

Fields & Gossett Realty

Ford Meter Box

Gallery of Eden

Gavin Gillison

Goodgame Company

Griffins Jewelers

Hargray

Lyle Harmon

Dr. Rock and Jennifer Helms

Bill Hereford

State Rep. Jim Hill

Hill, Gossett, Kemp & Watson

Hugh Holladay

JCSC Services Inc.

JRBC Packaging Solutions

Kilgroe Funeral Home

Leeds Stained Glass

Lovejoy Realty

Paul and Marie Manning

Metro Bank

National Cement

New Life Methodist Church

Raymond James

Rodney’s Marine Center, LLC

Royal Foods

Billy Shute

Southland Golf Carts

Southern States Utilities

State Farm-Bart Perry

Stone and Son Electrical

Trotter Foundation

Trussell, Funderburg, Rea, Bell & Furgerson

Union State Insurance

-Joe Paul Abbott

Judge Bill Weathington

Caran Wilbanks

Davis Worley

Randy Wood

Woods Surfside Marina

Usrey Funeral Home

Young, Brad Insurance

Planning Services

John Rea in memory of Bob Watson

Joe Paul Abbott and Lyman

Lovejoy in memory of Ray and Jimmie Nell Miller

TENNIS TOURNAMENT

Express Oil Change, Joe Sawyer

ERA King, Caran Wilbanks

Brentwood Child Care

Dot Wood Appraisal

Davis Worley

Dr. James W. Bedsole

Eye Care

Serge and Sarah

Brazzolotto

Bill Hereford

Paul and Marie Manning

Union State Insurance

Union State Bank

Trussell Funderburg Rea

Bell & Furgerson

FATHER-DAUGHTER DANCE

Main Street Drugs and Gift Shop

PCHS Interact Club

94.1 The River

Metro Bank

Pell City Rotary Club says thanks to our sponsors of the Ray Cox Memorial Golf Tournament, Rotary Tennis Tournament and Father-Daughter Dance!

Pell City Coffee Company

Main Street Memories with Brittney Smith

Red Magnolia Photography, Melissa McClain

DJ Carson Bruce

Pell City CEPA

City of Pell City

Pell City High School

Jefferson State Community College

Southland Golf Cart

St. Clair County Sheriff’s Office

Buffalo Rock

Polly Warren, KFC

Domino’s Pizza

PCHS Wrestling Team

Goodgame Company

And all of our wonderful volunteers!

Club of Pell City

The Rotary Club of Pell City meets at noon every Tuesday at the Pell City Municipal Complex, 1000 Bruce Etheredge Parkway in Pell City, AL.

For more information, please visit our website at pellcityrotary.org

Because you give, we can give...

Tennis tournament a fun event for all ages

Cox Memorial, now in its 43rd year, is a coming together of golfers, sponsors and Rotarians to raise much needed funds for worthwhile causes throughout the city.

And the tennis tournament each October operates much the same way – bringing players, sponsors and Rotarians together to provide strong foundations upon which worthy projects are built across Pell City’s landscape.

Rotary’s newest community effort to promote Rotary and to involve the entire family to prepare the Christmas season is the Pell City Rotary Club Family Fun 5K Run fundraiser to benefit the newly reopened Sherrif’s Boys Ranch. The run will be held at Lakeside Park in December 2023.

The run event is yet another example of seeing a need and finding a way to fill it.

While Rotary Club of Pell City is like a melting pot of men and women who hail from different backgrounds, careers and cultures, they make good things happen throughout the city because of their common desire to serve others.

“We cannot say enough about the financial support our community lends to our efforts,” said Rotary President Serge Brazzolotto. “Because they give, we can give. And when we invest in projects throughout our city, whether it’s volunteering or providing funding, the quality of life is enhanced and our community becomes a better place to live, work and raise a family.”

Just take a look around, and you’ll see just how Rotary, working together with the community it serves, fulfills that guiding principle year after year.l

Golf tournament a major fundraiser for Rotary’s good works

OUTDOORS EXPLORING ST. CLAIR

Nature preserved

Big Canoe Creek park is set to open soon

Story Scottie Vickery Photos by Mackenzie Free Submitted photos

Not long after watching eight turkeys disappear into the forest, Doug Morrison stood on a wooded trail overlooking a stream that flows into Big Canoe Creek. The only sound was the deep whistle of a great crested flycatcher, and Morrison felt pure serenity.

“This is God’s museum,” he said of the surroundings. “There are so many forms of life out here – plants, animals, fish. When you get out in nature and just stop for a moment and take it all in, it’s incredible.”

Soon, many others will be able to experience Morrison’s joy when the “museum,” otherwise known as Big Canoe Creek Nature Preserve in Springville, opens to the public. The project has been a long time coming, but after 14 years of study, planning, roadblocks and hard work, the opening date is nearing, hopefully late October or early November. Morrison, manager of the preserve, couldn’t be more thrilled.

“This is going to be huge,” he said. The preserve – 422 acres of unspoiled terrain – will provide hikers (experienced or beginners), mountain bikers, horse owners, and birding and flora and fauna enthusiasts the chance to unwind, learn and enjoy the great outdoors.

“Being outside in nature can soothe the soul,” Morrison said, and the timing of the fall opening is perfect. “This place shines when the leaves turn. It’s beautiful in the fall.”

Big Canoe Creek, which is part of the Coosa River and flows on the northern boundary of the property, is a vital part of the preserve and a major contributor to the beauty. The main section of the creek, which has been described as “a jewel in the crown of Alabama’s biodiversity,” is more than 50 miles long and flows into Neely Henry Lake. According to The Friends of Big Canoe Creek website, the creek has four major tributaries flowing into it: Gulf Creek, Muckleroy Creek, and two “Little Canoe” Creeks.

The creek is home to more than 50 species of fish, including the rare Trispot Darter, which is listed as “threatened” by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service under the Endangered Species Act. Salamanders, snails, crayfish, turtles and mussels –including eight federally listed freshwater species – can also be found in the waters. Just recently, in 2022 the Canoe Creek Clubshell (Pleurobema Athearni), a freshwater mussel found only in the Big Canoe Creek watershed, was listed as “endangered” under the Endangered Species Act.

“Alabama is fourth in the nation in biodiversity, but we’re first in the nation for biodiversity for aquatic species,” Morrison said. “That’s because of all of our rivers and waterways. That’s the kind of thing we want to teach our kids. Our vision is to get kids aways from their electronic devices, get them outside, and teach them about

Chase Davis and dog, Luna

OUTDOORS

our biodiversity.”

With a motto of “explore and discover,” Morrison said the goal is to soon add outdoor classrooms and bring in experts from agencies like U.S. Fish and Wildlife and the Geological Survey of Alabama to teach students more about the world around them.

Until then, the preserve itself – the creek and 10 miles of hiking, biking and horse trails – is already the ultimate classroom and the perfect background for solace.

“This is really going to be something special,” Morrison said. “This preserve is going to be an asset to every individual who wants to get away from the hustle and bustle.”

Partners in preservation

Morrison knows the importance of that firsthand. After all, a search for a more peaceful life is what prompted him and his wife, Joannie, to move to Springville – just across the creek from the preserve – 24 years ago. “She was looking at the house, and I was looking at the creek,” he said.

A friend introduced him to kayaking, and after a short time of paddling, “I started learning about the critters in our watershed, and I started seeing issues from bad development,” Morrison said. “Sedimentation is a huge issue in our waterways – it’s the number one pollutant.”

Not long after Morrison fell in love with the area that’s now home to the preserve, he learned that he and his community was in danger of losing it. “In 2007, they were planning to develop this, and then in 2008, the economy went south, and the plans were scrapped,” he said. The scare stirred up an interest in preserving and protecting the land.

Fast-forward to 2008, and the effort started gaining traction. The Friends of Big Canoe Creek, a grassroots organization, which Morrison served as president from 2008-2020, learned about Forever Wild Land Trust, which focuses on securing land for public use.

They nominated the land for designation as a Forever Wild site, and after nine years of numerous delays and roadblocks, the first 382 acres were purchased by Forever Wild in 2018, and 40 more acres were added the next year.

St. Clair County and City of Springville leaders – both former and current – embraced the project and have provided tremendous financial support, along with the St. Clair County Economic Development Council.

The Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Freshwater Land Trust, The Friends of Big Canoe Creek, Greater Birmingham Community Foundation and The Nature Conservancy have been vital partners, as well, Morrison said. Additionally, Dean Goforth

Mia, Ava and Emma Mullins ride the trail

Raetta Young and horse, Fancy Rae, along the trail

Explore and Enjoy!

Big Canoe Creek Nature Preserve

City of Springville is proud to announce the opening of Big Canoe Creek Nature Preserve in mid-October. With 422 acres of natural beauty, trails, woodlands and botanical wonders with a pristine creek running through the heart of it, our preserve will soon become a destination point from all around.

OUTDOORS

who owns nearby Homestead Hollow, was a key player in making the acquisition a reality. “I don’t think this would have happened without Dean,” Morrison said.

Springville Mayor Dave Thomas pushed for the formation of the Big Canoe Creek Preserve Partners, a nonprofit organization that helps provide sustainable funding of the preserve. As a result, individual and corporate partners have come on board, including Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham, EBSCO Industries, Norris Paving & Excavating, Schoel Engineering, Amerex, Lovejoy Realty, KEBCO, BlueCross BlueShield of Alabama, All American Ford, United Way of Central Alabama and Lawley Resource Management.

There is one key donor for the Preserve Partners who wishes to remain anonymous. “This fella just continually steps up with generous donations at critical times when needed. I wish I could tell you his name, but again, just another one of those good folks in our community that steps up. This community is all in!,” Morrison said.

“It’s been amazing to be a part of this,” Morrison said. “I’m just so proud of and grateful for this community and how hard people have worked to preserve, protect and support this place. Sometimes I have to pinch myself.”

Discover and explore

Although there were a few old logging trails, the land offered a blank slate. Plans were made, and Granger Waid of Norris Paving & Excavating and Joey Breighner of Schoel Engineering, helped ensure the best design came to fruition. In addition to their companies donating tens of thousands of dollars in in-kind work, they provided invaluable input for the project.

“Granger’s vision has everything to do with what this is going to be,” Morrison said. “He brought changes to the original concept that made a tremendous difference, and Schoel Engineering took his concept and did the drawings. Those guys working together was just a godsend.”

For Waid, helping with the project was a no-brainer. “This is something I believe in and I’m passionate about it,” he said. “I’ve been playing in this creek since I was 2 feet tall. People need a place to be able to go and get outdoors.”

Breighner agreed. A 20-year resident himself, “I’m excited about the preserve and what it means to our community.” In addition to the recreational aspect, he pointed to the educational value it holds and looks forward to people being able to “see what the preserve has to offer.”

Through his work on the Springville Planning Commission, he developed a friendship with Morrison, who discussed plans for the preserve as they were building it. “I could see Doug’s passion for the project and when I toured it, I saw some needs.” As executive vice president of Schoel Engineering, he put his and his company’s knowledge and expertise to work for the preserve, donating land surveying and engineering work.

Pointing to all the partnerships and community support involved, Springville Mayor Dave Thomas said, “One

Dusty and Mary Lou Davis

From left, Charlie Conaway talks with biker family, Dusty and Mary Lou Davis and their son, Chase

Emma Mullins leads the way, followed by Troy Henderson and Dalton Rice

Mia Mullins

Lori Oswald (left) and Meegan Dale

OUTDOORS

of the things Springville and St. Clair County as a whole have earned as a reputation is the level of cooperation rarely seen elsewhere. Everybody appreciates the potential of the preserve that will outlive and outlast us all. It’s generational.”

He talked of the educational component with outdoor classrooms and the ability to bring in experts in the field to teach teachers from around the state who will go back to their schools and teach. Field trips will bring their lessons to life, giving them so much more than a textbook can.

“We have set the bar high to be an example for others that here is what we can do if we work together,” Thomas said. “This is a prime example of people bringing energy that translates into synergy.”

Focusing on details

The attention to preservation will be evident as soon as visitors drive into the parking lot. The top lot has room for cars, trucks and horse trailers, while the bottom lot has plenty of additional spots for cars. The two lots will be separated by a bioretention area with special landscaping designed to filter rainwater and runoff through gravel, sand and topsoil. “We’ll use plants that filter the pollutants from cars and clean the water,” Morrison said, adding that the area will eventually feature a seating area at one end.

Since a major goal of the preserve will be education, there will be a sign with a QR code to connect visitors to videos and photos that explain the concept of bioretention and document the building process. “This is something we hope to promote for any kind of development so that we can trap sediment and clean the water that’s going into our waterways,” Morrison said.

Leaving riparian buffers intact is a vital part of the preserve, as well. “The forest is a riparian buffer for the stream,” Morrison said. “It’s basically leaving the natural vegetation near a stream bank alone” so the trees, plants and shrubs act as buffers to pollutants and help control erosion. That’s why the trails offer a view of the creeks and streams in most areas rather than meandering alongside them.

“You can see the water and you can get down to it if you want, but we left all the vegetation near the streams alone,” Morrison said. “People come out here and say, ‘Look how clear this water is.’ Just look around. You have nothing but trees. The natural vegetation filters everything.

There are a variety of species doing the work. The woods are filled with mountain laurel, native azaleas and oak leaf hydrangeas. There are Bottlebrush buckeye shrubs, red and sugar maple trees, pines and beech trees.

“I call this area Beech Tree Hollow because there are beech trees all over the place,” Morrison said during a recent walk through the woods. “Beech trees keep their leaves longer than other trees, and you don’t really know how many are in here until wintertime.”

Ferns are everywhere, as well. “We’ve got so many different ferns out here, it’s unbelievable,” he said. “I brought a horticulturist from the Birmingham Botanical Gardens out here, and I couldn’t keep him on the trail. He kept wandering off and saying, ‘Look at this, look at this.’”

Morrison gets most excited about the preserve’s aquatic diversity. The Trispot Darter, for example, had not been spotted in Alabama in nearly 50 years before it was discovered in one of Big Canoe’s tributaries in 2008. The removal of Goodwin’s

OUTDOORS

Mill Dam in 2013 brought even more species. The dam was built in the 1880s for a grist mill but hadn’t been in use since the mill closed in the 1940s

Restoring the creek’s flow has provided a larger and more suitable habitat for fish, mussels and other mollusks. Since the dam was removed, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service returned just a couple of months ago and was delighted to find the Canoe Creek Clubshell near the site. In 2013, prior to the dam removal, these were not present. “The fish passage returned after the dam removal. Fish serve as host for the mussels, so the fish passage returning was definitely a good thing for these mussels”, Morrison said.

“In a stream in the middle of the Nature Preserve, the Geological Survey of Alabama found a Western Blacknose Dace, a small fish that hasn’t been documented in the Big Canoe Creek Watershed since the ‘80s, so that was a great find, and we will continue to explore,” Morrison said.

News like that is what keeps Morrison motivated and excited about the preserve’s future and impact. He recently stopped at one of his favorite spots on the southern side of the woods to reflect on the opportunity he’ll soon have to share this piece of paradise with the rest of the world. Chances are, he knows the terrain better than anyone else, and he feels a special connection to the land.

“I call this section Slab Creek,” Morris said, pointing to the giant slabs of rock that line the stream’s bed. “They just keep going and going. It’s like a stack of dominoes that got toppled

over.” Later, he pointed out two neighboring trees that meet as if in an embrace. “These are the kissing trees,” he said, shortly before telling of another huge tree that was lost in a storm. “I felt like I knew it personally.”

Morrison’s greatest hope is that visitors will love the preserve as much as he does, treat it with the respect it deserves, and treasure it for generations to come.

“It was a struggle getting this thing going,” he acknowledged. “There have been so many trials and tribulations, ups and downs, ebbs and flows. Right now, there’s just good things happening, and I sometimes feel like it’s just destiny. I am very grateful for our Mayor, Dave Thomas, and his leadership through this, the City Council, St. Clair County Commission and Forever Wild. They are seeing what this can become, the educational opportunities, the outdoor recreation and the economic value of greenspace.

For more information about Big Canoe Creek Nature Preserve, or to make a donation to Big Canoe Creek Preserve Partners, visit bigcanoecreekpreserve.org.

Charlie Conaway takes a hike

Hans Paul (left) and Jaresiah Banks

Why Shop at Home?

When you shop at home, you not only get great buys, you provide jobs, support your neighbors and friends, and your investment comes right back to you!

Check the Math!

Tax Dollars = Schools + Roads + Police + Fire + Parks + Recreation + Critical City Services

RUN 4 THE PARKS

5K event highlights good things in Springville

Story by Paul South Photos by Richard Rybka

No matter its size, a city’s growth is always measured in new jobs, new rooftops, new businesses and new people.

But in Springville – at least for its Parks and Recreation Department – growth is also calculated in miles and smiles.

Consider Springville’s Run 4 the Parks.

In its brief existence – the inaugural event took place last year – the city has raised some $23,000. According to the parks and rec website, proceeds from the 5k race and other run-related events will offset the cost of improvements at the Springville Sports Complex, specifically a stone entrance gate, new signage and lighting.

Rick Hopkins, the city’s director of Parks and Recreation, says the idea for the run sprouted from an effort to bring more events into the community.

Years ago, the city hosted a successful 5k run. But Springville’s park board envisioned something bigger and better.

“We talked about how we wanted it to be something more than a 5K so that it would be something for the entire family, not just for people who specialized in long distance running. That was the real genesis of it.” SpringFest and a previous 5K run – which helped fund Big Springs Park and the city’s popular Splash Pad – provided a template for the Run 4 The Parks.

“We just built off SpringFest,” Hopkins says. “But we wanted something that was focused on the entire family. We tried to bring back something similar to SpringFest. That was really our goal.”

In the 5K, 108 runners competed this year. Some 100 runners participated in the other classifications last year, which included runners across the spectrum in terms of age. The event also attracted a large number of spectators.

The sports complex improvements are aimed at raising the facility’s public profile.

“One of the big issues we have at the sports complex is a lot of the people don’t know we’re here, because we don’t have signage; we don’t have an entrance,” Hopkins says.

Run 4 the Parks is just a slice of what Springville

Riley Robertson and passenger

OUTDOORS

Parks and Recreation offers. “We like to have something for everyone,” Hopkins says.

And it seems the city does – youth baseball, flag football, tackle football, cheerleading, basketball, soccer and softball, as well as adult co-ed softball. Disc golf and pickleball are also on the horizon.

The city has four parks – the youth baseball and sports complexes, Big Springs Park and Woody Park –six tennis courts, the Big Springs Splash Pad and Big Springs Dog Park.

The department also manages the Springville Senior Center, which according to Mayor Dave Thomas, is “bursting at the seams” and the Farmer’s Market site downtown. The city hopes to reopen the market by June 2024 as a state-certified Farmers Market, joining markets in Moody and Pell City as state-certified.

By the end of September, the city was expecting a $50,000 grant from T-Mobile to help fund improvements at the facility, and the city plans to match the grant.

A major municipal undertaking is underway, construction of the Big Canoe Creek Preserve. Paving work is moving ahead. And Schoel Engineering is providing a master plan for the project at no cost to the city. Some trails, including horseback, are expected to open in October.

Looking to future progress, at press time, Springville was awaiting the green light from the Forever Wild Land Trust to begin construction on a four-mile biking and hiking trail. Since 1992, Forever Wild has secured more than 284,000 acres of Alabama land for public use, and Big Canoe is part of that trust.

Big Canoe Creek Preserve will also be home to environmental education, celebrating the land’s broad biodiversity. “I think the future is so bright for outdoor education for the nature preserve,” Hopkins predicts.

“The nature preserve is going to be a feature for the entire county,” he adds. “It’s really a feather in the cap for this community because it’s going to draw people to St. Clair County from all over the state and outside the state.”

The preserve continues to be a community effort with in-kind contributions spurring the progress. It’s important to note the city has received some $30,000 in free excavation work from a local firm, Norris Paving.

Parks and Rec Administrative Clerk Lucy Cleaver, along with preserve manager Doug Morrison, is developing the environmental education program at the preserve to serve students and adults. She earned two degrees in outdoor education from Auburn University.

“We want to use (the preserve) to the best of our ability to truly be a spot where people can come and be inspired by nature, to learn about the history of St. Clair County … and all the immense biodiversity that we have out there. It’s a very special place.”

Cleaver also oversees the Farmer’s Market and assists Hopkins in managing Parks and Recreation events.

5K Run start

Color Run start

Presenting the Prize

It’s estimated that some 90 percent of Springville’s nearly 5,000 residents utilize the city’s parks and recreation facilities and programs. Some 2,000 from the city and neighboring communities take part in team sports.

All of this is part of an ongoing effort by the city to “raise the bar” when it comes to quality of life in Springville, Mayor Thomas says. He praises Hopkins and his staff as they juggle the myriad activities and events under the department’s umbrella.

“Hat’s off to them,” he says. “I don’t know how they do it.”

The goal for parks and rec? Maintaining and expanding high quality opportunities for Springville citizens. Think possibilities like Art in the Park or Strings in the Park. But it takes time.

“Everybody’s struggling with finite resources,” Thomas says. “We can’t do everything we want to all at once. But as long as we maintain the vision and keep our eye on the ball, we will get there.”

While the success of Springville’s Parks and Recreation efforts can be measured in numbers like participation, a more compelling narrative comes from anecdotes. It’s impossible to please everyone. But Hopkins says positive feedback far outdistances complaints.

Thomas uses another metric. Smiles. “By and large, the support is overwhelming. They like what we’re doing.”

For Hopkins and his department, serving the community is the focus. “We are here to serve (the people), and we want to serve them in the best way that we can every single day.”

Registration booth

Jeff Aiken, Male 60 and Over 1st Place 5K

Rubber Ducky Launch

Cynthia Banks, First Place Female 50-59 5K

Over the barrel obstacle course

Parks & Rec staff squirt Boy Scouts

ST. CLAIR REMEMBERS OUR VETERANS

Giving Back Moody group makes quilts for veterans

Barbara Willingham, Carolyn Snider, Erlene Cryar and Jill Dailey (standing) gather around Laura Kinney (seated) as they display some of the quilts their club has made

Story by Elaine Miller

Photos by Richard Rybka

Every time Barbara Willingham makes a quilt for a military veteran, she remembers the time her son called her from Iraq at 2 a.m. She could hear explosions in the background. “Mom, I gotta go, we’ve been bombed,” he told her. Then he hung up, and she didn’t hear from him again for two fear-filled weeks.

“He came back, and I have my son, but not every mom does,” she says. “Every quilt I make I’m grateful I’m not going to the cemetery.”

Barbara is part of the Moody Crazy Quilters, a group of women that makes quilts for veterans, foster children, nursing home residents and hospice groups, to name a few. It’s their way of giving back to veterans and offering comfort to others who may be hurting physically or mentally.

“I like to make children’s quilts because kids wanna hold something, especially if they’re in the hospital,” says member Carolyn Snider. “I also enjoy making quilts for veterans. Our freedom is not free, and this is a way to give back to them.”

The group meets at Moody City Hall the first Monday of each month, except for holidays. It started in 2009 as a library function at Moody’s Doris Stanley Memorial Library, but soon

outgrew its meeting space. They have about eight steady members, including one who moved to Marietta, Georgia, but still comes back for monthly meetings.

Most members also belong to a similar group called Loving Hands that meets at Bethel Baptist Church.

They try to identify a couple of veterans each year to quilt for, such as the two found by group coordinator Jill Dailey’s husband, an Army vet himself. The group also made a patriotic quilt for Moody Mayor Joe Lee, another Army veteran, as a thank-you for his military service and for the meeting space the city provides.

“We label our quilts, ‘Gift from Moody Crazy Quilters,’ and on our patriotic quilts we add, ‘Thank you for your service,’ ” says Jill. “We also put the year we made them on the labels.”

Once a recipient is chosen, each woman usually makes a quilt block at home, choosing her own fabric, colors and design. Then the group puts their blocks together to make one Sampler Quilt, as they are called.

“Each month people turn in their blocks, and we’ll put them in a pile and lay them out and decide what to do with them,” Jill says. “We make 12-inch blocks, using four across and five down, plus binding, and sometimes a wide sashing between rows.”

The group donates at least three patriotic quilts to veterans every year, along with several more to hospice organizations for their patients. Children’s of Alabama is another organization that benefits from the group’s quilting efforts.

“Lots of our fabric is donated by various people, but a lot comes from our own stashes,” says Carolyn, who joined the group in December 2021 after retiring.

Most are lap quilts. Those made for nursing homes have a small, fleece-lined pocket to keep hands warm. On the outside of the hand pocket is a smaller one for a phone, glasses or tissues.

“Most of us don’t make standard-size quilts, but Barbara sometimes gets carried away,” Jill says.

Nearly all of these women have been quilting for years, some since they were children. “My mother taught me to quilt,” says Laura Kinney who, at 86,

Laura Temple Kinney quilt details

Mike Rogers proudly salutes the valiant men and women who have served our country throughout our nation’s history.

As chairman of the Armed Services Committee, I know just how important their sacrifices have been and continue to be in service to America.

I am honored to represent St. Clair County in Washington, whose own history underscores the critical role veterans play in a strong democracy. Mike Rogers Alabama’s trusted conservative.

YOUR SERVICE VETS!

VETERANS

may be the oldest member of the group. “Ours weren’t pretty, either. They were just called ‘covers’ back then.”

She recalls the days before she retired, when she often would often get home from work at 8:30 p.m. and sew on a quilt. “I would sometimes tell my husband, ‘My hands hurt, you need to do the cookin’ tonight,’” she says. She has made a quilt for each of her children, and has a stack of 10 that measure 50 inches x 70 inches each, five blocks across by seven blocks down, ready to present to her great nieces and great nephews. She also has a quilt that she hangs on a wall at home to display her husband’s Coast Guard patches.

Some of the women own long-arm machines, others just domestic sewing machines. At least one has a Cutie Frame, a tabletop quilting frame used in conjunction with a sewing machine to do the quilting.

“Making quilts for veterans is payback for me,” says Barbara, who volunteers at the Colonel Robert L. Howard State Veterans Home in Pell City. “Not every mother can say her son went to Iraq and came back. I know how hard it is. My son, Toussaint Edghill, is a disabled vet, and I do this to honor him.”

Gaye Austin’s husband and son are veterans, and she wants to show her appreciation to them and to all veterans “for giving us our freedom and the protection we have today,” she says.

“We want to thank the veterans for their service, and we enjoy quilting so much,” says Jill. “It’s a win-win.”

The quilt the Moody Quilters made for Mayor Joe Lee.Left to right: Jill Dailey, Mayor Lee, Gaye Austin

Barbara

Group coordinator Jill Dailey shows off a couple of patriotic quilts the group has put together.

Thank them for their service

Volunteers honor vets with muscle, sweat, tears

and

roses

Story by Paul South

Photos by Carol Pappas

Submitted Photos

At the blighted Blue Star Memorial marker on Veterans Memorial Parkway, weeds were winning the war just a few months ago.

Flowers wilted in dry ground. Shrubs browned. In Dana Ellison’s blunt assessment, the landmark leading to the Col. Robert L. Howard State Veterans Home that was supposed to honor our military, “looked like crap.”

In short order, a small detachment of volunteers – Ellison, Ellen Tanner, Cayce Johnson and Josh Franklin, along with

reinforcements from St. Clair County, Pell City and Wattsville Water – went on the offensive in the oppressive late May heat to restore the marker’s site to its former glory.

After five hours of volunteer sweat that just beat a major storm, the blight and weeds were in retreat.

The flower bed was condensed, pulled up and edgers relaid. Shrubs and flowers – red roses and white gardenias – were planted. A blue star also adorns the hallowed ground. The low maintenance shrubbery came from Hazelwood’s Nursery in Pell City, and a red, white and blue bow now festoons the marker.

Small versions of the Stars and Stripes stood at attention, each flag encircling the marker like a patriotic clock.

“If you were to look at the monument from an aerial shot, we laid out the gardenias on either side where it almost designs

From left, volunteers Cayce Johnson, Dana Ellison and Ellen Tanner go to work beautifying monument

ORAL HISTORY

Museum of Pell City

PRESENTS

SALUTE TO SERVICE

Throughout the month of November

PRESERVED HISTORY

ARTIFACTS

Special Programs on Nov. 2

Premier of War and Remembrance: A Living History Series

A short film featuring a collection of video oral histories of veterans representing World War II, Korean War and Vietnam War.

SPEAKERS

Veteran Salute Luncheon at noon featuring keynote speaker Dr. Marty Oliff, professor, historian, author of The Great War in the Heart of Dixie.

Special expanded exhibits all month featuring artifacts, photos and stories of Pell Citians and their service and sacrifice for our country.

Museum of P ell C ity

1000 Bruce Etheredge Parkway, Suite 200

Open Thursdays and Fridays, 10 am-4 pm Saturdays, 10 am-2 pm

ALWAYS FREE

VETERANS

a star counting the post in the middle,” Ellison said. And to be clear, not one penny of public money was used for the project. The volunteers provided the materials.

Wattsville supplied water, and Pell City provided a hydrant to slake the thirst of the ground, flowers and shrubs.

Until the waterline was placed, Pell City’s fire department stepped in to keep the garden watered.

Ellison and her comrades took the monument to heart. She fertilizes, prunes, weeds and waters the site several times a week.

“I have made that my lifelong project, goal, passion to keep that veterans’ garden looking as good as it can.”

The marker’s restored message to motorists?

“Respect,” Tanner said.

Respect for veterans and their families.

Respect for country.

Respect for God’s ground.

The marker, placed in 2013 as a Leadership St. Clair project, hadn’t always been honored.

“All of the blocks had shifted,” Johnson said. “The roses were dead. It was in poor shape. It was not very honorable to the men and women who served our great nation to keep us free.

“I think that as a community and as a citizen of this town and as citizens, we can do better in honoring them,” Johnson says. “And especially since that’s the main road leading down to the veterans’ home, that’s important that they know that a community appreciates them and supports them.”

Tanner spearheaded the original Blue Star project when she was part of the 2013 Class of Leadership St. Clair. Attendees learn about the county and craft a project that leaves a positive legacy. Working with the National Garden Clubs, the class made it happen.

But neglect and time ravaged the area until three women and one man stepped into the breach. The reason was simple, Tanner says. “You cannot honor our veterans enough,” she says. “They are such a precious treasure to this country, and we need to hold them up and honor them as much as we can.”

THE BLUE STAR HIGHWAY: A BRIEF HISTORY

Blue Star Highways in the United States pay tribute to all men and women – past, present and future – serving in American armed forces. The National Council of State Garden Clubs, now known as National Garden Clubs, Inc., created the Blue Star program near the end of World War II. Flowers have always been at the heart of the effort. In 1944, the New Jersey Council of Garden Clubs planted 8,000 Dogwood trees to honor those serving in that war.

The markers are only placed on dedicated highways.

THE TEARS OF A MILITARY WIFE, MOTHER AND DAUGHTER-IN-LAW

Johnson is deeply invested in the military. One son is in the Air Force – Airman 1st Class Parker Holmes. Another son, Marine Lance Cpl. Daniel Holmes, is at Camp Lejeune, N.C. Her husband, Billy, served as a Marine sergeant, and her fatherin-law, Don, is a Vietnam vet.

She understands the sacrifice of vets and their families. And tears readily flow when she thinks of the monument as it was

before the restoration effort and as she thinks of combat vets who sometimes struggle to return to civilian life. Until the May restoration, like those soldiers, sailors and marines, the marker was forgotten.

“As veterans, they come home, and they have to assimilate back into society and a lot of times, they’re not able to, because of the things they’ve seen and the things they’ve been through,” Johnson said. “When I look at (the monument), first and foremost it reminded me of our military men and women who come back home, and they’re just forgotten. They don’t feel they have a purpose.”

Before the restoration, the wilted flowers, the tall grass and scattered stones cut deep. “When I looked at that, and I saw those roses and that blue star there and all of the grass, it just made me feel like we just forget them.”

And after the project?

“Once it was all pretty with the roses and the flowers, and St. Clair County Commission Chairman Stan Batemon came with our pine straw to put down, it was just beautiful,” Johnson says. “It’s rejuvenated.”

In a larger sense, the teamwork of the small cadre of volunteers, the public and private sectors, offers a glimmer of optimism and hope for the country during a polarized period.

She thinks of her best friend of three decades, Ellison, who sees Johnson’s serving sons as her nephews. “It does bring back

The ‘before’ photo as volunteers prepared to tackle the project

VETERANS

The finished product, a memorial befitting veterans

a little bit of hope for our humanity. There are people who still care, who are still very patriotic and love our country and what it stands for.”

Johnson remembers when her sons were small boys. They’d go to the veterans’ home and fill bird feeders. As in those days, she said, the Blue Star project was “an honor. It’s a very, very small ‘thank you’ for what they’ve done for me,” Johnson says. “I always say I kept (my sons) safe when they were little and defended them. And now it’s an honor that they defend me.”

THE COUNTY, TEAMWORK AND RESPECT

For Ellison, it all comes down to one thing. “It was just teamwork, wanting to do a good thing.”

The project not only says something about the volunteers, but about Pell City and St. Clair County.

“When there’s a need,” Ellison says, “people come

together to get a job done … It was just a matter of helping fellow man and wanting to do for and respect those people, men and women who served our country.”

She adds, “It was a matter of respect for them. We just wanted to return that respect any way that we could.”

Tanner agrees.

“People in St. Clair County truly care about veterans. I don’t mean this to be a North-South thing. But in the South, we honor and hold dear our veterans, family, God and country.”

And when locals and visitors pass the Pell City Blue Star Memorial marker – or any of them across the country – Tanner hopes a feeling washes over them of thankfulness, appreciation and honor for veterans in general. “We hope it will stir that feeling of thankfulness for their service.”

Preserving memories Museum of Pell City to premier veteran oral history series in

November

Since opening in March, Museum of Pell City has hosted over 1,000 visitors from as close as library patrons from downstairs to as far away as Norway and Austria. Now, the museum’s volunteer team is working on its second thousand.

Capturing the essence of life and history in a city that has passed the century mark is not an easy task, but this 4,000 square foot museum suite blends thousands of photographs, artifacts, artwork, narratives and video to tell the story of days long past through present day.

Its next venture, one that had its beginnings right alongside the planning for the museum itself, is the official unveiling of its oral history series, War and Remembrance, just in time for Veterans Day. The museum board is taking it a step further by celebrating veterans all November long with programs and exhibit displays.

The War and Remembrance series is ongoing through a partnership with the Col. Robert L. Howard Veterans Home with filming and interviewing starting even before the museum

opened its doors. Veterans of three wars, representing World War II, Korean War and Vietnam War, are a part of this initial collection to be shown in the museum’s special Living History Studio housed inside the museum.

The studio, equipment and related projects were made possible through a $25,000 grant from the Greater Pell City Rotary Community Foundation and as part of a $45,000 grant from the Alabama Power Foundation. The veteran series is being funded by a nearly $9,000 grant from Alabama Humanities Alliance.

“From the very beginning, we felt like oral history had to be the centerpiece of our efforts to preserve history,” said President Carol Pappas. “What better way to capture those pivotal moments in history or simply the remembrances of everyday life that helped shape the city we know today? We cannot thank our grantors enough for their generosity in providing a foundation we can build on for years to come.”

Deanna Lawley, 1st vice president of the museum and

Interviewer talks with Robert Curl, a 98-year-old D-Day veteran in Pell City, for the museum’s War and Remembrance oral history video series

ST. CLAIR REMEMBERS OUR

VETERANS

coordinator of the Living History program, stressed the importance of preserving these voices of history. “Pell City clearly has a before and after community feel related to the 60s and the creation of Logan Martin Lake along with the connection to I-20. Residents who were in their teens at this time are now senior citizens. Their stories need to be saved and savored.”

The initial veteran series premiering in November includes interviews from veterans of World War II’s D-Day and Iwo Jima; conflicts of the Korean War; the Bay of Pigs invasion and Vietnam. See and hear accounts of those historic moments in war told by those who were there – “real people, real stories, real history,” Pappas said.

The series soon will be available in various forms on the museum’s You Tube channel website along with complete, word searchable transcripts of full interviews that may be accessed.

Inside the museum’s For Their Service section, see the flag that flew over a Navy ship on its way to Nagasaki and learn about the sailor aboard – a former district attorney in St. Clair County.

Read about Admiral Dennis Brooks, commander of the joint armed forces in the Persian Gulf during the Reagan administration and see his fighter pilot jacket on display.

And peruse the digital exhibit of letters home from a World War II combatant, giving visitors a look inside the lives of two young people from the battlefront to the home front. There will be more as planning continues.

“Our community and our county have a long history of military service, and this is a small tribute to them and all veterans that will be ongoing, added to and expanded as we continue this series,” Pappas said. To demonstrate Pell City’s impact on the military, visitors can learn more about Capt. Gardner Greene and the battalion formed in the city as a forerunner to the famed Rainbow Division.

As a special event on Nov. 2 at noon, the museum and library will partner in bringing Dr. Marty Olliff to the museum for the presentation, The Great War in the Heart of Dixie: Alabama in World War I. Olliff is a Professor of History at Troy University and the director of the Wiregrass Archives at the Dothan Campus.

He has served on the governing boards of: Alabama Historical Commission, Alabama Governor’s Mansion Commission, Alabama Humanities Foundation (now Alliance), Dothan Landmarks Foundation and Wiregrass Museum of Art. He also served as chairman of president of the Alabama Historical Association, Historic Chattahoochee Commission, Alabama Historians and the Society of Alabama Archivists.

He is the published author of two books: The Great War in the Heart of Dixie: Alabama in World War I and Getting Out of the Mud: Alabama’s Good Roads Movement and Highway Administration, 1898-1928.

Olliff’s presentation during a light luncheon will be the first special program the museum will host, and special guests to be honored that day are veterans from

the veterans home.

Other programs are being planned on a regular basis on wide-ranging topics as part of the museum’s community outreach.

All museum exhibits, exhibitions and special programming are free to the public.

Martin Olliff

St. Clair, Alabama Business Review

Businesses begin opening doors at Pell City Square

Story by Carol Pappas

Photos by Graham Hadley

Pell City Square

New retail ventures taking region to next economic level

It was kind of like dominos falling – only in a good way. One by one, ribbons were cut, doors opened, and shoppers rushed in. Pell City Square – 147,900 square feet of retail stores – had finally arrived.

Actually, it’s still arriving. The final openings – Hobby Lobby, Ulta and Pet Smart – were all expected to open by Oct. 9. The early birds signaling a new era for retail development for Pell City and St. Clair County were Ross Dress For Less, TJ Maxx, Old Navy, America’s Best Eye Care and Five Below, which opened in August and September.

Those brand-name retailers are expected to provide more than just a bonanza for shoppers here at home. The dollars they generate are expected to pump more than $25 million in gross taxable sales into the local economy in the first year. When the outparcels are developed, that $25 million is expected to turn into $30 million. And that’s “conservative,” said Pell City Manager Brian Muenger.

“It will have a very material impact,” Muenger said. “It takes our tax base to another level.” The city had been growing incrementally within its retail footprint in recent years, but Pell City Square enables the city to “capture dollars leaving as opposed to moving dollars around.”

The property fronting Interstate 20 has four outparcels in addition to the outdoor mall. On the west side of the property are parcels controlled by the developer, Noon, and City of Pell City. The city-controlled parcel was “earmarked” for a national sit-down restaurant and the other for a fast casual restaurant. Both have tenants committed with announcements coming soon, and construction and completion are expected in 2024.

The parcels on the east side are controlled by the original developer, Bill Ellison, president of I-20 Development. “I’m really excited about the future development potential of the property,” he said in September. “I am waiting to market it until all the stores in the center are open.”

The Pell City Square represents the completion of a 10-year effort to redevelop the old county hospital site. “A large retail center with major brands missing from our community was always the vision for that site,” said St. Clair Economic Development Executive Director Don Smith.

Now Hiring sign in front of Five Below

Business Review Pell City Square

“But removing the old hospital, obtaining a purchase option on surrounding property, and finding a development team with the experience and resources to build it took time and patience.”

Because of Pell City’s size compared to other markets where these retailers locate, Smith described the years long efforts as a “bit of a challenge. Bill Ellison and Noon Development did a great job in showing that Pell City is much larger than just its population with the visitors to the lake and others living in the surrounding area.”

Officials say the project was one of the most complicated in the county’s history and required all involved to work in the same direction. But the dividends of teamwork are evident. “It has already started to attract the attention of other major retail brands that had turned down the market in the past,” Smith said.

Muenger agreed, saying, businesses recruited in 2015-2017 that declined to approve Pell City as a location are now approving sites quickly. “It demonstrates the growth in our market. People are seeing that we’re a natural hub of commerce between Anniston and Birmingham.”

“One of the things that set the leaders in St. Clair County above others is our ability to work together strategically on economic development projects,” Smith added. “The new retail center at Pell City Square and the QT travel center at the Eden exit are just another example.” The City of Pell City worked closely with the St. Clair County Commission and the developer from beginning to the end of the project to overcome infrastructure upgrades and other challenges. “It was a collaborative effort the entire time.”

Despite the challenges, Muenger noted, “It has been enjoyable to watch this project progress. It’s fun to see the reception the center is getting and bringing that space to life.”

OLD NAVY is stocked with merchandise and open for business

Making progress on Hobby Lobby construction

Ulta is almost ready to open

Business Cards

Business Cards

Eden project signals new era of development

Huge crowd turns out for ribbon cutting

Story and photos by Carol Pappas

For years, even decades, the Eden interchange of Interstate 20 has been like a blank canvas – a perfect place for commercial development but lacking in the infrastructure to make the picture complete. There were many suitors over the years, but without sewer service, they turned away. But three years ago, Quik Trip, a Georgia-based travel center, eyed the property and secured an option.

There was still the hurdle of sewer service, but eventually a partnership among QT, City of Pell City and St. Clair County swung a deal that not only paved the way for the travel center but future development in that entire area.

The city joined with the county to leverage the investment by QT that would be scalable to other properties near the interchange – close to 200 acres. They built a lift station and made infrastructure improvements worth $1 million.

Business Directory

Manager addresses attendees

Councilman Jay Jenkins talks with employee at opening

St. Clair EDC Executive Director Don Smith addresses the positive impact the development will have on future

The investment should be well worth it, according to Pell City Manager Brian Muenger and St. Clair Economic Development Council Executive Director Don Smith.

“The Eden exit has always been an area of potential, but it lacked sewer service at that interstate interchange,” Smith said. “The executives at QT understood this and were willing to partner with the city and county to extend a sewer line over 1,000 feet and large enough to handle fully developing the interchange for the future.”

So, what does that investment and partnership mean? “This opens up hundreds of acres for development in the future. QT’s motto, ‘More than a gas station,’ is exactly what this project means to that interchange.”

Muenger agreed. The entire area around it – 200 acres – is now ripe for development in both commercial and residential. As an example, Muenger called nearby Roberts Mill Pond Road area “ideal for higher density residential subdivision. It’s commutable. You can get to any company headquarters in Birmingham in 30 minutes. We continue to get looks as an exurb,” an area beyond suburbs where people can live and work.

“When you plant the seeds of future growth in infrastructure investments,” Muenger continued, short and long term goals of the city are all within reach. With the $10 million total investment already made, which includes QT, Eden is quickly moving up on the priority list for future development projects. Case in point: This is only the third or fourth QT venture into Alabama for this national brand travel center. And business tends to breed business.

While the U.S. 231 interchange is a major thoroughfare with massive development, having an appropriate travel stop at the Eden exit is “value added” for Pell city, Muenger said. “It’s consistent, it’s immaculate. They have great food and great coffee.” In addition to the hefty return from gasoline tax for a center that size that caters to trucks and passenger vehicles, “we’ll be capturing our share of that revenue.”

While it has been a few years in the making, Muenger said, “we are proud to have QT in Pell City. We knew it was a great fit for us.”

It’s official! Ribbon is cut.

CRAWFORD-SKINNER AGENCY DESIGNATED AS “TOP PERFORMER”

Crawford-Skinner Agency retains its Best Practices status, once again becoming a part of an elite group of independent insurance agencies around the United States. This status comes by participating in the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America (IIABA or the Big “I”) Best Practices Study group. The annual survey and Study of leading independent insurance agencies documents the business practices of the “best” agencies and urges others to adopt similar practices.

“Crawford-Skinner Agency is proud to be recognized again as one of the best agencies in the business,” says Brian Skinner, Crawford-Skinner Agency president. “Since my grandfather founded the agency in 1944, we have consistently provided the best possible service to our clients. We look forward to continuing our legacy of service for years to come.”

The Crawford-Skinner Agency was founded in 1944 and can offer insurance products from a number of different companies including Auto Owners, Progressive, Liberty Mutual, and many more.

Since 1993, the Big “I” and Reagan Consulting, an Atlantabased management consulting firm, have joined forces to study the country’s leading agencies in six revenue categories. The agencies comprising the study groups are selected every third year through a comprehensive nomination and qualifying process and awarded a “Best Practices Agency” designation.

The agency was nominated by either an IIABA affiliated state association or an insurance company and qualified based on its operational excellence.

The selected Best Practices agencies retain their status during the three-year cycle by submitting extensive financial and operational data for review each year. This is the second year of the current three-year study cycle, where over 2,600 independent agencies throughout the U.S. were nominated to take part in the annual study in 2022, but only 287 agencies qualified for the honor.

To be chosen, the agency had to be among the 35-45 topperforming agencies in one of six revenue categories.

Editor’s Note: Founded in 1896, the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America (the Big “I”) is the nation’s oldest and largest national association of independent insurance agents and brokers, representing more than 25,000 agency locations united under the Trusted Choice brand. Trusted Choice independent agents offer consumers all types of insurance—property, casualty, life, health, employee benefit plans and retirement products—from a variety of insurance companies.

MARIOTT HOTEL HEADED TO PELL CITY

While much of the attention of late has centered on Pell City Square, the 100,000+ square foot retail center, officials see it not as an end to the story, but a new beginning.

It seems there is more good economic news on the horizon already. Mariott has broken ground on a $14 million hotel project just across I-20 next to Home Depot on Vaughan Lane. The 89-room venture is a higher end, medium stay hotel that can cater to business travelers.

It is a high-quality hotel with pool and other amenities, giving the city more capacity to market accommodations for events all around the region, not just in Pell City. Event venues like Talladega SuperSpeedway, Barber Motorsports, Lincoln’s Landing, Civilian Marksmanship Park and Top Trails will benefit from the increased capacity the hotel provides for travelers. And the lodging tax it generates only serves to strengthen Pell City coffers, enabling the city to reinvest in infrastructure, services and quality of life, according to Pell City Manager Brian Muenger.

None of the current economic shots in the arm happened overnight, officials are quick to say. Plenty of needs identification, planning and goal setting preceded the series of announcements made in recent months.

The city identified the “biggest gaps” in its retail and restaurant landscape and set out to fill them, Muenger said. Because of the comprehensive planning effort, “All the things we said we wanted, we’re on track to do.”

“When my mother had the beginnings of dementia, she was in Birmingham, and I was in Pell City. Working full time, I couldn’t be there. But Always There could, and they helped her with the things she needed to remain independent -- taking her grocery shopping, making sure she got the right medications at the right time, being a companion. Always There allowed her to stay in her own home and took the worries away from my siblings and I when we couldn’t be there for her.”

-- Carol P.

When you can’t be there, Always There can.

Quilts: Mosaics of history, heart, soul

I sometimes wonder the secrets these old quilts keep or the stories they would tell if they could speak …

What hand-me-down wisdom would they impart? Would they speak to us of love?

Of heartbreak?

Of loss?

Would they tell us their truths and testimonies? Or wrap us in words of encouragement and hope on hard days?

It’s hard for an artist to separate their heart from hand. Feelings naturally find their way to fingertips. Emotions inevitably sewn into stitches and pieced together into a patchwork of patterns bound together to cover and comfort future generations. And perhaps that’s the real beauty of them … Quilts do more than keep us warm. They hold history. They keep us connected. They are a bridge between the past and the present.

A patchwork of patterns and colors pieced together by day or under lamplight glow by hands future generations would never know.

In the photo: Colt Swindall, son of Dylan and Amber Swindall

- Mackenzie Free -

Wife, mother, photographer & current resident of the unassumingly magical town of Steele, Alabama

Life through the lens of Mackenzie Free