Lee Magazine - August / September 2012

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The Re-invention of

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VOLUME 5 • NUMBER 4

10 CAN'T MISS ENERGY BOOSTERS

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August/September 2012 FREE

The Place to Find

Your Healthy Balance

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For the smart, savvy Alabama woman Publisher: Editor: Design and Photography: Sales reps:

Beth Snipes Jenni Laidman

Beth Snipes Regina Lynn Duck Jenifer Harwell Judy Simon Kolayah KeeVan Web Designer: Brock Burgess Distribution: John Snipes

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eople are searching for a hormone replacement therapy regimen that provides a resurgence of energy. You don’t have to have headaches, hot flashes, and a decreased sex drive. You can say farewell to mood swings and insomnia. With the results of a one-day saliva test, June Adams, a compounding pharmacist and bio-identical hormone counselor, will provide the natural human-identical hormones that your body needs. June’s problemsolving pharmacy provides natural progesterone cream, DHEA, estrogen, and testosterone. For some, it will mean an enzyme to reduce stress, or a glandular complex to support your thyroid.

Both men and women can benefit from this simple test for a personal hormone profile.

Accelerated aging, fat gain, mental fogginess, and general fatigue are not natural. They can be symptoms of a hormone imbalance for which there is a natural treatment. Find the right dose without the concerns of side effects from synthetic products.

Contributors Food: Fashion: Brawn: Garden: Home: Momitude:

Heida Olin Taylor Dungjen Lisa Gallagher Patti Householder Jacquelyn Dixon Kelly Frick

CONTACT US AT beth@lee-magazine.com editor@lee-magazine.com sales@lee-magazine.com

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August/September 2012 6 Food

Did Someone Say Salsa?

8 Garden Contain your garden

10 Brawn

Better Than Caffeine

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12 Fashion Packin' It In

14 Momitude Long May She Reign!

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16 Health Get Out of Those Wet Clothes!

18 Home

Picking a Builder

20 Special Feature Tracie West – Warming Up to Business

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12 Cover photo by

Beth Snipes

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Cover

Kellie Guthrie: Sharp G.E.A.R., Big Vision

28 Calendar Plenty to do in Lee County

Salsa Fiesta

Mangoes, pineapple, and peaches take this treat to the next level

By Heida Olin

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Snipes

8 to 12 Roma tomatoes 3-4 Anaheim peppers 1-2 jalapeño peppers 1 Vidalia onion, quartered

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by Bet

ROASTED TOMATO AND PEPPER SALSA Here is a great salsa for tacos. Add a little sour cream and a squeeze of lime juice, and it’s great on fish tacos. Or put it on scrambled eggs and sprinkle it with grated cheddar. Oh, and it goes well with tortilla chips.

The salsa is even better the second day, and will keep for up to two weeks in the fridge. It also freezes well.

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hen I was a kid, my friends and I would stop at a Mexican restaurant on our way home from school for chips and salsa. Back then It was an exotic treat.

You couldn’t even buy tortilla chips at the store. Now, salsa has evolved into a condiment for many a menu. I love to pair any mild fish — grilled or steamed — with mango, peach, or pineapple salsa.

Fresh tomato salsa stirred into hot rice makes a tasty Spanish rice.

Every salsa needs peppers and lime juice. And roasted salsas are every bit as good as fresh. Roasted salsas will last two weeks in the refrigerator, but not at my house. So I make it in big batches and freeze it.

One of the key ingredients in most salsas is cilantro. This is a powerful herb that has a very short growing season. If you buy it at the store, use it soon. It doesn’t last long. I’m not a big cilantro fan, so I use it sparingly, and I prefer the freeze-dried cilantro.

So forget the jars of salsa. You won’t find my Bull Tiger Salsa at the store and it would be a shame to deprive that tailgate party of this addicting salsa.

2 garlic cloves 1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves 1 tablespoon fresh or dried oregano, chopped 1 teaspoons ground cumin 2 teaspoons coarse sea salt 2 teaspoons coarsely ground black pepper ¼ cup lime juice ¼ cup cider vinegar 1 teaspoon Gourmet Garden Chili Pepper (optional, for more heat)

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Core and halve tomatoes. Place tomatoes cut side down in a large shallow roasting pan. Add jalapeño and quartered onion to pan. Roast 15 minutes. Add garlic cloves and roast 15 minutes more. Tomato and pepper skins will be blistered and partially blackened. Cover pan with foil for 10 minutes to steam skin for easier peeling. Peel tomatoes and peppers, and remove stem-end of peppers. Chop vegetables to desired consistency. Or, put vegetables in food processor, adding any juices from the roasting pan, and pulse 4 times. Add the Gourmet Garden Chili pepper, if using.

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PINEAPPLE SALSA This refreshing salsa gives fish or ham island flair. It’s sweet with a nice zing. Add this salsa to chopped chicken with a little mayonnaise and chopped pecans and you have a quick, easy chicken salad.

1 tablespoon honey ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper Juice of 1 fresh lime 1 cup finely diced fresh pineapple 2 tablespoons finely diced red onion 2 green onions sliced to match the other diced vegetables 2 tablespoon finely diced red bell pepper 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh cilantro 2 teaspoons finely minced jalapeño pepper

5 medium red radishes 1 medium cucumber, diced ½ sweet red pepper, diced 3 medium scallions, sliced 1 tablespoon cilantro, chopped 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice 1 teaspoon olive oil ½ teaspoon coarse salt ¼ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

Slice radishes in half. Place, cut side down, on cutting board and thinly slice. Stir all ingredients in a medium bowl.

BULL TIGER SALSA Mix honey, cayenne pepper, and lime juice in a medium bowl.

I was looking for a great Southern salsa for tailgating. It needed to Add the remaining ingredients and stir well. Refrigerate for an hold up well in the sun or the cold. I tested and retested this recipe on the family until I came up with the perfect combination. You can use regular hour to blend the flavors. tortilla chips on this, but my clan really got into the scoop style tortilla chips or corn chips. If you can manage to make it a day in advance (you MANGO SALSA may have to hide it behind that leftover broccoli) it’s even better. Feel free Mangos are a luscious tropical fruit that the grocery store carries almost to substitute freeze-dried cilantro instead of fresh, adjusting the amount year round. Their creamy sweetness pairs well with the crisp cucumber to taste. and onion. This turns simple fish into an elegant dish.

1 mango, peeled and diced ½ cup peeled, diced cucumber 1 tablespoon finely chopped jalapeño 1/3 cup diced red onion 1 tablespoon lime juice 1/3 cup roughly chopped cilantro leaves Salt and white pepper to taste Combine all ingredients and stir well.

PEACH SALSA The smell of the fresh peaches is so intoxicating this salsa is hard to resist. It’s great on chicken or pork tenderloin, but if you have some pita chips on hand, it may not make it to the table.

4 ripe, firm peaches, chopped 2-3 tablespoons chopped shallots or onions 2-3 jalapeños, chopped; stem, seeds, and ribs discarded Juice of a lemon 2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint 2 tablespoons grated ginger 1 teaspoon sugar Salt and black pepper to taste

1 can black beans, rinsed and drained 1 can black-eyed peas, rinsed and drained 1 can corn 1 red bell pepper, diced 1 green bell pepper, diced ½ cup celery hearts — the very light colored center plus the leaves, diced 2 medium tomatoes, diced 1 Vidalia onion, diced 2 tablespoons chopped pickled jalapeño (more if you like it hot) ½ cup of Champagne vinegar ½ cup extra light olive oil 1 tablespoon prepared horseradish mustard ½ - 1 teaspoon coarse salt Juice of ½ lime 1 tablespoon of cilantro, chopped

Mix beans, peas, corn, peppers, celery, tomatoes, onion, and pickled jalapeño in a large bowl. Whisk vinegar, olive oil, horseradish mustard, salt and lime juice in a 2-quart liquid measure. Add the dressing mixture to the beans and vegetables, and mix well. Gently stir in the cilantro. Refrigerate until ready to serve. -lm

RADISH AND CUCUMBER SALSA Heida Olin is a local caterer and educator. You can reach her Try this with steak or roast beef. It makes a good dip with bagel chips at heida@lee-magazine.com.. Please visit her blog as well. at www.lee-magazine.com LEE MAGAZINE 7

G A R D E N

Contained Bounty

thrive in a smaller pot of three to five gallons.

• Leaf lettuce, spinach, green onions, radishes will do well in smaller pots.

• With carrots, the important variable is the depth of the pot. It must accommodate the variety you’re planting.

• Green beans require a trellis if they are the vine type.

• If you want okra, stick to the dwarf variety.

• For corn? Well, you’re out of luck.

Its size and pollination needs make it a difficult container plant.

Containers can be as varied as your imagination: from traditional pots purchased at garden centers to wooden crates and landscape fabric. Make sure the container has adequate drainage. You may have to drill holes in the bottom of some fiberglass and foam pots. I’m into my fourth year of using “grow bags,” fabric pots made from a double-layer of polypropylene, which I purchase online. Terra cotta pots are great for herbs but not vegetables since they require constant moisture.

An all-purpose potting soil mixture is best for container plantings; it both drains well and maintains moisture. Fill your container three-quarters full, and then mix in a granular, slow-release fertilizer. If the slow-release fertilizer label says it lasts three months, count on only a month and a half. The constant watering a pot requires makes the fertilizer leach quickly from the soil. After the fertilizer, finish filling with potting soil. In place of slow-release

Supply your table from the smallest outdoor spaces

By Patti Householder

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postage stamp yard or an outdoor area no bigger than an apartment balcony shouldn’t keep you from a vegetable harvest this summer.

Even though I have a raised bed garden, which is a large container, and a traditional garden, I also use containers. I especially like growing tomatoes and peppers in containers. This protects them from the

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soil-borne diseases to which they are so susceptible. With containers, I can replace the soil each year.

Your first task in container gardening is deciding what you want to grow.

• Tomatoes and potatoes need large pots, five to seven gallons.

• Cabbage, peppers, and eggplant will

fertilizer, you may use a water-soluble fertilizer and water according to package directions.

When planting tomatoes and peppers, strip off all the leaves except the top two to four. Then plant the tomato or pepper plant deep, so that these top leaves are just above the soil. Water well. Stake your

tomatoes, especially if they are an indeterminate variety, meaning they produce throughout the season. Determinate varieties, which means fruit comes in all at one time, do not grow as tall but still need some support. Peppers rarely require support. All vegetables need six to eight hours of sun.

You may need to water every day, depending on the weather.

Plants require more water as they mature.

It is probably too late to plant tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, beans, and okra. Plant those in spring or in July. But in the fall you can plant potatoes, carrots, lettuce, spinach, green onions or radishes. You can also plant those in February or March. At the end of the season, I dump the potting soil into my garden.

So, if you thought you didn’t have the space or time to grow vegetables, think again. There is nothing like homegrown vegetables; nothing store bought compares in taste. So be adventurous and try growing something you really love in a container. -lm For more detailed information on container vegetables, go to www.aces.edu and download publication ANR-1139.

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B R A W N

Super Power!

TEN TIPS FOR THE BEST ENERGY BOOST YET

By Lisa Gallagher

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ost fitness centers often have a one- to two-year contract that includes a medical release. If your doctor says that you have a condition that will not allow you to exercise, you can suspend your contract until you are able to exercise again. This is how I found my doctor. I was explaining the medical freeze policy to a potential member, who said, “If I had two broken arms and two broken legs my doctor would still not sign that form!” I liked Dr. Ellen Rabun already.

Dr. Rabun ran her own medical practice in Blacksburg, Virginia, and ran five to ten miles most days. She said running miles and miles before her nine-hour workday gave her the energy to make it through the day. “If I had to get up at three a.m. to get my run in, I would,” she said. This thirtysomething mom and MD knew from experience that exercise gives you energy.

This is true even if you have a medical condition. In fact, that extends to cancerrelated fatigue, according to a review of 10 LEE MAGAZINE

twenty-eight studies that included more than two thousand participants.

If you are struggling with constant lethargy, these tips will put the bounce back in your step. Don’t overdo it — instead pick a few ideas that appeal to you and give them a go.

Set up a regular exercise routine that includes cardiovascular and muscle strengthening as well as flexibility.

Exercise outside for an added fresh air and sunshine boost.

Get enough sleep, which for most means 7 to 9 hours a night. Keep to a regular schedule of bed and wake time and keep your bedroom cool, comfortable and electronics-free. If you fall asleep right when your head hits the pillow, or during afternoon meetings, you may be sleep deprived.

Manage your energy and not your time. It may take some journaling to realize what time of the day is best for you to exercise and what time is best for

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you to check email or do less active tasks.

Don’t ride sugar highs and lows.

Eat small amounts of food that combine carbohydrates with protein to avoid an energy crash. Don’t forget ironrich foods if you are prone to anemia.

Drink enough water throughout the day. This could be the simplest energy boost on the list.

Socialize, laugh, and have fun to cope with stress. Women who take time to gather with others have lower cortisol levels. Cortisol is the hormone that shoots up during stress.

Avoid your Eeyore, whether you encounter her at work or next door.

Words create worlds, and listening to negative stories, thoughts, and feelings is a sure way to suck the life out of your day, and the energy out of your body. Protect yourself from negativity — it matters to your health.

Cut back on caffeinated drinks.

Too much caffeine is akin to

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overdrawing your bank account. It may give you an initial boost of energy, but you will pay later.

Don’t use alcohol to deal with stress. Alcohol can be relaxing, but it is a sedative. If your objective is maximizing your energy then alcohol is not your friend.

Pare down your to-do list to the essentials. It’s OK to keep a ‘someday maybe’ list on the side, but don’t set yourself up for failure by building an insurmountable list of daily tasks.

Running gives Dr. Rabun energy. What works for you? Exercise is medicine and is on the top of the energy-generating list. But other habits can help us find the energy to exercise. So whether it’s a trip to the mall, organizing a closet, aromatherapy, or a day off from responsibility, you should make time for it. One caveat: Keep in mind that persistent fatigue can indicate an underlying health problem and in any case, a visit to the doctor is the best start to a new exercise program. -lm

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Lisa Gallagher, director of the Fitness Center at the Opelika Sportsplex, is a wellness coach, personal trainer, and group fitness instructor. You can contact her at lisa@lee-magazine.com.

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F A S H I O N

TAKING YOUR SHOES ON VACATION

Packing Smart Leaves You Far More Options

By Taylor Dungjen

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read somewhere recently that you only need to have two pairs of shoes on vacation.

What?! Who wrote that, and what kind of drugs he was on —I must assume it was a man. No reasonable, sensible, fashionforward woman would believe you can survive with two pairs of shoe. Unless, that is, the object of your vacation is a shoe buying spree.

But then again, what do I know? I went to New York for two days and took four pairs — and that doesn’t count the pair I had on. I pack way too much no matter where I’m going or how long I’m going to be there.

This has to stop. So, to prepare for an upcoming vacation to Baltimore with two of my best friends, I did a little research on how to pack smart and remain fashionable — with as many pairs of shoes as I wanted. I couldn’t get carried away on bags, since I still had to cram my friends, my friends stuff, and me into a car with a tiny trunk. (Actually documented as the smallest trunk known to mankind.)

Here’s what I learned: Go for the basics.

For me that meant two pairs of pants — blue and black skinny jeans, one skirt (navy 12 12 LEE LEEMAGAZINE MAGAZINE

with a lace overlay), and a dress (a bright yellow one just in case we do something fancy). Throw in T-shirts and tanks, and a simple blazer (although Baltimore is ridiculously hot during the summer), and I’m done.

Here’s the second thing I learned.

When you’re deciding what to pack, lay out your outfits ahead of time, including underwear and accessories. This will keep you from over-packing or

forgetting something essential.

Now, how to get it all in the suitcase.

A lot of people recommend the Space Saver bags, which use a vacuum to smoosh your clothes until they are so thin, their atoms are crowded, threatening nuclear destruction. I mean, that’s brilliant and all, but, frankly, sounds like too much work. To say nothing of the nuclear

Taylor Dungjen is a freelance writer who often covers fashion. Write to her at taylor@lee-magazine.com

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Before and after results of surgery.

accident. And what if your hotel doesn’t have a vacuum next to that ironing board in the closet (who uses that thing?)? I don’t know about you, but the last thing I’m interested in while I’m on vacation is a damn vacuum.

Instead, try rolling all of your clothing.

They take up less room when rolled, giving you way more space for shoes and toiletries.

Speaking of toiletries, pack light and pack smart. Since I’m traveling with two other people, there’s no need for all three of us to bring toothpaste, sunscreen, shampoo, and conditioner. It won’t save a ton of space, but that stuff can get pretty bulky. And if it’s a decision between shampoo and another pair of shoes, the shoes are going to win it every single time. -lm

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M O M I T U D E

The Royal Family RELINQUISHING THE CROWN TO THE NEWEST PRINCESS All things come to an end. When they do there is sadness, but hope for a new beginning.

This summer, we passed the torch in my family.

I am no longer the princess. That title now rests firmly with my daughter.

What took so long, you might ask? I guess we both had to be ready.

You see, I’ve spent much of my life being the only girl. My parents doted on me. My grandparents doted on me. My aunts, who only had sons, doted on me. My brothers, jealous of the attention, were the first to dub me with the nickname, The Princess.

I cherished it. I wore it like a crown, 14 LEE MAGAZINE

rather than the insult they intended.

I liked being spoiled. I liked shopping trips that let me stay in a dressing room while my mother ran through a store

She was walking with her head up, shopping bags in either hand, looking like she owned the world. bringing me outfits to try on. I liked dinners made simply because I liked spaghetti. I enjoyed conversations that centered on me.

Yes, I was a princess.

And even after the birth of my daughter, I continued to be spoiled. My husband aimed to please me with gifts. My mother still relished shopping trips with me — which now included stops at baby stores to buy adorable outfits to dress up my miniprincess.

But despite being doted on as well, my Emma didn’t act like a princess. She was practical, not dreamy. She was precious, but unassuming. She didn’t demand attention like I did as a child.

At least not until this summer.

The realization hit me like a brick as we vacationed in June. We had spent the day

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VOLUME 4 • NUMBER 1

Kelly Frick is a writer and mother of two.

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VOLUME 4 • NUMBER 5

touring a new city. She had been pouty most of the day. But she’s 13 so that goes with the territory. I finally asked what was wrong.

“When is this going to be about me?” she blurted.

“What do you mean?” I said.

“I want to go shopping. I don’t want to look at one more old building.”

So, she and I left for a little shopping excursion down a very elite street where you can buy Louis Vuitton bags or Gucci shoes.

She chose the shops, she grabbed things to try on, she threw the rejects at me and asked me to find different sizes, colors, shapes.

I spent two hours being her handmaid.

And it was all fun. We were having a great time. I paid. She smiled and was gracious enough to thank me.

It finally hit me as I trailed behind her on the sidewalk.

She was walking with her head up, shopping bags in either hand, looking like she owned the world.

I was trying to keep up, trying to remember if I got my credit card back from the shoe store, trying to find my phone to make sure I hadn’t missed a call from my husband, trying to find lipstick because I was pretty sure I looked like hell, trying not to bump into people on the sidewalk as I fumbled with all these tasks.

She, however, was walking with ease and grace. My little girl had become a princess.

We arrived back at our hotel. Her brother was in the pool. He immediately noticed her shopping bags as she excitedly showed her father her new purchases.

My son looked at me and said, “She gets whatever she wants. She thinks she’s royalty or something.”

Yes, I guess she does.

Let her enjoy it, I told him. May her reign last as long as mine did. -lm

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H E A L T H

By Dr. Lee Sharma

Summer Scourge THE PROBLEM WITH WARM WEATHER AND WET BATHING SUITS

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uring the summer, vaginal yeast infections are one of the most common complaints I treat. Candidal vaginitis, the clinical name for yeast, will occur in almost seventy-five percent of women at least once and almost half of women will have two or more during their lifetime. But there is still a lot of confusion about what causes yeast infections, as well as the best way to prevent and treat them.

Candida albicans — the species of yeast that can lead to trouble — is often part of a normal population of yeast and bacteria in the genital track. So the mere presence of yeast on a microscope slide isn’t enough to diagnose an infection. The trouble comes when C. albicans populations grow out of control, leading to a diagnosis of Candidal vaginitis and one or several symptoms.

So your objective is to avoid creating an environment optimal for C. albicans growth. And it grows well in warm, moist environments, so bathing suits, workout clothes, or undergarments that do not allow moisture to evaporate increase risk.

Your risk increases with diabetes, and the consumption of lots of refined carbohydrates — carbohydrates processed so they no longer 16 LEE MAGAZINE

contain bran, germ, and associated nutrients.

Antibiotics, can also allow yeast to overgrow.

Hormones are also associated with yeast infections, so using oral steroids can increase its likelihood; so can pregnancy. vergrowth of yeast causes inflammation, which in turn can produce external and internal burning and itching, often accompanied by a thick white “cottage cheese” discharge. Symptoms may worsen with intercourse or in the week before one’s period.

Your doctor diagnosis a yeast infection by examining a sample of vaginal fluid treated with potassium hydroxide under a microscope.

The potassium hydroxide dissolves normal cells and vaginal fluid, leaving the yeast much easier to see. Even though Candida albicans is the most common species of yeast to cause infection, the doctor may also see other types, such as Candida glabrata. This is important to identify because not all types of yeast respond to all types of therapy.

Because most yeast infections are caused by Candida albicans, over-thecounter medications are typically effective.

A prescription of the oral medication

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diflucan at a low dose —150 milligrams — also works well. In recurrent or persistent yeast infections, your doctor might prescribe a longer course of diflucan, or the use of other medications such as terazol in order to attack the potential variety of yeast species involved. o prevent yeast infections, change out of wet bathing suits or workout clothes as soon as possible, and wear cotton underwear. Probiotics may help improve one’s yeast/bacteria balance after taking antibiotics. Eating yogurt may also help. Avoiding high-carbohydrate foods such as bread and refined sugar.

These can keep the blood sugar low and avoid “feeding” yeast in the vagina.

Even though yeast infections are very common, they can cause significant and disruptive symptoms. But knowing what causes them makes them much easier to diagnose, treat, and avoid. -lm

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Dr. Lee Sharma is a board-certified gynecologist in private practice. Trained at Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas, she lives in Opelika with her husband Shash, children Sam and Rachel, and her puppy Ryker.

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Sprout Wings at Auburn University's Aviation School

S

eeing Jordan-Hare Stadium from a bird’s eye view is an amazing sight and you don't have to be an eagle to see it.

If you've considered earning a pilot's license, Auburn University Aviation School's professional flight management program is right around the corner, ready to help you take off.

This is not a fly-by-night operation either, far from it, it is one of the best in the nation. The program has been training professional pilots since 1941 and is accredited by the Aviation Accreditation Board International and has trained pilots since 1941. The program is primarily for high school graduates interested in aviation but faculty, staff and local citizens can take aviation courses, too. Once completed, students will have earned their commercial pilot's license which could lead to an exciting career.

If you've dreamed of becoming a pilot but not sure what steps to take or or even if it is the career for you, the program's team will give you a taste of what to expect.

Dale Watson, Director, Aviation Education School at Auburn University explains, “You can schedule a thirty minute discovery flight around the Auburn/Opelika area. Aspiring pilots can go up with one of our instructors and see if flying is right for them and get a grasp of our flight program."

A discovery flight is a mini introduction to the steps a pilots takes to get off the ground and get back again.

Step one is to check local radar. The weather is closely monitored and if conditions aren't just right, your flight will be rescheduled. This common sense measure is only one part of a safe flight.

Next comes (gulp) weighing in. Lee Dickerson, the pilot instructor, explained the importance of body weight of the pilot, passengers, fuel and overall plane weight. “If the weight is off, adjustments are made for a safe flight.” Dickerson said, “Safety is first. All of the numbers have to be correct. Another important number in the equation is flying time, pilots cannot be over their flying hour limit.

The pre-flight checklist is next. Your instructor will escort you to the plane and explain procedures just as an aspiring new flight student.

Any nervousness is distracted by learning how to get into the plane, buckling up and and being introduced to the controls. Once the master power switch is on, the gas gauges and flaps are checked, the engine sounds are listened to closely for any unusual sounds, and levers and controllers are tested for normal operation.

The exterior of the plane gets a thorough going over, too. Every nut, bolt,

instructor are taxiing down the runway and lifting off. “When you are taking off, there is no talking. After you are in the air flying smoothly, you can talk again.”

Dickerson said. The headphones and microphone make it easy for instructor and student to talk to communicate.

Once in the air, you receive further instruction. After doing the proper hand off procedure, the instructor hands over the controls for you to pilot the plane.

"Words can't explain the feeling of controlling a plane for the first time. Lee Dickerson said with a huge smile, “I love my job. There is nothing like being in the clouds.”

After thirty minutes of the incredible feeling of flying and seeing what the eagle does, it's time to head home. The instructor preforms the pre-landing safety check, gets clearance to land, and brings the plane back to earth with a touchdown so smooth, you can barely feel the wheels kiss the runway.

Then, when your feet hit the ground, flying will be in your veins.

If you are ready to take off and start down an exciting career path, visit: http://business.auburn.edu/ academics/undergraduate/ professional-flight-management

or contact the Auburn University College of Business at 334-844-5766.

BUILDERS 101

Who Should Build Your Dream Home?

By Jacquelyn Dixon

W

hen you’re choosing a builder, there is a lot to consider.

Their personalities speaks volumes about what type of construction you might receive. Do they take the time to listen to your wants and needs? Do they follow through when you ask questions?

Are they detail-oriented? Details make all the difference, not just in what you see, but in everything that’s behind the walls. A well constructed home begins by building it right.

You want to pay attention to a builder’s reputation. Are they known for quality and craftsmanship? Do their previous clients have good things to say? Every home will have the same components, just fashioned in different ways. Your home is the largest single investment you will ever make, so do your homework and take your time.

There are three principle types of builders, production builders, custom builders and remodelers. Each have advantages and disadvantages. Choosing which you want depends on what you’re looking for.

18 LEE MAGAZINE

Production builders build homes of similar design and floor plans, typically in neighborhoods created by a single builder or developer. Volume building can save money; materials are bought in bulk and labor may be contracted at a lower rate. Because the builder and his or her crew have built the same home many times, they can work quickly. Most builders offer a variety of option packages covering such items as appliances, flooring and plumbing and electrical fixtures. For extra money, you can select items not part of the normal packages.

PROS: Lower price is the obvious draw. The floor plan appeals to a mass market, so no worries what will be built next door. For first-time buyers, production builders can be ideal.

CONS: To make these homes affordable and profitable, builders keep a sharp eye on price point. Expect builders to economize on standard cabinets, windows, hardware and appliances.

So are some less obvious items, such as framing components, paint grade

and flooring grade. Finally, there can be a disadvantage at the time of resale, when sellers are driven to compete on price to make their home more appealing than a similar one down the street.

Custom builders build homes that meet customer specifications. Lot choice, floor plan, and the finish quality of all materials are the owner’s call. Home owners are an active participate. No, they don’t get to drive the nails, but they see the daily process. Achieving a level of satisfaction like no other. Because each home is unique, they take more time to build. The need for close supervision means most custom builders put up ten or fewer homes each year.

PROS - The overall quality of materials and labor are evident. Everything must meet your approval; you call the shots.

You’ll have a one-on-one relationship with your builder.

CONS - It will cost more per square foot. Nothing is bought in bulk, and the only scrimping that’s done is scrimping you want. It will take more time to build, and because you make all the decisions, it will take more of your time.

Remodelers are builders that specialize in renovating existing spaces. Typically they are custom builders that have extended their expertise to smaller projects.

Pros and Cons would be the same as a custom builder.

All builders should be licensed and insured.

No matter which way you decide to go, interview several builders before you decide.

Go to open houses and look at finished homes. Talk to home owners and ask about their experience with the builder. Better yet, go to construction sites and talk to the sub contractors. They put it all together with the builders supervision. Know one knows the builder better than a sub. -lm Jacquelyn Dixon is a licensed contractor with fifteen years of experience, who builds custom homes and reinvents existing ones in the Auburn/Opelika area. Jacquelyn can be reached at: reallifebuilders@gmail.com

H O M E

Photo By Beth Snipes

TRACIE WEST: SHE’S GOT MAIL

Auburn Woman Warms Up to Business

Tracie West

By Christian Becraft

F

or Tracie West, the reality of raising two children eight hundred fifty miles from her Alabama family settled in as thick as the snow heaped outside her door. Tracie, her husband, Paul, and baby Lydia, had moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan, for her husband’s job.

At the time, the move seemed ideal; it meant Tracie could stay home with the baby. But, as the first months passed, Tracie grew tired of the cold that brought snow in October and left traces behind in May. Paul West, a major in the U.S. Army National Guard, had traveled all over as a guardsman, but Tracie had seldom ventured outside of the South. When she ran the Auburn flag up the flagpole 20 LEE MAGAZINE

of their Michigan home, the neighbors didn’t know what it was.

“I missed home,” Tracie says. “I loved being home with Lydia. I think Paul gained

sympathized. “She called me one day on the phone crying and said that they had 104 inches of snow,” Karen remembers.

“She was afraid to take Lydia Ann out in

“I had a playpen in the back of the store, and I changed diapers

on the packing table. I still have customers that tell me that they remember me feeding Marion her bottle while waiting on customers at the cash register. You know, it was just crazy. It was crazy! But you know you do it, and so it was fun."

- Tracie West about fifteen pounds because I cooked all the time. You know, I had this little baby and there wasn’t anything else to do.” But when she realized another baby was on the way, she knew she wanted to move closer to family.

Tracie’s mother, Karen Turner,

the car because the road conditions were so bad. She had to walk to the grocery store to buy their groceries, and she said ‘Mama, I just want to come home.”

Then the family learned that the Auburn Pak Mail franchise — a shipping

and packing concern — was for sale.

The couple had talked about owning their own business, but this was a business in an entirely unfamiliar field. Still, its location trumped their worries, and in 1997, a year and half after the Wests moved to Michigan, Tracie and her mother-in-law drove fourteen hours to Alabama and a new home. Tracie was thirty-six weeks pregnant. “I was so uncomfortable,” Tracie says remembering the size of her belly. “I was pretty miserable.”

“She just wanted to come home,” Paul says. Although Tracie grew up in Birmingham, she was an Auburn University grad, and just as she was preparing to return to Birmingham, her parents moved to Auburn. By the time Tracie and Paul took up the Pak Mail franchise, her parents had lived in Auburn for six years. “I think Auburn was home before it became home,” Paul says. “I think it was just one of those things that just was meant to be.”

P

aul jumped into the business, and Tracie took care of baby Marion, who arrived only three weeks after the purchase of Pak Mail. But she didn’t let the baby stop her.

“It was tough, no kidding,” she remembers. “I had a playpen in the back of the store, and I changed diapers on the packing table. I still have customers that tell me that they remember me feeding Marion her bottle while waiting on customers at the cash register. You know, it was just crazy. It was crazy! But you know you do it, and so it was fun,” she laughs. “I don’t think I have enough energy to do it all over again.” Adding to her burden, not long after they family moved to Auburn, the National Guard sent Paul to serve in Iraq for a year.

Tracie’s cropped, dusty blonde hair reaches just below her ears in a perfect

swoop that frames her face. She’s wearing mint green cropped pants and a crisply pressed white blouse with a gold and green necklace tracing the neckline. She and Paul gave the business everything, she says, retirement savings and all. And within the first two years of ownership, it boomed.

Tracie worked hard to make her business well known.

“If somebody asked me to volunteer, I went,” she says. “Pretty soon, our name, when people thought of shipping something they thought of Pak Mail, and then we created a lot of good will.”

The business was full of surprises for Paul: They shipped animal urine to Europe. They once handled a model airplane that stretched across the entire 2,500-square-foot store. But it was the dayto-day interactions with people that he enjoyed most.

While the business grew, so did the family when the couple adopted their youngest daughter, Kathryn. Now they had three little girls, all born within two years.

“We didn’t expect it; it came out of nowhere,” Tracie says. She and Paul had been asked to help a couple by acting as foster parents. “We really didn’t know how it would turn out. We thought she’d be with us a couple of weeks until she moved on. After we had her about six weeks as foster parents, there was no way. I was just like, I love this child. I can’t give her to anybody now. So it just worked out great.”

A

s she takes Lydia, now 16, to equestrian practice, Marion, now 14, to volleyball and Kathryn (or Katie-boo as mom calls her), now 12, to piano or guitar lessons, Tracie’s business schedule has only grown more hectic.

She now runs two Pak Mail stores — the second store at the Moore’s Mill location has a drive-through, she notes excitedly.

She also runs a second business they have owned since March of 2010, East Alabama Shredding and Security. And she serves on the Auburn City Schools Board of Education.

P

aul, enrollment and scholarship officer for the Auburn University ROTC, says he doesn’t quite know how she handles it all, but he says a big part of her success is simply the work ethic her parents instilled. Tracie’s mother chalks up her daughter’s success to two key ingredients: “Tracie is very disciplined, and she is very organized,” she says. “She has always been that way.”

On the typical weekday, Tracie is up at 5 a.m. and out the door by 7:30 a.m. She runs between the two stores, routes the shredding truck’s pickup schedule, attends a meeting or two for one of the many organizations she is involved in — Rotary Club, the Chamber of Commerce, the school board, to name a few — and makes sure the family has dinner together every night, no matter what time they have to schedule it.

On family night, the living room doubles as a game room for bouts of Sorry! or Farkel Party, and on movie nights the girls and their friends lounge on the large L-shaped sofa. “We laugh a lot,” Tracie says.

On the weekend, Tracie is in the garden or the kitchen. She’ll even pause to greet a blue bird’s appearance as it says hello just outside her window. After a hectic week, Tracie welcomes a slow Sunday.

As she looks out over her backyard, she is constantly reminded of how fortunate she is, she says. Life in the South, for Tracie, is a fabulous mixture of luck, good fellowship, and (thankfully) the need for air conditioning until November. -lm Christian Becaft is a recent graduate of Auburn University in the journalism program.

She lives in Auburn and works for the university.

Kellie Guthrie will move G.E.A.R. by R-I into the firehouse in Montgomery's historic district.

STORY BY ALLISON CLARK

22 LEE MAGAZINE

PHOTOS BY BETH SNIPES

At forty-two Kellie Guthrie moved in with Mom and Dad in Opelika. Her life had to change. Not just a bit, but completely.

As she worked out what she needed to do, the people around her were swept into her sense of mission until even strangers were determined to be part of it all. Now, she’s ReInventing how we help one another — one stitch at a time.

Everything Old is New Again THE POWER OF ONE: KELLIE = RE-INVENTION

“I

sn’t it amazing?” Mary Rosato says to Kellie Guthrie, creator of the home accents brand, G.E.A.R. by R-I. “Is what amazing?” Kellie asks, her eyes sweeping the lot of the Friendship Mission in Montgomery.

Mary points and Kellie’s eyes land on an aged yellow school bus, worn from years on the road, its tires pancaked, its engine dead. Broken headlights peer at her like the eyes of a stray dog begging to be reclaimed.

But as she steps into the bus, it all comes clear. This is what she is all about. This is Re-Invention. That’s what the R-I at the end of her brand name stands for.

Re-Invention, which got its start in Lee County, is the parent corporation to G.E.A.R., through which Kellie plans to spin off more ventures like this one, where a re-invented bus helps homeless and poor women learn marketable skills while creating high-end products.

“It was just so fitting to everything [ReInvention] does, because it’s all about the broken beginnings and making use of everything,” Kellie says.

As she talks, Kellie fusses with her wispy shoulder-length hair, putting it into a ponytail and taking it down again — a frequent gesture. As always, she’s in

jeans and a t-shirt. She wears no makeup.

She seldom does. Her focus is on growing her business, which, on one hand, trains homeless women to work with fabric, and on the other, creates funky-chic messenger bags, patchwork pillows and oversized ottomans for more than one hundred and twenty stores around the country. In August, Auburn got its first G.E.A.R. outlet when Kinnucan’s on South Donahue Drive began carrying the line.

The bus is a timely stop-gap. Eventually, the training going that takes place in the bus will move into new facilities in Montgomery, with the help of an Auburn businesswoman who heard about Kellie’s vision and instantly wanted to be part of it.

But before all this got started, before the 120 stores, and the high-end products, and the creating opportunities, and everything Re-Invention stood for, Kellie had to reinvent herself.

She was working in the fashion industry, representing a clothing line to retailers, when Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans in August of 2005. As she watched the wrenching images on television, she started to cry — not just a few tears either. She was sobbing. All of her life she had thought about helping others, making a difference.

Her first job after moving away from her

family’s Florida home at twenty-six was as development director for a school for the learning disabled. She stayed for ten years, raising money for the school and coaching the kids in cheerleading and volleyball. But the jobs in real estate and fashion that followed — jobs she loved and was good at — hadn’t included that helping component.

Watching the dismaying scenes from the Gulf Coast made her want a different life. “I couldn’t stand it that I just couldn’t get in my car and go there and help,” she says.

Within six months, she had put her belongings into storage and moved in with her parents, who had moved to Opelika.

She was forty-two years old.

And she had no idea what she was doing.

“I was scared to death. I was like, what on Earth is happening in my life?” Kellie says. “I was struggling so much, because after leaving my job I felt like such a quitter.”

She spent nearly a year picking up odd jobs and thinking through the outreach she hoped to create. In 2007, she teamed up with Lee Ann Pettit, who was opening Spa Auburn, and created a boutique LEE MAGAZINE 23

Anzella Davis, Kellie, Sabrina Shealey, and Rachel Fischer sew the fabric scraps together.

One of the G.E.A.R. messenger bag.

within the spa offering sustainable clothing and products created by the kind of enterprise she hoped to foster one day — businesses that provided opportunities for people without them.

When she finally created Re-Invention at the end of 2009, it was to market clothing and jewelry lines of this type to other stores.

24 LEE MAGAZINE

Anzella Davis is a whiz at the sewing machine.

Fabric on the "to cut" pile.

But she found her true north inside of a barn on Pettit’s property, in a sunlit hill of golden brown burlap coffee bean sacks.

“The bags were gorgeous; they had a story and a life. I was going nuts over these bags,” Kellie says. “I was, Wow, I could sell those. It was like artwork!”

She used the bags first as a decorative touch at the spa. Then she created a garment bag. And patchwork pillows. And a messenger bag, eventually engaging a local seamstress to bring her ideas to life.

These were perfect, they embodied her ideas about Re-Invention. “Everyone thinks, ‘Oh who can do anything with that?’ Well, I can. I saw the depth, the beauty, the colors.”

Eventually, she showed this growing collection of items to her sister, Kathryn Guthrie, whose entire career was in the home décor arena. Kathryn knew a winner when she saw one.

“They had a look that was trending in the industry: lofty, urban, and sustainable,” Kathryn says. er sister put Kellie in touch with people who were able to showcase products at the AmericasMart, an international gift and home furnishings market in Atlanta, where retailers go to select new product lines.

The stuff was a hit! It sold! So before Kellie had a manufacturing facility, or employees, or much of anything at all,

H

Rachel Fisher checks out the nifty temporary workspace inside the old school bus.

G.E.A.R. by R-I was born.

“People are buying them and I’m like, how am I going to make these things?”

She did have a commitment for sewing help from the woman who made the prototypes, and together they began to find others to take on more of it. But that left the cutting, and the shipping, and the paperwork, and every little thing that goes into running a runaway success.

“I was doing every bit of the production work: all the cutting, the serging – I would basically make a little packet ready to be put together.” The seamstresses would take the packet and assemble the items, and then Kellie would pick it all up, and ship it out.

It was crazy.

But she had been making other important connections in the years between her move to Opelika and the creation of G.E.A.R, and now those blossomed.

She had made friends with Mary Rosato, who runs Friendship Mission with her husband Vince. When Mary and women from the shelter went to a quilting group called Prayers and Squares in Prattville, Kellie would join them, getting to know the women. Mary is now one of G.E.A.R’s five full-time team members, along with

Kellie’s sister, Kathryn, who also continues to work in the home accent industry.

It was Mary’s brainstorm to re-invent the school bus as a work room for the women of the shelter.

A

t Friendship Mission, a sewing machine keeps up a rhythmic clatter as Anzella Davis works. She sits at a table that stretches the length of the bus surrounded by mountains of colorful fabric. As she guides the fabric, her many gold rings flash in the sun coming through the bus windows. Kellie taught her to use the machine. Anzella lives at the shelter.

“Anzella has amazing work ethic, and I’m so proud of her,” Kellie says.

“Most of the time people on the streets aren’t even seen. No one sees them or touches them,” Kellie says. “ I’ve always seen them and always wanted to touch them and love on them, not just hand them money. I want to touch their hand and tell them they’re loved.”

Kellie hopes to eventually hire some of the shelter women, including Anzella.

In the meantime, Kellie is working nonstop as her products gain popularity.

Another important connection Kellie

made from her pre-G.E.A.R. days took place at an Auburn bible study in 2009.

Something about the way Kellie carried herself, the way she sat quietly during discussion, attracted Rachel Fisher’s attention. “It was weird the first time I saw Kellie, because I knew I was supposed to know her. I felt connected to her, but I didn’t understand how.”

The women struck up a conversation, and headed to a nearby coffee shop. By this time, Kellie was coming up with the business plan for Re-Invention, and she laid out her ideas with Rachel.

“I really connected,” Rachel says.

After that conversation, Rachel joined Kellie at Friendship Mission. Soon, she was involved in helping Kellie find a workspace where G.E.A.R. could grow. That’s when they heard the city of Montgomery was looking for a tenant for a brick firehouse in the historic district.

The women spent a weekend preparing a proposal to present to the city’s director of development, Chad Emerson. It outlined what they wanted to accomplish, and how it was all about the community and about building people up until they could support themselves.

The idea caught Emerson’s imagination.

“We’re excited. It seems like a very innovative business model that also has a good cause behind it.” He sent the proposal straight to the mayor, and the city made a verbal commitment to lease the facility at below market rate with an option to buy.

Like the retired school bus, the firehouse was old and abandoned, but aching to be used again. Still, the rent was already a stretch for the young company.

The potential costs of repairs threatened to crush them.

Enter Judy Van Dyke, development partner of The Bennett Group in Auburn, a company specializing in developing high-density housing. She learned about G.E.A.R through one of her employees, Kelly Culpepper. Culpepper is also the photographer for the G.E.A.R. catalog, LEE MAGAZINE 25

Kellie folds fabric at the mission in Montgomery.

and she emailed a catalog to Van Dyke, who loved what she saw. Culpepper told her about Kellie’s mission and the new firehouse building.

Van Dyke saw instantly that Kellie was in over her head with the firehouse. That’s where she could help. That Friday, Judy and Kellie met for dinner.

“Judy started talking about all the things we could do with the new location,” Kellie says. “I was overwhelmed.”

She told van Dyke, “I don’t have a penny to do any of those things.”

Van Dyke responded, “Well I do.”

There was a lot to do. The electrical system was shot. Most of the plumbing required rerouting. One corner of the building sagged. The bathrooms were unusable. Judy hired a construction company and asked Kellie to wait until the building was safer before moving in.

“K

ellie has an awesome product,” Van Dyke says. “If you can produce something like this that has such intrinsic value while helping people, then where’s the downside?

“Re-Invention has a lot of potential, but it is a challenge. I have faith it can work.”

Judy’s investment in Re-Invention allowed Rachel to go full time; she became

26 LEE MAGAZINE

A G.E.A.R. garment bag.

Kellie on a G.E.A.R. ottoman makes her fabric choices.

the communications director. But forget the grand title, she also runs errands, helps with packing, shipping and client followup — whatever needs to be done, giving Kellie time to work on the company’s growth, traveling more to attract potential customers.

“This step we’re taking with Judy means freedom,” Kellie says. “It’s been chaotic, but now we’re at a point where we can really, seriously design and put together a bigger collection.”

In July, Kellie and Kathryn went to

the Atlanta market again, adding to the number of stores taking the G.E.A.R. line.

When Kellie finally moves to the firehouse, she plans to bring the women from Friendship Mission to the new location.

“Kellie has been called to do this.

Definitely,” her sister Kathyrn says. “And I’ll tell you something, it is not an easy road. I’ve watched her give everything she has to give. She’s answered the call, but it’s very self-sacrificing. It is not about her, it’s about the people she serves.” -lm

EST. 1997

AFTER

AUBURN OPELIKA EAST ALABAMA LAKE MARTIN

AFTER

Real Life Builders

CUSTOM HOMES • REMODELS • RENOVATIONS We offer excellent Design & Construction services for both new homes and remodels.

Our commitment to innovation and craftsmanship will exceed your expectations. Providing our clients with their perfect home, the first time, every time.

lyn Jacque

334-332-0777•www.reallifebuilders.com

Dixon

.

YOUR VISION OUR EXPERTISE

AFTER

AFTER

LEE MAGAZINE 27

calendar WHERE

"

"

AUGUST/SEPTEMBER

AUBURN CITY PUBLIC LIBRARY, 479 East

LOUISE KREHER FOREST ECOLOGY PRESERVE,

search for a Cure. Proceeds go to Auburn-

Thach Avenue, Auburn. Hours: Monday

3100 Highway 147 North, Auburn. Hours: 8

Opelika Parkinson's Disease Support Group

through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday

a.m. to 6 p.m. Admission: free. Information:

and Parkinson's Association of Alabama.

and Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday, 2-6

707-6512.

Drawing will be held October 14, You do not

p.m. Information: 501-3190.

need to be present to win. $5.00 per ticket.

TELFAIR PEET THEATRE, at the corner of

To purchase tickets, email your name, home

JAN DEMPSEY COMMUNITY ARTS CENTER

Samford and Duncan avenues. Tickets: 844-

and email addresses, and phone number

GALLERY, 222 East Drake Avenue, Auburn.

4154 or http://goo.gl/Osvn. Information:

to Lindadrummond47@gmail.com or mail

Hours: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Fri-

844-4748 or theatre@auburn.edu.

a check made payable to A-O Parkinson's

day. Admission: free. Information: 501-2963.

Support Group to: Linda Drummond, 1204 AUBURN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

Cedar Creek Drive, Opelika, Al 36801

JULE COLLINS SMITH MUSEUM OF FINE ART,

714 East Glenn Avenue; Auburn

901 South College Street, Auburn. Hours:

334-887-7011

AUGUST 16, and 23 : Farmers Market at

auburnchamber.com

Ag Heritage Park, corner of Donahue Drive

8:30 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Monday through Friday; 10 a.m. to 4:45 p .m. Saturday. Admission: free. Information: 844-1484.

and Lem Morrison Drive, near Ham Wilson OPELIKA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

Livestock Arena, 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. Informa-

601 Avenue A, Opelika

tion: 321-1603.

LEE COUNTY HUMANE SOCIETY, 1140 Ware

334-745-4861

Drive, Auburn. Adoption hours: Tuesday

www.opelika.com

AUGUST 18: The Southside Market needs

through Sunday, 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Drop

produce, plant, art, and crafts merchants,

offs strays or pick up found pets: Tuesday

EVENT CENTER DOWNTOWN

South Gay Street, in front of the Gnu’s Room,

through Sunday, 8:30 to 5 p.m.; Tuesday,

614 North Railroad Avenue, Opelika

414 South Gay Street. Hours: 8 a.m. until

8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Information: 821-3222;

334-705-5466

noon. Information: 524-2335.

lchs@leecountyhumane.org.

www.eventcenterdowntown.net

WHEN

"

200 South Sixth Street, Opelika. Hours:

"

AUGUST 14, 21, AND 28: Opelika Farmer’s LEWIS COOPER JUNIOR MEMORIAL LIBRARY,

Market, open rain or shine, 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., Courthouse Square, Opelika.

Monday and Tuesday, 8:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.; Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday,

AUGUST 14, 21, AND 28:

8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5

covery Hikes, children ages five through

p.m.; Sunday 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Information:

twelve and their parents, 3:30 p.m. to 4:30

705-5380

p.m., Louise Kreher Forest Ecology Preserve.

Summer Dis-

Canceled if raining. Admission: free.

LEE COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY, 6500

Stage Road (Highway 14), Loachapoka.

Hours: Second Saturday of every month, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Information: 887-3007, webmaster@leecountyhistoricalsociety.org.

28 LEE MAGAZINE

ONGOING THROUGH OCTOBER 14:

Handmade Cathedral Window Quilt raffle to benefit Parkinson's Disease Re-

AUGUST 20: Tracy Donald discusses acces-

sible technology at Auburn University, OLLI Brown Bag Lunch and Learn, 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., Auburn Chamber of Commerce,

address. Admission: free. Information: 844-

songwriter and musician platform. Doors

tration begins September 4 for Forest

5100.

open 4 p.m, music starts 7 p.m., Event Center

Friends, nature activities for children ages

Downtown Opelika. Admission: free. Infor-

two to five and their parents, 9:30 a.m. to

AUGUST 24: Sundilla Acoustic Concert Se-

mation: 705-5466. Website: www.eventcen-

11 a.m. Cost: $40, plus $35 Forest Ecology

ries, Randall Bramblett, 7:30 p.m., Auburn

terdowntown.net

Preserve membership; $5 discount for each

Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, 405 East

additional child, Louise Kreher Forest Ecology

Thatch Avenue. Admission: $12, $10 in ad-

Preserve. Information: preserve@auburn.edu,

vance at The Gnu’s Room, 714 East Glenn

or 844-8091.

Avenue. Website: www.sundilla.org SEPTEMBER 20 & 21, 23, 25 through 28 AUGUST 25: Girl Scout Thin Mint Sprint,

and 30: The stage adaptation of Barbara

Cary Woods Elementary School, 715 Sand-

Ehrenreich’s nonfiction book, Nickel and

ers Street, Auburn. Registration opens 6:30

SEPTEMBER 13: AU Music Faculty Show-

Dimed, Telfair Peet Theatre. Tickets: $15;

a.m. Five-kilometer run/walk, 7:30 a.m.;

case Concert, 7:30 p.m., Goodwin Music

seniors, AU faculty, staff, and students from

one-mile fun run, 8:30 a.m.; Tot Trott, 9:30

Building Recital Hall. Admission: $10; stu-

other schools, $10; Auburn University stu-

a.m. Family fun carnival, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

dents, $5. 844-4165.

dents, free. Information: 844-4748.

SEPTEMBER 21: Auburn University Singers Dessert Cabaret with the Auburn University Singers, two seatings, 6:15 p.m. to 7:45 p.m. or 8:15 p.m. to 9:45 p.m., First Baptist Church, 301 South Eighth Street, Opelika.

AUGUST 27: Lolly Steiner, president, Au-

Admission: $10, children and students, $5.

burn Chamber of Commerce speaks at the

Information: 844-4165.

OLLI Brown Bag Lunch and Learn, Auburn

SEPTEMBER 14, 21, and 28: The Southeast-

Chamber of Commerce, 714 East Glenn Av-

ern Raptor Center presents its annual in-flight

SEPTEMBER 24: Faculty Recital with Mat-

enue. Admission: free. Information: 844-5100.

raptor program, Football Fans & Feathers,

thew Hoch, voice, soprano Jessica Mc-

Website: www.olliatauburn.org

before AU home football games, 4:00 p.m.,

Cormack, and Ben Harris, piano, 7:30

Edgar B. Carter Educational Amphitheatre,

p.m., Goodwin Recital Music Hall. Admission:

AUGUST 31: Beach music pioneers, The

Raptor Road off Shug Jordan Parkway. Admis-

$10; children and students, $5. Information:

Embers, perform 7 p.m. to 11 p.m., Univer-

sion: $5, children under three, free. School

844-4165

sity Station RV Resort, Alumni Park, 3076

group information: 844-6943; general infor-

Highway 14, Auburn. cookout begins at 6

mation: 844-9999. Website: vetmed.auburn.

p.m., University Station RV Resort, Alumni

edu/rapt

Park, 3076 Highway 14, Auburn. Tickets: $10.

Information: 821-8968.

SEPTEMBER 16: Auburn Community Orchestra Concert, 4:00p.m., Kiesel Park. Ad-

SEPTEMBER 4 & 5: Children’s Theatre

mission: Free. Information: 501-2963.

Audition: “101 Dalmations Kids,” 4 p.m.

SEPTEMBER 29: People and their dogs gather at Woofstock, Lee County Humane Society’s

to 6 p.m. Callbacks September 6, 4 p.m.to

SEPTEMBER 18: Joseph Ikner, performs on

annual fundraiser, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Kiesel

7 p.m., Jan Dempsey Community Arts Cen-

the guitar, Faculty Recital, 7:30 p.m., Good-

Park. Admission: free. Information: 209-5247.

ter. A project of the Auburn Area Community

win Music Building Recital Hall. Admission:

Website: www.leecountyhumane.org

Theatre. Information: 501-2963.

$10; students, $5. Information: 844-4165.

SEPTEMBER 7:

SEPTEMBER 18 or September 21: Regis-

Opelika Unplugged, a

Send calendar info to: editor@lee-magazine.com LEE MAGAZINE 29

UNIVERSITY

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Opelika Sportsplex and Aquatics Center 1001 Andrews Road Opelika, Alabama 36801 p . 3 3 4 .7 0 5 . 5 5 6 0 f . 3 3 4 .7 0 5 . 5 5 6 8 For more information and facility rental details, visit

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Lending, Saving, Checking,

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Being part of all the good things happening in Auburn/ Opelika is important to us. You name it– whether it’s civic, charity, service or other worthwhile projects, CharterBank people, assets and resources are there to lend a hand and provide support. Giving back.

It’s just what we do. We’re here to help make this a WOW community.

It’s What We Do. Regional President Linda Drummond with Make-A-Wish Foundation grant recipient Danielle Tadych. CharterBank and many community groups brought to reality Danielle’s dream of a baseball field for special needs children– the Billy Hitchcock Miracle Field.

www.charterbank.net • 800.763.4444 Lending • Saving • Checking • Giving Back