Walker Magazine | Spring 2023

Staff

GENERAL MANAGER

Michael Keeton

EDITOR

Nicole Smith

ADVERTISING DIRECTOR

Jake Aaron

LAYOUT DESIGN

Jennifer McCaskill

CONTRIBUTORS

Ed Howell, Ron Harris, Johnathan Bentley

ADVERTISING

Brenda Anthony, Josh Pruitt, Stacy Daniel

Walker Magazine is a publication of and distributed seasonally by the Daily Mountain Eagle, a division of Paxton Media Group. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or stored for retrieval by any means without written consent from the publisher. Walker Magazine is not responsible for unsolicited materials and the publisher accepts no responsibility for the contents or accuracy of claims in any advertisement in any issue. Walker Magazine is not responsible for errors, omissions or changes in information. The opinions of contributing writers do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the magazine and its publisher.

Our mission is to promote Walker County and to showcase its many attributes as a quality place in which to live, to work and to play. We welcome ideas and suggestions for future editions of the magazine. Just send us a brief note via email.

© 2023 Daily Mountain Eagle

WALKER MAGAZINE

P.O. Box 1469

Jasper, AL 35502

(205) 221-2840

email: walkermagazine@mountaineagle.com

It is 80 degrees outside as I write this and severe storms are forecast for tomorrow. Oh, and it was sweater weather three days ago. As you would've guessed, it's springtime in Alabama and time for us to bring you our spring issue.

This particular issue begins on a nostalgic note as we celebrate Oakman High School's 100th anniversary through a series of photos in a yearbook­style layout. It was a difficult task to sort through decades of photos and memories and only select so many for the magazine. We hope, however, that it will serve as a keepsake for Oakman Wildcats.

Danny Cain is featured on our cover and his years of community service are detailed on these pages. Cain has advised us on everything gardening and farming over the years and has taught so many children to have an appreciation for the land and its animals. His knowledge is unmatched, much like his account of a rewarding ca

reer that continues.

The Walker County Center of Technology welcomed us to interview the young women who are studying welding at the center. These aren't your average young ladies — they are tough and eager to prove themselves in a male­dominated industry.

Also eager to make his mark is young go­kart racing star John Martin Henslee. The 10­year­old from Cordova is featured in this issue for turning heads in the go­kart racing circuit. He has won nearly 100 races in his young career.

We also tell the story of Cordova High cross­country athlete Brannon Lugo. The senior is credited with helping the school's track/cross­country team grow, and his dedication to and success in the sport is impressive.

There are many event photos in this issue, as well as a business spotlight that may tug on your heartstrings.

This is my first Walker Magazine issue to produce as editor. It's a responsibility I don't take lightly. The magazine is a medium where we can share in­depth stories with more photo variety — and everything is in color. It's a nice companion to the Daily Mountain Eagle, and it's free thanks to our generous advertisers. It's a team effort, and we hope to continue bringing you the magazine for years to come.

– Nicole Smith, Editor

We are always eager to receive suggestions from our readers. Please email your ideas to walkermagazine@ mountaineagle.com.

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Wildcats

Oakman High celebrates its centennial

1923 - 2023

Photos compiled by Nicole Smith

Oakman High School is celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2023. Administrators at the school recently discovered an old crest that revealed the school was founded in 1923. The Wildcats will cele­

brate the school's centennial all year, with the 2023 Homecoming set to be the largest celebration. An alumni gathering is also planned. Here is a collection of photos from old yearbooks at the school and the Daily Mountain Eagle archives to commemorate special memories from the 1940s to the present day.

Oakman High School

Alma Mater

We will sing for Oakman High School

Wherever we may be

And those happy days we'll cherish In our fondest memories

Where the blue and white are flowing Flowing for our loyalty

We will sing for Oakman High School

And our pride she'll ever be.

The (Encouraging) Mark of Cain

The (Encouraging) Mark of Cain

Longtime Extension official leaves imprint on local children for three decades.

DANNY L. CAIN, the Extension coordinator for the Walker County Extension Office, still uses the exact office, desk and filing cabinet he took over when he arrived 31 years ago one October day to work at the Jasper­based Extension office.

"This year, I got me a new chair," he said with a laugh. "This is the first new chair that I've had since I worked with Extension. So things are looking good for me."

The truth is Cain, 54, is quite comfortable in that office. And local farmers, students and officials are just as comfortable with the easygoing, upbeat Cain, who has become a fixture in Walker County — especially with children.

One of his "favorite things ever" is a Daily Mountain Eagle issue from 1996 featuring him and Tony Booth, a boy Cain befriended through Big Brothers/Big Sisters. Cain got Booth involved in 4­H and heifer shows, and also acted as a big brother in general, taking the youth places.

"He is now the nighttime manager here at Walmart, and his daughter this year was in my Chick Chain program," Cain said with pride. "He was a great kid, and he's really made something of himself."

So did Cain, thanks, in part, to his rural upbringing. He was born in Holly Pond in eastern Cullman County, growing up on a 120­acre family farm. While he was in 4­H

Story by Ed Howell

Photography by Ed Howell, DME Archive and Special to the DME

and later FFA in a smaller school, the family truck farmed corn and other vegetables, bringing green ear corn on a truck to sell at the Finley Avenue Market in Birmingham.

"We had a little cow­calf herd and grew a little cotton every once and a while," he said. "My background was discing corn fields and bush hogging pastures and pulling and hauling corn for a living."

Cain feels now that period prepared him well.

"We worked hard when most kids were doing their own thing, especially in the summertime," he said. "It was a lot of hard work, but we did it as a family. There are just a lot of good memories of going to the farmer's market with my Dad. In later years, Mom would join us as well. It was just a family operation."

He said he was well­fed and clothed, and had a good childhood, although some times were lean.

"I remember one year we didn't get to take a family vacation that summer because the fall Armyworms ate the corn crop down," he said. "So there were a lot of lean years, but there were a lot of good years as well."

Cain graduated from Auburn University in 1990 with a bachelor's degree in agricultural economics (and a master's degree in that in 1992). He worked for a year out of Scottsboro for the Alabama Farm Analysis Association, an Extension program that worked on financial planning, tax work, operation analysis and record keeping for 80 farm families.

Then in 1992, he started at the Walker County office of the Alabama Cooperative Extension System as an

assistant county agent "and I've been here ever since." He became the coordinator of the office in 2005.

"Growing up, I was familiar with the Extension and Extension work and county agents from a very young age, growing up on a farm. Some of my very early memories was going with my mom to what, at the time, was Home Demonstration Club meetings," he said. "There were always county agents out on the farm working with dad.

"Occupationally, that is all I ever wanted to do was work with Extension. To be involved in a career that involved being outdoors, working with agriculture and farming and cattle and corn and those types of things — and to be able to help people. I thought, 'How cool is that? How much better does it get?'"

Cain came in another era when almost every Extension office in the state had a coordinator leading the office of certain agents only deliver­

ing programs in their one county. Now, the staffs are smaller and more regional, he said.

"We may have a 10­county area for one animal science forage agent in those 10 counties, or a horticulture agent," Cain said. The regional agent system allows the person to be better trained in a specific subject.

"Your agricultural agent doesn't have to do livestock work, as well as figure out why my soybeans are not yielding what they are supposed to yield," he said. "As a result, I really feel like we have a public that is better served. At least our agents are able to keep up with the change in technology and production these days."

Cade Grace, the son of local farmer Dorman Grace, is the newest agent, over agronomic crops.

"Cade was actually on one of my wildlife judging teams as a junior level 4­Her," he said. "One of the big joys I've gotten is to see the suc­

cesses of the young kids we get to work with. They've grown. A lot of the 4­H kids I now work with are the sons and daughters of the 4­H kids I first worked with when I moved here. That is one of the biggest joys probably any Extension agent would have."

After Cain arrived, he started the wildlife judging program in Walker County in the mid­1990s. "I saw that as a state contest. I thought, 'Man, that looks cool,'" he said. "Of course, I enjoy being outdoors, so we put a team together. We've just kind of grown."

It involves the evaluation of wild­

"One of the big joys I've gotten is to see the successes of the young kids we get to work with. They've grown. A lot of the 4-H kids I now work with are the sons and daughters of the 4-H kids I first worked with when I moved here.”

- Danny Cain

life habitats, leading to writing management plans for wildlife, both in urban and rural settings. His teams have won senior division state championships four times and gone to three national contests. "We've won five or six times in the junior division as well," he said.

Cain said youth have to be reached differently, as today they are more advanced in areas like technology. "It's not just all about baking cookies and making public speeches anymore," he said. Today's programs include wildlife judging, natural resource items, archery and even shooting sports where safety is taught, using an air rifle, he said. One program, 4­H Innovators, allows 4­H students to teach adults about using computers, cell phones and the internet.

"Kids respond well to just being a part of something, belonging and just to be recognized for what they do and their accomplishments," he said. "That is one of the very positive things about 4­H. It gives young people a realm where they can accomplish things, where they can belong and excel at whatever their particular skill or interest is.”

While he said Extension's information was once targeted to rural or farm families, today only 1.5 percent of the population makes a living on farms and many more live in urban settings. Besides traditional offerings, programs can now address financial planning, food deserts and workforce development.

He noted the amount of technology in agriculture now "is mind­boggling at times." Today, farmers have satellite technology on tractors and

implement so the rates of fertilizer, herbicide or insecticide can be changed in real­time across the field.

"We have auto steer technology where you don't even have to steer the tractor," he said, noting it rattles the nerves "the first time you see a John Deere tractor pulling a large implement through a field without a driver."

At the same time, he said with people and products moving so much in a global society, pest and disease problems have been introduced more often in the nation. The growing population also brings more development, leaving less land for agricultural production.

"Our farmers today are asked to produce more food on less land for a larger population than ever before in history," Cain said.

The variety of tasks makes his day

fun, he said, not knowing what a phone call could bring. A few days earlier he was in Northport sorting and tagging 325 feeder pigs for a fu

ture 4­H project. He worked that morning on the Chamber of Commerce of Walker County's job shadow program.

"By the end of the week, you could be at the Rotary Club meeting or the county commission meeting, or looking at somebody's cattle farm or pasture weeds," he said.

It has given him opportunities he never envisioned growing up, including his time on Facebook and the radio, his weekly tapings on "Coffee Time" for TV­25 and his column for the Daily Mountain Eagle newspaper.

Cain laughed about the 3­year­old and her mother coming with an older column, printed with his younger photo. The little girl would repeatedly

look at the graying Cain and look down. Finally, she leaned over and whispered, "Mama, that's not the guy in the newspaper. He had dark hair and looked happy."

He has traveled across the world, including a study tour in Brazil to look at competitive methods on row crops and cattle farms in a worldwide economy. He was in China under a leadership program that looked at all aspects of life there, "which was very eye­opening."

Cain commutes 45 miles from Hanceville each day, where he and his wife, Carla, stay busy with two children, his son Carson Cain, a 7thgrader in Hanceville, and his stepdaughter, Katie Lee, a Dean's List sophomore at Wallace State. Carson has been successful in 4­H here and Cain got to coach him on his own

wildlife judging team, which is a source of pride. The family is also active at Center Hill Baptist Church.

He has no intention of retiring soon. While he first thought he would not be in Walker County long, the more he stayed the more he enjoyed it and felt it was like home.

"When I first moved here, I was a kid right out of school," he said. "The community here, it has been a wonderful community to be a part of, because they accepted me right in."

He also loves his co­workers. "The staff I work with is probably as good an Extension staff as I've ever worked around. ... It is a fabulous staff with a lot of talent. It really makes my job really easy. I sit back and marvel at the things they accomplish," he said.

He wants to be remembered as

someone who in some way cared about them and their problems and tried to help them with something, whether it was growing tomatoes or helping their children in 4­H. His advice to children seems to be advice he followed himself.

"I tell all my kids I work with, the judging teams and things, to find that one thing you truly enjoy doing, pursue it with all of your talent and all of your ability, and be the best at it you can be. Don't worry about how good or bad somebody else could be,” he said. “You be the best that you can be. If you do that, and you do something you enjoy doing, no matter what future profession that is, you're going to be successful and you're going to be happy in life. And along the way, don't forget to take time to enjoy yourself a little bit."

"I tell all my kids I work with, the judging teams and things, to find that one thing you truly enjoy doing, pursue it with all of your talent and all of your ability, and be the best at it you can be.” - Danny Cain

Walker College Reunion

Bevill State CC Jasper - Cafeteria / January 14

Graduates of Walker College from 1966­1970 gathered for a reunion on Saturday, Jan. 14, in the cafeteria of Bevill State Community College in Jasper. The alumni enjoyed a meal and fellowship.

// Photos by Nicole Smith and Special to the Eagle //

The need for speed

The need for speed

John Martin Henslee — at just 10 years old — becoming a superstar in world of go­kart racing

THERE’S NO DENYING John Martin Henslee knows a thing or two about driving. He’s routinely doing laps at the nearest dirt track at speeds up to 60 miles an hour.

But there are a couple of interesting things about that. He’s doing those laps in a go­kart — at 10 years of age.

Henslee, a fifth grader at Bankhead Middle School in Cordova, has become somewhat of a celebrity on the go­kart racing circuit and races all across the Southeast.

And Henslee doesn’t just race on the circuit. He wins — a lot.

Henslee, who’s been racing since he was about 6 years old, has more than 75 wins on his resume.

“It’s been 75, easily,” said John Martin’s dad, Brandon. “Probably closer to 90.”

“It’s fun,” John Martin said in his soft­spoken voice. “It feels good to win. It’s an exciting feeling.”

In most races, John Martin is competing with up to 40 other racers from across the southeast. They compete on dirt tracks that are a fifth of a mile in length. Some races are on eighth­mile tracks.

He mostly competes in his age bracket but has moved up and competed against older drivers. Most races are anywhere from 15 to 20 laps.

Later this year, he’ll compete in a race that’s 75 laps.

Story by Ron Harris

Photography by Ron Harris and Special to the Eagle

During races, there are no pit stops, and drivers have no way to communicate with their crews during a race.

“No radios, no earpieces, nothing,” Brandon Henslee said.

That makes what John Martin has accomplished in his career even more impressive.

“When you’re racing like that, you have no idea how close your competitors are,” John Martin’s mom, Lora, said. “Of course, the more experience you have the more you’re able to sense how close they are.”

“It comes with experience,” John Martin said.

There are concerns from both Brandon and Lora about their son’s safety during a race.

“Definitely,” Lora said.

There are no seat belts in the gokarts used in the races, but there’s a reason for that.

“They’re designed without seat belts because if they do flip or get in a bad wreck, it will throw them from the kart,” Lora said. “They’re more likely to not be injured by being thrown from the kart than being stuck in it.”

John Martin has been involved in a few crashes in his time as a racer. The most serious of those came in North Carolina recently when John Martin’s kart was spun out and became sideways on the track and was T­boned by another kart.

He suffered a broken arm and had to be taken by ambulance to the nearest hospital. Surgery followed to take care of the injury.

Lora was not there, but instead was watching a live stream of the race and saw the crash.

“She saw the accident, and, of course, was losing her mind,” Brandon said.

“That was terrifying,” she said. “John Martin is tough, and it didn’t phase him as much as it did me.”

Thankfully, he quickly recovered and resumed racing.

John Martin is planning to continue racing for as long as he can.

And why not? He can make money by winning.

Most races for John Martin’s age classification pay less than $500 for a win. The older the racers are, the more they can make when they win a race.

John Martin has won a significant amount of money, but his dad said most all that goes right back into the sport. “It’s not cheap doing this,” he said. “You never really make a profit.”

A typical go­kart designed for racing can run upwards of $7,000. A set of four tires is about $365, and each car requires lots of tires.

“These races are super competitive,” Brandon said. “And it takes a lot to be competitive.”

“I do some work,” he said. “I put the lugs on, the axles on, the chains, the gears. Not a lot.”

“He’s selling himself a little short,” Brandon said. “He does a lot more than he says. Honestly, he does most of the maintenance. He can handle it all.”

“He does most of the work himself,” Lora added.

John Martin said his friends at school think what he does “is pretty cool.” A lot of his friends have gone to races to watch him compete.

And John Martin doesn’t just drive the karts. He puts in a lot of time helping to work on them and keep them running.

‘They’re amazed, they’re shocked,” Lora said.

Regardless of whether he’s winning or not, both Brandon and Lora say they couldn’t be more proud of what John Martin has accomplished.

“We are so proud of him,” Lora said. “He just has it in himself to be a winner. He has that competitiveness, and I think that’s why I’m so proud of him.”

“He’s just a little kid from Cordova,” Brandon said, tearing up as he speaks. “I’m super proud of him.”

Here’s just a small sampling of John Martin’s wins:

• Blues City Nationals in Mississippi in 2019

• Memorial Day Shootout in Tennessee in 2022

• Burris Nationals in Kentucky in 2020

• 2X winner at the O’Reilly Auto Parts National Indoor Championship in Batesville, Mississippi, in 2020

• 3X winner of the Maximillion Gold Bar Championship in Alabama

• Chili Bowl in North Carolina in 2022

• Big 3 Series Championship in South Carolina in 2022

• Peach State Championship in Georgia in 2022

• Rumble in Paradise in South Carolina in 2022

• Talladega Frostbuster in Alabama in 2023

• Triple Crown Championship in 2023

And, by the way, John Martin was recently inducted into the Go Kart Hall of Fame at just 10 years of age.

Rotary Trivia Night

Jasper Civic Center / February 24

The 12th Jasper Rotary Trivia Night was held the night of Friday, Feb. 24, 2023. The annual event hosted by the Rotary Club of Jasper is the group's largest fundraiser of the year.

// Photography by Ed Howell //

Please call us to discuss your needs with a knowledgeable and compassionate funeral director. We are here to help you honor the cherished memory of your loved one.

Kiwanis Pancake Breakfast

Bevill State CC Jasper - Cafeteria / February 25

The Kiwanis Club of Jasper held its annual Pancake Breakfast on Saturday, Feb. 25, in the cafeteria of Bevill State Community College's Jasper campus. It is the club's largest fundraiser of the year.

// Photography by Ron Harris //

Grit and Sparks

Grit and Sparks

Young women bring tenacity to welding program at WCCT

THE GROWING NUMBER of young women enrolled in the welding program at the Walker County Center of Technology is a force to be reckoned with in classrooms typically filled with young men.

Most of the young women taking welding at WCCT are in their first year at the center (sophomores), and they all have something to prove to their male peers — gender doesn't matter when it comes to particular careers.

"I've had a few incidents of guys saying I can't do things. Some guys have told me, 'You're not going anywhere. You're not going to do this. You'll never be as good as all the other males,' and yet, I'm the one smoking them," 10th­grade Jasper High student Harmoney Sentell said, sharing she dropped cosmetology to

study welding. "The main reason I want to do this is so that I can show other women, 'Hey, it doesn't matter about your gender, as long as you have the work ethic and dedication, you're set.'"

Eight young women are enrolled in William Poff's class at WCCT, and another is enrolled in Jeff Clark's class. All are incredibly dedicated to learning as much as they can to grow their skill sets.

"A lot of people told me I couldn't do it," Carbon Hill High School sophomore Erika Silas said. She wanted to prove them wrong and has plans to be a pipeline welder.

Sentell said she wants to do underwater welding for the Navy and that she is studying welding to be a role model to her younger female siblings. There's also the family

Story by Nicole Smith

Photography by Nicole Smith and Special to the Eagle

background in welding that holds sentimental value.

"My grandfather was in the IBEW (International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers), and most of my childhood memories with him are either going to church or welding with him," Sentell said.

Elizabeth Godsey, a 10th grader at Jasper High, has been experimenting with various types of welding such as tig (tungsten inert gas) welding and stick welding which uses electricity to melt a metal filler. Godsey has been criticized by the young men in her class — as all the women welders say they have — but the vitriol only makes her work harder.

"The guys are mainly scared of us, and I've had guys tell us that," Godsey said. "I tell them, 'I'm in here for a reason. I'm going to go places.'"

Godsey is also a JROTC student and has the discipline to pair with her skill.

"I have been picked on. I've had a few words said to me, and I tell them every single time, 'You don't know what you're talking about.' I show them and I prove every time that I know what I'm doing," she said.

All of the young women in Mr. Poff's class describe him as a father figure, someone who is reassuring yet tough.

"I'm not a normal schoolteacher. I am more of somebody that has been called into something to help the community," Poff said.

WCCT's newest welding instructor says he didn't go to school to be an educator. He was a high school dropout.

"I didn't see a future," Poff said. "I was a 16­year­old living by myself but ended up with a full­time job, so I dropped out of school. I had different priorities than most kids have [nowadays]."

After later getting married and starting a family, he decided to get his GED and pursue a career in welding in his late 20s. He completed a welding program in 2010 where he was named Apprentice of the Year, beating out 18 other men for the title. He has done welding at Miller Steam Plant and U.S. Steel, and after healing from breaking his back, the teaching opportunity at WCCT was available.

The father of multiple biological and adopted children saw the teaching career as a chance to make a difference in the lives of even more children.

"My skill set has paid my bills and taken care of things for years, but at the same time, the love I have for these kids and this community is kind of what gave me this job," Poff said. "I'm about opportunities, and these kids need the opportunities."

Poff is responsible for the Western Welding Academy Blue Collar Tour coming to WCCT in early 2023 which featured welding demonstrations and information about careers in welding, and he is pushing a new generation of women to enter the industry.

"If you do some research on females in our industry, they are leading the industry in what they do," he said. "There are females all over the world that are striving to push themselves in an industry that's male­dominated. It's male­dominated because it's hard labor. The conditions are never good, but the reward is high. The money pays so great."

Silas said one of Poff's strengths is his ability to give all of his students time to breathe and recover when a weld doesn't go as expected.

"He really cares about our mental

health," Silas said. "He cares not just about how we do in the booth, he cares about us genuinely [as people]. He does what's in the best interest of all of us, and I can say, personally, that I'm very, very grateful for that."

Godsey said Poff tells his students that their welds will get worse before they get better, teaching that everyone makes mistakes but it's part of the learning experience.

"Mr. Poff deserves so much credit for everything he's done for us and how much he has pushed us to be our best," Godsey said. "He is one of the best teachers that you will ever have."

Po

ff said the young women in his class have a keen eye and preciseness that is invaluable.

"Most females do one thing that I don't do, and they learn this from a young age. They look in a mirror, they take a pencil, and they draw around their eyeball. Then they take that pencil and they do the same thing with their lips. I don't have that steady hand," Poff said. "Industry is looking for detailoriented people, and that's detail. Girls, females can take detail better than males. The majority of their attention span is greater than males."

He continued, "Don't get me wrong, my 10th­grade boys are hammering away in there and they're proud to be in there, but my girls are sitting here chomping at the bit and ready to go to work. They're eager. They're eager to learn and I think eager to prove boys wrong. That's what I like about it. I like that they have a drive that I can't pay most boys to have."

Walker County Center of Technology Director Chris McCullar said in a work session in late 2022 that WCCT now has two welding classes due to the high demand from students. There are more than 100 city and county students enrolled in welding programs at WCCT, and around 10 percent of the students are women.

"The female enrollment has gone out the roof this year in welding," McCullar said. "Because of this, Mr. Poff has

"Don't get me wrong, my 10th-grade boys are hammering away in there and they're proud to be in there, but my girls are sitting here chomping at the bit and ready to go to work. They're eager. They're eager to learn and I think eager to prove boys wrong.”

- William Poff

made a mission to collaborate with women working in a male­dominated industry."

Kaley Freeman, an 11th grader at Cordova High School, said she and the other females intimidate their male peers.

"I'm as good as they are, if not better," she said confidently.

Freeman said any young woman who wants to consider welding as a career needs to have a no­quitting mindset.

"Just keep going until you get it right. You'll get there eventually," she said.

Curry High 10th grader Emma Kelley concurred: "There's going to be hard times, but you're going to get through it."

"Female or male, if you want to do something, you step up and you put your mind to it," Dora High 10th

grader Brylee Samples said. "If you really want to do something, even if you're bad at it, you'll continue to grow and be better at it. We all started somewhere — some better than others, some worse than others — but we've all grown and become better with time."

Other female welding students at WCCT include Jorden Durham, Kayleeonna Vines and Abby Perry, at the time of publication.

the stigma at the door.

"Just go for it. Just dive right in. There's nothing to be scared of," she said. "You're going to have people on your back telling you that you can't do it. ... Don't let people hold you back."

Po

ff said it's unfortunate the young women are sometimes teased by their male peers, but says they still maintain a necessary — and well­deserved — confidence in their abilities.

"Them being bullied, temporarily, in high school, is nothing because when they walk in this door, they hold their head up," Poff said.

Godsey said young women should consider blue­collar trades and leave

"The only person that is holding you back is yourself," Sentell said. "The mindset that you have to have is the mindset of, 'I know this is a maledominated trade. I know I'm a female. I know I may not be as strong as a male.' But I know if I put my motivation towards it then anyone can do it."

Sentell added, "I have seen hardships through all these girls. I've seen them get angry at themselves for not being able to weld, but the thing is, even when guys treat us like crap, we still go off and we do it — and we one­up them."

Jasper Prayer Breakfast

Jasper Civic Center / February 8

A Jasper Community Prayer Breakfast was held on Wednesday, Feb. 8, at the Jasper Civic Center. Hundreds of prayers were spoken while area pastors led times of prayer, each with a special subject emphasis.

// Photography by Nicole Smith //

Rotary 100th Anniversary

Downtown Jasper / March 9

The Rotary Club of Jasper held a 100th­anniversary celebration on Thursday, March 9. Rotarians shared about the club’s history, some Rotary members were recog

nized, and everyone enjoyed a meal together.

// Photography by Nicole Smith //

Lightningspeed

Lightningspeed

Cordova’s Lugo a leader on and off the track

CRAIG HENDON has seen all kinds of runners during his tenure as the Cordova High School cross country/track and field coach — and he will tell you there is only one Brannon Lugo.

Lugo, the unquestioned leader of the team, is part motivator, part assistant coach and the complete package as a high school athlete.

“They all look up to him,” Hendon said of Lugo’s teammates. “He sets the bar high every time. He’s the first kid I’ve ever coached that significantly bought into running on his own. It’s different for some kids. They will run every once in a while. They will do a mile here or there. Brannon would ask me,

‘What do you want me to do this weekend?’ I would tell him and he would show me on (running app) Strava exactly where he ran. He would do anywhere from three to eight miles.”

Cordova’s cross­country program didn’t start until Lugo’s freshman year. He’s been the face of the team ever since, and that’s carried over to track as well.

“Coach Hendon talked me into it,” said Lugo, of joining the crosscountry team as a freshman. “I was playing football, too. I was a multisport athlete, but I decided to stop playing football my junior year. That’s when I really started training and taking (running) seriously.”

Story by Johnathan Bentley Photography by Johnathan Bentley and Special to the Eagle

“I like the mental game of it,” Lugo said of running. “I like competing against myself. As a part of the team, I like celebrating with them and helping them grow and become a better runner and a better person. I wish I would have had that when I started.”

His results speak to his hard work.

Lugo’s top cross­country time, across a 5K (3.1­mile) course, is 17:13, good enough for the top 20 in Class 4A.

As for track, his best time in the 1600­meter run (just short of a mile) is 4:44, his top time in the 800m is 2:10 and his best finish in the 3,200m is 10:33.

On a typical day, you can find Lugo hard at work. He trains at the high school, downtown Cordova and the streets around his house.

“I try to get at least 35 miles per

week. I try to run every day,” said Lugo, who has set some goals for his senior outdoor track season. “I hope to run under a 10­minute two mile and sub­4:30 in the mile. These are my main focuses for the season."

The state meet is set for May in Gulf Shores.

“In any event he’s willing to do, he’s at the top. Everybody knows you are going to get his max effort,” Hendon said. “I would love to have three or four more of him. In my opinion, our program isn’t where it is today without him. He’s been ranked in 5A and 4A. They had an announcement and the whole school went to the auditorium to watch the two­mile run (at state) last year. I wouldn’t have that kind of exposure with the kids if it wasn’t for what he’s done.”

“I like competing against myself.

As a part of the team, I like celebrating with them and helping them grow and become a better runner and a better person. I wish I would have had that when I started.”

- Brannon Lugo

Eagle takes flight (again) at a new location

Daily Mountain Eagle / March 13

The Daily Mountain Eagle held a ribbon cutting and open house at its new location on Monday, March 13. The new office is located at 100 Highway 78 W. in Jasper, next to Bedzzz Express. The newspaper had operated out of its old office at 1301 Viking Dr. since 1980. The new space signifies a fresh start for the Daily Mountain Eagle which is still compiled locally by a team of journalists and dedicated staff members.

// Photos by Daily Mountain Eagle, Chamber of Commerce of Walker County and Special to the Eagle //

Spotlight

Water Oak Villa

WATER OAK VILLA, a memory care facility that specializes in Alzheimer's and dementia in Jasper, opened its doors in February 2023. The first resident moved in on March 11.

Water Oak Villa is owned by Sam and Leigh Watts, and Dr. Jennifer Beasley serves as medical director, providing primary care services to the residents at the facility. "It's not as hard on the residents or the families to have to come and take them to those appointments. That's been a plus for her coming here to see them," Leigh Watts said.

Water Oak Villa employs around 20 staff members and offers 24/7 nursing care.

Residents are assisted with all activities of daily living.

Leigh Watts said she and her husband are excited for the facility to be open and look forward to welcoming more residents. "The outpouring of support from all around the community has truly been amazing," Watts said. "I've had lots of people already volunteer to come up here to do activities with the residents or just whatever they can do to help. The whole community of Jasper has just been amazing."

Water Oak Villa is located at 657 Curry Highway in Jasper and people may inquire about the facility by calling 205­265­2058.

Story and Photography by Nicole Smith