David WOODS is running for Mayor!

1BOOM! COVER PROFILE

David Woods...Faith, Family, Community

This month’s cover profile is David Woods. David purchased WCOV/Fox 20 television station in 1985 and he has been serving the Montgomery community ever since. WCOV was the first television station in Montgomery, beginning broadcasting in 1953. When we met David at the station, he gave us the full tour, surrounded by old photographs, cameras and other memorabilia from the earliest days of broadcasting. Broadcasting is in his blood, something he learned from his father while growing up in Dothan, AL, where he once worked a camera for newscaster, Bob Howell. In our June issues we try to feature a man who has experienced fatherhood and can share some of the wisdom all fathers learn along the way. David meets that criteria with 2 sons and a daughter, as well as three grandchildren. We think you’ll find his insight on the role of a father to be interesting. David and his wife Donna have committed themselves to do mission work through their church and other Christian organizations, and they have been changed by this unique call in their lives. Many of you know by now that David is running to be the next Mayor of Montgomery. So, this month’s cover profile is unique because you’ll be getting to know a businessman who wants to be your Mayor. We enjoyed getting to know David…and his wife Donna, and we think you’ll agree, they are aging well and giving back to our community. Enjoy the reading experience and don’t forget to vote �

BOOM!: Please give us a brief biography, i.e. where were you born, education, family, what brought you to the Montgomery area, etc.?

David: Dothan was my home as I was born and raised there for most of my early life. l was the 7th child in a family of 9 children. I was close to both parents, but my dad taught me much about the business world. While in elementary school, my dad often let me, and my siblings go by his office after school. We'd sit in his office and listen to him conduct business. Because of our large family, my mom was glad to have one or two kids at dad’s office after school. They both were very religious and shared their value system, which revolved around obeying God’s Word. We were very close and because of my dad's physical limitations, all the kids spent more time together helping him. My dad was severely burned in a plane accident in World War II and had little use of his hands. Thus, my siblings and I took turns helping him dress, tying his shoes, buttoning his shirts, and just using our hands to help him. When he went

David Woods, candidtate Mayor of Montgomery

out, he liked to have one of his kids present to help with simple things like helping him pay for groceries and opening

certain type doors. He built our family house before I was born, and the only interior doors were bedroom and bathroom doors. The kitchen, dining room, den were not separated by doors, just an open concept, which was unusual at that time. It was not for style but to help him as doors were hard to open with his hands.

I went to college at The University of Alabama and then went to work for my Dad. Donna is from North Carolina, but I met her in California. It was by chance as she was walking through the lobby of a hotel and I just started talking to her. The romance began and we were married 3 years later. We came to Montgomery in 1985 after we signed the contract to buy WCOV and have been here since. Montgomery is home. We have three grown children David, Drew and Dana. Drew and Dana have wonderful spouses (Jodi, AJ). Drew and Jodi have three children, Grace, Walter and Everest thus we are grandparents. They live in Montgomery so Donna and I are able to spend a lot of time around our grandchildren. Donna is an awesome grandmother. Being grandparents is one of the most enjoyable roles that we have ever had.

David and wife Donna experiencing unique travels

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BOOM!: You are the owner/operator of television station Fox 20/WCOV and Woods Communications and have been for more than 30 years. Can you share how you got started in the broadcasting world and some of the influences on your journey?

David: My career in broadcasting started as a teenager in Dothan working for my father, who was the owner of WTVY. I worked entrylevel jobs including grass cutting, exterior painting, sweeping, and buffing the studio floor, etc. My first production job was studio cameraman and running teleprompter for anchorman Bob Howell, who started in Dothan. Bob’s standards were high, and he spent time teaching me how to be a better employee.

After attending college, I worked for my dad and learned a great deal as he was a good teacher. But by 1985, I had a desire to go out on my own, so I decided to resign. WCOV in Montgomery was for sale as an independent station as CBS was moving to WAKA. It was the oldest station in the market with recognizable call letters, so I felt it would be a good purchase. Once I signed a contract to purchase the station, I needed financing, so I pitched numerous banks around the US. After being turned down by 8 to 10 banks, a bank in Dallas agreed to make the loan but required me to bring in investors to reduce their risk. Fortunately, I found a group of investors that did Radio andTV deals. Thus, we completed the

sale on WCOV in December 1985. The following year, Rupert Murdoch dreamed about building a 4th TV network. I attended the first meeting held by Rupert Murdoch where he pitched his idea to 30

Left to right back row Donna, David, daughter-in-law Jodi & son Drew, Everest, daughter Dana & son-in-law AJ. Front row Walter, Grace

Family Favorite Belle the Labrador

or 40 TV station owners. We signed up with FOX and have been a FOX affiliate since. Today there are only two of the original FOX owners still with FOX and we are one of the two. By the way, FOX has

Grandchildren left to right. Walter, Grace, Everest

over 200 affiliates around the country today.

WCOV is doing well. In 2019, we had the biggest hit of the season, The Masked Singer. We will air many of the largest sporting events. This year, we aired the NFC Championship game, NASCAR racing including Daytona in February

and Talladega in April. Going forward WCOV will air PGA’s US Open for both Men and Women, the Women’s World Cup of Soccer, UFC Mixed Martial Arts, NHRA Hot Rod racing, MLS Soccer, WWE Wrestling on Friday nights, Major League Baseball, The World Series, The NFL on Sunday afternoons and Thursday nights, and The Super Bowl. We broadcast an enormous amount of live sports on WCOV.

In 1953, WCOV became the first TV station in the Montgomery market, what’s your take on how television has evolved since that time, for better or worse? During my broadcast career, we’ve seen television’s distribution expand

David, Donna, son, David

from broadcast (over the air) to include cable, satellite, ondemand, and now live streaming. We work in a highly competitive, rapidly changing industry with very skilled, bright, hard-working business partners. Dealing with Hollywood (program suppliers, video distributors, networks) teaches you a great deal about survival, change, embracing new concepts, adjustments, improvements, and hard work. These are massive, multi-billion-dollar, world-wide companies who excel at their work. Hollywood likes to win, and it is tough negotiating with them. If a business leader can survive in the entertainment world for decades, they are very good at business. That being said, the Entertainment Industry executives are composed of good people who believe in

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strong relationships with their partners. They are aggressive but do value the other side (us). WCOV is grateful for them as they are all part of our success.

BOOM!: When developing your team at Woods Communications what are some of the qualifications you look for when recruiting new members? How would you describe your leadership style?

David: We are blessed that we have many long-term, committed team members at WCOV who know broadcasting. We really have great people running WCOV. Our company is basically a large family of closely bonded, highly respectful, happy people. When recruiting, we first pray about the position. I ask God to bring us someone who needs a job and will be a good fit for our organization. We want new employees to feel as if this is the best job that they have ever had. We then look first for people with character. Our team is made up of people with high character, thus we try to only add someone who appears high in character. Character can be a broad term, but we define it as someone with integrity, honesty, humility, compassion, courage, self-control, and stability. People with character are usually much better at relationship building thus they adjust to the team. We look for people with a high work ethic. Our business is full of hard working, high energy people, thus we try to only hire hard-working, high energy people.

My leadership style is visionary and motivational. Visionary leaders like to dream, talk about what could be in 5 or 10 years, study what could be, visit new places, get ideas, make notes, talk to those who were involved in the change process and then experiment. Visionary leaders are often able to see things that

do not yet exist as they have a vivid imagination. Looking at blueprints and drawings of buildings, houses, future

Donna on a mission trip in Zimbabwe, Africa

cities, and concept vehicles, etc. is something that appeals to me. Visionary leaders need to understand the importance of attracting detail people to help them achieve the vision. Detail people help transform ideas into something tangible. I admire detail people because they have a gift. Thomas Edison said, “Vision

David with granddaughter Grace

without execution is hallucination.” Thus, we recruit detail people who can execute.

Once the vision is cast, the budget needs

to be set, and then the detail team starts working toward the vision. I try to help the team solve minor problems, ask questions, review, make suggestions, offer to help, encourage them and then leave them alone. The ideal scenario is for our teams to have the responsibility and authority. People generally perform at a higher level when they have responsibility and authority.

This approach to leadership – the complete opposite of bureaucracy – is what’s going to secure Montgomery’s future. That’s why I’m running for Mayor.

David on a mission trip in Kenya, Africa

BOOM!: You’re running to be the new Mayor of Montgomery, replacing Todd Strange, who remains popular after serving for 10 years. As a businessman following a businessman, what will you provide as the new leader of Montgomery?

David: My belief is that ToddStrange has been an effective mayor and most everyone has benefitted from his leadership. Todd led us through the great recession. He devoted a great deal of time to attracting industry to Montgomery, and he deserves credit for being part of the team that landed the F-35 squadron. Todd was a business owner and had a great deal of experience running businesses. I am a business owner and have a great deal of experience running businesses. Todd and I have a similar skill set, which will be good for continuity for our city. I've been in the private sector as a business owner for over 30 years and have acquired a great deal of knowledge about how to run a business. When you own a business, you work hard to make sure that the business is as efficient as

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possible. The City of Montgomery is a large business and needs an experienced business owner to run it. The people of Montgomery deserve an experienced, local business owner who is invested in the community and someone who is a long-time resident of Montgomery to be their mayor. One of my top goals as mayor is to help everyone in Montgomery have a better quality of life

BOOM!: People in public life require a special spouse to help them navigate the challenges of a campaign, how would you describe your wife’s support for a potential Mayor Woods? How have your children and grandchildren responded to your campaign to be Mayor of Montgomery?

David: My wife Donna is an outgoing, high-energy, enthusiastic person. Some say she should be running for mayor! � We’ve been married for almost 36 years, and I am blessed that she has embraced this new venture. Donna loves people and is very supportive. She is deeply involved in the campaign and enjoys meeting so many new, wonderful people in Montgomery.

God has blessed us with three children, and they are on board with this campaign. As they were growing up, we taught them about service, and we modeled service. Being a mayor is a job of intense service to others, so they understand why I am pursuing the Mayor’s position. We have three grandchildren, ages 11 months, 7 years, and 8 years. The two older grandchildren approve but they may not completely grasp the entire concept.

BOOM!: Many people over 50 experience a renewed sense of purpose, new goals, or maybe new careers, especially if they’ve experienced the empty nest syndrome of their kids moving on. How would you describe this sense of renewal in your life? Any advice for the rest of us seeking renewal?

David: That is a very good question as our country has so much talent amongst

the 50+ age group. Many older people have acquired a great deal of knowledge and wisdom and have much to offer society. God has given all of us a variety of different gifts, and we should use those gifts to help others if we are able. Many of us have choices after we reach a certain place in life. I enjoy working; thus retirement is not in my plan. Because we have been very successful in the business world, we had the option of living for pleasure or we can live for purpose. My

Donna and David pausing for a little selfie-time

choice is to live for purpose. Purpose is when you use your gifts to benefit others. Purpose is helping other people meet their needs and goals. Purpose is more about giving than getting. Living for purpose has much more appeal to me than does living for pleasure. Being Mayor of Montgomery is living for purpose.

BOOM!: What are you most passionate about…?

David: Helping impoverished people is very high on my list of passions. My Dad was born in 1921 to an unwed teenage woman and was put in an orphanage until he was adopted by a farmer at age 6. He then went through the Great Depression and was often hungry.

In our family of 9 children, our Dad often told us about his youth and how tough it was. He described being hungry

and poor during the depression. He was not complaining; he just shared his reality. Once he became successful in business, he was committed to being very generous. He taught all of us to be generous and to help those with the least. My Dad never forgot what it felt like to be without. He helped me to have great compassion for people with limited resources.

BOOM!: With a busy work schedule, do you still have time to serve in the community and/or church? In what ways are you able to serve? Many of our readers are seeking volunteer opportunities, why do you think it’s important to serve others?

David: Serving is a Biblical principle and mentioned throughout the Bible. Jesus said,” For even I, the Son of Man, came not to be served but to serve others, and to give My life as a ransom for many. “

Busyness is a problem for many people in our society, and we often feel that we do not have enough time to serve. Life takes a lot of time, and it is easy to put off serving. However, we must carve out time from our schedules to serve. When we serve, we invariably feel better.

There is an enormous need for volunteers in Montgomery. Churches and synagogues are a great place to start. Or your readers can call various nonprofits directly and offer their services. We are involved with many outstanding non-profits that need help...Child Protect, MACOA, The Mercy House, the Montgomery Area Food Bank, Goodwill, Red Cross, etc. WCOV delivers meals every other Friday through Meals on Wheels. They need drivers to deliver meals as they have more shut-ins requesting meals than drivers available to deliver meals. Call Donna Marietta of MACOA at 334.263.0532.

My wife Donna was a volunteer at the Montgomery Cancer Center. She spent time with patients in the chemo room, served them water and snacks, talked to them, held their hands, gave them blankets, made phone calls for them, etc. Her purpose was to comfort the patients. Cancer patients are often by

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themselves during treatment as it is a lengthy process. Their families eventually have to go back to work and are unable to be with them. The volunteers help the patients. The Montgomery Cancer Center has a need for more volunteers. A loving heart is all that is required. Call Wendy Anzalone at 334.273.2279 to volunteer.

BOOM!: What are some of your favorite travel experiences? Favorite vacation spot? Any travel dreams planned?

David: Our favorite travel experiences over the years have been mission trips. We enjoy going to foreign countries to serve people rather than going somewhere only to be served. We’ve done various types of mission work in many countries…. Kenya and Zimbabwe Africa, India, Ecuador, Honduras, Dominican Republic, Thailand, and Haiti. We have given out school supplies to teachers in Zimbabwe and assembled desks that were given to the school by generous Americans. When you see teachers jump with joy just for getting boxes of chalk or new desks, it reminds us how little they have. We’ve stayed in an orphanage in Honduras run by Forgotten Children Ministries. These children just want adult attention and someone to sit, talk, interact, read books to them and encourage them. We’ve gone inside people’s homes around the world and prayed for them and with them. We’ve given talks to parents in India with JH Outback on how to strengthen families and deal with the challenging issues facing their children today. Our children and their spouses have gone on mission trips. After they return, we can tell how the mission trips excite them and increases their gratitude for what they have. When you help people, it always helps you. Many of the local churches in Montgomery put together mission trips. If your readers are interested, they should contact their church or other churches, synagogue about mission trips.

Donna and I do enjoy traditional vacations and any island with white sand is very appealing. However, our best trips have been mission trips.

BOOM!: How do you like to relax and wind down from a full day’s activities?

David: Now that we are empty nesters, my ideal evening is coming home and sitting down with Donna. Donna’s first question is usually, “So, how was your day?” Thus, I tell Donna about my day, and she listens intently. Then Donna tells me about her day. Our chocolate Labrador Belle often listens as well as she is usually sitting very close to Donna, as in 6 inches or less.

BOOM!: You were instrumental in developing the Amber Alert Program for Alabama and have supported our law enforcement community in many ways over the years, why are you so committed to law enforcement issues?

David: The Alabama Amber Alert was created around 2002 and was a team effort by the Alabama Broadcasters, Alabama law enforcement agencies, including the Attorney General’s Office, equipment manufacturers, and the governor's office. I was President of the Alabama Broadcasters Association at this time and was very involved in the process. In 2002, communication was different as smart phones were not invented and most of us were just starting to use the internet. There had been numerous high-profile child abductions around the US. The federal government asked the broadcast industry and law enforcement industry to create some type of communication system that could distribute information immediately in the event of an abduction.

We started building the system. We had meetings with broadcasters, equipment vendors, police, sheriffs, university police, elected officials, engineers and others. Our plan was to design a system that was effective, simple and reliable. There was no room for error or mistakes. It was basically a two-step process. First, we needed law enforcement officials to decide when to call for an amber alert, which resulted in a lengthy questionnaire that would be completed by front line officers and then approved by supervisors prior to green lighting the alarm. Then we needed to design the technical component to distribute the alert all over the state once it was ordered. This was complex 17 years ago as the internet

was an infant. We worked with radio stations, TV stations and cable companies in an effort to connect and communicate with all distributors simultaneously. Since launching Amber Alert, numerous abducted children have been rescued.

BOOM!: How would you describe the quality of life in the Montgomery/River Region area?

David: Montgomery has an amazing quality of life. The most valuable quality is our people. Montgomery is full of awesome people doing amazing things for the right reasons. We talked earlier about volunteerism. People in Montgomery volunteer. When society volunteers to help, great things happen.

Downtown is happening. In 15 short years, downtown has been transformed from an area of empty buildings to a place of renovated, attractive and new buildings full of people. The sidewalks are alive, and restaurants are numerous. Donna and I enjoy going downtown on the weekends and walking around, meeting people and listening to the music.

Montgomerians regularly create events all over the city, and they are well publicized. It makes us feel connected and creates opportunity for more connections. The events have food trucks and great music. Hampstead has monthly social events on Sunday afternoons. People like to congregate around people at events; I’ll create more of these opportunities as mayor.

Montgomery has less traffic than many cities. Congestion in fast-growing cities is a huge problem, and residents find themselves spending hours each day stuck in traffic. This is rarely the case in Montgomery as our average commute is less than 20 minutes. The Alabama Shakespeare Festival is a world-class theatre. The museum is amazing, and it’s free. We have a vibrant YMCA which does more good for Montgomery than most people realize.

BOOM!: As you’ve aged, how have your priorities changed?

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David: My priorities have continually evolved. The helicopter view is that as I grow closer to God, I think more about obeying Him. God has given us a manual for life called the Bible. The more time I spend reading the Bible, studying the Bible, participating in church and in Bible study groups, the more obedient I become. God’s basic requirements are to love God and love people. If we love someone, we spend time with them. I try to spend lots of time with God, talking to him (praying) and listening to him (reading the Bible). As we make God the number one priority in life, our hearts change. When our hearts change, we behave differently. We are more kind, more understanding, more accepting, more grateful, more forgiving, more peaceful and we become filled with joy. We are more loving. Loving people is a great quality for a Mayor. When you love people and see them all as children of God, you understand the importance of helping them. Growing closer to God is a lifelong journey but once we make it a priority, it is a beautiful journey.

analog to high definition in 2009, and some changes are driven by consumers, such as expansion of channels. We are continuously upgrading equipment as improvements and upgrades are introduced. Fifteen years ago, we owned one TV station in Montgomery which transmitted one signal. Today, we own three televisions station and transmit 11 different signals over central Alabama

Technology will play a large role in our campaign and so much data is available. This data improves marketing efforts. Social media plays a big role in campaigns as does digital marketing. Polling is driven by technology and allows candidates to be more aware of the wants and needs of the public. The cost however for technology in a campaign is very expensive and dramatically increases the size of a budget necessary to win races.

My advice to fathers is to be involved. Love is spelled T-I-M-E to a child. Time makes a difference in the relationship. Fathering is one of the most important jobs that a man will ever perform. Fathering impacts the life journey of a child, who did not ask to be born. So, when a man makes the decision to father a child, whether intentional or not, the man should be there. He should be prepared to provide the child with the vital ingredients needed for life. A man should love his child, support his child, encourage his child, hold his child, pray constantly for his child and be a positive role model as he guides that child through life. A father should love his child’s mother and treat her with respect and consideration. When dads are involved, children are more apt to be the person

BOOM!: Give us three words that describe you?

David: Grateful, positive, energetic

BOOM!: Do you have any hobbies or other activities that grab your attention?

David: Most of my energy and attention has been focused around work, family, and church thus there has been little room for hobbies. Hobbies are appealing but I've not devoted much time to developing any traditional hobbies. However, last year I took some golf lessons and thoroughly enjoyed the game.

BOOM!: What is your relationship with technology? How does technology help you manage your communications businesses? Will it play a big role in your campaign?

David: Technology has changed almost every aspect of our lives. Television is an industry that is driven by technology and is constantly changing. Some changes are mandated by the federal government such as the conversion from

BOOM!: How do you and your wife like to spend time with family? Describe your experience as a father, can you share any fatherly advice? What do you and your wife enjoy most about being grandparents? What are your grandparent nicknames?

David: When we get together as a family, we enjoy spending time together around the dining room table eating big meals. Donna is a spectacular cook, as are our three children, son-in-law and daughterin-law. Thus we have 6 skilled cooks available for most family meals. The food on our table is usually incredibly delicious. We sit around, talk, laugh, tell stories, dream and make plans.

Family meals, in my opinion, are important as bonding and relationship building occurs at the dinner table. We thrive on family meals.

David loves to spend family time in the kitchen with food!

that they are created to be. When dads are involved, life is better for the mom.

If I could have a redo as a parent, I would work fewer hours and spend more time with my children. Donna did more of the parenting duties when they were young as I was too focused on work.

My parenting skills started improving as I began reading books. In the mid 90’s, I started reading books about being a better father. Rudy Heinzelman at Frazer Church shared a book by Bob Morley called The Man in The Mirror. That book helped me to realize that I needed to rearrange my priorities to become a better father and husband. Later, Lester

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David giving away his only daughter, Dana to the new man in her life

Spencer, Pastor at St. James UMC shared some wonderful books on parenting. I’ve since read many books on being a better father and have a much better understanding of how to be a better dad. Here are some powerful books: The 7 Habits of Highly Successful Families, Maximized Manhood, and The 7 Secrets of Effective Fathers.

God has shown me grace and mercy as all three children are very close to us. They love us and we love them. They have become productive members of society who love the Lord. Being a grandparent is similar to a redo in that you have an impact on the life journey of your grandchild. Most of us learned from our mistakes thus we are better grandparents. In our case, we have more patience with our grandchildren, we feel more relaxed and we offer more encouragement.

Grace, Walter and Everest are amazing grandchildren. Our grandchildren call me Dronnie and Donna is Drammah. Grace made those names up years ago and they stuck. Funny.

BOOM!: Do you have a favorite Bible verse?

David: My favorite Bible verse is Philippians 4:6 which reads "Don't worry about anything, instead pray about everything. Ask God for what you need and thank him for all that he has done." In our society, most of us do a lot of worrying. Worrying doesn't change anything, it just drains us of our joy. It creates fear.

When we have a concern and pray about it, we're asking God for his guidance and his direction. God is always listening and wants us to seek him. It is amazing how much better we feel when we increase the amount of time we spend praying to God.

We want to thank David for sharing some of his story for this month’s BOOM! Cover Profile. Also, a big thanks to Donna Woods for sharing all the family photos. If you would like to learn more about David and WCOV/Fox 20. you can email him at david@wcov.com or visit www.wcov.com. David is running for Mayor of Montgomery so we hope you'll take a listen to how he would lead Montgomery into the future, you may like what you hear. We also want to thank Shellee Roberts of Total Image Portraits, www.totalimage.com, for her cover photo for this month's cover. If you have questions, comments or suggestions about our cover profiles, including nominating someone, please send them to Jim Watson at jim@riverregionboom.com

Read all of the BOOM! Cover Profiles at www.riverregionboom.com/archive/

Donna, mother of the bride, is escorted by her two sons, Drew and David