Cullman Good Life Magazine - Spring 2018 by The Good Life Magazine

CULLMAN COUNTY

Kristen Holmes shares broad world view through WSCC museum, travel Tina Herfurth teaches new (obedience) tricks to old dogs â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and to puppies The story of the Memphis Belle, its pilot and his deathbed plea to his sixth wife SPRING 2018 COMPLIMENTARY

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Welcome

Reader theory, exhibits A and B: B-17 and a good problem to have

s a writer, photographer, editor, publisher and the guy who totes out the recycling, I have long operated under the assumption that if I’m working on something especially interesting to me, most readers will find it interesting, too. That’s my theory and I’m sticking to it until my wife tells me otherwise. This issue has been even more interesting to me than usual. I offer two of many exhibits as evidence ... Exhibit A: the story on the famous bomber “Memphis Belle,” the interesting man named Bob Morgan who piloted plane and crew safely through hell in the skies over Europe during the dark days of WWII, and about Linda, the determined and sparky woman who became Bob’s not first, second or third, but sixth wife ... and who just happens to live in Cullman County. Linda introduced herself over the phone to me last year and told me the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force would complete a 13-year restoration project of the Memphis Belle this spring. She wondered if I’d be interested in writing a story about it. Duh. She mailed me a copy of Bob’s book. I figured I’d skim it for background but found myself engrossed with the entire story of a compelling man caught up in war and women. I ended up watching the 1944 documentary on the plane and re-watching Hollywood’s take on “Memphis Belle,” which I saw about 1990. Checking facts online as I wrote, I found myself drawn off late into the night looking at old photos and following links to links of fascinating minutiae. I’m not saying the story will make you drive to Ohio in May for the opening of the museum’s Belle display as I plan to do with my son and his wife, but I think you’ll like the read. Exhibit B: I was very interested in – and very proud to be part of – working with Dale Greer and the Cullman Economic Development Agency on an ad campaign promoting the community. Cullman has what most people would say is an enviable problem: with all of the development and new jobs here, it’s time to recruit new residents. Who, I say, is better to tackle that task than those who live here and love their city? So the idea behind the ads is to recruit you – yes, you – to be an ambassador and talk up all the good Cullman has to offer to every visitor and non-resident you know and meet. That should be easy to do. And I’m sure you’ll do a great job.

David Moore Publisher/editor 6

FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL 2018

Contributors It’s been said before that Steve Maze of the New Canaan community in eastern Cullman County knows more about Hank Williams than his own momma did. Some of this vast knowledge is from a former Cullman woman who sang with Hank. Read about it inside. It would take much more space than this to catch you up with everything Loretta Gillespie has been up to since her piece on succulents appeared in the summer 2017 issue of GLM. Take her out to eat at Jim ‘N Nicks, however, and she’ll be glad to fill you in as you fill up. The late, great George Carlin once allegedly walked into Deb’s Bookstore, spotted Deb Leslie hiding behind a book and asked her where to find the self-help section. “She said if she told me, it would defeat the purpose,” George said. Well, it does sounds like her ... Heard the Auburn joke about Tim Crow? He walked into his office at the Cullman County Extension Service and said, “Have you seen my desk?” “No,” Tony Glover replied. “And I don’t think you have either.” Must be because Tim was out researching his latest piece for Good Life. Patrick Oden, who knows a ton about photography, will tell you a simple way to improve the photos you take of your kids and grandkids is to get down on their level to shoot them. The tip works with pets, too, and he uses it to good effect in this issue of the magazine. You get an “A” if you noticed our spring GLMs come out a bit later than others. Ad/art director Sheila McAnear explains that it’s impossible to talk to business folks about a spring ad during Christmas. “Spring? ’You crazy?” So, by design, she bumps the deadline back a week or so.

If you were one of the of nice folks helping publisher/editor David Moore look for his wallet that he lost Christmas Eve, thanks ... but never mind. After replacing all of those important cards, he found it in late January, nicely hidden on the back seat in his wife’s car.

New platter comes with shrimp fried, blackened and as scampi, above; below, perfected filets are hand cut; upper right, broccoli-cheese soup in a bread bowl (also available with potato soup). Of course there’s always a variety of beer!

It’s a new menu! Can you say, ‘Yum’? Just when you thought Augusta’s couldn’t get any better … Pow! Owner Deb Veres and sons Jason and Josh cooked up 18 delicious new additions to the menu, and that’s not counting the combo entrees now offered. “Some of the new items are suggestions by customers,” Deb says. “Some are responses to a little healthier eating. But mostly they’re just things we like a lot and want to share.” Like Maw Maw’s banana pudding, a Veres family favorite. Deb kept tweaking her mom’s recipe, seeking perfection. Finally Josh gave it his happy OK, and they immediately added it to the menu. Entree additions include cut-in-house T-bone and filet mignon, hamburger steak, smothered tips, steak toppers, shrimp scampi and a platter, double-patty burgers. Then there are buffalo chicken sliders, chicken salad wraps and 3- and 4-veggie plates. Appetizers? Fresh salmon cakes, deviled eggs,

Fresh salmon cakes appetizer, above; Maw Maw’s banana pudding, right. bread-bowl broccoli-cheese soup. And sides of potato skins and sweet potato fries. Yum! The new combos allow you to get creative with your dinner. Combine steak and shrimp, chicken and salmon and other duos for a delicious platter. But some things at Augusta’s never change – great fresh food and friendly, family-like service.

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Inside 10 Good Fun

Winter hibernation is over – get out of bed

16 Good People

Kristen Holmes and her broad world view

20 Good Reads

Books by Ken Follett and Dean Koontz

23 Good Cooking

Robin Walker’s love of kitchen and cooking shows up in her great country recipes

32 Good Eats

Jim ‘N Nicks, feeding a community

34 Good ’n’ Green

Perennials always come back to greet you

36 Carolyn Parker

Cullman woman sang with legendary “Hank”

40 A view of the lake and the past The Browns retired to Smith Lake in 2015, but their house reflects their deep ties

50 S.A. Maples

Her abstracts may reflect her soul, but her studio is still her playground

58 Dog teacher

Tina Herfurth has found her love and calling teaching dogs to not eat hubby’s burgers

67 The Memphis Belle

The story of a famous warbird, its pilot and the woman who ties them to Cullman

78 Out ’n’ About

What happens when St. Bernard’s in bloom?

On the cover: John Sharp of Guntersville likes to photograph Welti Falls on early mornings in February and March because the sun’s angle backlights the seasonally heavy mist from the falls. This page: When Dr. Jim Brown has a bourbon on his deck, see page 40, he’s likely drinking the brand with his multigreat-grandfather’s picture on it. Photo by David Moore

David F. Moore Publisher/editor 256-293-0888 david.goodlifemagazine@gmail.com

Sheila T. McAnear Advertising/art Director 256-640-3973 sheila.goodlifemagazine@gmail.com

MoMc Publishing LLC P.O. Box 28, Arab, Al 35016 www.good-life-magazine.net

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There’s still time to sign up for “The Alps: Germany and Switzerland,” May 1727, through Wallace State. The inclusive trip includes a full itinerary with stops in Rothenburg, Munich, Lucerne, at left, Salzburg, Heidelberg and more. The now-discounted price is $3,485; $3,730 with a room upgrade for those 30 and older. For more info: Kristen Holmes at 256.352.8118; or visit: or http://www.wallacestate. edu/abroad.

Bosom Buddies plan trifecta ... running shoes, motorcycles, forks

or the 4th Annual Colors of Cancer Day on April 7, the Cullman County Bosom Buddies Foundation plans a trifecta of events with running shoes, motorcycles and forks. The Bosom Buddies raise money to assist with basic living expenses for approved cancer patients during treatment. That’s the good part, here’s the fun parts … • Colors of Cancer 5K Run Registration is 6:45-7:45 a.m. at the Cullman Fairgrounds. The race starts at 8 a.m. and medal presentations follow. Day-of registration is $30. Preregister and save $5 plus be assured of scoring a free T-shirt. Registration forms are available at Options: 2201 U.S. 31 N., Cullman. For more info: Louise Cole, lcole7857@gmail.com. • Weather canceled the Biker’s Against Cancer Motorcycle Ride last October, but it’s on for “kickstands up” at 9:30 a.m. from the back parking lot behind the center building at Cullman Regional Medical Center. Register and get a free breakfast 7:30-9 a.m. in CRMC’s Colonel Cullman Room. A riders’ meeting follows at 9. Cost is $25 per rider; $10 per passenger. The 110-mile ride goes through Bankhead National Forest. Eat a free lunch afterward in the Colonel Cullman Room. Buy tickets and maybe win door prizes or a 50/50 pot. For more info: Mary Dyer, 256-339-0911; or Louise Cole, lcole7857@gmail. com. • Actually, for the third event you don’t have to bring your own fork. You can get one at Festhalle from Swamp John’s food truck, where you can also get one of their delicious fish, shrimp or chicken strip dinners. Eat on site or take it home. Cost is $11 and includes fries, coleslaw and tea. Buy tickets in advance at Options or, day of, at the food truck. For more info: Judy Grissom, 256-347-5993. 10

FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL 2018

Last year’s race winners show off medals; bikers ready to take off at a previous cancer ride. Photos: top courtesy of Cullman Tribune, bottom by Judy Grissom.

Crawl out of hibernation ... enjoy springtime

Good Fun

• Through February – History in maps In its exhibit hall, the Evelyn Burrow Museum, in conjunction with the Alabama 200 bicentennial celebration, is exhibiting a collection of maps of the state documenting its changes before and after statehood. On loan from the Birmingham Public Library, “Sweet Home: Alabama’s History in Maps” will be on display through at least Feb. 28. The exhibit explores 450 years of Alabama history through more than 50 maps carefully selected from the library’s world-class cartography collection. It garnered rave reviews in Birmingham. The museum’s exhibit hall is open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday; 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday. Admission: free. For more information: 256-352-8547; or visit www.burrowmuseum.org. • Through March 31 – “Color Explosion” Wallace State’s Evelyn Burrow Museum features “Color Explosion,” an exhibit of Bewey Bowden’s work. Considered one of Mississippi’s leading artists, her oil paintings – filled with colorful flora and fauna – are found in public and private collections throughout at least 18 states. Formerly head of the Department of Speech and Drama at Belhaven College, she found that she could apply the principles used to create a mood with color on stage, to creating moods on canvas. Her mother’s gardens of poppies, tulips and larkspur had a profound impact on her. Museum admission: free. It’s open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday; 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday. For more information: 256-352-8547; or visit www. burrowmuseum.org. • March-June – Go take a hike Cullman Park and Rec conducts group hikes with a guided staff member starting at 9 a.m. the first Saturday of the month at Hurricane Creek Park, Bankhead, Ruffner Mountain and Mount Cheaha. The free hikes are open to ages 16 and up. For more info, call the

This map of “La Florida” appeared in the 1591 edition of Abraham Ortelius’s atlas, “Theatrum Orbis Terrarum.” It is the first published map of what would become the southeastern United States. Cullman Civic Center, 256-734-9157; or info@cullmanrecreation.org. • March 3-4 – Mulberry Fork races The Alabama Cup kayak and canoe series started in February on the Locust Fork in Blount County. The second races are on the Mulberry Fork in Cullman County this weekend. The Mulberry course is about 100 yards long with some 25 gates to maneuver through class II/III rapids. You can watch from an easily accessible trail. Parking is $3, food will be sold, and water and portable toilets are available. The site is on Cullman County Road 509, accessible from Short Street in Garden City or from 509, off Ala. 91 south of Hanceville. For more information on visiting or competing, visit: www.alabamacupraces.com; or call: Tony Diliberto, 205-223-7094. • March 15-18 – “Peter and the Starcatcher”

Tony-winning “Peter and the Starcatcher” upends the century-old story of how a miserable orphan comes to be The Boy Who Would Not Grow Up (a.k.a. Peter Pan). From marauding pirates and jungle tyrants to unwilling comrades and unlikely heroes, the production playfully explores the depths of greed and despair ... and the bonds of friendship, duty and love. Shows at 7 p.m. March 15-17; 2 p.m. March 18. Admission: $10. • March 17, 24 – Two big park yard sales Sportsman Lake Park yard sale is March 17 and Smith Lake Park yard sale is March 24. Both will be 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Admission: free; spots: $10; pavilion: $20. For more info: Sportsman Lake Park, 256-734-3052; Smith Lake Park 256-739-2916. • March 22 – Concert Choir The Wallace State Concert Choir FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL 2018

will perform at 7 p.m. at Burrow Center Recital Hall. Admission: $10. • March 31 – Sportsman Lake Park Easter Egg Hunt Bring the youngsters out between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. for a fun time at the park the day before Easter. Admission: free. For more info: Sportsman Lake Park, 256-734-3052. • March 31 – Paws in the Park The day before Easter is a “pawfect” day to adopt a new pet. Pet adoption day is 10 a.m.-2 p.m. at Sportsman Lake Park. Admission: free; adoption fees apply. For info, call: Tim McKoy, Cullman County Animal Shelter, 256-734-5448. • March 31-April 1 – Kennel Club Dog Show Here’s your chance (again) to see a dog show licensed under the United Kennel Club. The North Alabama Kennel Club has held its annual show in Cullman for the past two years. Two overlapping events are held both days, starting at 11 a.m. and 11:30

a.m. The events last until 3 p.m. or later. Food trucks will provide lunch both days. Admission is free and the public is invited to attend – as long as you leave your pet at home. The club expects 60-70 dogs in categories of junior showmanship, guardian, scenthound, sighthound, gun god, northern, American Eskimo, herding, Belgian Shepherd, terrier, toy fox terrier and companion. Dog’s entry requires permanent registration with UKC and a fee. For details on entering: www.aguntcockers.com/nakc; or contact: Jennifer Swann, 265-654-7508. • April-October – Farmers Market, crafts Festhalle Farmer’s Market will be open 7 a.m.-2 p.m. Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. You buy fresh, locally grown produce in season, plus craft vendors are at market, too. Produce sellers and craft people interested in booth space can contact: Wendy Williams: wendy@cullmanrecreation.org. • April – Historic walks

This year’s theme for Alabama’s three-year bicentennial celebration – Alabama 200 – is “Honoring Our People.” Cullman is participating with annual historic walking tours every Saturday this month. The free, hour-long strolls begin at 10 a.m. in front of the Cullman County Museum led by local historians full of insights into the city’s past residents. For more info: Drew Green, 256-739-1258. • Mid-April-March – “Making Alabama” The acclaimed traveling exhibit will visit all 67 counties as part of Alabama’s bicentennial celebration. One of its first stops is Cullman County, where it will have an extended stay of at least six weeks. Drew Green of Cullman County Museum, who heads the county’s bicentennial committee, says the exhibit will be shown at Wallace State’s Evelyn Burrow Museum, which previously hosted a traveling Smithsonian exhibit. Because of that experience, Making Alabama will be in the county an extra

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two-three weeks to allow bicentennial officials statewide to see and understand how the exhibit works. The exhibit features eight periods of history that defined Alabama – turning points that retrace the state’s footsteps to present day and beyond. Interactive displays are designed to engage visitors in the stories behind the stories, delving deeper into Alabama history, its people, places and cultures. Local exhibits by host communities will showcase their own role in the story of Making Alabama. Admission to Making Alabama is free. Evelyn Burrow Museum is open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday; 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday. For more information: 256-352-8547; or visit www. burrowmuseum.org. • April 12-14 –Singers Show The Wallace State Singers will perform at 7 p.m. nightly at Burrow Center Recital Hall. Admission: $10. • April 13 – The Sportsman Lake Rock & Glow 5K

Traveling exhibit will open statewide at the Evelyn Burrow Museum. Rock & Glow 5K is 3.1-mile run that’s more about having a “glowing” experience than speed. Wear creative running gear – if it’s bright, blinks, shines, glows, or looks like something from another planet, it’s perfect. A

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• June 22-24 – Nashville Getaway Weekend Member or not, travel with the Wallace State Alumni Association for two nights at the Opryland Resort . Includes three meals, reserved tickets at Grand Ole Opry, the park or register online: www. cullmancountyparks.com. Day of registration starts at 6 p.m. – $25 and $30 the day of, children 12 and under are $15, and children 6 and under are free. Park admission: free. For more info: 256-734-3052. • April 20 – Big Band Dance Kick up your heels as the Wallace State Jazz Band hosts its annual ballroom dance at 7 p.m. in the atrium of the Burrow Center. A $15 donation includes light refreshments. For more info: Stefany Pate, 256-352-8277. • April 24 – Spring Concert The Wallace State Community College Fine and Performing Arts

tours of Nashville and the Country Music Hall of Fame, motorcoach transportation and more. Double occupancy starts at $379 per person ($479 non members). For more info: LaDonna Allen, 256-352-8071.

program will present its annual spring concert at 7 p.m. in the Burrow Center Recital Hall. • April 21-22 – 34th Annual Bloomin’ Festival Held on the campus of St. Bernard Abbey and Prep School, the event draws some 25,000 visitors annually. For more, please see page 78. • April 24 – Spring Concert The Wallace State Community College Concert Band/Jazz Band will present their spring concert at 7 p.m. Free admission; Burrow Center for the Fine and Performing Arts Recital Hall. • April 26 – Three Redneck Tenors

With music written by opera-veteran Matthew Lord and arranged by award-winning composer Craig Bohmler, the Three Redneck Tenors are Mr. Lord, Blake Davidson and Jonathan Fruge. 14

FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL 2018

The classically trained Three Redneck Tenors perform musical comedy … think Duck Dynasty goes to Carnegie Hall. They were top finalists on “America’s Got Talent” and have been entertaining audiences since 2006 with their vocal prowess and a smorgasbord of songs and music ranging from gospel and country to Broadway, pop and classical. A production of the Cullman Community Concert Association, the show starts at 7 p.m. in the Betty Leeth Haynes Theatre at Wallace State. Tickets are $30. For more info: www. cullmancommunityconcertassociation. com. • May 3 – Broadway Night Auditioned students in the Wallace State Fine and Performing Arts will sing, dance and act out pieces and scenes of their choosing. 7 p.m. at Burrow Center for the Fine and Performing Arts Recital Hall; $10 adult, $5 students. • May 4-5 – StrawberryFest Cullman’s annual StrawberryFest features the best strawberries and produce in North Alabama from 3 p.m.-9 p.m. Friday and 8 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday at Festhalle. Plus there will be great music, a classic car show, arts and crafts and scrumptious food vendors. Shop the unique stores downtown and in the warehouse district while you’re there. Fore info on booth space contact Cullman Parks and Rec: 256-734-9157; or: info@cullmanrecreation.org.

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Good People

5questions Story and photo by David Moore

rom growing up in an adoptive family with educators as parents and a brother from Vietnam, to coordinating international studies at Wallace State Community College, Kristen Holmes takes a broad view of the world. Donald and June Jones adopted Kristen in 1971 when she was 6 weeks old. She grew up at Center Hill, northeast of Hanceville on Ala. 91. Her dad, now deceased, was a science teacher and coach at Hanceville Junior High and High School, and was principal and coached at Fairview High School in the 1960s and 1970s. He later worked in the Cullman County Schools central office and, after retirement, announced baseball games for years at Wallace State. June taught English at Hanceville and Fairview before becoming the long-time gifted teacher at the child development center. Kristen was 4 when Kevin, two years her junior, was adopted. He was on the last Operation Babylift flight out of Saigon at the end of the Vietnam War. She says they grew up in a very loving household. “I hear of people who found out later in life they were adopted, but we always knew, and it was celebrated, really by everyone,” Kristen says. “Mother and Dad are as much my parents as anyone’s parents are. We have always had a very close family.” St. Paul’s Lutheran, the family’s church, sponsored and embraced Philippine families. Offering Kristen further international influence, Doris Boyd of Fairview, who was Japanese, helped with the Jones children. So did Sue Putman, a well-known beacon of Hanceville. “They were both such admirable 16

FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL 2018

Kristen Holmes

Sharing a broad view of the world through WSCC tours and its museum women and big influences on our early life,” Kristen says. Another early influence on her was watching “Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom.” The show made her long to go on safari in distant lands.

uring a Christmas holiday in high school, Kristen’s parents arranged a three-week trip to Belgium to visit Uncle Doyle Jones, providing her first – and far from last – taste of the Alps, Brussels, Paris and London. After high school, Kristen took off for Haverford College, a small liberal arts institution outside of Philadelphia. Part of the Tri-College Consortium, it allowed her to take classes at nearby Swarthmore and Bryn Mawr. “At the time I wanted to see as much as I could see,” she says. Home one summer she saw someone new: Paul Holmes. After she graduated college in 1993, they married that December. Today he manages a community corrections and specialty courts program through the psychology department at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Kristen was for a time intrigued with law. One summer during college she took law classes at the University of Virginia. After college she worked a while for Fess and Gaynor St. John at their Cullman law firm. It was great experience, she says, and there she found lifelong friends and mentors. Ultimately she found law was not the fit she was looking for, but she found that building a compelling case through writing was. She and Paul lived in Tuscaloosa 1996-1998 while both earned master’s degrees. Her interest in writing lead to a study of journalism. Afterward, they moved into Kristen’s grandmother’s Frank Lloyd Wrightinspired house, next door to where she

grew up. Shortly she got a teaching job at Wallace State, later moving into PR work. Her talents did not go unnoticed.

oday, Kristen’s PR work has expanded to the role of assistant to the president for external and cultural affairs, which includes activities related to international and governmental affairs as well as the museum. It’s is, she says, a great honor to work for a transformational leader such as Dr. Vicki Karolewics. An aficionado of museums, Kristen heads up Wallace State’s Burrow Museum as well as the nationally recognized public relations department for the college. On top of everything else, Kristen organizes and leads annual international college study trips. Open to both students and the general public, these trips offer exposure to dozens of foreign lands and their far-flung cultures, further broadening participants’ view of the world. “We provide international exposure and experiential learning in response to that part of Wallace State’s mission which is dedicated to providing cultural enrichment to our students and community,” she says. The multi-faceted job adds up to a fine fit for Kristen. “If I had designed the job myself I could not love it more,” she says. “It’s interesting, challenging and rewarding. And to work for an organization that does such a public good is pretty special.” Still a writer at heart, Kristen appreciates the irony that her job has taken her around the world, yet she still lives at Center Hill, next door to the house where she grew up.

Many people “travel” with their jobs. But when you travel, it’s

Snapshot: Kristen Holmes

FAMILY: Born Oct. 3, 1971, adopted daughter of June and the late Donald Jones. Married Paul Holmes of Cullman, December 1993. Has two dogs and a horse. EDUCATION: St. Paul’s Lutheran School, 5-K; Cullman City Schools, graduated from Cullman High 1989; graduated Haverford College, Pa., degree in political science and art history, 1993; 1996-1998, earned MA in mass communications/ journalism, University of Alabama; with exception of her dissertation has completed doctoral studies in public policy/ administration; “and perpetually trying to learn French,” she says. CAREER: 1999, started working at Wallace State as adjunct instructor; 2000 began PR work, transitioning in roles from coordinator to director over the years; in 2010 The Evelyn Burrow Museum became part of her department; currently serves as assistant to president for external/cultural affairs, which includes heading up efforts related to communications, marketing, international and governmental affairs and the museum. ACTIVITIES: Attends Grace Episcopal Church. Serves on boards of Study Alabama, the Alabama Museums Association, the Alabama Community College System Public Relations Association. She is recent graduate of the UA/Miss State Community College Policy Fellowship, a member of Cullman’s Alabama 200 Bicentennial Committee and the Cullman Rotary Club.

the sort of trip most people call a vacation. What are your thoughts on travel? Well, if you’ve ever been responsible for a group, you wouldn’t think it a vacation! It’s a lot of responsibility. But I do love helping to make the experience for others possible because international travel is, without question, life-changing. I have been inspired to travel since childhood. In high school when my parents took our family to Europe to visit my uncle, we learned to ski in the Swiss Alps with the Matterhorn at our back. My uncle has some funny stories about those adventures. My skiing got off to a rough start. Since lots of people travel, I’m not sure this is unique, but I have since visited about 40 countries and every continent except Antarctica – which is a goal. I have been pickpocketed twice and have become an expert at replacing passports. With work, I love to see the world through students’ eyes and help provide an opportunity for them to develop a broader perspective, and to identify themselves in the world in a more informed way. Some have changed their career goals as a result of an international travel/study experience. They develop a degree of cultural literacy and gain confidence in their ability to explore in the future. I try to make a practice of first traveling to a country on my own vacation before taking a group there. My husband and I got married over the Christmas holidays in 1993, so travel during that time has become something of a tradition. We have spent lots of time in Europe, stayed in the Icehotel above the Arctic Circle, ridden elephants in Cambodia, seen evidence of the war in Bosnia, climbed Machu Picchu, waltzed at New Year’s in the streets of Vienna – they really do that there! – and visited so many other points in-between. We are also close to checking off our 50-state list, which is another goal before I reach “that milestone” birthday. The U.S. has so much to offer. Being open to opportunity 18

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and being unflappable are keys to successful travel – and not bad life traits either. Our investments tend to be in travel and experiences rather than in our house, which may or may not make sense in the long run.

One of your trips in 2017 was not vacation-like at all. Can you tell us about Kenya? It is my desire to make service a bigger part of every personal vacation. The first trip I did personally with Kenya Relief a number of years ago taught me how rewarding that could be. So I was so excited last year when Wallace State started a partnership with the Kenya Relief program. It provided that life changing opportunity to our students – truly expanding their understanding of the world and the way they view their place in it. Whether through travel, the museum, classes or independent study, I love seeing students inspired and developing confidence to pursue their dreams. Participation in Kenya Relief and similar experiences can do that. At graduation last year, Wallace State recognized Kenya Relief founder Steve James with an Outstanding Alumni Award.

A big aspect of your job is the Evelyn Burrow Museum. Can you explain your attraction to museums, and what’s it like working in one? I love it. I’ve been an avid museumgoer since college. Some of my favorites include the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, the Musee d’Orsay in Paris, Topkapi in Istanbul, and lately the Neue Galerie in New York. For me, the most moving piece of art, however, is Michelangelo’s Pieta in St. Peter’s Cathedral in Rome. I simply can’t look at it without weeping. The Renaissance is still my favorite period in art history. I think, though, like anything, the more you learn, the more you appreciate. I gave a talk for a class once on Henri Fantin-Latour,

and I will forever judge paintings of flowers against his, which are exquisite. I also love illuminated manuscripts and tapestries. Travel gives me inspiration for the Evelyn Burrow Museum. It used to be that I never wanted to take pictures in museums. I wanted to be immersed in the experience. Now I make a lot more photos, but my focus is on ideas for the museum here, such as different ways to construct labels or display art. Through the Evelyn Burrow Museum, art and other activities on campus, Wallace offers cultural diversity to students and the community. So I feel the work is important. I believe ours is the only dedicated art museum in our service area.

Do you ever get bored?

No. I have an unrelenting love of learning instilled long ago by my parents. My mother always maintained that there was no excuse for boredom when we were growing up. I share that belief with her now. So I love reading, politics, good movies, good conversation, interesting cuisine – which is slightly more challenging since I became vegetarian – concert and theatre going. I love almost any kind of exercise or outdoor activity … hiking, running, horseback riding, yoga, going to the gym, learning tennis, rowing, skiing. I am not great at anything, and some I don’t get to do very often, but I love the challenge and the adventure and the opportunity to grow. Luckily, my brother, who owns a gym, and friends, fitter and more talented than I am, inspire me. I love big cities, such as New York, and I love the countryside and the forest, the beach as well the mountains. I grew up wandering in the woods behind our house, playing with animals, learning to enjoy nature unfettered. I farmed the garden under my father’s tutelage. Admittedly at times I was a reluctant gardener, but I saw the value when we took crops to the farmer’s market or sold them on

the side of the road and later bought bicycles with the proceeds. Animals … I love animals, especially a donkey named Joshua, a horse named Tom, and two mules named Mavis and Nellie. Peace and happiness are the love of a donkey. I volunteered almost every day for 17 years taking care of the horses and animals at the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament. Lately, I am making an effort in my spare time to focus on my dissertation, but I do think volunteer work, whether helping people or animals, is key to happiness. Basically, I love life. I think God put us here knowing our potential and striving to be anything less than we can be, doing less than we can do – being bored, you could say – is a disservice to Him. It is fulfilling to dedicate most of my energy to Wallace State because we are in the business of changing lives. One doesn’t get bored doing that.

What’s something about

Kristen Holmes that most people don’t know? I love listening to other people and helping them to find ways to achieve their goals, solve their problems or inspire their confidence. I always have been very shy and often lacked self-confidence growing up, so I still identify with children and young adults who feel that way. Always more comfortable in the classroom, I really gained selfconfidence through fitness. There’s something about feeling strong. And so I know that if I can complete a few marathons – nothing compared to my colleague, Wayne Manord, who’s completed 70! – or win a little bench press competition, anyone can. One of my proudest memories was encouraging an already accomplished student who didn’t think she was good enough to try out for our cross-country team to do so. She made it, and over the course of her participation she grew into a more confident woman. Everyone has something they don’t

feel very good at, and they need a little extra push. I once watched a movie called “All the Small Animals.” The main character, an elderly man, made it his business to bury all the animals he could find that had been killed on the road. I would like to think I could figure out a way to do that. Sometimes I worry if we become immune to the suffering and death of animals. Maybe other suffering goes unnoticed and all life becomes a little more disposable and discardable. When I went to India, one of the hosts we visited referred to our entire group as “luminaries on a sojourn.” Though undeserved, it was such a lovely sentiment that I would love to earn it one day. Like with so many things, there’s something to be said for “showing up.” The benefit of showing up, which is sometimes the hardest step, along with the value of hard work my father taught me in the garden and the refusal to be bored that my mother taught me, are among the greatest lessons of my life, next to those I learned in church. Good Life Magazine

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Good Reads

Multi-faceted heroine pursues mind-controlling bad guys

‘A Column of Fire’ rounds out Follett’s ‘Pillars’ trilogy nicely

hy do some people – so many – need to control others, tell them what to do, use them if they can, destroy those who won’t be used?” Meet Jane Hawk, wife, mother, FBI agent and as fierce as her surname implies. In “The Silent Corner,” “Something is wrong with best-selling author Dean me. I need. I very much Koontz leads us once again into a suspenseneed. I very much filled thriller. need to be dead.” Jane does not believe her husband has committed suicide and sets out to prove it. Now, considered a rogue agent, Jane is hunted by the “good guys” as well as the truly evil. The bad guys have taken mind-control to the next level. As “The Manchurian Candidate” answered the call and had no memory of his action, this new mind-control technology makes the unwanted – or those too close to the truth – eliminate themselves. What the bad guys don’t count on, however, is that Jane is as clever and resourceful as they are cold-blooded. (And threatening Jane’s son was not a smart move on their part.) Koontz is a master of the page-turner, and this is one of his best. Like me, you’ll stay up late with this book and root for Jane as she follows the trail and discovers the terrible secret those in control will stop at nothing to protect. – Deb Laslie

n 1989, my favorite thriller writer penned “The Pillars of the Earth,” a historical novel about the building of the Kingsbridge Cathedral. It’s one of the best books I’ve ever read. He followed “Pillars” with “World Without End,” and now, in the conclusion of the Kingsbridge trilogy, Yes, I have done this many Ken Follett brings us “A times: watched a man Column of Fire.” I never really knew die knowing that I, more how little I knew about than anyone else, had the religious conflicts brought him to his just of the 1500’s – you but dreadful punishment. know, the period when the “preferred” religion I did it for my country, changed with the change which is dear to me; for of any king or queen. my sovereign, who I serve; (Incidentally, the action and for something else, a of changing your beliefs with the change of principle, the belief that monarch was called a person has the right to “policy”. It’s where we make up his own mind get our modern word about God. “politics”.) This book, has it all: intrigue, romance, blood feuds, good guys, bad guys ... and a couple of bad girls as well. I couldn’t put it down. This is a perfect start to your spring reading. Or any season. Mr. Follett never disappoints. – Deb Laslie

“W

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Good Cooking Story and photos by David Moore

A love of kitchen and cooking gives Robin Walker a country edge After she graduated in 1980, Robin went on to help Doris do catering jobs for years.

cinnamon streusel, pies and orange slice and fresh apple cakes, to whipping cream pound cake. The latter, one of her favorites, was from a dear friend’s recipe. Robin would also take peanut brittle,

ne of W.A. “Bud” and Bonnie Fullilove’s brood of a half-dozen kids, arried for 23 years, Robin, Robin Walker grew up on a working who lives in Joppa, had three children, farm in the Antioch community south of Fairview. But it was her grandmother, the late Frankie Turner of Hueytown, who first introduced her to the love of kitchens and cooking. “Her garden was just outside the kitchen. She taught me to cook breaded okra and how to bake. No offense to Mama,” Robin laughs, “but, Lawd, she was always in the field. She didn’t have time to teach us cooking. She came in and cooked, then called in the family.” Robin and her siblings helped Bud and Bonnie raise a variety of row crops, vegetables, hay, cotton, chickens, Charolais cattle and steers. They always made time for a week of family vacation, but Robin Walker holds up a tray of peanut brittle. She can’t make it without thinking of her father. Robin got to spend another fun week with her grandparents in Hueytown. so there were always ball games and made using her father’s recipe, to the In home ec at Fairview High, it was cheerleading. bazaar. Doris Patterson and Pat Floyd, who took “And hungry kids,” she adds. “So “I always went to his home to Robin’s cooking and kitchen interest to a there were lots of pizzas, cookies, cakes help him with the task of pulling and new level of love. and punch to make.” stretching his masterpiece,” Robin says. “I learned to can and freeze at home, She’d also bake pies for the crew at It was understandably difficult for Bud but the art of cakes and cooking – like Walkers Brothers in Baileyton where she because, when Robin was young, he ham and cheese quiche, setting a table worked for years. During her 20 years lost his right hand in a farm equipment correctly, cake decorating – I got from at Baileyton United Methodist, Robin accident. them in home ec,” she says. “Also, I helped with the annual bazaar, preparing His peanut brittle, along with other liked it lot more than family life where gallons of chili, pounds and pounds of specialties Robin made, such as her we learned how to take care of babies cookies and candies and taking orders mom’s recipe for caramel pie, became and change diapers ...” and baking just about everything from beloved rituals with the children at FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL 2018

Christmas and other holidays. She also enjoyed giving gift baskets filled with her homemade goodies.

f Robin were not raising two of her three grandchildren and working part time at Joppa-Hulaco-Ryan Water Authority, she’d probably do more cooking outside the home today. But don’t get the wrong impression.

She’s not hanging up her skillet. For starts, the woman who loves cooking and her kitchen keeps those grandkids fed. Robin still thoroughly enjoys grilling and smoking and has the equipment and room to do it. And she loves to make people happy with food, for instance, cooking them her mom’s caramel pie. “Everybody likes it,” Robin says.

“I don’t know of anybody who’s ever tried that and it’s not been their favorite dessert that I make.” She was glad to share her following recipes in the magazine and understands how it’s fun and interesting to “play around” in the kitchen with them. “But,” Robin laughs, “if I say use ‘Hellmann’s mayonnaise, it won’t taste right if you use something else.”

SWEET POTATO CASSEROLE 3 cups mashed sweet potatoes 2 large eggs, beaten ¼ cup milk 1 cup sugar 1 tsp. vanilla ½ tsp. cinnamon one stick of butter TOPPING CARAMEL PIE 8 oz. cream cheese 12 oz. Cool Whip 14 oz. can condensed milk 7 oz. flaked coconut 1 stick margarine 1 cup chopped pecans 10 oz. caramel syrup or topping 2 deep-dish graham cracker crusts Softened cream cheese, mix until smooth. Add condensed milk; beat and fold in Cool Whip; set aside. Melt margarine in 9x13 pan in oven preheated to 350. Remove from oven and toss in coconut and pecans, return to oven and cook for 30 minutes stirring every 3 to 5 minutes to prevent burning. Bake until mixture is dark golden brown. Layer into each pie crust: ¼ of the cream mixture, ¼ of the nut mixture and ¼ of the caramel topping. Repeat layers, place in freezer. Pie can be served frozen or at room temperature. Makes eight servings. 24

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1 cup light brown sugar ⅓ cup all-purpose flour 1 cup chopped pecans ¼ cup quick cooking oatmeal ½ cup butter, melted Boil potatoes (unpeeled) until fork-tender. Remove peelings and strings; mash with mixer. Quickly add

remaining ingredients while potatoes are hot enough to melt the butter. Pour into 9-inch deep pie plate. Mix first four topping ingredients and add melted butter (I usually mix an extra half of the topping recipe for extra topping). Cover the dry mix with topping mix. Bake at 350 for 35 minutes until golden brown.

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ULTIMATE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES 1 cup light brown sugar 1 cup granulated white sugar 1 cup shortening 2 large eggs 1 cup crunchy peanut butter 1 cup all-purpose flour 1 tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. salt 2 cups one-minute oats ½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips ½ cup milk chocolate chips ½ cup chopped pecans, optional Combine first five items and mix

W.A.‘S PEANUT BRITTLE 2 cups sugar ½ cup water 1 cup white Karo syrup 2 cups raw peanuts Dash of salt 1 heaping tsp. soda 1 tsp. vanilla flavoring Combine sugar, water and syrup in heavy 4-quart sauce pan. Using a candy thermometer allow mixture to boil to hard ball stage (about 130°). Remove from heat, add salt and nuts. Return to heat until mixture reaches hard crack stage (295° to 300°). Remove from heat, add soda and vanilla quickly, pour onto buttered cookie sheet pans and begin stretching and pulling to desired thickness. The thinner the better. Let cool and break into pieces. 26

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until creamy. Combine flour, soda and salt and add to creamed mixture. Stir in oats, chocolate chips and nuts. Spoon onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes. Cool 3 to 5 minutes. Makes six dozen.

POTATO CASSEROLE 20 oz. pkg. frozen hash browns 10 oz. can cream of celery soup 10 oz. can cream of chicken soup 1 tsp. onion powder 16 oz. sour cream ½ cup Hellmann’s mayonnaise 8 oz. shredded cheddar cheese 1 tsp. salt ½ tsp. garlic salt ½ tsp. black pepper 2 cups crushed Ritz crackers 8 Tbsp. of butter Preheat oven to 350. Place half of the butter in 9x13 baking dish and melt. Add frozen potatoes and toss until covered. Mix in remaining items except crackers and butter. Melt butter. Top dish with crushed crackers and butter. Bake 30 minutes until topping is golden brown.

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BARBECUE PORK ROAST 6 to 8 lbs. boneless pork loin Salt and pepper to taste Water Preheat oven to 350. Pour 2 inches of water into roasting pan. Season loin with salt and pepper and place in center of oven with lid on. Bake 3½ hours until tender. Cool and shred. Place in 9x13 dish. Pour red barbecue sauce (See recipe below) on top of meat and place back in oven. Broil until bubbly. RED BARBECUE SAUCE 2½ cup Heinz ketchup ¼ cup white vinegar 1 cup light brown sugar ¼ cup Worcestershire sauce 3 drops Liquid Smoke 8 drops Tabasco sauce ½ cup water 1 tsp. onion salt 1 tsp. lemon juice ½ tsp. coarse ground black pepper Mix all ingredients together and simmer until thoroughly heated.

CHICKEN-SAUSAGE DRESSING 1 large loaf of white bread, crumbled 1 large skillet cornbread, crumbled 8 eggs, beaten 1 lb. sausage 1 cup melted butter 2 Tbsp. poultry seasoning 1 medium onion, diced 1 tsp. celery salt (or 3 Tbsp. raw celery) 3 cups chicken broth 1 large chicken breast, de-boned 28

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2 quarts milk Mix breads thoroughly; set aside. Boil chicken until tender, shred and mix with sausage, seasonings, eggs, onion and butter. Add to bread and stir in broth and milk. Pour into buttered 11x15 baking pan and bake at 400 for 1½ hour. Serves 12 to 15.

WHITE BARBECUE SAUCE 2 cups Hellmann’s mayonnaise 1 Tbsp. salt 1 Tbsp. regular ground black pepper 1 Tbsp. coarse ground black pepper 6 Tbsp. white vinegar 6 Tbsp. lemon juice 3 Tbsp. sugar Using a wire whisk stir until smooth and all lumps disappear. Great for basting pork and chicken or for dipping sauce.

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WARM FETA DIP 10 oz. crumbled feta cheese 12 oz. jar chopped pimentos 14 oz. can chopped green chilies Two 15 oz. cans chopped artichoke hearts

1 cup Hellmann’s mayonnaise 1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese Drain artichoke hearts and chop in food processor. Mix in all ingredients

CHICKEN ENCHILADAS 4 boneless chicken breasts 4 oz. cream cheese ½ cup Hellmann’s mayonnaise 1 medium onion, finally chopped 4 oz. can green chilies, chopped 10 oz. can cream of chicken soup 8 oz. sour cream 10 oz. can enchilada sauce 4 oz. milk 1 pkg. of flour tortillas 24 oz. mozzarella cheese, shredded Boil and shred chicken. Mix with cream cheese, mayonnaise, onion, half of the chilies and 8 oz. of mozzarella. Spoon into tortillas. Mix soup, sour cream, remaining chilies and milk. Pour over tortillas. Top with remaining cheese and bake at 350 for 25 minutes. Top with enchilada sauce and bake additional five minutes. Serves 10. 30

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1½ lb. ground beef 3 Tbsp. finely chopped onion 15 oz. can diced tomatoes 15 oz. can tomato sauce 15 oz. can mild chili beans 16 oz. can tomato paste 1 pkg. chili seasoning 2½ to 3 quarts tomato juice Brown meat and onion in large skillet until thoroughly done, drain well and place in large sauce pan. Combine remaining ingredients and cover pan. Simmer 3 to 4 hours. Optional toppings: Sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese, jalapeño peppers

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Jim ’N Nick’s Bar-B-Q Feeding a community with the freshest of foods

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Story by Loretta Gillespie Photos by David Moore

nyone doubting that the American dream is no longer possible should take a look at Jim ‘N Nick’s Community Bar-B-Q. Not only is the business a dream come true for a father and son, but for many other people who believe in that dream. From the seed of an idea for a restaurant that got its start in a converted dry cleaners in Birmingham in 1985, to having the Jim ‘N Nick’s logo on 39 locations in seven 32

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states is no small achievement. That’s what can happen to a dream if you work toward it diligently with heart and soul. For those in the Jim ‘N Nick’s family (as they refer to themselves) the dream has become a lifestyle where serving customers literally starts back in the kitchen as each order comes in. “We don’t have freezers or microwaves in any of our restaurants,” company president Brian Lyman says proudly. Another factor making Jim ‘N Nick’s special is that they process their pork,

sausage and bacon at their plant in Eva, enlisting farmers to grow select breeds of pigs in a specific manner to ensure the meat’s quality and the integrity from “pit to plate,” as founder Nick Pihakis is fond of saying.

he company is careful to ensure its restaurant owners are devoted to concepts on which the late Jim Pihakis and his son Nick founded their business: feeding a community well and becoming part of the fabric that makes up that community. “A lot of people think we are a

The menu at Jim ‘N Nicks is extensive for a barbecue restaurant. Among the many items to choose from are, top to bottom from left, spare ribs with greens, peanut butter pie and banana pudding – made on the premises, like all of the desserts – and a sliced smoked turkey sandwich with homemade barbecue chips. As an appetizer or meal, pork nachos, is another choice. Beth and Mark Kibler lead the team at the Cullman location, where you can also buy Jim ‘N Nicks BBQ sauce by the bottle to take home with you. franchise,” Brian says. “Nothing could be farther off the mark. We don’t want to become a franchise. We are a family with local restaurants run by investors, but the company is owned totally by Jim ‘N Nick’s.” In 2014, Mark and Beth Kibler were enlisted to help develop a new restaurant in Cullman, now owned by Jim Stomieroski of Birmingham, who also owns the Huntsville location. Mark is general manager, and Beth serves as the local store marketer. “Mark and I love living here and being a part of the Cullman community,” Beth says. “I grew up here, and Mark came here after college. We love how family oriented it is, and we really enjoy the growing lineup of year-round activities and events.” When she heard Jim ‘N Nick’s was coming to Cullman, Beth recognized the

opportunity. Mark has now been a part of the “family” about 13 years, and she was familiar with its culture of family and fostering good community will. One way the Kiblers helped achieve that was to make Jim ‘N Nick’s part of Rock the South. In 2017, the restaurant provided meals for artists and staff, catered the sponsor row tents and had a booth for the concert attendees.

t Jim ‘N Nick’s, the food speaks for itself with a menu ranging from hearty soups to kid favorites, smoky pork hot links, mouthwatering baby back ribs and hand-cut ribeyes that melt in your mouth. That’s why, since opening on Cherokee Avenue in 2014, the restaurant has become a family favorite, offering so

much more than the traditional barbecue fare. Everything on the menu is made 100 percent fresh from scratch, from the warm cheese biscuits on every table to the fabulous Mississippi-raised catfish, handpatted burgers and homemade pies. For dine-in, it’s all served in a familyoriented atmosphere. For busy people on the go, there’s a drive-thru. Either way, the delicious food is served with personal service. “We believe that people make places,” Brian says. “And we care so much for the people who dine with us, we always want to live up to their expectations. That’s why it’s so great to see the Cullman location flourish.” Like an American dream come true. Good Life Magazine FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL 2018

False Indigo, Baptisia austrailis – False Indigo is a fantastic perennial in our area. It usually blooms late spring into early summer and has a fairly lengthy bloom season. Its lavender color provides a nice splash in the landscape. This plant can thrive in partial to full sun settings. It’ll need some watering in the first year for establishment, but will thrive in the following years with minor care. It’s a moderate grower and can be used for color in the landscape and is a great plant for cut flower arrangements. False indigo is also a butterfly attractor.

Good ’n’ Green

Perennials: there to greet you every year Story by Tim Crow

labama weather can be a love-hate relationship. In the summer, people are complaining about the hot humid air. In fall it’s too wet. And Alabama winters like 2017-18 make us long for the short but beautiful weather that spring and early summer can provide. I know we’ve had snows in March and Aprils that turn landscapes into swamps, but for the most part spring in Alabama is a treat that changes people’s spirit. Dull tones of grey and brown of dormant plants start to sparkle with greens, reds and whites of a new year’s life. It reminds us of a fresh start that spring brings. Starring throughout the spring and summer are some of our perennials that – no matter how bad winter is – greet us with a spring smile. I want to highlight some perennial plants that thrive in our landscapes here in the Deep South. As we always think about new plants and ideas for the upcoming spring, try to incorporate some of these plants to enhance the landscape. And remember, just as spring blooms year after year, so do these perennials … 34

FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL 2018

Columbine, Aquilegia Canadensis – Columbines are wonderfully versatile and fit into virtually any kind of garden. Their origins in the western woodlands make them perfect for semi-shaded conditions beneath native tree canopies as well as under shade and street trees. Compatibility of hybrid columbines with natives makes them work well in wild garden and informal, naturalistic settings. Bright new colors are equally at home in cottage and country gardens. For small spaces and minimal yards, these flowers offer a lot with their delicate blooms, foliage and remarkably wiry stems – all best appreciated at close range.

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Coneflower, Echinacea sp. – This summer-bloomer comes in nearly any color Coneflowers have a clump-style growth habit and can range from 1-3 feet in height. They provide large blooms and continue flowering into the early fall providing a nice bloom season. The versatile Cone Flower thrives in full sun and can be used in containers, rock plantings, cut flower gardens and also wildlife gardens.

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East Side Barber Shop Iris, Iris siberica (Caesar’s Brother) – These traditional plants come in all sorts of colors. Caesar’s Brother is one of my favorites with its beautiful deep purple bloom. Irises are pretty self-sufficient once established. They love full sun and do well in our warm climate. This variety is also resistant to deer. Cut back the foliage at the end of each season and divide the plants every five years or so.

Hosta, Hosta sp. – Hostas are one of my favorite shade perennials. They come in various “flavors” of greens and variegation. Notwithstanding their often showy flowers, hostas are primarily grown in shade and woodland gardens for the ornamental excellence of their foliage. They’ve very effective when massed in groups and make good background plants. Some morning sun is tolerated with these plants but they thrive as an understory plant.

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Hank Williams passed away in the back seat of his 1952 Caddy on a cold winter night on Jan. 1, 1953. Cullman County resident Carolyn Parker passed away on Jan. 12, 2009. One might think dying in January is the only connection between the greatest country music entertainer of all time and a delightful lady I called my friend. One might be wrong. Carolyn performed on stage with Hank in one of his earliest bands. I first contacted her while writing “Hank Williams and his Drifting Cowboys,” which came out in 2004. I wanted to interview her, but she was not fond of the idea. Carolyn went to great lengths to avoid the spotlight. She’d had her 15 minutes of fame

and didn’t want to give me – or anyone else – an interview. I understood and did not press the issue. She did, however, agree to help me identify musicians in photos of Hank’s earliest bands – something no one else could ever do. She was also helpful in filling in blanks on details about Hank and his band that I needed for the book. In fact, she helped in any way she possibly could. She just didn’t want her name mentioned in the book. That changed as I spoke with her over the next five years, and I’m thankful for that. Her singing career with Hank was brief, but her unique perspective offers us a glimpse into the life of a country music legend during his earliest days on stage ...

Carolyn Parker from her days on stage with now legendary Hank Williams.

Cullman woman performed as a kid with legendary Hank

Carolyn Parker stands front center in this circa 1938 promo photo; also, from left, are Hezzy Adair, Braxton Schuffert, Irene Williams, Hank Williams, Sue Williams (no kin to Hank) and Freddy Beach. Photos from the author’s collection. Story by Steve A. Maze

arolyn was born June 21, 1928, in Brewton, Ala. She was the youngest of three children born to Claude and Annie Laurie (Hughes) Parker. Around 1938 her sister, Virginia, entered her in a singing contest at the Empire Theater in Montgomery. Parker preferred dancing over singing but deferred to her sister’s wishes to enter the contest. To Carolyn’s surprise, she won first place. 36

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Virginia immediately called a former schoolmate by the name of Hank Williams and shared the good news with him. Hank, though only a teenager, had a band – Hank and Hezzy’s Driftin’ Cowboys – and had performed many times at the same theater. Just like Carolyn, he once won a singing contest there. And so, the following night, 10-year-old Carolyn – billed as “Little Caroline” – appeared on stage with Hank, Hezzy Adair, Freddy Beach and Braxton Schuffert. Hank liked to have a female voice in his earlier bands, but most of the young ladies were used as fill-ins. That was

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the case with Carolyn, as well as Sue Williams – called “Sweet Sue” due to her sweet voice – and Hank’s sister, Irene. Hank normally used only one of the girls during a performance, however, and Carolyn never performed onstage with the other two girls. “I sang mostly popular tunes of the day, and the guys did the country music,” Carolyn said, “although Hank and I sung one tune together called ‘Goodbye, Daddy Darling.’ We played school dates and square dances, but I also sang with the band on radio station WSFA in Montgomery. “I was still in school and couldn’t be at every show, mostly performing on the weekends,” she added. “Off and on, I was with the group for about a year or two.”

“He told me and my mother that he had been in a movie with actress Jeanette McDonald,” says Carolyn. “When she came to Montgomery for an appearance he offered to take us over to the Jefferson Davis Hotel so we could meet her, but my schooling interfered.”

makeup on me before a show, but Hank came by and wiped it off with his handkerchief. He thought I was too young to be wearing that much makeup. “Another time,” Carolyn continued, “we were booked at a place that had a swimming pool. I had met some twin girls there, and we decided to go swimming. Later, Hank came by and told me to get out of the water because it was getting too cool. He always treated me like a sister.” After less than two years, Carolyn’s music career came to an abrupt end when she went to a doctor for a cut on her hand. While examining the cut the doctor noticed her general condition and told her mother that Carolyn was too young to be run down like she was. That ended her days with Hank Williams and his Drifting Cowboys.

arolyn’s mother was a seamstress and made the arolyn – whom I still cowgirl outfits in which think of today – went on to marry Little Caroline performed. right after World War II and Her mother began with a have a son, George. She worked homemade white scarf and at various jobs before taking an satin blouse and, in a scene early retirement at age 55. After her brief time on stage, Carolyn Parker straight out of “Gone With the She never told me why she enjoyed her “quiet life” in Cullman. Wind,” made one outfit from had moved to Cullman, other some purple drapes. than that she had “good friends” Photo by Steve Maze. That particular outfit living there. included a vest and jodhpurs Braxton Schuffert, one of (riding pants). The stage costume Hank’s Drifting Cowboy band members was topped off with a white hat and ife on the road was sometimes and a dear friend of Carolyn’s, asked her a pair of black boots with little white an adventure for the band. The group to allow me to include her story in my accents, which her mother purchased traveled in an automobile provided by book. She finally agreed, but not without from the proceeds Carolyn earned Hank’s mother, Lilly. conditions. singing. One cold day while leaving “You have to use my maiden name “There wasn’t a lot of live Montgomery for a show date, an in the book, and you cannot mention entertainment in rural areas back then, electrical fire started in the heating (exactly) where I live,” she laughed. and we were treated like celebrities,” system. The fire department quickly “I enjoy my quiet life in Cullman, and Carolyn chuckled. “People even asked extinguished the blaze. The band loaded I don’t want to answer a knock on my me for my autograph when we would themselves and their equipment back door and have someone asking me about perform.” into the car and made the show, albeit Hank Williams.” Besides singing, the young without any heat. But Carolyn did enjoy the time she performer was asked to do something As was the saying: “The show must spent with Hank and the band, and she probably didn’t expect when Jack go on.” carried fond memories of those days. Wolf – a/k/a Juan Lobo – joined the Though Hank was only 15 at the time, “Hank and his mother were good to band for a short period. Lobo was a he looked after his band members. me,” she told me before she passed away cowboy performer who did rope tricks “We were all just kids,” Carolyn Jan. 12, 2009, at Hanceville Nursing and cracked a bullwhip. As part of his said, “but Hank was all business when it Home. “I was proud Hank was able to act, Carolyn would hold a piece of came to the band. He was just like a big do well and that he was able to fulfill his paper in her mouth while Lobo cut it brother and watched out for me. lifelong ambition.” in half with his whip. “One time his mother put a lot of Good Life Magazine

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Judy was a kid when her parents bought pasturefront property for a house that would soon overlook Smith Lake. Grand times followed the impounding of the lake in 1961, and Judy formed a sentimental bond to the family lake house that only grew stronger over time. Much later, she and her husband, Dr. Jim Brown, knew one day theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d retire from Tupelo, Miss., where he practiced medicine. But as the time approached, they faced a dilemma â&#x20AC;&#x201C; restore a 50-year-old house full of memories or raze it for a new one with everything they wanted. They found a middle ground and today have â&#x20AC;Ś

Something old, something new, with a view of water and the past, too

Story and photos by David Moore

labama Power was completing Smith Lake dam when E.C. and Janette McGriff bought their soon-to-be lakefront lot. Their daughter, Judy, was then 10. At the same time E.C. and Janette were scouting and buying property around the survey-marked future shores, so were other forward-looking folks. That included Judy’s uncle and aunt, Lonnie and Bell McGriff, and her first cousin and his wife, Bertis and Berta McGriff – all of whom built neighboring lake homes – albeit modest by today’s measure – near Speegle Point. From the beginning, a visit to Smith Lake was a fun-filled family affair for Judy. Their lake house was initially a basement built into the hillside with a boat ramp extending to the lake. In 1975, Judy’s parents added a main level atop the basement, creating two stories overlooking the water and a single story facing the road. 42

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Though locally rooted, Judy’s family lived in the Ensley section of Birmingham. They drove up to Cullman County as much as possible. Her dad worked for U.S. Steel and, other than vacations, was limited to weekends. “Mother and I would move up here, sometimes for weeks on end,” Judy recalls. Those trips became harder for Judy to make when she went to the University of Alabama, but the family lake house was always close to heart. She later transferred to UAB and got a degree in medical technology in 1972.

s a kid growing up in Louisville, Ky., Jim Brown initially wanted to be an engineer. That aspiration plummeted during a family houseboat trip when he saw a man working on a bridge some 300 feet above the Kentucky River. “Mom pointed to him and said, ‘That’s an engineer.’ I thought, OK, I’ll do something else.” By age 12 Jim wanted to be a doctor, a goal solidified by his love of high school biology.

After graduating from Spring Hill College in Mobile in 1971, he went to med school at UAB. That December, mutual friends introduced Jim and Judy at a party. She laughs and said they finally got serious when he ditched the old bike he peddled around campus and bought a Chevy Nova. Jim was taken with the family lake house the first time he visited in ’72. “I loved it because my family had always been lake-oriented,” Jim says. “It was always in my blood.” He and Judy married in 1973. Jim graduated from med school the next year, did his internship and residency in Jackson, Miss., and, in 1978, they moved to Tupelo where he’d joined an internal medicine group. The Browns had three children and always loved the outdoors and camping. The latter, joyfully, was often nudged out by trips to the family lake house. As she’d done with her mom, Judy often brought the kids there for a week or two. Jim would drive two hours from Tupelo to join them several weekends during

Dr. Jim and Judy Brown’s house has about 3,000 square feet of space on two floors. In the great room on the main floor, opposite page, antique pieces with special meaning combine with a contemporary look that fits their lifestyle and preferences. The interior is a work in progress with a new sofa and rug on order. During the house’s first incarnation Judy’s parents built the outside patio, above, using stones from the farm in Cullman where her mother grew up. The basement, left, includes a second kitchen. Built-in shelves and cabinets are part of the contemporary design.

FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL 2018

summer months and at least one weekend during cold months. Home is where the heart is, even more so if it’s a home on the lake.

fter E.C. retired in 1985, Judy’s folks moved to the lake permanently. Judy’s dad died in ’94, followed by her mom in ’04. The property went to Judy and Jim, and there was never any question where they’d live when he retired. There was, however, a question about the aging house … and it was a big one. “We were going to remodel and extend the existing place,” Jim says. “But we had structural engineers check it, and they found the foundation was deteriorating.” “We wanted the house to stay the way it was because it’s so sentimental,” Judy says. But restoration would cost as much as rebuilding, and they’d still have a 50-year-old house. And, to be honest, a contemporary flair would fit their personalities and lifestyle better. So it made sense to start over. The Browns turned to Jock Leonard, a Cullman architect for floor plans and to his brother, Joel, for interior designing. Their mixed feelings were soon erased by the opportunity to now get what they wanted … something old, something new.

Visiting from Huntsville, the Browns’ daughter, Kate, and her husband, David Gribben, work a jigsaw puzzle on the deck, top. It was Jim’s idea to open the great room to the 40-foot deck, which was done with seven foldingglass panels made in Germany by Klimaflex. It offers a great view of the 4th of July firework show at Smith Lake Park. The main kitchen opens to the great room, center. The suite, one of four bedrooms, includes a full bath. 44

FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL 2018

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“With Jock and Joel’s help, we considered it like a big art project,” Jim says. They hired Dexter Campbell of West Cullman County as their contractor and undertook the challenge of building on Smith Lake while living in Tupelo. The bulldozer arrived in December 2011.

he basement became a sort of playroom and wet room. Judy ensured they repurposed items there her dad had built, including a table and chairs, picnic table, kitchen sink and fireplace mantel. The Browns had Jock design the dimensions of one bedroom to fit handmade furniture a local cabinetmaker had made for Judy’s parents. Her and Jim’s son Paul dismantled much of the old redwood deck, saving some of the wood to build a platform on the shore for the gangway out to the boathouse. “I saved the pine paneling from the old house,” Jim says. “It’s an inch thick.” His to-do list still includes finding a use for it. From Garlan Gudger and Southern Accents, they purchased cedar and white oak, reclaimed from the 2011 tornadoes, for use on the floors and cabinets. Also from SA, they bought 46

FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL 2018

A screened porch offers views of the lake through the trees. Jock and Joel Leonard designed the patterned frame to echo the feel of the woods as well as the career path of the Browns’ daughter, Kate, a naturalist/forester. The “woods” motif continues in the kitchen with a pottery pantry that holds ceramic pieces created by Judy’s aunt, Margaret Kansa of Cullman.

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It’s not too hard to understand Dr. Jim and Judy Brown’s long-running attraction to Smith Lake. They moved there three years ago after Jim retired from his medical practice in Tupelo. Judy retired as medical technician when she started having children. “But I hardly retired,” she laughs. “A mother never retires.” Their oldest offspring, Paul, is a raft guide on the Ocoee River in the warm months and works at a ski resort in the winter. Daughter Jenny Billano, her husband and two kids live in Birmingham where she is the office manager for a medical software firm. A naturalist and forester, daughter Kate last year started a consulting firm in Huntsville and teaches women and children about outdoor activities. 100-year-old beams salvaged from a Chicago warehouse. On the other end of the spectrum from repurposed antiques is the 25-foot beam the Browns had Apel Steel in Cullman fabricate for the wall of seven folding glass door panels that open the great room wide to the outdoors and lake. The house was finished in November 2012. Jim retired in December ’14. The Browns officially moved in August ’15, but they had been so eager to get in their new home, they had essentially been living there since that January.

he Browns love for blending the old and new continued beyond construction. For instance, the century-old table they brought from Tupelo contrasts nicely with the contemporary great room. 48

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Ditto for the sofa table that belonged to Judy’s grandmother and the hutch from a Birmingham antique store that was one of their first pieces of furniture after getting married. Naturally, the neighborhood has changed over time, but Judy’s extended family still owns a nearby house. Another house, while not tied to the McGriffs, has third-generation family owners. “We all still have a sense of community and family,” Judy says. “The only thing that feels different today is that the Smith Lake Park was not here back when,” Jim adds. “We didn’t use to have as much traffic, but I did not notice it getting more crowded until the Jet Skis came along.” Even that’s tempered because the Browns never meet a “stranger” there.

Everyone shares a common love for the water, and most of them show an interest in conservation. Closer to heart, the lake house remains a family gathering site, an incubator of new memories. A party last Christmas drew 40 family members. Beyond parties and family visits, everyday life in their lake house is enjoyable year round. “It’s really a nice place to enjoy the scenery,” Judy says. “It doesn’t get old.” “It is,” Jim adds, “the best place in the world to sit on the porch and leisurely drink coffee, watch the fish jump and the herons and eagles fly by. And drink a cocktail in the evening.” Their toast could easily be: “To something old, something new.” Good Life Magazine

FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL 2018

S.A. Maples Letting art be art, reflections of her soul ... without getting too highbrow about it Story by David Moore

he abstract paintings of S.A. Maples are visual reflections of her soul. But Mandy, as her friends call her, suffers no highbrow pretensions. She calls her studio her playground. And while her muse has been known to dwell in a heavy, dark phases of her life, Mandy’s inspiration is more likely to come from a steaming cup of tea or a moving musical chord. In the case of her series of faceless Cherokees – several of which she showed last fall at the Carrosel du Louvre in Paris – inspiration lurked in an old photo of a Native American girl uncomfortably posed in a white woman’s dress. In short, the Cullman artist is inspired by the world around her, bound by no self-imposed restraints that might prevent her creative “happy accidents.” “I come in here to play,” she laughingly says of her studio. “I have no preconceived notion of what I’m doing. There are no rules when I come in here. This is a rule-free zone. “I pour tea or coffee, turn on music, sit and look at my canvas a little bit. Then I start. I let the canvas tell me what it needs.”

S.A. “Mandy” Maples, left, with a new piece she’s working on for her faceless Cherokee series. She titled her first serious piece “Long Way Home,” at right. Only later did she come to understand from which parts of her soul the painting came. Artist’s photo by David Moore. FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL 2018

“Mother Earth,” above, is a 48x60-inch canvas. “I’m a total infant,” Mandy says of her work. “I’m just now getting brave enough to do pieces that are important to me.” “Repose” and “Machiavellian Heart,” center, are examples of how she uses acrylic paints and inks mixed with water or alcohol, which she pours on the canvas. She painted “Lucy’s Great Adventure,” far right, for the home of friend and collector Lucy Farmer of Birmingham. Whatever direction she takes with a canvas is likely influenced by her love and flair for interior design, a methodology that includes odd numbers, balance, scale and such. “That probably moves my hand,” Mandy says. “I know what is needed instinctively. “My work reflects what I am thinking, and my ‘at-the-moment’ dispositions are often at the core of what I produce.”

arah Amanda Maples, 44, grew up in Birmingham in a family that loved the outdoors. She was also surrounded by the familial artistic influences of natural musicians, writers, poets, painters and 52

FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL 2018

cooks who encouraged the freedom of creativity. “I always wanted to be an artist,” Mandy says. “I always was drawing and painting. I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t creating.” After graduating from Huffman High School in 1992, Mandy went to Jefferson State Community College. She enjoyed art history but hated the structure of drawing classes focused on representational work. “Everything I did, they were like, ‘You’re not doing it right. You need to do it this way,’” she says. “It was very black and white. I’ve never liked constraint, and academia felt very constraining.

“I knew inherently I could learn what I needed to know on my own and not be influenced by one person’s vision of what art should be.” Artistic goals withered in college but authority issues thrived. “I lived to have a good time,” Mandy laughs. “I was always a good girl but had a curiosity streak in me.” She left Jeff State, worked in libraries and later sold business phone systems. She took a stab at writing a book. Mandy also got married. While they lived in Oxford, she enrolled at Jacksonville State University and studied business and marketing, which would later serve her well. She left school when she first got

pregnant. She and husband moved to Memphis where Atticus and Isabella, now 16 and 14, were born.

hey moved to Cullman in 2006. Mandy dabbled in art – playful abstracts with her children, a nursery mural for a family member, but nothing truly hers. Meanwhile, her relationship deteriorated and she divorced in 2013. “It was one of those years where I was really soul searching,” she says. “I had lost myself, forgotten who I was as a woman and an individual. Being mother is one of most wonderful things, but I felt I had become just ‘Mom’ and did not know who I was outside that role.

“In trying to find myself, I picked up the paintbrush again.” Shortly before the divorce, Mandy threw a party for her friends. Beforehand, with a wall in the house begging for help, she opened her paints and cut loose on a canvas. It was a dark, moody abstract. She pulled the title – “Long Way Home” –seemingly from nowhere. “Everybody at the party was like, ‘Oh, my god! I didn’t know you painted!’ They were astounded that I had created it.” What did the painting mean? The colors? The lines? The title? Her friends posed questions about the painting Mandy had never considered.

“Looking back now, I can see straight through the painting,” she says. “I did not realize I was trying to find myself. It was all very veiled at the time.” After her company left that night, Mandy studied her painting. She was little shy, unsure of her work’s reception, but pleased nonetheless. “It was,” she says, “like me on the wall. People wanted to know this person ... who she was, what she was about. It felt good.”

andy realized a bit of her soul reflected in that painting. “After that, the whole concept of putting my soul on canvas became very FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL 2018

appealing to me,” she says. “I couldn’t stop. I have been painting non-stop for the last four years.” Though not strictly representational, many of Mandy’s early paintings were of animals. To her delight people started buying them. She began thinking of a business plan, marketing through social media. She painted abstracts, too, but initially for the fun of breaking old academic rules. In 2014 she rented second-floor studio and gallery space in Cullman’s warehouse district. She attracted her first collectors and commissions. In 2015, Southern Accents owner Garlan Gudger invited Mandy to show her work at Southern Makers, a statewide expo celebrating creativity in the visual arts, design, fashion and food. It was held in Montgomery that year. Mandy not only took some of her animals, but she painted her first Cherokee images. Reading about the Trial of Tears had enlightened her to the plight of Native Americans. Then she saw the old photo of the Cherokee girl dressed to look like a white woman … and was moved. “She had lost her identity in that dress,” Mandy says. “She did not know who she was anymore … or that’s what I felt a connection with. There was time in life I didn’t know my own identity.” She painted three canvases featuring faceless Cherokees, one in a dress, and took them to Southern Makers. A woman who’d visited her booth later returned with tears in her eyes, saying she’d been unable to forget the faceless image in a dress. Mandy explained her inspiration, and the woman bought the painting. She sold a second faceless canvas to jewelry artist Lucy Farmer of Birmingham, now one of her collectors.

outhern Makers, Mandy gratefully acknowledges, brought her followers, opened doors to her career. Unlike with social media, in person people could see the texture, feel the colors and grasp the scale of her canvases. The expo also helped Mandy get her work into several galleries, no easy feat. Opening other doors for her in 2015 was her marriage to Daniel Wilson, a Huntsville attorney. “We became really good friends,” she says. “He likes art, and we’re big music people. He is supportive and wants me to be happy with whatever I am doing.” Tellingly, the year after she met Daniel and shortly after Southern Makers, Mandy painted an abstract she titled “Open Door.” While most of her titles are shot from the hip, so to speak, this one carries meaning purposefully opposite to “Long Way Home.” Late last year, they sold her house in Cullman’s historic district and moved into one on wooded acreage in Vinemont. Mandy also moved out of her warehouse studio and, in January, Upper left is one of the three pieces Mandy painted for her October exhibit in the Carrousel du Louvre, an underground mall in Paris. Behind Mandy, at left, is the inverted pyramid that’s the centerpiece of the mall. It is suspended from the mall ceiling in front of the Carrousel entrance to the Louvre. 54

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Mandy’s brightly optimistic “Open Door,” left, is the antithetical piece to the “Long Way Home” she painted during a dark period of her life. bought a neighboring house in Vinemont for new studio and gallery space. She’s only started painting there in earnest but is excited about her new home, studio and living on the wooded land.

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he optimism of Mandy’s “Open Door” piece easily carries over to her invitation to exhibit at the twoday, international Art Shopping trade show in Paris last October. It’s held biannually at the Carrosel du Louvre, an underground mall attached to the world famous museum. Mandy was invited to participate by Tiago Azevedo, a Portuguese-born artist and Munich gallery owner she met through social media who has booth space at the biannual Paris show. Of the hundreds of artists and galleries exhibiting there, Mandy was one of only three Americans. It was, she says, a great experience, putting her and her work in front of numerous European galleries and gallery owners. It led to meeting several collectors and, so far, landing two commissions. “It’s great marketing more than anything to say you were at the Louvre,” she says. “It carries a lot of clout.” For now, three galleries in Alabama and Florida carry Mandy’s work. She’s negotiating with others she hopes will begin carrying her work this year. “It’s exciting. This past year has been an ‘Open Door,’ and I’m trying to push it wider,” she says. “My style is changing. I’m still an infant in all of this. I’m still finding my voice.” Come what may, don’t expect the rebel painter who eschews the rules to go highbrow with success. “Highbrow art to me is a little ridiculous,” Mandy laughs. “Just let it be, let art be art. Let people take from it what they need.” Good Life Magazine

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Dogs in school Tina Herfurth puts her heart into teaching, and the teacher’s pet, Summer, lends her a paw

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ying on the auditorium floor of the Cullman Civic Center, amongst the dozens of dog toys, are a Wendy’s cheeseburger and a bag of fries. It’s part of Tina Herfurth’s “leave it” training in her weekly dog obedience classes. It’s also her husband’s dinner. At first, it seems like a joke from the light-hearted trainer, but it’s not. As good-natured as Tina, Jason Herfurth has faith in his wife’s dog training methods, only FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL 2018

Cathy Trucks, right, tells her German shepherd, Indy, to stay even though Ragnar, the Corgi who belongs to Justin Santarlasci, offers an alluring opportunity to play. Tina, bottom right, uses her pet Summer as a distraction during lessons. Tina’s Australian cattle dog is not as interested in Susan Wise’s pit bull mix, Gracie, below, as Gracie is in Summer. on the rarest of occasions has he sacrificed his evening meal to an overly excited, hungry and disobedient hound. Tina, now a full-time dog trainer and groomer, misses her time as a jet engine mechanic with the Air National Guard and as office manager for Chiropractic Arts in Cullman, but she’s finally doing what she loves most and has always dreamed of doing … helping people and their dogs form a healthy relationship. “Most people assume dogs end up at shelters because of aggression or biting issues,” says Tina, “but most dogs are surrendered because their owners become frustrated with behavior problems.” Helping people learn to work with their dogs in a way that doesn’t confuse the animals or frustrate the owners brings her great satisfaction, knowing that the training makes for a better quality of life for both. And that starts with teaching people how to communicate with their 60

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Despite Diana Carpenter’s efforts, above, her mixed lab Sedona can’t resist a photographer. Tina’s “leave it” exercise is hard to resist for Moose, a mixed bulldog belonging to Richard Carpenter. Right, Jamie Owens and her Dachshund/ pit bull mix Oscar are all smiles. Far right, Kai, a chocolate Lab belonging to Carolyn Williams, gives her toy a ride. dog in the dog’s language. “Dogs are very good at reading our body language, and we, as humans, often misinterpret their responses by assigning them human emotions,” Tina says. “When we treat the dog as a human we confuse the dog by not providing proper leadership, not setting consistent 62

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boundaries and not communicating to the dog clearly. This throws the dog / owner relationship out of balance and is the foundation of most behavior problems.”

ut the scope of Tina’s training isn’t limited just to behavior issues. A dog owner since age 2, Tina truly

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Ragnar, a Welsh Pembroke Corgi, looks up at his owner, Justin Santarlasci, seemingly ready to obey the next command. 10 years old, trying to get them to guard … that girl just can’t hold do things for me with no rhyme her licker,” Tina laughs of Addie’s or reason and having no clue how love of licking Jason. The next rounds of AKC STAR puppy classes and why I was doing it.” And while he may not have the and combined puppy and dog obedience classes By age 19, Tina knew she same passion for working with meet on Mondays at 6 and 7 p.m. respectively, someday wanted to make a life dogs as Tina, Jason is her biggest of dog training and has worked fan, encouraging her to follow her March 12-April 16 at the Cullman Civic Center. hard toward her goal by studying dreams. He even built her a small You must attend orientation (without your dog) March 12. and becoming certified in various Cost is $100. Current annual vaccinations papers required. building at their Cullman home to forms of training. She even dipped groom dogs. her toes into the world of rally Most recently, Tina attended a Other classes are planned for obedience dog showing, in which three-month detection dog training May 7-June 18; July 16-Aug. 20; Sept. 17-Oct. 22. dog and handler work their way program in North Carolina, and Sponsored by Cullman Park and Recreation. through a course of stations, each along with obedience classes requiring the animal to perform a hopes this spring to offer “Trailing Info and sign up: Cullman Civic Center, 256-734-9157; task, such as “sit” or “stay.” for Fun” classes, where people “This past March, I earned will learn to use their dogs for or Tina Herfurth, instructor: 256-595-0945 (after 6 p.m.) a rally novice title with my dog human tracking. Addie a month after her 10th “Not every husband would birthday,” she says. “She did allow their wives to move eight f the four dogs the Herfurths this in one weekend, and her scores hours away for three months to chase own, Tina says Addie has a special qualified her for the AKC rally national down a dream,” Tina says. “I thank God relationship with Jason, though he tries competition.” every day for putting him in my life.” In doing so, Tina laid to rest the adage to be “manly” about it. As should the dogs and dog owners of “Addie is shameless about their that you can’t teach an old dog new Cullman County. relationship and likes to catch him off tricks. Good Life Magazine

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The Memphis Belle flies over England during its historic run of successful missions. US Air Force photo.

Memphis Belle

The story of the iconic bomber, the man who flew her, and his sixth wife In 1942, Lt. Robert “Bob” Morgan was assigned to pilot a B-17 Flying Fortress against the Nazi war machine that blitzkreiged Europe. He named the bomber Memphis Belle for his wartime sweetheart in Memphis, Tenn., and chose for the artwork that graced its nose a sexy painting from Esquire magazine by pin-up artist George Petty. The young, hotshot pilot had no clue the plane would become an icon of World War II. In 1942, Linda Morgan, who lives at Smith Lake, had no clue the Memphis Belle would one day become a major part of her life for two and a half decades. That’s because she was not born until July 25, 1945 – 12 days before the first atomic bomb was dropped on Japan. The B-29 Superfortress that dropped that bomb was piloted by Col. Paul Tibbets, who 47 years later, as a retired general, stood under the nose of the Memphis Belle and gave Linda in marriage to Col. Robert Morgan. She was his sixth wife. If still alive, Bob would be 100 this summer. He’d appreciate Linda helping to fulfill his deathbed wish – preserving his beloved bomber for posterity. What’s more, she plans to be on hand this spring when, after 13 years of restoration, the iconic Belle becomes a permanent exhibit at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, to be admired by those whose freedom she and her crew – and so many others – valiantly fought to defend ...

Story by David Moore

he remarried. The war was long, the marriage short.

But war is not love. War is hell. Part of the Army Air Forces “Mighty Eighth,” the Belle and crew – whose members sometimes rotated – were assigned to the 91st Bomb Group, 324th Bomb Squadron. From bucolic Bassingbourn Air Base in England, they and thousands of other airmen flew longrange, daylight bombing raids into the gaping maw of hell.

orn July 31, 1918, Bob Morgan ob undertook his advanced pilot led a mostly charmed early life in an training in Washington. At a party there exclusive residential development in – he was as adapt at finding parties as he Asheville, N.C., that was originally part was flying – he fell for Margaret Polk, of the Biltmore estate. His mother was a 19-year-old belle from Memphis who, a friend of Cornelia Vanderbilt, and he writes, added a touch of glamor to the Bob swam in her pool at the 250-room olive-drab air base. Biltmore mansion. He hunted and fished So enthralled was Bob that every the surrounding woods. ust prior to takeoff To some extent, that on their first mission on lifestyle crashed with Wall Nov. 7, 1942, Lt. Robert Street in 1929. Young Bob Morgan huddled his crew muddled through, later close by the belly of the burning up mountain roads Belle, hands on each other’s in his dad’s big Buick to shoulders, near enough to visit girlfriends. But the hear their buddies breathe. biggest crash of his life Their sense of unity grew came in 1936: his beloved palpable, 10 men became as mother committed suicide. one believing team. In his memoir, “The “If only one crew comes Man Who Flew the back today, it’s going to be Memphis Belle” – written us,” Bob told the men. with Ron Powers, a Pre-takeoff huddles Pulitzer-winning journalist became ritual, powerful, who co-authored “Flags probably essential. Odds of our Fathers” – Bob were, Bob writes, a attributes his life-long crewmember would be pursuit of romances, killed, wounded or captured marriages and affairs to the within 12.5 missions. Nearing completion of its restoration, the Memphis Belle loss of his mother. In tight formations of will sport freshly copied nose art. After Bob Morgan sold his Linda Morgan, his last sometimes hundreds of crew on the plane’s nickname, he phoned George Petty for wife, agrees. bombers, B-17 crews flew permission to use his artwork, which the artist enthusiastically “He spent his whole life for hours over enemy lines gave. Photo courtesy of the National Museum of the USAF. looking for his mother,” at contrailing altitudes of she says. “I finally told more than 20,000 feet in him, ‘You need to just get non-pressurized cabins over it. You’re 80 years old. And I am morning when he took off in a B-17 where -40 degree temperatures outside your wife – not your mother.’” trainer he buzzed the house where could freeze their 50-caliber machine guns. While at the University of Margaret was staying. After he and Luftwaffe Messerschmitts and Pennsylvania, Bob married for the first his crew were assigned a brand new Focke-Wulfs, machine guns and cannons time, but her parents soon had it annulled. Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, he named blazing, attacked from the sky like stirred He drifted for a while and got engaged to it Memphis Belle for Margaret and had up hornets. another girl before he had the plug pulled the Petty-girl artwork painted on its nose, Closer to the target, ground-based 88on his college funding in 1940. wearing a blue bathing suit on the left mm antiaircraft batteries threw up deadly With Hitler overrunning the European side, red on the right. blankets of exploding black clouds, continent and imperialist Japanese Prior to flying the Belle to Europe, their concussions rattling the rivets of aggression in Asia, Bob correctly figured he and his crew made an unauthorized the roaring bombers. Timed to altitude, war was a question of when. Patriotism flight from Maine to Memphis to show close-exploding shells sent sharp shrapnel kicking in, he joined the Army Air Margaret the plane. Later he mailed her razoring into the American bombers, Forces and underwent pilot training after an engagement ring. ripping holes in fuselages, knocking out a doctor helped him fudge his medical Newspapers and magazines picked up engines, raggedly shearing off wings or exam. on the whirlwind romance between the tails. Five days after Pearl Harbor was roguish, hotshot pilot of the Memphis Belle Direct hits blew planes and crews to bombed, Bob received his commission and his southern sweetheart, and it became bits or sent them plummeting thousands as a second lieutenant. Later that month, the most publicized love story of the war. of feet to destruction behind ghost trails of

FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL 2018

The crew of the “Memphis Belle” after their 25th mission: from left, TSgt. Harold Loch (top turret gunner/engineer), SSgt. Cecil Scott (ball turret gunner), TSgt. Robert Hanson (radio operator), Capt. James Verinis (copilot), Capt. Robert Morgan (pilot), Capt. Charles Leighton (navigator), SSgt. John Quinlan (tail gunner), SSgt. Casimer Nastal (waist gunner), Capt. Vincent Evans (bombardier), and SSgt. Clarence Winchell (waist gunner). USAF photo. smoke. Sometimes crew members bailed out. Sometimes they weren’t riddled by machine gun fire from Nazi fighters. Jumpers who survived usually served out the war in POW camps. Of the Mighty Eighth’s 200,000 combat airmen, by war’s end, Bob writes, 26,000 were killed, 28,000 were taken prisoner. The 91st Bomb Group had at least 392 B-17s, of which 209 were lost … along with 2,012 crewmen. Needing a morale booster, the Eighth Air Force announced that any crewman surviving 25 missions could go home. Bob writes that the men – many just boys – eagerly chased the incentive, but it was

all done quietly. Fearing a jinx, nobody counted – at least not aloud – but 25 became a literal life’s goal.

erhaps the Belle’s closest brush with death came when screaming fighters blasted off a huge chunk of her tail. The fire was quickly spent, but Bob now faced flying her back to base with a wrecked rudder for turning. Stabilizer and elevator fins were also chewed up. Via intercom he told the crew to just do their job, fend off fighters, and he’d do his, fly them home. Which he did, landing the tattered bomber hot and fast, but safely. After other missions, countless bullet

and shrapnel holes in the Memphis Belle had to be patched. Five dead engines were replaced, as were a blasted wing and tail. But Bob and the crew came to believe, every time they swung up through her hatch, the Belle was predestined to survive 25 missions. In the process, they dropped 60-plus tons of bombs on submarine pens, war factories and railroad yards. They were credited with downing seven enemy fighters, probably shot down five others and damaged at least 12 more. Among 51 decorations total, each crewman received the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Air Medal and three Oak Leaf Clusters. FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL 2018

Against the odds, they completed their 25th mission May 17, 1943. The Army Air Forces proudly honored them, and the Belle and her crew were the first to return home in one piece. The king and queen of England were among those bidding them farewell. In America, Bob and crew were ordered on a “26th assignment.” June to August 1943 they flew their famous B-17 on a 31-city tour, pushing war bonds and building morale. Insisting they’d only done their jobs over Europe, they were treated as heroes by huge crowds. Rock stars without guitars, they were wined and dined coast to coast. Interestingly, the Army’s PR staff forbade Bob and his fiancée Margaret Polk to get married. Their romance made a better story. But after she phoned him on a tour stop in the middle of a party with a room full of women, she canned the relationship. Bob would marry four more times, but never to the Memphis Belle’s namesake.

ast forward to December 1990 ... Linda Hurst Dickerson lived in Chicago with her roommate, Donna Johnson. Though a pilot and avid airplane enthusiast herself, Linda had never heard of the Memphis Belle. “So,” she says, “we went to the theater to see the 1990 Hollywood movie ‘Memphis Belle.’ Matthew Modine played Bob. I was fascinated by the story, and as we walked out of the theater I looked at Donna and said, ‘This airplane is going to become part of my life.’” An Air Force brat, Linda then organized general aviation tours to Russia. She also booked well-known pilots – including Gen. Paul Tibbets and Jeana Lee Yeager, who copiloted the first non-stop, non-refueled flight around the world – on speaking circuits and at air shows. She also organized evening programs at the week-long Sun ‘n’ Fun air show that annually draws 5,000 people to Lakeland, Fla. After seeing the movie, Linda tracked down retired Col. Robert Morgan in Asheville where he worked for a real estate firm. He was used to speaking about Memphis Belle and his war experience, and he readily accepted her invitation to speak at Sun ‘n’ Fun. At the show, they met in the Holiday Inn lobby. “Well, well, well,” Bob said in his North Carolina drawl. “You must be Linda Dickerson.” 70

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“You,” she replied, “must be the colonel.” “It was like a bolt of electricity went across that lobby,” Linda recalls of the encounter. They partied until 3 a.m. in the bar with a Coast Guard crew she was honoring at the air show. They didn’t see each other for a long time, and Linda later heard Bob’s fifth wife died of lung cancer Jan. 1, 1992. Afterward, he was scheduled to be in Savannah for an Eighth Air Force Association convention, but he failed to show up. “I found out he was in a terrible depression and had been drinking a lot,” Linda says. “I called him and gave him a pep talk. ‘You can’t bring her back. You gotta’ pull yourself up by your bootstraps. You can’t just stay drunk all the time.’”

So they met that April at a North Carolina air show. At the time, Linda was doing PR work for the owner of the B-17 used in the movie “Memphis Belle.” Her and Bob’s first date was a black tie hangar dance at the air show with “The Memphis Belle” movie plane as a backdrop. “I was wearing a hoop-skirt, southern belle dress,” Linda says. “During the dance Bob asked me to marry him.” They married Aug. 29, 1992.

he Morgans lived in Asheville. Linda soon realized her veteran husband struggled financially. He’d previously had a few hot business ventures turn cold. He’d filed for bankruptcy in the ‘60s, drank heavily, “his” house was actually owned by his stepchildren, and at the real estate company

The Memphis Belle flies over England, heading home to the US after she and her crew, led by pilot Bob Morgan, completed 25 daylight bombing missions. Built by Boeing, the B-27 “Flying Fortress” bristled with 12 or 13 .50-cal machine guns and carried 8,000 pounds of bombs. Powered by four 1,200 hp, turbo-supercharged radial engines, the plane’s top speed was 325 mph with a ceiling of 37,500 feet. The B-17 had a range of 2,800 miles with an effective combat radius of about 600 miles. USAF photo.

he was little more than a figurehead – albeit a famous one. Linda decided it was time for her to fly the plane. “The little wheels started turning in my head,” she says. “I told him, ‘Stick with me, Morgan, I’m about to make you a star.’” Capitalizing on what Bob did well and enjoyed most, by spring she was booking speaking engagements for him. Though he never talked of the war at home, at events Bob could capture an audience, take them inside the Memphis Belle, rocking through the flak-riddled sky, fending off fighters at 12 o’clock high. “He really, really liked that,” Linda says. “I could just tell. The shoulders were a little straighter. He was an excellent speaker, a fabulous speaker. ”

Linda booked him engagements in South Africa, New Zealand, Australia and Alaska. When Bob lectured in England, they visited Bassingbourn and were granted an audience with Queen Elizabeth. Linda pushed Bob to write a book with author Ron Powers. Bob – who was thrilled with the results – wrote on the dedication page: “To Linda Morgan, without whose perseverance and assistance this book would never have been written.” With Linda booking 20-30 engagements per year, they sold thousands of books at air shows and lectures. “Bob would sit there until 7:30 at night, signing books and shaking hands with every single person,” she says. “Nobody got turned away.” But Bob never played the hero card.

“He always said the real heroes are the men and women who didn’t come back … the ones who gave their lives for this country.” Quoting Bob, she adds, “We weren’t trained any better than the next crew. We just happened to be in the right place at the right time. And, then, God was riding on my wing.”

he Memphis Belle, meanwhile, faced her share of soars and dives, several times almost quietly crashing into oblivion. Petty girls flanking her nose, the bomber served out WWII as a trainer, her young crews in awe of the celebrated B-17. But that fame was lost on the War Department bureaucracy. Of more than 12,700 B-17s produced, over 4,735 were lost in combat. The vast majority of the FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL 2018

Following his war bond tour in the Memphis Belle, Bob Morgan volunteered to serve in the Pacific. Trained as a pilot in the new B-29 Superfortress and now a major (he became a colonel after the war), he commanded the 869th Squadron of the 497th Bomb Group. Bob, third from left above, named his heavy bomber Dauntless Dotty after his third wife, Dorothy Johnson. This photo, provided by Linda Morgan, was taken in October 1944 when Bob and his crew arrived in Saipan where he was based. He flew 26 missions in the Pacific through April 1945. Significantly, he flew Dauntless Dotty as the lead plane of 111 B-29s that conducted the first bombing of Tokyo since the public morale-building raid Lt. Col. Jimmy Doolittle led five months after Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. others – including the Belle – were destined for scrapping or slow deaths in aircraft boneyards. Temporarily stored at an Oklahoma airbase, the Belle was saved from scrap metal crushing in August 1945 by a $350 check the Memphis mayor wrote to the War Department. The purchased plane was flown to its namesake city and stored for several years before the local American Legion procured her a display outside the National Guard armory. More than 30 years she sat. As civic priorities changed, she slowly succumbed to weather and souvenir-hunting vandals who ripped off every instrument and piece of interior they could wrest from the once proud bomber. In 1976 the plane was evicted when the National Guard land was sold for, ironically, construction of the Liberty 72

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Bowl. By then the Air Force had regained ownership but agreed to let Memphis keep the plane on the condition it was well maintained – which looked financially doubtful. Finally, three local men formed the Memphis Belle Memorial Association, got the plane dismantled, and stored it at the airport. After a 1985 story in The Commercial Appeal, the city backed a MBMA fundraiser to enshrine the Belle at Mud Island River Park. FedEx and Boeing each donated $100,000; the city added $150,000. Then Hugh Downs featured the bomber on ABC’s 20/20 newsmagazine. That took the fundraiser national, and the MBMA raised its needed $600,000. To tremendous fanfare and a reunion of her surviving crew members, the relustered Memphis Belle went on display

in May 1987 beneath an open-sided, parachute-domed canopy. She now had a permanent home … for 16 years.

he bomber, however, was still exposed to the elements and now, in turn, bombed by pigeons. Dissatisfaction with the site grew, as did efforts to find the Belle a new home. In 2003 she was dismantled and shipped to a restoration facility at a former naval air station outside of Memphis with the goal of developing a museum. But funding was simply inadequate. Bob and Linda Morgan were among those wanting the National Museum of the United States Air Force near Dayton, Ohio, to give the iconic plane a truly permanent home. April 22, 2004, while the Morgans attended an air show at Asheville

At an air show in Spartanburg, SC, Linda and Bob Morgan stand beside the B-17 used in the 1990 movie “The Memphis Belle,” produced by Catherine Wyler. Unlike the iconic bomber Bob flew over Europe, this plane’s nickname is written in a script (see page 68). During the war, Catherine Wyler’s father, Hollywood filmmaker William Wyler, flew two missions with Bob and his crew for the 1944 War Department documentary titled “Memphis Belle: A Story of a Flying Fortress.” Wyler, a major at the time, used footage from small hand-held movie cameras he distributed to the crewmembers of the Belle and other B-17s. The movie can be viewed on YouTube.

Sitting in his old pilot’s seat, which he referred to as his “office,” Bob shows off the original Memphis Belle to Hugh Downs in 1986, who aired a story on ABC’s 20/20 that helped raise money nationwide to save and restore the plane for its third of four incarnations. FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL 2018

Linda Morgan holds a custom-poured, 14-karat gold B-17 necklace; she wears matching earrings. Bob Morgan is survived by daughters Sandra Oeschlager of Orlando, Peggy Partin of Asheville and son Robert Morgan Jr. of San Francisco. Linda has a son, Jeff First of Kansas City, two grandchildren and a great granddaughter. Linda lives at Smith Lake with four dogs and eight cats. She operates the non-profit Robert Morgan Foundation emergency animal rescue service. Photo by David Moore. Regional Airport, Bob fell and broke his neck. Over three weeks in ICU, his condition deteriorated. It was terrible, says Linda, who was there with his daughters and others. While still lucid, Bob told Linda, “Get my plane back to Dayton, honey.” “I will,” she said. The fearless pilot died May 15. Linda, in mourning gladly accepted an offer from her brother, George Hurst of Birmingham, to live in his house on Smith Lake, where she moved 12 years ago. Trying to honor Bob’s wish, she lobbied officials in Washington, D.C., including the chief of staff of the USAF, on behalf of the decaying Memphis Belle. She wrote a guest editorial in the Memphis paper. “The city and association had done their absolute best to keep the airplane up,” Linda says. “But they failed and it was time to give it up.” 74

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The uphill financial battle to fund the Memphis Belle was conceded in August 2005. The Air Force took possession of the plane. She was dismantled and trucked to Dayton on Oct. 5.

hat day, Belle supporter Dick Anderegg, a retired Vietnam combat colonel and air force historian, called Linda in Asheville with the Belle’s news. “You made my day,” she said. Linda then called the family of the only surviving crewmen, Belle radioman Robert Hanson, to share the good news. His granddaughter answered and said Robert had died one hour earlier. “I couldn’t believe it,” Linda says. “It was horrible. Not one of the crew members knew the plane got to Dayton.” Restoration work at the USAF museum has been meticulous – to the tune of 13 years. But the Belle is nearly ready for her new debut, and Linda, now

72, plans to fly up for the big, longawaited event. “I feel like a big sense of closure, that this has come full circle,” she says. “I reflect back often about Donna and I walking out of that movie theater that night and saying that this airplane was going to become part of my life.” As it worked out, the man who flew the bomber to victory and fame was part of a package deal with the Memphis Belle. Now Bob will be in Dayton with his wife and plane, both in spirit and in a physical sense. After his death and cremation, Linda had his ashes placed in a gold urn with the USAF emblem on it. She has a miniature of the urn with some of his ashes. She plans to carry the small urn to Dayton with her. Good Life Magazine

Reconstruction of the Belle has been underway since 2005 at the National Museum of the USAF. Among its 19 acres of exhibits under roof are the B-29 that dropped the atomic bomb on Nagasaki and nine presidential airplanes. Museum admission and parking are free. Photo and poster courtesy of the museum.

Belle to continue its ‘26th mission’ with big museum rollout

he world’s oldest and largest military aviation museum has its crosshairs fixed on the opening of its newest star attraction: the Memphis Belle. Since 2005, the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio, has invested as yet untallied amounts of money and time into the complete restoration of the renown B-17 heavy bomber that helped defeat Hitler’s Nazi Germany in World War II. The completed plane and its extensive, interactive exhibit open to the public May 17-19. “There is tremendous public interest,” says Jeff Duford, a 20-year veteran of the museum and lead curator on the Memphis Belle project since 2005. “Every time we put up a post on Facebook about the Bell, it lights up. It’s interesting that the airplane is known in other places in the world.” The rollout coincides with the 75th anniversary of the Belle crew’s last combat flight. They became the first crew from the Eighth Air Force to return to the U.S. after completing 25 missions over Europe. Stateside, they began a 26th mission, a popular war bond/morale tour of 32 U.S. cities. They were the subject of 1944 documentary and later FEBRUARY | MARCH | APRIL 2018

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Linda Morgan of Crane Hill, right in photo, visits the Belle during its restoration. She plans to attend its rollout this spring. influenced the movies “12 O’clock High” and “Memphis Belle.” For years the plane was displayed in Memphis, but private efforts to keep it from deteriorating grew financially prohibitive. In 2005 the USAF recalled it for posterity. “The museum has far greater resources in terms of an experienced restoration staff and a great facility,” Jeff says. “I think everybody wants it at a place it will be properly display and maintained.” The Belle’s display will include a British Spitfire, American Thunderbolt and a German Messerschmitt and Focke-Wulf, planes the B-17s fought with and against. A deadly 88mm anti-aircraft gun will be set up next to the Belle. “It will be in a context no other place can give it, and it’s a permanent institution,” Jeff says. “The rollout and exhibit will put a new shine on the Belle’s fame, and rightly so. It represents all of the heavy bomber crews that sacrificed to help defeat Nazi Germany. “Now it will continue the 26th mission,” he adds. “It’s still serving.” – David Moore

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Out ’n’ About If you were out ‘n’ about at the Bloomin’ Festival last year on the campus of St. Bernard’s, some of the scenes on this page probably look familiar. If you want to attend the 34th annual festival this year, it will be 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. April 21-22. Expect the juried arts festival to draw 140 booths and a crowd of some 25,000 visitors. You’ll find demonstrations of blacksmithing, glass blowing, pottery throwing, broom-making, portrait drawing and more. And there will be enough food vendors to eat your way around the campus. Admission is $5; children 5 and younger, free. Grotto admittance is reduced to $3 and parking is free. No pets, please. For more info: www.bloominfestival.com; or call: 256-739-6682. Photos by David Moore. 78

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