CULLMAN COUNTY
Kim Canaday makes the delicious most out of the farmers market Dyron and Sonya Powell returned ‘home,’ but do you really know why? Wayne Trimble: From a Bearcat to Bama’s Bear Bryant and beyond
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12/29/16 10:07 AM
Prime rib’s an Augusta’s favorite for Jeff Veres and many folks.
New to Augusta’s are fish tacos, now another of Jeff’s favs.
Deb Veres jokingly holds a salmon dinner out of husband Jeff’s reach.
True confessions of restaurant love
Since 1991, UAB Medicine has hired Jeff Veres four times as a system analyst. He’s still there. Since 1981, Jeff has worked for his wife – Deb Veres, Cullman native and owner of Augusta’s Sports Grill – only once. “I still work for her,” he laughs, safely out of Deb’s earshot at the moment. It happened like this ... While Jeff was in the Air Force and stationed in Montgomery, he got a job as a server and bartender at the former Twickenham Station restaurant. Deb came on there as general manager in ’81, seemingly invading his territory. “We didn’t get along at first,” he says, sitting at a table at Augusta’s. “She was a firecracker. She’d send me home to shave. I was a ‘Don Johnson’ before there was one ...” Jeff straightens up when Deb brings him grilled salmon, one of his menu favorites. Wise to his ways, she tortures him a little, holding the dish just out of his reach. Adding to the story, she says her former grill chef watched them fight six months
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before dropping this bombshell: “Miss Deb, you’re going to have his babies one day!” Lo and behold, Deb and Jeff married in 1983 and moved to Cullman in 1991. And, true to prediction, they have three children: Jason, Josh and Katie. After raising the kids, Deb returned to restaurant management, first at two Decatur places then as executive manager at Logan’s in Cullman. Josh later worked for Logan’s. Truth be told, Deb longed for a restaurant of her own. Jeff encouraged her, saying with all the hours she and Josh put in, they should be working for themselves. So Jason joined them, and they remodeled what would become Augusta’s. Jeff even built the bar. “I knew she could do this,” Jeff beams. “And with Jason and Josh working with her, it’s a win-win-win. She can still put me in my place, though! But if you do your job, she’s actually easy to work for.” It’s a nice love story – especially for the many Cullman folks in love with Augusta’s.
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Welcome
Don’t you just love it when Plan B comes together
S
pectacle is a nice word for it, and, if you were there, you know what a “spectacle” it was about 6:30 p.m. June 3 when the storm rolled darkly in from the west. It was announced from the stage that lightning was in the area, and, for obvious safety reasons, 30,000 folks at Rock the South had to evacuate Heritage Park. If there was lightning, I never saw it, but that could be because the rain fell not in mere sheets but in huge, dense blankets. Along with the pouring rain, the crowd was pouring out of the park. It was apparently handled as well as possible, but it was still a ... well, spectacle. Remarkably, the show and the party later resumed. But that did me no good. I had gone there to shoot a specific photo for Good Life. From the stage. At 6:30 p.m. I was far from the only person put out by Mother Nature, but such is life. Spectacles and stuff do happen. Similar was the fate of several other stories and photos I initially planned for this issue. One plan sank when a man I still want to interview could not get his boat – essential, I felt, for the story – cleaned up and out on Smith Lake by deadline. Another plan – this one for particular photos at a city park for our “Out ‘n’ About” feature – got hobbled by a leg issue slowing me down.
I
was not the biggest fan of TV’s “The A-Team” back in the ‘80s, but I have long been a fan of the line by Col. John “Hannibal” Smith, (George Peppard). You probably know it: “I love it when a plan comes together.” When Plan A gets flooded out in a downpour or whatever, I love it when Plan B (or C or D) manages to materialize and come together. This happened at least three times for this issue. In the case of the missed photos at the park, Plan B presented itself out of nowhere. I was in the office of a financial advisor in Arab, noticed several stunning photos framed on the walls and inquired about the photographer. Bells and lights chimed and flashed in my head when I was told the photographer lived in Joppa – one familiarsounding Liz Smith. Turns out I knew her from 10 years or so ago when she worked in an office with Steve Maze, now one of our regular contributors. On top of that, Liz was excited to share her photos, and she proved to be a great find, as you’ll see on page 8 and in our “Out ‘n’ About” feature at the back of the magazine. I love it when Plan B comes together.
David Moore Publisher/editor 6
AUGUST | SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER
Contributors Liz Smith of Joppa has been fascinated with cameras most of her life. Ten years ago, with a little more time on her hands, she began putting a camera in them everyday. Getting good takes practice more than equipment. “The best camera is the one you have with you, even if it’s only your cell phone,” she laughs. Steve Maze, a regular contributor to GLM, has long wanted to write a story on Wayne Trimble, his former PE coach at Arab High School and a standout in his day at Cullman High School, who went on to play for Bear Bryant and the Crimson Tide. Steve finally got that story ... just in time for football season. Deb Laslie opened Deb’s Bookstore in downtown Cullman 12 years ago. Her reading tastes are as widespread as her collection of new and used books. Not only is she a voracious reader, but she’s got to be quite the businesswoman to keep an independent bookstore alive in a big-box world. While mowing a field, Tim Crow’s tractor messed up – mostly due to too much rain. “We’re cutting grass like it’s still May,” he laughs. “Usually in July and August we’re cutting dust.” He’s putting his Auburn-Extension-trained mind to work designing a submersible mower ... something with a snorkel and paddles. Photos for the magazine are often planned and shot months in advance. Such was the case when Patrick Oden photographed the Cullman County Fair last September to go to press this July. He had shoots to make this July for spreads to run in this winter and next July ... which is fine with him. He just loves to create good images. Sheila McAnear always had a creative drive. It came out in school and later endeavors, such as sewing, painting and, whenever possible, building snow sculptures. She certainly showed creativity in her 28 years of selling and designing ads for The Arab Tribune. Today it shines beautifully in the ads you see in GLM.
Speaking of Plan B (see column at left), publisher/editor David Moore’s degree in psychology from The University of Alabama was Plan A. It led to Plan B (for bartending), then Plan C for 38 years in community journalism. He created Plan D – this magazine – in 2013. This issue starts GLM’s fifth year.
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Inside 10 Good Fun
On the cover: Thrill seekers take a high spin on one of the rides at last year’s Cullman County Fair. Photo by Patrick Oden.
18 Good People
This page: Joppa photographer Liz Smith silhouetted this blue heron against the sunset golden ripples of an area lake.
Gospel and blue grass groups will perform to raise money for Samaritan free clinic Nassan Ibrahim follows his “puppet” calling to bring a message to Uganda and Alabama
24 Good Reads
Deb Laslie reviews a thriller and ... bed-maker?
27 Good Cooking
Kim Canaday cooks with fresh produce mixed in with a lot of love
36 Good ’n’ Green
If last year’s drought left holes where your landscape trees were, here are five ideas
38 Dyron and Sonya Powell
Here’s the story behind a noted chef and restaurant owner moving “home” to Cullman
46 Good Eats
A visit to The Red Door Cafe
48 A crow that talked?
A tale from the past takes new flight
51 Peinhardt Living History
Family roots still grow deeply on this historic farm that keeps alive a way of agricultural life
59 Cullman County Fair
Take a photographic trip to Cullman’s big fair before it even comes to town
67 Wayne Trimble
Cullman native passed with class far beyond his famed days playing for the Bearcats
74 Out ’n’ About
What you might do if you carry a camera daily (you probably already do) ... and then use it
David F. Moore Publisher/editor 256-293-0888 david.goodlifemagazine@gmail.com
Vol. 5 No.1 Copyright 2017 Published quarterly
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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Annual concert helps fund Samaritan clinic for uninsured and low income people
D
Triumphant Quartet: from left, Clayton Inman, David Sutton, Scotty Inman and Eric Bennett.
Bama Blu-Grace: from left, Ron Hale, banjo, guitar, bass; Jennifer Hale, fiddle, bass; Christie Burrow, guitar, mandolin; Ron Burrow, bass, dobro.
If you’re going to the concert 10
7 p.m. Sept. 18, 2017 Doors open at 6 p.m. Cullman High School auditorium General admission is $15 at door More info and ticket outlets: 256-255-5965
AUGUST | SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER
erisive political arguments over healthcare and its funding have for years saturated the news enough to make one sick. Maybe it’s because none of those arguments mention gospel and blue grass concerts as a source of funding. But in this little corner of the country, Good Samaritan Health Clinic in September will again tap those sources with its Third Annual Caring for Cullman Concert benefit. Performing are Triumphant Quartet from Tennessee and Bama Blu-Grace, both with local talent. “I’m excited to have Triumphant back for a third year,” says Jolanda Hutson, executive director of the clinic, who graduated with bass singer Eric Bennett from West Point High. “They are at the top of the southern gospel charts.” Singing together since 2008, Triumphant has been voted Fan Favorite Quartet in the gospel music field for eight years. They’ve recorded four albums and two songs of the year, four #1 songs and other top 40 gospel hits. Bama Blu-Grace, made of two married couples – Ron and Jennifer Hale of Jones Chapel and Ron and Christie Burrow of Crane Hill – have performed together for 15 years. Besides bluegrass classics, their original songs have charted as high as #2 on The Singing News Top 80. The non-profit Good Samaritan Health Clinic at 401 Arnold Street NE provides free medical care to qualified hundreds of uninsured, lowincome residents of Cullman County, relying on grants, fundraising events and community support. – David Moore
Reservations are being taken for an “Antebellum Christmas” road trip to Natchez, Miss., Nov. 30-Dec. 3. Sponsored by the Wallace State Community College Alumni Association, the trip is open to the public. Cost ranges from $670 to $1,105 per person and includes motor coach transportation; one night at the Hyatt Place in Ridgeland; two nights at the Hotel Vue, with a bluff view of the Mississippi River; seven meals; gratuities, baggage and handling; and admission for planned activities. These include the Jeweled Christmas Tour at The Towers (upper right), tours of Stanton Hall and Longwood (above) mansions, Vicksburg National Military Park and many other attractions. A $200 deposit is required, and final payment is due by Nov. 1. Register online: www.wsccalumni.org/Natchez17. For more information call: LaDonna Allen, 256-352-8071.
Get out, enjoy the fall • Aug. 4 – Midnight Run It’s an event so fun participants literally glow. EvaBank and CP&R’s annual Midnight Run starts at 11:59 p.m. at the Cullman Civic Center. Some 1,000 runners race through the streets passing color and black light glow stations where they will have neon, glowing colors thrown onto them. Serious runners will be directed around the color stations to focus on their times; the race will be chip-timed for accuracy and cash prizes of $200
will be awarded to the overall and masters male and female winners, as well as medals to the top three in each age division. A black light party will take place before and after the race and food will be provided to runners. Register at any EvaBank, the Cullman Civic Center, or online at: cullmanrecreation.org (go to “events” under the “program & events” pulldown tab. For more info, call: CP&R, 256-734-9157.
Good Fun
• Aug. 5-6 – Kayak the Nantahala Join Cullman Park & Rec for this adventure down North Carolina’s Nantahala River. Cost is $35 and includes guided river tour, overnight stay in campgrounds and transportation for kayaks and gear. Boaters are responsible for their own travel arrangements or carpooling. Leaves 9 a.m. from Cullman Wellness & Aquatic Center. For more info, call: CP&R, 256734-9157. AUGUST | SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER
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• Aug. 11- Sept. 8 – Second Fridays at Festhalle Shop late and eat great. Cullman Parks and Recreation and the Cullman Area Chamber of Commerce are continuing to offer fun nights on the town the second Friday of August and September. Activities at Festhalle Marketplatz and Depot Park begin at 6 p.m. The farmer’s market with local farmers and craft vendors will be open until 10 p.m., a kid’s zone offers free, fun activities, and local retailers will be on site selling merchandise. For more info call: chamber of commerce, 256-734-0454; or CP&R: 256-734-9157. • Sept. 2-Oct. 7 – Youth adventure camp Starting at 9 a.m. on Saturdays, 7-14-year-olds can go rock climbing, rappelling, wilderness survival, guided hiking, zip lining, kayaking, horseback riding, and other outdoor activities. Locations include Hurricane Creek Park and Duck River Recreation Area. Cost of the six-week program is $75. For more info, call: CP&R, 256-734-9157.
• Sept. 3-4 – Sweet Tater Festival The annual Sweet Potato Festival returns to Smith Lake Park to extend Labor Day weekend for an expected crowd of 5,000 people. Hours are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily. Admission is $3 for the weekend. Visit booths selling arts, crafts and food. There’ll be music both days, fun for the kiddies and the annual Cruise Fest and Swap Meet 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Monday. Registration is 7-11 a.m. and $15. For more information, call: David Speegle, 256-385-1401. Lots of sweet taters will be donated by the Cullman County Sweet Potato Growers. Proceeds help maintain Dowling Memorial Park in Crane Hill. More info? Call: Smith Lake Park, 256-739-2916; or visit: www.cullmancountyparks.com. • Sept. 20 – “Celebrate” “Celebrate” is a free community health fair for senior adults put on by students and faculty in the conference center at Wallace State’s School of Nursing and Center for Science. Get checked for cholesterol,
blood pressure, bone density and blood sugar. Have a one-on-one session on exercising, driving tips and heat and medication management. Times available are 9 a.m., 10 a.m. and 11 a.m. The event is open to individuals and groups. If you come in a group of five or more, reservations are suggested; call: Mechelle Baker, 256-352-8199. Bus and van parking is available. • Oct. 1-Nov. 10 – Turkey, ham, ribs Cullman County Bosom Buddies Foundation is holding its Third Annual BBQ fundraiser. Orders will be taken on above dates for Freddy Day’s delicious smoked meats. Turkeys, 15-17 lbs., are $30; hams, 10-12 lbs., $30; full rack of ribs $25. Orders may be picked up at Freddy Day Catering 11 a.m.-noon Saturday, Nov. 18 and 9-10 a.m. Thanksgiving Day. Will work with businesses on pickups. To order or for more information: Mary Dyer, 256-347-0911; Judy Grissom, 256-347-5993; Janice McNeal, 256-708-5518.
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• Oct. 2-Nov. 6 – Beyond “fetch” Have fun with your best friend at dog obedience classes at the Cullman Civic Center on Monday nights. Puppy classes start at 6 p.m. followed by adult dog classes at 7. Orientation is Sept. 25. Thursday classes will also be held starting Oct. 5, with orientation on Sept. 28. Instructor is Tina Herfurth. The $70 cost covers six weeks of classes plus orientation. For more info, call: CP&R, 256-734-9157. • Oct. 2 – Two on Tap The Cullman Community Concert Association kicks its heels up with its opening performance of the 201718 season, featuring the Broadway song and dance duo of Melissa Giattino and Ron DeStefano. They will dance your eyes, mind and heart back to the days when Fred and Ginger and Mickey and Judy filled the screen with undeniable chemistry and effortless harmony and precision tap dancing. Gorgeous vocals, exciting choreography and unique
musical arrangements all take center stage in three different two-act shows which have entertained tens of thousands worldwide. The show starts at 7 p.m. in the
and get information online at: www. cullmancommunityconcertassociation. com.
Betty Leeth Haynes Theatre at Wallace State. A season ticket for all five 2017-18 performances is $75. Tickets at the door are $30. Students are free with a paid adult. For more information, call: Kathy Scruggs, 256-339-4447; order tickets
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• Sept. 16 – Fair Parade The big annual parade starts at 2 p.m. and runs along U.S. 31 from Cullman First Baptist Church to McGriff Tire and Service. Cost to enter is $20. Register at the fair office at Sportsman Lake Park Sept. 5- noon Sept. 14. • Sept. 21-30 – 63rd Cullman County Fair The gates open and the fun begins at 5 p.m., Thursday. Sponsored by the Cullman Lions Club, there will be nightly pageants or entertainment at 7 p.m. and tons of exhibits, prizes and rides on the big midway. Fairgrounds admission is free for kids 9 and under and $7 for all others. Buy individual tickets for rides or $22 armbands for a day of unlimited rides which will be sold at the fair or, through Sept. 23, at Peoples Bank (these bank passes also get you in the gate for free). Gates open at 5 p.m. weeknights and 2 p.m. both Saturdays and Sunday. Sponsored by Peoples Bank, all students are admitted to the fairground for free, noon5 p.m. Sept. 25. Senior citizen day is 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. Sept. 27. For more info, call: 256-734-0661; visit: www. cullmanfair.com; or see fair feature starting on page 59. • Oct. 7 – Win $10K fishing Go fishin’ and festin’ at Smith Lake Park’s Fourth Annual Bass Fest. Last year’s tourney drew more than 200 entrants, and this one will draw, too. Best stringer wins $10,000, big fish nets $500 and there are payouts to top 40 teams, top college team and top parent-child team. During the day there’ll be a music festival and other fun activities at the park beach area where weigh-in will be held. Deadline for the $125 registration fee is Sept. 25. For details and registration visit: http: www. smithlakeparkbassfest.com; or call: 256-734-4803. For tourney registration call: Tony Harris, 256-3388367. For vendor info, call Denise, 256-739-2916.
• Oct. 4-8 – 36th Annual Cullman Oktoberfest Be on hand for five days and evenings of German heritage, Cullman style. It takes place at Festhalle Platz, Depot Park and the Warehouse District. Admission is free. Numerous churches, restaurants and a caterer will sell authentic German meals at Oktoberfest and around town. There will be costumes and music; a craft beer biergarten, arts and crafts, car show, bratwurst-eating contest, steinhosting contest, historical tours and much more. The annual Oktoberfest Magazine, published by Momc Publishing/Good Life Magazine, will be on the streets the first full week of September. Oct. 5 is senior day at Festhalle with bingo, door prizes and a free lunch for the first 700 seniors 50 and older; entertainment by Terry Cavanagh and The Alpine Express. • Oct. 28 – Annual motorcycle ride Fifth Annual Bikers Against Cancer Ride takes a new, 110-mile route this year through the Bankhead National Forest. Riders will be escorted by members of the Cullman County Sheriff’s Office and the Cullman Police Department. It begins at the parking lot behind Cullman Regional
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AUGUST | SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER
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• Register now – Christmas trip Take a Christmas trip to Pigeon Forge Dec. 11-13. Enjoy two nights lodging, a breakfast at Dollywood DreamMore Resort, the Dollywood Smokey Mountain Christmas and holiday dinner, Dixie Stampede Christmas Show and dinner, breakfast at the highly rated Sawyer’s Farmhouse Restaurant, admission to the Titanic (that’s a replica of the doomed luxury liner’s grand staircase at left) and motor coach transportation, baggage and handling. The cost is $540 per person double occupancy and $680 single. The trip is through the Donald Green Senior Center but open to the public. Register now to ensure a reservation. For more info: 256-734-4803. Medical Center (POB 2) with registration at 7:30 a.m. and kickstands up at 9. Cost is $25 per bike, $10 for an extra rider, which includes a complimentary breakfast, snacks at the rest stop and lunch afterward. Proceeds benefit the Bosom Buddies support group that works to meet the needs of cancer patients and their families. This year’s ride honors David Sandlin, who was instrumental in forming and building the fundraiser. The Bosom Buddies wish David the best in his fight against cancer. • Oct. 29 – “Celebrate” Please see info for the same program held Sept. 20.
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Good People
5questions Story and photo by David Moore
N
assan Ibrahim Turyamureeba grew up in what he describes as “firstclass poverty” in a desperately rural village in western Uganda. The grassthatched houses along the dirt roads had neither electricity nor running water. A trip to the hospital was miles by hand-borne stretcher. “Even the poor people called you poor,” Nassan says in his easy fashion, sitting at the table in the house in Cullman that supporters have provided for him, his wife and three of their children. Late one afternoon in October 1983 when he was 17, Nassan and his buddies spotted a white man heading into the village. Other whites followed him, about a dozen in all. Whites could, he thought, mean only one thing. “Every time you see a white person, it must be candy,” he laughs. “This one must be having candy, so we ran to him. This time it was not candy. It was puppets and dramas.” They’d never seen puppets before. “We called them talking cartoons,” Nassan says. “We were seeing a new treat – drama and singing music. I was not disappointed it was not candy.” The visitors drew a crowd of about 50 mostly young people from the predominantly Muslim village. “It was strange to see white people in our community,” Nassan says. “It was not like a tourist attraction.” “The drama they portrayed was the full story of Jesus from when he was born. We didn’t know they 18
AUGUST | SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER
Nassan Ibrahim
A puppet show in Uganda led him on a mission for his county and the U.S. were missionaries. They did not have Bibles in their hands. They were still sounding as if they were not preachers.” The talking cartoons impacted him. “The story was so powerful,” Nassan says. “It got me thinking not about puppets, but what was this man Jesus about? I was raised a Muslim. We did not know there was any other faith.” Word spread and the next day a larger crowd showed up for the puppet presentation. Nassan brought a lot of his buddies and more still on day three. “I would love to know more,” he recalls feeling. “What touched me the most was Jesus walking on the water and the cripple being healed. I never knew somebody could be healed in Jesus’s name.” The missionaries were wise not to be waving Bibles. “If we had seen a Bible in their hands, we would immediately know they were preachers, and we hated that,” said Nassan. “We grew up with the faith that Christians were infidels.”
M oved by the puppet story, Nassan inquired where it came from,
what book told about Jesus. “One of the white guys said it was from the Bible,” he says. “Not that I wanted to change my faith, but I wanted to read the story myself. I felt every human being needed to hear that story.” A rare Catholic woman in the community quietly loaned him her Bible. Over the next three months – secreted away from parents and siblings – Nassan read it cover to
cover. Questions drove him to seek out a Ugandan pastor. “It was an amazing thing,” he says of the Bible. “The preacher answered me everything, and I discovered I was lost and needed salvation.” But serious issues loomed. Nassan had never heard of a Muslim converting to Christianity. And his father, devout in the Islamic faith, would be incensed. “I wanted to have salvation and a Muslim kind of faith. I thought you could merge the two,” Nassan says. “The preacher said, ‘I can pray for you, and you can receive Christ.’ He knew what I wanted and what I was scared of. He said I could go back to the mosque.” The preacher apparently had strong faith, for when Nassan bowed prostrate on his prayer rug in the mosque, a realization hit him. “I put my forehead on the floor,” Nassan says. “I could feel conflict inside of me. My body went down, but my heart did not. I could feel my heart was not in the Muslim prayers.” “But I felt an expression of joy and the excitement of the faith. I felt I did not need to be in the mosque. I ran to the preacher and asked to join the church.” As the preacher prayed for him, Nassan says, he cried and felt peace enter his heart – along with new questions. “Lord, now I am free. I am saved. I am forgiven,” he told himself. “But what about my father? My mother? My sisters and brothers? My fellow Muslims? Could they receive what I received? Could they see what I see?” “Lord,” he said, “if you can change
Snapshot: Nassan Ibrahim Turyamureeba
EARLY LIFE: Born to peasant parents June 20, 1966, in Kicwamba, Uganda. Youngest of 10 children, most of whom died before he was born. FAMILY: He has five children by his wife, Gertrude, who died of cancer in 2010: Yassin, 30, twins Judith and Edith, 27, and twins Wilson and Sharon, 22; and a son, Rehoboth, 2, with his second wife, Margaret, whom he married in 2012. He has six grandchildren. Wilson and Sharon study nursing at Wallace State Community College. EDUCATION: Dropped out of primary school in his home village; later took adult ed classes; was certified and ordained as a pastor in 1987 after completing Karen Bible Seminary in Nairobi Kenya. CAREER/CALLING: Pastor/bishop/missionary.
me and give me the power, the best I can do for you, I want to present your name to fellow Muslims.” News spread quickly. His father, confronting him at home, proclaimed Nassan a shame and forbade him to ever enter the hut again. A brother threatened to cut off his head.
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assan clung to his newfound faith and, with assistance from the Ugandan preacher, left the village for Lake Katwe where he worked odd jobs to keep alive. With Christ as his cornerstone, he slowly built a new life, marrying Gertrude, who was Catholic, and starting a family. In 1987 the story of his conversion earned him a Norwegian sponsorship to a seminary in Nairobi, Kenya. Ordained in 1990 and on fire to keep his promise to God, he returned to Lake Katwe to pastor his first church. After his father died, Nassan returned to his village to preach the gospel. He led his mother, two sisters and the brother who had wanted his head to convert to Christianity. In 1996 Nassan made his first trip to the United States, seeking to tell his story and raise funds for his work in Uganda. Today he splits time in threemonth segments between Cullman and Uganda. He went home again in June and plans to return to Cullman in October. Today in Uganda Nassan is a bishop overseeing 250 churches. He is a senior pastor in Mbarara, a city of nearly 200,000 in southwest Uganda. His church – the non-denominational Daystar Cathedral – draws crowds of 8,000 people and is raising money to finish out its building. Nassan has led huge marches for Jesus and built the Ugandan’s first Christian radio station, which broadcasts to millions of people. He’s raising money for an orphanage that’s home to 250 kids and money to buy bicycles for preachers … quite the resumé for a man inspired by talking cartoons. 20
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1. What do you think your
conversion from Muslim to Christian offers you in terms of perspective on the world’s two most followed religions? What I believe now is that Jesus Christ is the only way, the truth and the life. No one will see the Father except through Jesus Christ. So the number one thing I’ve seen is that God delivered me from hell. No Jesus, no life. No Jesus, no heaven. But in the Islamic faith Jesus is not considered a savior. He’s a prophet. The Muslims deny the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. They don’t believe his blood was shed for the redemption of our sins. The only condition to enter the kingdom of heaven is you must believe with all your heart that Jesus Christ is the Lord. Muslims deny his lordship. But I know that He delivered me from hell.
I think God saved me to save others, to bring the light to Muslims. I can say, “I was born like you in the same faith, and I am telling you Jesus was more than a prophet.” I have discovered how Americans are ignorant of the vision and the plan some Muslims have about this country. And they don’t care if their plan is fulfilled in 50 years. They are very, very good at being patient. They recognize the strongest country in the world and the strong faith in Christ in the United States. They don’t underestimate the power and resources Americans have. The Muslim knows more about Americans than Americans know about the Muslim. You may expect the extremist to bomb you or kill you, but we can detect many of these things. They know something you can’t detect is love between a boy and a girl. Love is blind. An American told me his daughter
Followed by thousands of believers
in Uganda, Bishop Nassan Ibrahim leads a march for Jesus in the provided photograph.
is married to a Muslim, and he wanted to know what he could do to preach to this guy. I said, “Have you tried?” “He doesn’t listen and is telling me that Jesus is not the Son of God.” I asked if his daughter goes to the mosque. He said no. But how about her children? They will eventually go to the mosque. This is the plan to change this country from Christianity. Christian faith has only one way to grow – to preach the truth, and the truth is Jesus Christ. But Muslims have many ways to grow their faith. Extremists use intimidation: “We are going to kill you. If you don’t want to die, you become Muslim.” They can give you money, cash. In Uganda, when Idi Amin was president, many people became Muslim because of money he gave out from Libya and Saudi Arabia. They still use that strategy today. Americans need to remember the scripture, Second Chronicles 7:14 – If my people, which are called by my
name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. There is no power that will stop the Muslims. No petition can stop them. Only Second Chronicles 7:14. You don’t change a Muslim by giving him food. You don’t change a Muslim by giving him your daughter. You change him by giving him the word of God.
2.
What is the goal of your mission work in the United States? It is to bring the message of Second Chronicles. Every church I go to, every pulpit I stand in, that is the message. America, wake up and pray. Wake up and seek the Lord. America, wake up and go about the Bible’s truth. The response had been humungous. Psalms 121 – I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my
help. My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth. I preach this message everywhere. America needs help not from the White House but from God. I love to watch the news, but you see people confused. This person blames this president. That person blames that president. When the world is confused, the church needs to come up with the message of hope. And Jesus is the hope of glory. Bringing that message is my goal.
3. How did Cullman come about
being the center of your operations in the U.S.?
My first trip to the United States was in 1996. I attended a Christian conference in Dunlap, Tenn. At the conference there were many people from the Cullman area. Two of them were Paula and Wayne Pitts. When the conference was over, I couldn’t go home to Uganda yet, and I knew God had given me a message for this country, but I didn’t know where to start. I asked if the Pittses could take me to their home. We drove the whole night and the next day I was in Hanceville. In that way, I ended up meeting many wonderful people in Cullman. Some of them introduced me to Whitesburg Baptist in Huntsville, which had a big puppet ministry. I went there for three months. Through Whitesburg, I was introduced to other churches in the area, and in 1997 they sent a team that followed me to Uganda. Cullman was a central point for me to deliver my message from. Now I’ve been to churches in Tuscaloosa, Decatur, Athens, Rainsville, Gadsden and Tupelo. I speak somewhere every Sunday. In Cullman County I’ve spoken at Seventh Street Baptist, Temple Baptist, Holly Pond, Hanceville First Baptist, Garden City First Baptist, AUGUST | SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER
21
St. John Evangelical and many more churches. Everyone tells me I was the first black preacher in their pulpit. I have been treated very well and accepted. The Gudger family in Cullman is like a family to me. It’s been a very good experience. I interact with everyone, and they are all friends.
4. “We are running out of time,”
you have said. Can you explain that belief?
Go back to my story … If the 12 white people had not come to Uganda in 1983, had not spent their money on that trip and left their comfort zone to come to this place with no electricity, where would I be today? I gave my life to Jesus Christ through their efforts, and now I am overseeing 250 churches in Uganda. I built a Christian radio station there that reaches nine million to ten million people and caused a lot of
revival in the country. I have done crusades across the country to win souls for Christ. But we still have many more who have not heard about Jesus. And we are running out of time because, who knows? There are other young people somewhere in the world waiting for another group to come with puppets – or food and supplies, or with medical teams – to get them into the Kingdom of God; who in return will change their country like what God has done through my life in my country. The assignment of winning souls is not given to the angel and the pastor, to the reverend and bishop; it is the church’s responsibility. And the church is me. The church is you. Acts 1:8 – But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. In our neighborhoods and districts, in our countries, in our world the
gospel needs to be preached. If we delay, we will wake up and it will be too late, and our brothers and sisters will go to hell without the opportunity to hear the gospel of Jesus Christ.
5.
A growing number of people in Cullman know you, but what is something most of them do not know about you? We have very different cultures. I have seen how you guys love dogs and animals. You let them lick you. You don’t know we are not that friendly to animals. Animals are for outside, and you people let them in the house! I go into too many houses where big dogs come in and jump on you … AHHHH! I apologize to the dogs. We are not enemies, but the dogs come expecting a hug from me. There is no hug for the dogs! That’s how we grew up. But I do love people! Good Life Magazine
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Good Reads
‘Redemption Road’ is proof Hart keeps on getting better
‘Make Your Bed’ then read lots more good advice
ohn Hart is one of the finest thriller writers today. And yesterday. And likely tomorrow. Truly, all his books are exceptional, and they just keep getting better and better. John Hart’s latest, “Redemption Road,” is Then let me tell you a my new favorite. thing I’ve learned in my Rookie cop Elizabeth Black idolizes Adrian eighty-nine years. This Wall, a seasoned and house, the friends and highly decorated veteran memories – I’d trade it all on the force, but she is for a chance to do what disillusioned when he’s accused and convicted that young woman just of murder. Thirteen did, a noble act, freely years later, Adrian is out undertaken. How many of prison, and within of us have such a chance? 48 hours another young woman is murdered. And how many the Same location, same courage to take it? style of murder. Convinced Adrian is not guilty of either murder, Elizabeth attempts to unravel both mysteries. Oh, and Elizabeth is under investigation for a shooting involving her rescue of a kidnapped young girl. Yup. This is a page-turning thriller of the best kind. Your summer won’t be complete without it. You’ll want to read everything by John Hart – and you won’t be disappointed. – Deb Laslie
hat began as a simple commencement address turned into a YouTube sensation and now, at last, a book. Admiral William H. McRaven expands on his address to the University of Texas (Austin) graduates in his book, “Make Your Bed: Little Things That Can Change ... (L)ife is hard and … Your Life and Maybe the World.” sometimes there is little This is advice that you can do to affect the all of us can use – outcome of your day ... graduated or not. sometimes the simple act Admiral McRaven’s lessons learned began of making your with his SEAL team bed can give you the training. lift you need to start The simple truths that your day and provide govern a professional soldier’s life translate you the satisfaction well into civilian life. to end it right. Respect others... life isn’t fair, get over it ... stand up to the bullies ... dare greatly ... rise to the occasion ... give hope. These are things we all know, but we just need to hear every now and then. Admiral McRaven’s book is the perfect gift to yourself. Then share it with others. It’s that good. “If you can’t do the little things right, you will never do the big things right.” – Deb Laslie
J
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Kim’s culinary skills often lure a crowd to the Canaday home in the Cullman Historic District. There this evening are, from left, son Reed, husband Eddie, Papa Joe Canaday, Kim, her mother Glenda and son Nick.
Kim Canaday cooks fresh for her family, adding lots of love Story and photos by David Moore
S
o, one day Eddie Canaday stopped by Festhalle Farmers Market in Cullman’s Warehouse District. “I need some heirloom tomatoes,” he told one of farmers with tables of fresh produce. “Sorry. I’m out,” the farmer replied. “My wife said she thought you’d have some.” “Who’s your wife?” “Kim Canaday.” “Oh! I’ve got some right back here …” That’s an indicator of how regular Kim is at the local farmers market. It’s open three days a week; she’s there at least two of them, usually all three. Cooking fresh is integral to why family and friends proclaim Kim to be a fabulous cook. “We have an incredible farmers market at Festhalle,” Kim says. “I get the majority of my things here. They all know me. I’m usually there.” Even when she’s teaching eighth grade history at Cullman Middle School, she comes home, gets a good dinner cooking then dashes to the gym before returning to her kitchen.
I
n season, fresh veggies are a staple accompanied by, say, pan-seared salmon, lemon mahi-mahi or pork
Good Cooking
tenderloin. In at least an equal measure to fresh ingredients, Kim cooks with lots of love. “I love to cook for people … cook what they love,” she says. “It’s a way of showing love as well.” The family loves how Kim shows love. Most of them – including her mother, Glenda “Mimi” Bates, and father-inlaw, Papa Joe Canaday – are lured to dinner several times a week. “There are so many things she makes really well,” says Eddie, who owns Lazarus, LLC, an umbrella for numerous venture capital, real estate and development projects. “I don’t know if I have a favorite. Maybe her roast, butter beans, rice and tomato gravy.” Kim’s bacon and grits, biscuits and tomato gravy probably top the list for son Nick, who lives in Birmingham, formerly interned for the Rick and Bubba Show, makes comedy club appearances and drives to Cullman to work with Eddie. Mom’s homemade chicken potpie and bronzed salmon are favorites for son Reed, who lives in Cullman and works at Alatex. Daughter Jordan, who also lives in Cullman, loves Mom’s red beans and rice.
K
im’s credit for kitchen inspiration goes back two generations. Mimi cooked for her family, but readily confesses three meals a day became a chore. “My greatest inspiration was Grandmother Watts of AUGUST | SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER
27
SUCCOTASH 2 cups fresh lima beans ½ small yellow onion 4 fresh thyme sprigs 1 garlic clove 3 uncooked bacon slices 1 medium-size sweet onion, chopped 3 cups fresh corn kernels (about 6 ears) 1 pt. cherry tomatoes, halved 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter 1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar 1½ Tbsp. chopped fresh dill 1½ Tbsp. chopped fresh chives Salt and pepper With water to cover, bring first 4 ingredients to a boil in a saucepan over medium-high heat; reduce heat to medium and simmer, stirring occasionally, 20 minutes or until beans are tender. Drain beans, reserving ¾ cup cooking liquid. Discard yellow onion, thyme and garlic. Cook bacon in a large skillet over medium heat 7 minutes or until crisp, turning once. Remove bacon, reserving 2 Tbsp. drippings in skillet. Drain bacon on paper towels then crumble. Sauté chopped sweet onion in hot drippings over medium-high heat 5 minutes. Add corn, stirring often, 6 minutes or until corn is tender. Stir in tomatoes, cooked lima beans, and reserved cooking liquid; cook, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes. Stir in butter and next 3 ingredients. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with crumbled bacon. Holly Pond,” she says. “She taught me flowers, to love Jesus and cooking in that order. She truly did.” “She would have put me ahead of those if I had been around,” Eddie laughs. “I will say, though,” Kim continues, “to mom’s credit, she would let me experiment in the kitchen when I was pretty young.” At age 9 or 10, Kim baked her first cake, which impressed the family 28
AUGUST | SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER
enough that she got requests. Her older brother once begged for some cookies with his favorite ingredient which was peanut butter. It was a lesson for Kim. “I learned what quantity means,” she says. “I made 12 cookies from a recipe for 24. They came out like peanut butter pancakes. They were huge and made a big mess.” As heralded her kitchen skills have since grown, and Kim wants to expand
them when she retires in a few years by taking cooking classes. Though she certainly won’t give up fresh produce from Festhalle, she wants to learn new techniques and improve on what she already does. Her mom smiles and shakes her head: “I don’t think she can improve on anything.” Starting above are recipes to a few of Kim and her family’s favorite fresh dishes …
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SHORT RIBS WITH CHEESY POLENTA 4 medium carrots 2 cups frozen pearl onions 4 bone-in beef short ribs 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil 1 can diced tomatoes ¾ cup low sodium beef broth ¼ cup dry red wine ¼ cup coarsely chopped fresh parsley and a little extra for garnish 2 Tbsp. cornstarch 2 Tbsp. tomato paste 1 bay leaf
1 cup quick-cooking polenta ½ tsp. salt ½ cup finely shredded ParmigianoReggiano ½ tsp. Everglades seasoning Combine carrots and onions in a 6 qt. slow cooker. Rinse ribs and pat dry; season with salt, pepper and Everglades seasoning. Heat oil in a large, wide pot over moderately high heat until hot, but not
smoking. Add ribs, in batches and cook, turning, until brown on all sides, about 15 minutes. Transfer, as cooked, to slow cooker. Stir together tomatoes, broth, wine, parsley, cornstarch and tomato paste in a bowl on high. Skim off any fat from top (discard bay leaf). Combine ¾ cup water, the polenta and salt in large saucepan over medium high heat. Bring to a boil stirring constantly. Add cheese and cool, stirring constantly, until thickened, about 5 min.
CHEESE-STUFFED CHICKEN IN PHYLLO (This is one of my favorite recipes.) 8 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves 4 cups chopped fresh spinach 1 cup chopped onion 2 Tbsp. olive oil ½ of 8 oz. pkg. cream cheese, cubed and softened 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese ½ cup crumbled feta cheese ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese 1 beaten egg yolk 1 Tbsp. all-purpose flour ½ tsp. ground nutmeg ½ tsp. ground cumin 16 sheets phyllo dough (18x14-inch rectangles) 30
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⅔ cup butter , melted Place each chicken breast half between two sheets of heavy plastic wrap; pound with flat side of a meat mallet until ¼ inch thick. Season with salt and pepper. In a large skillet cook spinach and onion in hot olive oil until onion is tender. Remove from heat. Stir in cream cheese until blended. Stir in remaining cheeses, egg yolk, flour, nutmeg and cumin. Place about ¼ cup of the spinach mixture on each chicken breast half; roll up jelly-roll style. Place one sheet
of phyllo on work surface. (Keep remaining sheets covered with a damp towel to prevent drying out.) Brush with melted butter. Place another phyllo sheet on top of the first, brush with butter. Place one chicken roll near the short side of the phyllo; roll chicken and phyllo over once to cover chicken. Fold in long sides; continue rolling from short side. Place in a shallow baking pan. Repeat with remaining chicken, phyllo and butter. Brush with butter. Bake uncovered at 350 for 30-35 minutes or until chicken in no longer pink.
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HOT WING DIP (My guys’ favorite.) 1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened 1 cup cooked chicken breast (shredded) ½ cup Moore’s Original buffalo wing sauce ½ cup ranch or blue cheese salad dressing 2 cups shredded Colby-Monterey Jack cheese Tortilla chips or celery ribs (We like both!) Preheat oven to 350°. Spread cream cheese into an ungreased, shallow 1 qt. baking dish. Layer with chicken, wing sauce and salad dressing. Sprinkle with cheese (For even spicier dip, put shredded chicken in Ziploc bag and soak in wing sauce for an hour or so.) Bake, uncovered, 20-25 minutes or until cheese is melted. Serve with baguette slices. Yield: about 2 cups. A time-saver is to shred a rotisserie chicken and use. STUFFED CHICKEN WITH GOAT CHEESE 3 chicken breasts ¼ cup goat cheese ½ tsp. basil ½ tsp. thyme ¼ tsp. black pepper 3 slices bacon toothpicks Olive oil
ALL STEAK SQUASH CASSEROLE Courtesy of former All Steak owner Charlie Dobson (I add a few dashes of Tony Chachere’s and Everglades seasoning to this classic.) 1½ lbs. fresh squash 1 med. yellow onion, thinly sliced 1 green pepper, seeded and sliced ½ cup sour cream ½ cup mayonnaise ½ cup cheddar cheese, grated 2 tsp. Lawry’s seasoned salt 1 tsp. pepper 32
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Breadcrumbs, grated Cook squash, onion and pepper in boiling water until tender. Drain well. Mix all ingredients except breadcrumbs. Bake at 350 until bubbly. Add breadcrumbs and brown.
Slice goat cheese into thin strips. On a flat surface pound chicken to ¼-½ inch thick. Lay cheese on the center of each piece of chicken and evenly sprinkle each with basil, thyme and black pepper. Using toothpicks to secure, fold the chicken up and wrap in bacon. Preheat oven to 375F. Heat oil in a skillet. Place chicken in skillet and cover for 5 minutes. Rotate and brown on all sides. Transfer skillet to oven (or use a new baking dish) and bake for 15 minutes. Serve with basil linguini and a salad.
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OUR FAVORITE COBBLER 4 cups total of fresh peaches and blackberries or fruit of you choice 1½ cups sugar, divided ½ tsp. almond extract ½ cup butter ¾ cup all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder pinch of salt ¾ cup milk Gently toss peaches with 1 cup sugar and almond extract; set aside. Pour
butter into 2 qt. baking dish. In a bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt and remaining sugar; stir in milk. Mix well. Pour evenly over butter (do not stir). Top with peach mixture. Bake at 350 for 5055 minutes.
GLUTEN-FREE PAN-SEARED SALMON (We have this once every week or two. Sooo good!) 1½ lbs. salmon fillets ⅓ cup gluten-free soy sauce ⅓ cup brown sugar ⅓ cup olive oil ⅓ cup water 1 tsp. Creole seasoning Mix first five ingredients; use to marinate salmon for 10-15 minutes before cooking. Once skillet sizzles, add the salmon and cook to desired doneness. Add Creole seasoning. We prefer it on the rare side, which takes about 5 minutes per side. Pour small amount of marinade over each fillet before serving. Enjoy! 34
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DEVILED EGGS 2 tsp dill pickle relish 3-4 Tbsp. Kraft mayo, as desired 2 tsp. mustard Salt, pepper, Tony Chachere’s, paprika as desired Slice the eggs in half lengthwise. Remove yolks to a
medium bowl and place whites on a serving platter. Mash the yolks into a fine crumble using a fork. Add mayonnaise, mustard and seasoning. Evenly disperse heaping teaspoons of yolk mixture into the egg whites. Garnish with bacon or dill.
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Good ’n’ Green
Drought of ‘16 leave holes in your yard? Fall is the best time to plant new trees Story by Tim Crow
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hanks to the 2016 drought, many homeowners are finding bare spots in and around their landscape. As you look to replace trees that were killed or severely damaged or are simply looking to plant a new tree, remember that fall is the time to do so. Many people plant trees and shrubs in the spring, which is when most big-box stores and nurseries have the best deals. While planting in the spring is not a sure fire way to kill a tree, it does make long-term success more difficult. When you plant trees and shrubs in the fall, they have plenty of time to establish a root system before the heat of summer moves in. Even when trees are dormant above ground during the winter, root growth will continue as long as soil temperatures are above 40 degrees. Assuming you plant in October, that leaves November and December as good months for root development. As soils begin to warm again in March, root development will start up again and continue through April and May before the heat of summer really moves in. As I count it, that’s five months of root development compared to planting a tree in April, increasing chances for success and minimizing the need to carry so much water next summer to your young tree. So, what to plant? I like to encourage folks to consider three things when deciding: • Location suitability for size, shape, wet or dry needs, proximity to power lines and your house, etc. Remember, your tree will grow. • What you want in a tree – to bloom, show nice fall color, benefit pollinators. • Your reason for a tree – privacy, wind break, shade. Here are four trees to consider that are native to Alabama and are nice in landscapes ... (Note: Marshall County Extension agent Hunter McBrayer contributed to this story.) 36
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Black gum (Nyssa Sylvatica) – Often referred to as a tupelo tree, swamp tupelo or black tupelo, this tree is known by many different names. Black gum is a tough tree that is not even closely related to sweet gums, so don’t worry about sweet gum balls with this one. It’s another of those slow growing, large trees that can reach 80-100’ tall, but it rarely tops 60’ in our area. Black gum makes a good oak alternative and is great for our pollinators and birds. My favorite trait of this tree is its beautiful fall color – being one of the first to light up with reds, greens and blues in mid-October. It can be a beautiful asset to most landscapes that have room for a large tree with a 25’ wide canopy.
Red maple (Acer rubrum) – One of the most popular landscape trees, red maple has early red blooms, a nicely
River birch (Betula nigra) – Looking for a multi-trunked tree with nice fall color, cinnamon colored exfoliating
shaped canopy, attractive bark and unmatched yellow fall colors. Even better, a number of cultivars, or varieties, are available. “Armstrong” is a fast growing, upright tree for tight places needing skinny canopy. For a slow growing tree with great fall color, “October Glory” or “Red Sunset” are the best. Red maple has a heavy, dense wood that makes it a good alternative to the weak, invasive Bradford pear tree.
bark? Look no further than river birch. A native tree that is traditionally seen on stream banks, the river birch is making a strong appearance in landscapes and urban plantings, partly because of its attractive bark. Fast growing, it can reach 30-40’ in 20 years and easily top out at 70’ at maturity. This tree is great when grown as a multi-trunked specimen tree.
Bald cypress (Taxodium distichum) – This tree can bring visions of stained water, cypress “knees” and swamps, but it’s excellent for the landscape. It has needles like a Canadian hemlock or pine tree, yet it’s deciduous, meaning that it has beautiful
Sourwood (Oxydendrum arboretum) – While you may be familiar with the highly prized “sourwood” honey, most folks are not as familiar with the native tree from which honeybees diligently collect pollen and nectar. The sourwood is a 20-40’ tree good for an understory
fall color and loses its needles during the winter. Second, the tree is tolerant of wet soil but will thrive in dry upland soils. It handles poor, compacted soils like a champ but will thrive in rich, organic soils. Lastly, this tree is tough and resistant to most disease and insects. It is large but slow growing, reaching 15-25’ feet in 15-25 years.
in naturalized areas. While fitting comfortably under larger trees, it makes a beautiful landscape tree. The small flowers bloom on 4-8” panicles that appear to cover the tree in lace during late June and July. The leaves reliably turn crimson in the fall but can also have shades of yellow, red and purple, making this a beautiful and bountiful tree for the home landscape. AUGUST | SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER
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Finally home
... where it all began
And Dyron & Sonya Powell have restaurant plans for Cullman
The Powells have worked hard to curtail long hours in their chic, Mountain Brook restaurant, giving them more time to spend with their children, Ethan and Emma. And more time to spend in their Vinemont home. Their favorite room – well, one of them – is their outdoor living area. Naturally, it has a serious kitchen in it.
Story and photos by David Moore
“My time there changed my life and made me who I am,” Dyron says. “Sonya and I will likely be buried there. We support St. Bernard in every way. I love it and want people to know it.”
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mong other business interests, Dyron’s late father, Junior Powell, or good reason, people tend owned the old Dairy Queen in Addison. to think of Dyron and Sonya Powell “Dad hated the business, but I grew as chefs and owners of Dyron’s up in that restaurant environment,” he Lowcountry, a chic says. “That, along with my Mountain Brook restaurant grandmother, always made featuring fresh southern me want a restaurant.” and coastal cuisine. Come Dyron spent next year, they’ll own a considerable time on similar, upscale restaurant Smith Lake where in Cullman’s Warehouse Grandmother Doris and his District. step-grandfather, Hentzel Truth is, Sonya’s early Howese, lived. background is anything They milked their own but cooking, and while cow and churned their Dyron’s had a heaping own butter. He shelled plateful of jobs, nearly all their fresh-grown peas on are unrelated to food. the porch and was pulled For the record, their on a sled across 20 acres, reason for moving from picking and slicing okra Mountain Brook to along the way. He rode to Two years ago this fall, the Powells moved to Misty Acres, Cullman two years ago Fayette or Winfield where a development just northeast of Cullman on Lake George. The house has nothing to do with his grandparents bought their plans for the new fresh-milled corn in a is actually much larger than it appears from the front, with restaurant. Rather, it’s a paper sack they kept in the more than 4,200 square feet of space. manifestation of Dyron’s refrigerator. deep love and appreciation And every day they’d for his alma mater, St. catch fresh fish to eat from Bernard Preparatory. he daughter of Ann and the late Smith Lake. “The biggest reason we moved here Jerome Cleghorn, Sonya was raised “This is how I grew up,” he says. was so our kids can go there, too,” Dyron in Arley with none of her husband’s “And Sonya grew up the same way.” says. complications … and no deep desire to Attending St. Bernard essentially Their son, Ethan, starts seventh grade cook. After graduating from Meek High ensured Dyron went to college. Dyron at St. Bernard this fall. Emma, their sixth School in 1992, she attended Wallace paid for his entire education by himself. grade daughter, has one more year at State Community College, studying “a At Auburn he earned a degree in Sacred Heart in Cullman before entering little bit of everything.” economics while working three different St. Bernard. In 1994 she got a job in Double jobs, including driving to Atlanta to Dyron, raised a Baptist in Addison Springs at Wilkins Builders, which work as a ticket agent for Delta. with a “complicated” background, manufactures modular buildings for After Auburn, he took a job at entered St. Bernard after his parents use as offices, classrooms, banks and Cavalier Homes of Alabama in Addison. divorced. Father Marcus Voss, now churches. She worked in the office but The money was great. What’s more, director of the development, was then had a talent for decorating units. And so it was there that he met Sonya in headmaster and became Dyron’s spiritual it was that in March 1996 she was sent Nashville. leader. The school taught him discipline, to a Nashville trade show to help set up from making his own dorm bed to Wilkins’ display units. yron and Sonya’s flash-card life buckling down and studying. There she spotted Dyron, someone in the following years was a bit crazy. He graduated in 1991 and went to she recognized from Winston County Nutshelled … Auburn University, the only one in his but did not actually know. He recognized • He worked at Cavalier five years, family to enter college. Father Marcus her, said hello and asked her out to during which they bought a house in later baptized Dyron, Sonya, Ethan dinner, so one might say food did play a Addison and saved a lot of money. and Emma. Today Dyron serves on very early part in their relationship. • Dyron bought a business that built the board and in other capacities at St. “I guess it was love at first steel trusses and started building boat Bernard, plus he hosts an annual benefit recognition,” Sonya laughs. docks. dinner at his restaurant to help provide They married two years later. • During that time he and Sonya scholarships for underprivileged kids Dyron’s road up to and past that point moved to Smith Lake and began building attending St. Bernard. in life was less straightforward. spec homes there.
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Along with their outdoor living area, the sunroom is another of the family’s favorite spots in the house. Easy to see why. Below, the Powells pose in their kitchen ... where you often find them but will never find a microwave.
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Sonya and Dyron’s house has a nicely appointed study, above. A good place for perhaps hatching ideas such as a new restaurant. The dining room and living room, which is done in neutral colors and fabrics, are pictured on the opposite page at the top. Emma and Ethan’s bedrooms are at the lower right. The house has four bedrooms, counting an upstairs in-law suite, and three and a half baths. The kids also have a den of their own. And the Powells added a two-car garage when they expanded the house. • With influences from his grandmother and Dairy Queen, he and Sonya began taking culinary classes at Culinard in Birmingham. • After eight years Dyron sold his steel company. • He and Sonya bought a 40-foot motor home and hit the road. In seven months they visited every restaurant and chef in the Southeast that grabbed their attention. Making up for the college experience he missed working three jobs, they also attended every Auburn game that season. With the birth of Ethan, they hit the brakes on the motor home. “Christmas came up,” Dyron laughs. “Sonya said we had to have a house 42
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because we had to have a Christmas tree for the baby.” They bought a house in Addison then moved to a house with an Arley address on Smith Lake. They were living there when Emma was born.
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ven though they’d taken cooking classes, Dyron accepted a lucrative job as a high-level executive headhunter for a recruiting firm in Birmingham. “It was terrible,” he says. “I hated it.” He kept that job for a year before they moved to Homewood in 2005 and, a year later, to Mountain Brook. After his headhunting job, his calling became too strong to resist and they opened Dyron’s Lowcountry in the Crestline section of
Mountain Brook in June 2009. It seemed a logical step. “We really enjoyed entertaining people,” Sonya says. “We always had people at the lake.” Because of the influence of lowcounty restaurants they visited in South Carolina and Grandmother Doris, they decided Dyron’s would be a true farm-to-table restaurant – interestingly, though, he’s come to dislike that term. “It’s become a cliché, my pet peeve,” he says with passion. “People say farm to table, yet many of them serve food that’s not local or in season. To me, farm to table means I’m supporting my local people as much as possible, and my menu will reflect what comes out of the ground here.”
“There are some things you can’t get locally,” Sonya notes. “Like avocados. But we try to use all the local farmers we can.” “It’s just like my grandmother and grandfather cooked fresh what they grew,” Dyron says. “I don’t put a tomato salad on my menu until my tomatoes come in from Trent Boyd right here in Cullman County. Grits, meal, eggs … all are fresh from local farmers. There are no preservatives.” Most restaurants build a permanent menu around a protein, such as steak with a potato. The Powells change their menu daily based on what their farmers harvest. And because they cook only what’s fresh, some items may be limited in the number of servings they can cook. Orders are cooked individually when
placed. Nothing is cooked beforehand. Nothing is microwaved. In fact, the Powells don’t have a microwave in their restaurant –or at home, for that matter. True to the intended spirit of farm to table, the restaurant has only one small freezer. It’s for ice cream. The Powells are insistent upon serving fish. Fresh fish. They have two fishermen at the Gulf who, twice weekly, deliver fish and seafood straight from their boats. Dyron won’t buy fish unless it’s whole and he can see the eyes, see the gills to judge its freshness.
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hen they opened Dyron’s, he and Sonya had become good chefs. But they knew it took more to be successful.
“Recruiting taught me how to find the right people,” he says. “When people ask me what makes our restaurant successful, I say it’s finding the right people and my business experience, not necessarily my culinary experience.” Half of the staff they opened with still work at the restaurant – a highly unusual statistic. Dyron treats them as professionals, accumulating their tips and cutting them regular paychecks, to which he adds the business’ share of taxes. A number of loyal servers have been able to buy houses due to having verifiable income, something rare in restaurant industry. That first year in business, the Powells worked every day, all day. AUGUST | SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER
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Though the Powells average “only” a combined 50 hours weekly actually at the restaurant, the master bedroom suite still offers refuge from business pressures. The door at the back left opens onto the expansive outside living area. In 2010, they hired executive chef Randall Baldwin, a graduate of the acclaimed Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York who grew up in Mobile. He was not only a fabulous chef, but he had a special flair with seafood, allowing the restaurant to serve “fantastically fresh food,” Dyron says. Hiring Randall relieved the Powells’ of grueling hours. But they lived only four blocks from the restaurant, and Dyron often got calls at home to come in and see a customer who had inquired about him – which he would do. So beyond the call of St. Bernard’s, moving to Cullman was designed to further limit the Powells’ workweek and give them more time with Ethan and Emma. Working different days at the restaurant, Dyron puts in about 30 hours a week trouble-fixing and coordinating menus with Randall, while Sonya spends about 20 hours weekly on paperwork. If the need arises, both fill in and cook, 44
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both serve as “air traffic controllers” in the choreography of kitchen and servers and both are ambassadors visiting with customers. This gives them far more family time than most restaurant owners. It’s a restaurant team and family team model.
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yron and Sonya are eager to open their new restaurant in Cullman. It’s planned to open in fall 2018 with an attached event venue for which they will exclusively cater. “We’ll both have to work a little more, but it won’t be tragic,” Dyron says. Randall will be the executive chef of both restaurants splitting his time between the two. Plus they have a partner to oversee much of the business, Cullman native Zac Wood. The extra hours shouldn’t smother family life. Besides, they’ll be doing what they love. Sure, things can go temporarily south at work. A mistake can occur with a
dish. It happens, but it’s far from the norm. Dyron recalls memories of coming home from school and his grandmother cooking a great, fresh meal, putting all her love into it. He strives to do the same for his customers, serving them the grand experience of a memorable meal. “It’s a giving completely of one’s self and nothing compares,” Dyron says. “It’s a servant’s heart. I love this business. I can never imagine doing anything else.” The same applies to their move to Cullman. “I feel like I’m finally home and plan on Cullman being my final resting place. Remember, Cullman – St. Bernard’s – is where it began and hopefully where it ends,” Dyron adds. “Everything we did was to get back home.” “I want my roots to grow deep here and my kids’ roots to grow here.” Good Life Magazine
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Good Eats Story and photos by Patrick Oden
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he figurative road that leads to The Red Door Cafe in Cullman is a long and winding one – both for the building itself and for cafe owner Bill McCartney. Originally constructed in 1898 when the Weeks family of Blount County moved to Cullman to open a mercantile, the building served as a boarding house from 1938 through 1975 before spending nearly a quarter century as a photo studio and gallery. After that, a bookstore occupied the building for a decade until damage from the 2011 tornado called into 46
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The Red Door Cafe
Leave double happy knowing you’ve helped the community and satisfied your taste buds
question the practicality of saving the structure. But saved it was and is now The Red Door Cafe. A beautiful structure showing no signs of its age, it’s literally weathered the storm and the ravages of time. Besides a background in restaurants and newspapers, Bill spent 15 years running a successful business consulting firm. The idea for the cafe came to him while volunteering at Good Samaritan Health Clinic. The clinic, along with most nonprofits, regularly needs funding, and the idea of opening a business a community funding resource was born.
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ill’s desire to give back to the
community evolved into The Red Door Cafe, which opened in 2014 as an art gallery with a cafe. Further evolution has seen the focus on the gallery wane, but raising funds for worthy local causes remains on Bill’s business-plan menu. In a variety of ways, the cafe has helped fund more than 30 different entities, including Cullman Caring for Kids, H.O.P.E. Horses, Daystar Church, The Lighthouse, The Link. “We haven’t turned a profit yet,” Bill says, “but we’ve managed to be the conduit for over $45,000 back into the community.” There has to be joy in what you do, and his joy extends beyond being able to help his community.
Bill McCartney, upper right, and his crew at The Red Door Cafe prepare and serve a great cheeseburger and chicken salad, far left. Indicative of his love of the outdoors and cooking and in preparation to hike the Appalachian Trail, Bill wrote a cookbook titled “Travel Light, Eat Heavy.” In its fifth printing, it’s a comprehensive approach to trail food, geared toward backpackers and campers. Befitting the building’s heritage, the cafe’s interior is decorated with old photos of Cullman.
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ill gets other joys out of The Red Door Cafe. “I love food, and I love people, so The Red Door provides me with the best of both worlds,” he says. In fact, Bill wrote a cookbook in preparation to hike the Appalachian Trail. In its fifth printing, “Travel Light, Eat Heavy” is a comprehensive approach to trail food, geared toward backpackers and campers. It’s Bill’s regard for food that’s responsible for the fresh, local produce and other quality ingredients in dishes The Red Door serves. “We try to use as much fresh, local
produce as we can … our eggs are Cullman County eggs,” he says. Open for breakfast and lunch, The Red Door Cafe has a concise but diverse menu. Morning offerings range from biscuits and gravy to quiche and cantaloupe.
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or lunch it’s hard to beat a half-pound, hand-formed bacon cheeseburger on Ciabatta bread with fresh sautéed mushrooms and a homemade basil mayo. Or try Miss Leta’s Boarding House Lunch. Miss Leta, known for the delicious home-cooked meals she served at the boarding house – inspired these traditional southern plate lunches, often referred to as a “meat and three.”
But nothing ventured, nothing gained, so stray a bit and your taste buds will thank you. For example, try Bill’s blackened tilapia tacos or his out-of-this-world chicken salad. (The secret is the cranberries … don’t tell anyone.) If you’ve never visited the Red Door Cafe before, maybe you should join Bill in tipping your hat to the building’s history and his knack for cooking. Regardless of what mood your taste buds are in, you’ll leave The Red Door Cafe satisfied. After all, it’s not often you can help contribute to the community by eating a fantastic meal. Good Life Magazine AUGUST | SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER
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This crow, in all likelihood, does not speak English. It was photographed by Joe McKenna and used through Flickr Creative Commons.
Story by Steve A. Maze
The crow that talked
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once ran across a remarkable story in the archives of the Cullman Tribune. I initially thought the story occurred in Welti, Cold Springs or maybe West Point. Later, I was dejected to find the story was reprinted from an 1893 issue of the Alabama Tribune, and the alleged story didn’t even happen in our state. Nonetheless, I still love the story and want to share it with our Cullman readers. After all, we have some pretty smart crows in our county … 48
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he story began on a late spring day when a little boy was flying his kite near a patch of woods on his father’s farm. Constructed of paper and a light wood frame, the toy strained mightily against the strong wind until finally the string broke. The kite drifted from the sky and lodged in the top of a tall pine tree. The boy cried over the loss. His father, John, who was working in a nearby field, heard the crying. When he came and saw the problem, naturally he said he’d retrieve the kite for his distressed son. “A crow flew off her nest near the top of the tree while I
was climbing up,” John said. “And when I reached the nest I found a single egg in it. “After I freed the kite, I placed the crow’s egg in my mouth and backed down the tree.” John immediately took the egg to his barn and placed it under a hen that had been sitting a day or so. “The old hen didn’t object,” he said, “and several days before she came off her chickens, she hatched out the liveliest little crow I ever saw.” The family decided to raise the crow in their house, and, of course, they had to come up with a name that was fitting for their new pet. The crow seemed to know that John had saved him, for it instinctively took to the farmer. “When he was big enough to run around on the floor, I named him Kite,” John grinned. “He learned to say a good many words by the time he was a year old.”
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group of purple martins, which usually nest in gourds, decided to take up residence in the unused chimney of the family’s house one summer morning. The noisy birds were making a great racket and obviously getting on the crow’s nerves. “Hold your tongue!” Kite squawked out as loudly as he could. “Kite could tell the time of day by the clock, and when the weather was cloudy I used to send him to the house from the field to see what time it was,” John said. “Instead of asking my wife, the crow would look at the clock without saying a word to her. Then he would fly back to the field and sing it out to me.”
“When the sky was clear I could tell by the sun within 10 minutes what time it was, and the crow got so close that he could guess almost as close as I could.” One sunny afternoon John told Kite to fly to the house and bring him the time. The crow cocked his head to one side, glanced up at the sun and said, “Five ’til eleven, John!” John told him it was later than that. So Kite flew to the house and returned in a couple minutes. “Now it’s two ’til eleven,” he reported.
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he winter after he turned 5 years old, Kite quickly grew feeble. He couldn’t stand the cold, and John kept him in a box half full of shavings behind the wood stove. Kite lost his appetite soon after New Year’s, which was a bad sign. Then one night as John got ready for bed, the crow called out to him. “Kite will be dead in the morning,” the crow sadly pronounced. John fussed over him and told him that he was good for at least another year. But he couldn’t make his blackfeathered friend believe him. Somehow, the bird knew death was close at hand. John’s bed was near the stove. In the night the crow crawled out of his box and asked to get in bed with John. “Kite’s almost gone!” he whispered. “When I awoke,” John said, “he lay dead on my breast.” Good Life Magazine
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Peinhardt Living History Farm Where appreciation of agriculture, the past and roots all grow deep
A Fairview third-grader tries her hand at plowing the old-fashioned way at Peinhardt Living History Farm. Story and photos by David Moore
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onsider, for just a moment, the root of the corn stalk, the bean plant, potatoes and cotton. The deeper the root grows, the more moisture the plant can pull from the soil, the stronger it can grow and the greater its harvest. You can bet German immigrants Karl and Wilhemina Peinhardt brought this agricultural knowledge with them when
they put down their own roots in the budding settlement of Cullman about 1875 and started farming. Their young family roots grew deep, producing a crop of nine children. One of the seven who survived childhood, Otto Peinhardt, also farmed west of town and, with his wife Gustie, started his own family line. Their seven children included Carl, who studied agriculture at what’s now Auburn University and married a Judson College graduate named Irene.
Carl and Irene’s crop of kids includes Carolyn, Pat, Eddie, Dr. Bill and the late Larry Peinhardt. And today, their deeply rooted families include one son, five daughters and 14 grandchildren. Among the traits passed down generationally were a strong work ethic and a love of the land, farming and its way of life. From these deeply rooted traits has grown a 24-year fall tradition in Cullman – Peinhardt Living History Farm. Located on the southeast corner of U.S. AUGUST | SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER
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278 and I-65, the farm covers 122 acres. Otto worked the farm from the early 1900s until his death in 1957. In addition to fields of row crops, the farm has since grown to include two museums, the old homestead and a number of existing outbuildings, including a period schoolhouse, that were moved to the farm, often in loads of lumber and logs. With the help of an army of volunteers, Peinhardt Living History Farm traditionally opens to the public on the third or fourth Saturday of October (Oct. 21 this year). The farm also opens the last week of September through the third week in October to field trips for third-graders in and beyond Cullman County who get a hands-on introduction to the essentials of life for yesteryear’s farm families.
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In the 187os, Karl Peinhardt immigrated to the US from his homestead, above, in Eisingen, Germany. Jennifer Tucker, at left below, is president of the Peinhardt Living History Farm Foundation. Sabrina Hudson is a board member. Both are daughters of Eddie Peinhardt. One of the tractors in the newer museum on the grounds is 1927 John Deere.
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eeping this October tradition viable is the Peinhardt Living History Farm Foundation, established in 1999 as a private non-profit foundation. Jennifer Tucker is president of the foundation; Sabrina Hudson is a board member. They’re children of Eddie and Rebecca Peinhardt. The Living History Farm focuses on agriculture and farm life in the 1930s and ‘40s. “There is so much heritage, but it’s a dying art,” Jennifer says, sitting with Sabrina among artifacts in the first museum that range from all manner of farm tools to early appliances. “People could walk around in here and not know where it all came from and how it was used on the farm. They think meat and vegetables come from Walmart.” “And that you get chocolate milk from a brown cow,” Sabrina adds. Carl’s children wanted to preserve the family farm for educational purposes, as a reminder of the work and techniques that went into food production. “We grew up (along with sister Tamara White) knowing that you work, work, work,” Sabrina says. “We grew up baling hay, doing all the work that a boy would typically do. We had to work to eat.” The sisters refer to “agricultural illiteracy” in an age of technology where most kids grow up “working” their cellphones and iPods, seldom playing outside or doing actual labor. Lost to technology are craftsman skills, such as woodworking and masonry, that farmers
Fairview third-grader Max Brook finds it sometimes takes a little effort to break a cob off a corn stalk. Below, Violeta Castaneda finds a huge sweet potato. such as Carl used and Eddie still uses on his active farm. “You think of farmers as not being educated people,” Sabrina says. But Carl and Eddie were educated, smart and knowledgeable. “Farming was their way of life,” she continues. “And heritage was – and is – very important to our family. Our parents and grandparents stayed very humble about it, but people associate ‘Peinhardt’ with hard work. That’s a compliment to us.”
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t’s hard to pinpoint an actual spark that lit the tradition of Peinhardt Living History Farm, this desire to keep agricultural heritage alive, but it’s grown into a labor of love for all involved precisely because of convictions instilled in those deep Peinhardt roots. When Col. John Cullmann recruited
German immigrants to the Alabama land he purchased in 1872, they brought with them traditions of hard work plus the knowledge of crops from their homeland, such as strawberries and vineyards. From their new southern neighbors they learned about growing cotton, corn and other local
crops, which Karl Peinhardt did at his new farm in Cullman. Otto continued the tradition on his diversified, 80-acre farm just south of where the Living History Farm is today. He raised not just crops but cattle and milk cows. After leaving Auburn in 1933, Carl incorporated modern, scientific methods at his farm adjacent to his father Otto’s land. An accomplished carpenter and mason, Carl built a fine white barn, house and other buildings. A banjo player, he supplemented his income hosting Saturday night barn dances in the ‘30s, until Irene, whom he was then courting, put a halt to that. In addition to raising hogs, chickens, orchards, strawberries, potatoes and such, about 1940 Carl developed a grade A dairy Please see page 56 AUGUST | SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER
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Peinhardt Living History Farm Day
Fairview third-graders found a coyote awaiting them on the trail to the woods station during their tour of Peinhardt farm last fall. It was a real one, albeit stuffed, as were several other wild animals on display. At the station the youngsters tried their hand at making wooden shingles and other old woodworking skills once necessary on a farm. The students were transported from station to station by tractor-drawn wagons with hay bale seats. 54
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9 a.m.-2 p.m., Oct. 21, 2017 $7 (13 & up), $5 (5-12), free (4 and under) Tally Ho Street Northwest, Cullman between US 278 and I-65 (exit 308) For more info: 256-734-0850 or visit: www.peinhardtfarm.com
Students visit five learning stations for a hands-on day at Peinhardt Farm
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o prepare third-graders for their fall field trip to Peinhardt Living History Farm, the family foundation provides teachers with information packets to use beforehand in class. On field day, classes are divided into five groups that rotate among five hands-on learning stations scattered across the farm. Groups travel from station to station sitting on hay bales in tractor-pulled wagons. With the help of 20-30 volunteers, the students spend 45 minutes at each station doing hands-on activities to develop an appreciation of yesteryear farm life. The stations include the: • Home-life station (originally held in Carl and Irene Peinhardt’s house but now in the museum) – Students learn about canning food, butchering meat, cooking from the garden, making lye soap and doing the wash in an iron kettle. • Woods station – Here in the woods, taxidermist-stuffed animals greet students who hear a talk about trapping. They learn about constructing buildings with logs, wooden shingles and dovetail joints. • Horse station – Rides in buggies and on saddled wooden horses are augmented with lessons on shoeing draft animals. • Field station – Here groups learn how crops are grown on and beneath the soil and get to pick cotton and dig up a sweet potato. They also try their hand at plowing behind a mule. • Barn and animal station – Students enjoy petting animals, including sheep, pigs and peacocks. They also learn about beef cattle and how baby chicks are incubated.
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with Guernsey cows. He also was an avid woodworker, leaving behind a legacy of furniture and wooden toys for future generations. Jennifer and Sabrina think the beginnings of the Living History Farm were kindled with their college-educated grandparents. Carl and Irene involved their farm with Cullman 4H clubs, Future Farmers of America, land-judging teams, school trips to the dairy and horticulturists from Auburn. Carl sold his prize cows and retired in 1986. He and Irene remained on the farm until their deaths in 1992 and 1993.
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oday, Carl and Irene’s daughters, Pat Peinhardt, a retired physical therapist, and Carolyn Johnson, 81, actively work the farm. Eddie, 75, still works his 1,300acre farm, and Dr. Bill Peinhardt, a retired physician, has long been a woodworker and helps with Cullman’s community garden. After Carl and Irene died, in recognition of their love of farming and strong beliefs in work and education, the four siblings decided to open the farm to field trips, and in 1993 hosted the entire West Elementary student body. Always keen on education, the Peinhardts learned two lessons from that first event: recruit more volunteers and focus on one age group. The next year they opened the farm to third-graders from both city and county schools and pulled in a core group of 20 volunteers. Over time, they brought in students from outside the county. Eddie spearheaded the renovation of existing buildings and moving in other old ones, some arriving as loads of disassembled logs and boards numbered for reconstruction. Later the family added an antique logging and woodworking day for the public, and the siblings changed the name of the growing facility to Peinhardt Living History Farm. To man various demonstrations – now ranging from a blacksmith shop and gristmill to quilting, blue grass music and making sorghum syrup – some 200 volunteers were recruited and trained to help interpret the history. “Without the volunteers, none of the foundation’s efforts would be possible,” Jennifer Tucker says. The problem is, they are losing some 56
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Third and fourth generation Peinhardts – father Carl, sons Eddie and Bill, kneeling, and Patricia – show off their ribbons and grand champion Guernsey at the state fair. of their volunteers, most of whom are retired folks who remember some of the ways of life preserved at the Living History Farm. New volunteers are growing harder to find. Plus, Carl and Irene’s four “children” are now in their 70s and 80s. How much longer they can stay active in Peinhardt Living History Farm is a real question. Jennifer and Sabrina’s mother, Rebecca, recently expressed her concerns to Eddie about the hard farm work he continues to do. “Don’t worry about it if you find me dead,” the sisters recall him telling
Rebecca. “I will have died doing what I loved to do.”
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hey will all work until they die,” Jennifer says. “And we’ll keep doing this as long as we can.” Until then, residents and students from miles around can get a lesson in farm life during the transitional years before and after tractors and electricity and see how and from where food actually comes. And, if they pay attention, they’ll get a lesson in what deep family roots are capable of achieving with hard work. Good Life Magazine
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The Cullman County Fair runs Sept. 21-30 at Sportsman Lake Park in Cullman. The sponsoring Lions Club started the fair in 1954. Since then, the tradition has continued, bringing with it old and new memories of all the fun, excitement, smells, sights, sounds and feels the fair atmosphere generates generation after generation. What’s more, with attendance of 40,000, the fair makes nearly $90,000 annually to benefit Alabama Lions Sight, Cullman Caring for Kids and other causes. The fair opens 5 p.m.-10+ p.m. daily except for 2 p.m.-10+ p.m. Saturdays and Sunday, Sept. 24. It’s open noon-10+ p.m. Sept. 25 for student day, when all county and city students get in free until 5 p.m. Senior Citizens Day is Wednesday, Sept. 27, with free admission 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. for seniors from Cullman County. AUGUST | SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER
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The 2017 Cullman County Fair promises the biggest midway in its history with 34 rides. Gates open at 5 p.m. on Sept. 21. You can buy individual tickets for rides, but the best bet for most fairgoers is the $22 pre-purchase MegaPass available at any Peoples Bank location. You get unlimited rides and free admission. The Peoples passes are available Sept. 1-23. You can buy MegaPass ride tickets at the fair for $22 on weekdays or $25 on weekends, but you still have to pay the $7 admission. Once you’re in, the sky’s the limit … especially on rides like this one.
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The number of agriculture exhibits and entries reflect the county’s dominance in agriculture endeavors. The Lions have increased most payouts in both regular exhibitions and livestock. And if you don’t think those ribbons are important to people, you just don’t get it. Registration opens at 9 a.m., Sept. 5, and runs through noon, Sept. 13. (Note: deadline for livestock registration is noon Sept. 5; deadline for the talent show is noon, Sept. 20.) Tiny and Petite Miss Fair registration deadline is noon, Sept. 16. Deadline for Little, Junior and Teen Fair Princess is noon, Sept. 23. Entry forms and more information are available online at: cullmanfair.com 64
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Wayne Trimble
Passing far beyond the level of ‘just’ a PE coach
Former Cullman Bearcat star and future Arab head coach Wayne Trimble goes to the air in Bama’s 1966, 34-0 blanketing of Southern Miss at Ladd Stadium in Mobile.
He was my physical education teacher when I began my senior year at Arab High School in 1973. Some of my classmates whispered that he had once played college football – maybe even pro. We just didn’t know for sure. Coach Trimble sure looked like an athlete. He was tall, built like a football player. And that long, jagged scar on his left knee seemed to be evidence of gridiron battles. But, at the time, he was just our PE coach. Little did we know ... Story by Steve A. Maze
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ayne Trimble was born Dec. 10, 1944, in the Arkadelphia community of Cullman County. He was the fourth of five children born to Riley and Kerlista (Webb) Trimble. The family moved near Hanceville, but Wayne transferred to Cullman when he began the eighth grade. “Mother wasn’t able to drive me to school in Cullman since she was working,”
Wayne says. “I walked and hitchhiked 10 miles from the Johnson’s Crossing Community each day to and from school.” Wayne was starting on Cullman’s varsity football team by the time he was a sophomore and developed into a star quarterback during his junior and senior year (1961-62). The 1961 team was a powerhouse with a 9-1 record, but the 1962 team had the stuff from which high school football legends are made. Coach Oliver Woodard’s Bearcats went 10-0 that season. But they didn’t just win –
the offense scored almost 400 points while the stingy defense allowed only 78. Their closest shave was a 20-0 shutout over a very talented Decatur team that had handed the Bearcats their only loss the previous season. This Herculean effort came from a squad consisting of only 27 players. While Cullman finished the season undefeated, so did Robert E. Lee of Montgomery. The Associated Press and The Birmingham News chose Lee as 4A state champions, but the United Press AUGUST | SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER
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and The Birmingham Post Herald chose Cullman. The only squad both teams played was Etowah County. Cullman spanked them by a 40-7 score while Lee only managed to eke out a 10-7 victory. Wayne scored five touchdowns in the game, but it was the way in which he scored that made the night so special – passing, running, kickoff return, punt return and a pass interception. “I truly believe the controversy over the 68
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rankings that year led to the state playoff system in high school football,” Wayne says.
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any sports writers who saw the Bearcats, as well as coaches who opposed them, said the 1962 team was the best high school team they had ever seen – ever. Some said they were not only the best in the state, but possibly the nation. They also sang the praises of the team’s quarterback. “I wasn’t the only one on the team,”
Wayne insists. “We had many great players. There were only five or six guys on the team who were from Cullman. Most of them were from other areas in the county who had moved to Cullman.” Indeed there were other players who contributed to the team’s success. A total of five players, including Wayne, were granted college scholarships to The University of Alabama. Fullback Les Kelley would spend three years with the New Orleans Saints after a
Clockwise, top left: Cullman’s Big Three: Leslie Kelley, Johnny Calvert, Wayne; Wayne breaks open for a 1965 Orange Bowl TD pass from Joe Namath; Bear makes a “suggestion” to “Trim;” ’65 QB stable: Steve Sloan, Jimmy Israel, Wayne and Kenny Stabler; Wayne runs in 1966 behind Gene Rayburn, now of Cullman; Wayne makes a jump pass against LA Tech; and intercepts Auburn in ‘65. successful college career. Johnny Calvert would turn out to be an All-SEC offensive guard. Wide receiver Wayne Chappell and guard Barry Willoughby also signed with the Crimson Tide. Two other players from the ’62 team inked scholarships – Tommy Wood with Florence State (now UNA), and Bobby Waters signed with Chattanooga. The “big three” Bearcats that Coach Paul “Bear” Bryant set his eyes on, however, were Trimble, Kelley and Calvert.
“Coach Bryant visited us separately, but we had already decided that we wanted to play for him,” Wayne recalls. “My brother, Murray “Stubby” Trimble, had played for Coach Bryant at Texas A&M, so I was already familiar with him in a way.”
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t Alabama, Wayne and the other freshman players moved into the third floor of Bryant Hall in 1963. The upperclassmen were located on the first floor and eager to harass the incoming freshmen.
“The upperclassmen walked in with a slat, something similar to a paddle,” Wayne well remembers. “They told us they were going to give us the slat.” “Joe Namath walked over and hit me, but he misjudged his swing. He hit me with just the edge of the slat – and it really hurt. He said that one didn’t count. I looked up at him and said, ‘Yes, it did.’” Namath didn’t hit him again. “Joe was a good leader on the field,” Wayne says. “Everyone got along with him. AUGUST | SEPTEMBER | OCTOBER
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Wayne was in the spotlight after leading Alabama’s win against Mississippi State in 1966. But headlines were hard to win in his day. He had the distinct honor – and the misfortune – to play with some of Bama’s best QBs, including Joe Namath, Steve Sloan and Kenny Stabler. He’s still very cordial when we have our reunions for the championship teams.” One of the things all players dreaded was when Coach Bryant came down from his famous tower during a practice – usually meaning he was highly displeased with a player or even coach’s performance. “There was a chain on the tower entranceway, and when we heard the chain rattle, we knew he was coming down,” Wayne laughs. “One day the chain rattled and assistant coach Dude Hennessey grabbed a player by the facemask and started screaming at him. “The player said, ‘I didn’t do anything wrong.’ Dude still had hold of him and said, ‘I know, but Coach Bryant is coming down from the tower. Just play along with me.’”
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t was hard for Wayne to break into the starting lineup at quarterback with Namath, Steve Sloan and Ken Stabler on the roster. Coach Bryant didn’t want to waste Wayne’s talent, however, and also played him at running back, flanker and defensive back. Coach Bryant prepared his team pretty much the same way each week. They practiced on Monday night since players had “lab class” during the day. Tuesdays 70
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and Wednesdays were considered hard practice days with full contact. They went over the game plan on Thursdays, and the team normally traveled on Fridays for away games. Coach Bryant also had a ritual of walking around inside an opponent’s stadium with the players on Saturdays before the game. “Lots of people would get to the stadium early just to watch us walk around,” Wayne says. “Our fans, family members and sweethearts would be cheering when we walked by them in our red blazers. Our heads would be held high and a chill running down our backs. We were proud to represent the Crimson Tide.” Wayne was a member of the 1964 and 1965 National Championship teams. In fact, he caught a touchdown pass from Namath in the quarterback’s final college game during the 1965 Orange Bowl. Wayne is sometimes asked to compare the two greatest coaches to ever don a Crimson Tide championship ring – Coach Bear Bryant and Coach Nick Saban. Of course, he played for one, but has also met Coach Saban. “There is definitely one similarity between the two,” says Wayne. “They
both demand excellence from their players and coaches.”
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fter his college career ended, Wayne was drafted in the fourth round by the San Francisco 49ers. He was working out in Tuscaloosa before the season started when he heard something pop in his left knee. The 49ers office flew Wayne out to San Francisco where he had surgery. The injury limited him to one game during his rookie season, but he developed friendships with many of his teammates such as quarterbacks John Brodie, George Mira and Steve Spurrier. Also on the team was John David Crow, a Heisman Trophy winner for Bear Bryant when he coached at Texas A&M. “They were a good group of guys,” Wayne says. “We would have dinner together after a game. We also played golf together, and I enjoyed playing cards with Spurrier.” Wayne was released by the 49ers after the season ended and picked up by the St. Louis Cardinals as a member of their taxi squad. Unfortunately, he injured his other knee and that was the end of his pro football career. Wayne wanted to continue to be involved in athletics and became the
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football coach at Cullman County’s West Mark says he learned a lot about life Point High School in 1971. He stayed there from his coach. s it turned out, Wayne Trimble for two years before going to Arab High “I learned nothing is handed to you wasn’t just my physical education teacher. School in 1973-1983. There he would on a silver platter,” he says. “You have In fact, he wasn’t just a football player. He become the school’s all-time winning to earn it. Life is not going to be kind. I is much more than that. football coach. He has made Ironically, a positive impact in his first year on hundreds – if at Arab, Wayne not thousands – coached the of students who Knights to have walked victory over the hallways of his alma mater, schools where he the Cullman has taught and Bearcats. It was coached. Wayne the first time and his family have Arab had beaten contributed greatly the Bearcats in to Arab and the ages. surrounding areas. Sadly, Arab Wayne and High School Barbara are now burned in 1975. retired educators, Wayne was but their daughters, on top of the Alana Burks and gymnasium Adi Hunt, are as the fire active teachers. department Their son-in-law, watered the roof Johnny Burks, A football scholarship was instrumental in Wayne Trimble’s education at The down to keep it taught and coached University of Alabama, but so was his fiancé Barbara Putman – his high school and at Cullman. from burning. “Arab kids Wayne was at college sweetheart from Cullman. Not only did she make him study, it is rumored have a knack for Arab when the high that Barbara may have helped him with a term paper or two. They have been being mentally school burned and married since 1967. In addition to “Stubby,” Wayne’s other siblings were tough,” says the football stadium Sidney, Mona Jo (Kitson) and Riley. Photo by David Moore. Wayne. “The condemned. As fire could have a member of the been something Arab City Board that hurt us athletically, but I believe it have taken the things he taught us and of Education, he is now helping in the actually brought the team closer together.” used them throughout my life and in my planning of a new high school sports career. I really appreciate all he did for complex. ayne’s 1978 team, which me.” One can say that Wayne has come full went 8-1, was led by quarterback Mark In 1979, all Arab games were played circle in his educational career at Arab. Thornhill. Mark, who played for the away due to the football stadium being “Arab has been so good to my family,” Arabian Knights from 1977–79, is now a condemned. Wayne says. “We raised our kids and our popular news anchor on WAFF-TV 48 in “That was tough for everyone,” Wayne grandkids here, and now it’s just home to Huntsville. says. “Not only did the players have to us. “The fact that Coach Trimble played play every game on the road, the student “I was also very fortunate to be quarterback in high school and college – as body didn’t have the good fortune to able to attend Cullman High School, well as was recruited and played for Coach attend home games. Still, we always had where we had a good coach that taught Bryant – meant that he brought a lot of good fan support.” discipline. We were able to accomplish credibility to his players.” Mark says. The family remained in Arab even a lot athletically. Cullman was also good “Coach Trimble was still young after Wayne became football coach – and for us because they supported our family enough to actually run plays on the later principal – at Brewer High School. business (coal yard). football field when I was playing. He He was there from 1989-93. “Due to working and living in both would say, ‘Hand me the ball and I’ll He and his wife, Barbara, thought they Cullman County and Arab,” he adds, “ I show you how to run that play.’ He didn’t might eventually move back to Cullman, have actually had the best of both worlds.” just tell us what we needed to learn, he but instead they fell in love with the Arab Spoken like a champ. showed us.” community. Good Life Magazine
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FUN WIDOWER pitch a tent and catch your own Post-Cancer Surgery Apparel lebrating O udly Ce FATHER veEIGHT SEEKS DRIVING food, need to meet immediately. & Accessories forwe Women OF seeks r Pro COMPANION to Las energetic lady. Must love N Vegas. I’ll pay for kids, be fit and ready to jump LMA CUL food and gas if you in and join the fun. Military YEARS OF BARBERING pay for hotel rooms training would be helpful. there and back. If you East Side Barber Shop love buffets, glittering ADVENTUROUS CAT LOVER lights, and big stage 105 5th St SE 256-734-9969 Cullman, AL seeks adventurous cat owner. shows, let me know. Established Please be employed and willing Next to 1962 to relocate. Especially fond of Busy Bee black and white tuxedo cats. Cafe SINGLE MOM All responses will be answered. SEEKS SINGLE Looking for that Purrr-fect match. DAD. I have 2 boys and looking for a man to teach Chemo Caps, Wigs, GRANOLA EATING, CAMP them baseball,Head how Wraps & More! LOVING, WORLD TRAVELER to fish, change a seeks woman of my dreams. SINGLE, ARTSY LADY SEEKS Judy Watts Grissom,Owner/Founder tire, and other guy be fit and love spending days SINGLE ARTSY GUY. If you love Bo & Must Scott
DEPENDABLE and KNOWLEDGEABLE agents seek customers looking for real PROTECTION and long termInRELATIONSHIPS. Over 150 Wigs Stock!
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Insuring our friends and neighbors since 1943
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Out ‘n’ About If you’re anything like Liz Smith, you’ll be lured out ‘n’ about this fall (or any time) to shoot photos. Semi-retired and living on some acreage in Joppa, Liz is disciplined enough – or crazy enough about photography – to get out every day with a camera. Her efforts are rewarded with striking images, such as the foggy sunrise, above, shot in a field about a quarter-mile down the road from her house. She shot the photo at the lower right, titled “Christmas Moon,” in another nearby field. Sometimes, with her husband, Dennis, she rides around looking for subject matter such as Clarkson Covered Bridge west of Cullman. Other times, patience pays off, such as the evening three ducks swam past her while shooting a sunset. For more of her work, visit: epsmith2421.myportfolio.com. 74
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CELEBRATING OVER
60 YEARS OF SERVICE
Thank you, Cullman for making us #1. It’s our honor and privilege to serve our friends and neighbors.
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