Village Living neighborly news & entertainment for Mountain Brook
Volume 7 | Issue 6 | September 2016
John T. Natter set to speak at Patriot Day Mountain Brook to host remembrance ceremony on 15th anniversary of 9/11 By ANA GOOD and JESSE CHAMBERS
to remember that day during a combined Patriot Day ceremony. Beginning at 8:30 a.m., There are many lessons to be Mountain Brook Mayor Terry learned from the terrorist attacks Oden, Fire Chief Chris Mullon America that occurred on Sept. ins and Police Chief Ted Cook 11, 2001, but one is paramount, will join Homewood Mayor according to U.S. Navy Rear Scott McBrayer, Vestavia Hills Admiral (Ret.) John T. (Jack) Mayor Butch Zaragoza and Natter. other members of the cities’ “Always be vigilant, and don’t police and fire departments to take your liberties for granted,” welcome guests at the interNatter said Natter, now an attorney and section of Hoyt Lane and Oak a member of the Hoover City Council. Street in Crestline Village. “There are people who don’t cherish our libThe ceremony will take place next to the erties the way we do and don’t believe in the Sept. 11 memorial outside the Mountain Brook freedoms we have and would like to see them fire station. The memorial, a 1,305-pound curtailed,” he added. H-beam from the former World Trade Center Natter will help commemorate the 15th site, was dedicated on Patriot Day in 2013. anniversary of 9/11 when he serves as speaker on Sunday, Sept. 11, as the cities of Mountain See PATRIOT DAY | page A30 Brook, Homewood and Vestavia Hills pause
Above: Members of the Mountain Brook, Homewood and Vestavia Hills fire departments. Left: From left to right: Former Homewood Police Chief Jim Roberson, Homewood Fire Chief John Bresnan, Vestavia Hills Police Chief Dan Rary, Vestavia Hills Fire Chief James R. St. John and Mountain Brook Police Chief Ted Cook. Photos courtesy of the Mountain Brook Police Department.
A ministry for memory loss By ERICA TECHO
Pre-Sort Standard U.S. Postage PAID Tupelo, MS Permit #54
Program Director Patti Williams works with an Encore Respite Ministry participant on an art project. Photo by Erica Techo.
INSIDE
Walking into Encore Respite Ministry, it is hard to tell the difference between participants and volunteers. Instead of a segmented group, there is a collection of about 20 people playing games, doing artwork and having fun. “People will say, ‘Who is a participant?’ and I’ll say, ‘I’m not telling you,’” said Valerie Boyd, director of senior adult ministries at Canterbury United Methodist Church. Encore Respite Ministry, a program designed to empower individuals with memory loss, launched at Canterbury in
Sponsors .............. A4 City ........................ A6
Business ..............A10 Community .........A15
June following nine months of brainstorming and planning. The idea developed from Canterbury’s support group for caregivers of individuals with memory loss, Boyd said. Members of the support group kept asking to develop a daycare for adults with memory loss, but Boyd said that seemed like a far-off goal. But last fall, Boyd visited an adult daycare facility in Montgomery with Miller Piggott, executive director of Alzheimer’s of Central Alabama.
Faith ..................... A21 School House ...... B6
See MINISTRY | page A31 Sports .................. B13 Calendar ............. B22 facebook.com/villageliving
Remembering 9/11
Football Preview
As 15th anniversary of attacks approches, Sgt. Patrick Weeks looks back on volunteering at Ground Zero.
Check out what the Spartans have lined up in September as they begin Region 3 play.
See page B1
See page B16
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Village Living
VillageLivingOnline.com
September 2016 • A3
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Village Living
About Us Editor’s Note By Jennifer Gray It’s hard to believe this year marks the 15th in our villages. Learn more about Encore Memory anniversary of the events of September 11. Loss Care at Canterbury, Cotton & Quill in CresMountain Brook has joined together with the tline, and Vet Express, also in Crestline. Learn Homewood and Vestavia communities to commore about these great additions to our city and the services that they offer. Remember that doing memorate the event for many years. September 11 has become known as Patriot Day. The event business locally is not only more convenient, but has honored first responders and remembered it also supports our community and keeps your those who were killed that day. Most of us only dollars right here, benefitting so many of the amewatched the horror unfold on TV, but one local nities that we enjoy. Mountain Brook man was in New York that day. Lastly, summer may be over but the memories Read all about what his experience was like as live on. We were so pleased to receive so many someone in the midst of the nation’s worst terror outstanding entries for our Summer Photo Conattack and a day that changed the world as we had known it. test. Inside these pages you will see the winners. City elections were held in August. We have the results and the recap of who will be serving our community in the positions of City Council and as mayor. Hear what these newly elected officials have to say about the race and getting started in their new roles. We have several new businesses that have recently opened
PHOTO OF THE MONTH
Kids in the Mountain Park Drive neighborhood celebrate their first day of school at Crestline Elementary. Photo courtesy of Morgan Cook.
Village Living Publisher: Editor: Managing Editor: Design Editor: Director of Digital Media: Sports Editor: Page Designers:
Dan Starnes Jennifer Gray Sydney Cromwell Kristin Williams Heather VacLav Kyle Parmley Cameron Tipton Emily VanderMey Community Reporters: Erica Techo Jon Anderson Tara Massouleh Jesse Chambers Ana Good Staff Writers: Emily Featherston Sam Chandler Copy Editor: Louisa Jeffries
Advertising Manager: Matthew Allen Sales and Distribution: Warren Caldwell Don Harris Michelle Salem Haynes Brittany Joffrion Rhonda Smith James Plunkett Jon Harrison Gail King Eric Clements
Contributing Writers: Katherine Polcari Ali Renckens Kari Kampakis
For advertising contact: dan@starnespublishing.com Contact Information: Village Living PO Box 530341 Birmingham, AL 35253 (205) 313-1780 dan@starnespublishing.com
Please submit all articles, information and photos to: sydney@starnespublishing.com P.O. Box 530341 Birmingham, AL 35253
Published by: Village Living LLC Legals: Village Living is published monthly. Reproduction or use of editorial or
graphic content without prior permission is prohibited. Village Living is designed to inform the Mountain Brook community of area school, family and community events. Information in Village Living is gathered from sources considered reliable but the accuracy cannot be guaranteed. All articles/photos submitted become the property of Village Living. We reserve the right to edit articles/photos as deemed necessary and are under no obligation to publish or return photos submitted. Inaccuracies or errors should be brought to the attention of the publisher at (205) 313-1780 or by email.
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Please Support Our Community Partners 30 A Realty (A17) A Team Ministries (A16) Abenoja Orthodontics (A27) Advent Episcopal School (B21) Aesthetic Dermatology (B7) Alabama Allergy & Asthma Center (A30) Alabama Outdoors (B1) Alabama School of Fine Arts (A13) ALL IN Mountain Brook (B2) Amy Maziarz, Red Hills Realty (A30) Amy Smith (B14) Anna Lu Hemphill, Realty South (A20) Apex - Rare Transportation (A23) ARC Realty (A3) Assurance Financial (A5) Avani Rupa Fine Jewelers (A20) Bedzzz Express (B1, B24) Birmingham Botanical Gardens (A29) Birmingham Heart Clinic c/o Alabama Press Association (B12) Birmingham Speech and Hearing Associates (B22) Brewer Cabinets (B22) Bromberg & Company, Inc. (B15) California Closets (B10) Canterbury Gardens (B10) Cardiovascular Associates of the Southeast (A28) Classic Gardens (B13) Clubhouse on Highland (A22) Counter Dimensions (B14) David J Putman for Congress (B3) Dish’n It Out (A22) dk2 Gallery (B9) Ex Voto Vintage (A16) Grandview Medical (A25) Hanna’s Antiques (A14) Highlands School (B18) Hufham Orthodontics (A6) Hutchinson Automotive (A18) Indian Springs School (B19) Ingram New Homes (A18) Issis & Sons (A27) Jacqueline DeMarco (B13) JJ Eyes (A11) Judith Bright (A24) Lamb’s Ears, Ltd. (A19) Lane Parke (B23) Local Taco (A24) Lucy Parker (B8) Michelson Laser Vision, Inc. (B15) Mountain Brook Chamber of Commerce (A9) Next Chapter Counseling (B14) OLLI (A15) One Man and a Toolbox (A13) Otey’s (A31) Pastry Art (A31) Planet Fitness (A12) PreSchool Partners (A10) RealtySouth (A32) Road Runner Moving (A29) Spiro Salt Room/Family Share Massage (A7) Spring Valley School (B21) Swoop (A18) Taco Mama (B12) The Altamont School (B20) The Fitness Center (A14) The Highlands Community (A8) The Maids (A1) The Tile Cleaner LLC. (B17) TherapySouth Crestline (A2) Town and Country (A21) UAB Calm Study (A21) Village Dermatology (B4) Village Pet Care (A10) Virginia Samford Theatre (B5) Vulcan Tire & Automotive (B8) Weigh To Wellness (B11) Whale of a Sale (B13) YMCA of Greater Birmingham (B6)
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September 2016 • A5
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Village Living
City
Architect Black wins 3-way race for seat on city council More than 1,700 vote in city’s only contested seat By JESSE CHAMBERS and SYDNEY CROMWELL Phillip Black won a place on the Mountain Brook City Council in the municipal election held Aug. 23, easily defeating two other candidates vying for Seat 2. The seat was left open when retired Judge Jack Carl chose not to seek reelection after two terms. Black, president and CEO of Simonton Swaika Black Architects, won 1,104 votes, more than 63 percent of ballots cast, in unofficial totals. Attorney Vincent J. Schilleci received 409 votes, or about 23 percent, and Tripp Watson, also an attorney, received 225 votes, for a little under 13 percent. These totals will be finalized in an official canvass of ballots after Village Living’s press date. Across Mountain Brook, a total of 1,743 voters came to the polls. According to post-election documents published by the city, that was about 10.5 percent of total registered voters in the city.
The highest turnout was at the City Hall polling place for Precinct 2, which saw 489 voters, or about 12.5 percent of registered voters in that precinct. The other polling locations saw voter turnout in the mid to high 200s, except for Precinct 5’s Mountain Brook Elementary location, which had only 157 voters. The lowest turnout by overall percentage was at Precinct 4’s Mountain Brook Community Church, where 255 voters made up only 7.4 percent of total registered voters in the precinct. In a post on his campaign Facebook page, Black thanked those who voted for him and “everyone who supported this campaign with your advice, long hours of tireless effort and enthusiasm.” “I am looking forward to serving Mountain Brook as your new councilman,” Black said. A Mountain Brook resident for 32 years, Black said during the campaign season that his main campaign issues include support for the school system and improving commercial areas across the city to attract and
keep businesses. During an interview in July, Black said it will be important to protect the city’s neighborhoods from “over-building and unwanted density.” Though he has not served on the council or run for public office before, Black has experience in other areas of municipal government. He is a current member of the Mountain Brook Planning Commission and served on the city’s Board of Zoning Adjustments for 10 years. Seat 2 was the only position that Mountain Brook residents had to vote on for the 201620 term. Virginia Carruthers Smith, the current council president and its only incumbent, was unopposed in City Council Place 4. Stewart Welch, a financial planner, was also unopposed in his quest to fill the mayoral office occupied for many years by Terry Oden, who is retiring after 24 years in elective office in the city. The new mayor and Seat 2 council member will take office in October.
Phillip Black, Seat 2 winner
Carruthers Smith
Welch
VillageLivingOnline.com
September 2016 • A7
Andy Rotenstreich with Crown Castle discusses a resolution to permit the installation of small cell facilities around Mountain Brook. Photo by Erica Techo.
Council discusses potential Jemison Park pedestrian bridge By ERICA TECHO Mountain Brook City Council is discussing a potential pedestrian bridge to go over Shades Creek. During pre-council at the Aug. 8 meeting, Walter Schoel of Schoel Engineering presented the council with preliminary plans for the bridge. The bridge would have a 65-foot span, be six feet wide and be built at the top of the banks either 10 feet upstream or downstream from the treads, or stepping blocks, that currently traverse the creek. “That elevation is about six feet below the flood elevation, so we’re talking about a bridge that is still very much subject to being flooded,” Schoel said. “That’s not a great situation, but there’s no way to build it high enough to where it’s above the flood [elevation].” Building this bridge, however, would also require removing the treads currently along the creek, Schoel said, because having both structures would too greatly obstruct the creekflow. While an example photo provided in the pre-meeting agenda packet showed railings on both sides of the bridge, Schoel said that exact model would not work along Shades Creek, as it would catch too much debris. Council member Jack Carl asked what would be in place to ensure a baby carriage or small child would not fall off of the bridge, and Schoel said there would be a “substantial railing” and safety concerns could be taken into account in the final design. Schoel said there were also concerns with debris coming down the creek and potentially “taking out” the bridge. While it could handle small debris, large trees could significantly damage it. An estimate for the bridge was just under $37,000, with a cost for installation to be around $50,000. Council member Billy Pritchard said the possibility of a bridge came before the council because an anonymous donor said they would fund the bridge, which would allow individuals in wheelchairs, seniors or strollers to traverse the creek. “The bridge,” Pritchard emphasized. “Not the construction, but the construction number was discussed at a much higher figure than this, so I guess the question is is there a way to get it constructed if someone is willing to donate the bridge?” Carl said he believed the donated bridge was too great a possibility to pass up. Schoel presented a plan for a flat bridge, but later noted an arched bridge is possible for a higher cost. The arched bridge would allow
a little extra space for potential debris to pass through, and Council President Virginia Smith asked Pritchard to see if his donor would be OK with a higher cost for the bridge. The next step for the bridge, Schoel said, would be to develop a final design and submit that to the city for final approval. “If he gets a new estimate, and Billy’s anonymous donor is willing to go with it, can we say ‘Go with it?’” Carl asked. Smith said if the donor is firm with funding the bridge, a budget item for the installation of the bridge would be discussed. “We’re proceeding forward, but we’re not agreeing to anything,” Smith said. Also at the meeting, the council: ► Discussed the smoke-free ordinance. Concerns were voiced during pre-council regarding wording in the ordinance potentially permitting businesses to become “private clubs” in order to allow smoking, as well as concerns for businesses. Council president Virginia Smith recommended reforming the committee addressing the issue, and asked council member Alice Womack to join the committee to represent the chamber’s point of view in discussions. ► Approved the appointment of Graham Leigh Smith to the Editorial Board of the City of Mountain Brook. She will serve without compensation, and her term of office ends Aug. 8, 2020. ► Approved a resolution to permit the installation of small cell facilities and three new support structures. The three support structures will be built in the public rightof-way and will be wooden poles, similar to already existing power poles. Two other support structures will come before the council at a later date. ► Approved a resolution to purchase two parcels of land in Crestline Heights. ► Approved a resolution authorizing an agreement with the Birmingham-Jefferson County Transit Authority (MAX) for public transportation services in the city for the fiscal year which will end Sept. 30, 2017. The cost for the year is $123,916.77. ► Denied a request for a conditional service use application for Lindamood-Bell Learning Processes at 2000 Cahaba Road. ► Approved contracts for lighting fixtures for the police and fire memorials. The fixture for the 9/11 memorial will cost $5,245, and the fixture for the fallen officer memorial will cost $4,105. ► Discussed a request for alley access for 502 Euclid Ave. during executive session. A lawsuit in regard to the matter was filed Monday morning.
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Village Living
City Council approves the election of Virginia Smith and Stewart Welch III By ANA GOOD The Mountain Brook City Council on Monday night approved the election of both councilmember Virginia Carruthers Smith and Stewart Welch III. Welch and Smith were the only individuals who qualified for their individual seats open for election, in this case, Place 4 and the office of the mayor. The qualifying period for candidates ended July 15. Smith will begin her fourth term on the council on the first Monday of November 2016. Welch will begin his first term as mayor on the same day. In its pre-meeting, the council once again decided to delay a vote on a Smoke Free Ordinance that would restrict smoking throughout the city. The council asked its city attorney to review the ordinance, particularly its stance on smoking in public outdoor places, and present revisions at the next council meeting. On Monday night the council did pass a Cell Phone Free Zones ordinance subject to minor revisions. The ordinance will prohibit the use of cellphones while operating a motor vehicle in school zones between 7:30 a.m. and 8 a.m., and then again between 2:30 and 3:30 p.m. Cellphone use will only be prohibited while cars, in and around carpool lines, are in motion. Violators will be subject to a $25 fine. The council also approved amendments to Memory Triangle and its street light banner policy. Those changes include: ► Strengthening the language regarding the prohibition of commercial signs and logos. ► Reservations will be limited to 120 days from the application date, rather than a year. ► Requires all banner designs to be submitted to the city for approval four weeks prior to installation. ► Public works will hang Memory
Triangle signs and lamp post banners to both ensure the design matches what is approved and that the sign is hung properly. ► The fee for Memory Triangle signs will be raised from $10/week to $20/week to offset the city’s installation costs. ► Limit the materials of lamp post banners to reduce damage to city property. ► Include a new fee of $5 per lamp post banner to offset the city’s installation costs. On Monday, July 25, the council also: ► Approved the sale liquor at Local Taco, 920 Lane Park Court in Mountain Brook Village. ► Approved the sale of beer and wine for off-premise use at Dinner., 73 Church Street in Crestline Village. ► Authorized the extension of the Internet Protocol enabled Video Services franchise agreement between the city and AT&T Alabama under the same terms and conditions until July 31, 2018. ► Authorized the agreement between the city and EMS Management & Consulting, Inc. for their provision of ambulance billing services and related business associates agreement. ► Authorized a contract between the city and Brasfield & Gorrie for the selective demolition services at the Emmet O’Neal Library to help determine existing water penetration conditions identified by Williamson & Associates. ► Declared certain property surplus and authorizing its sale or disposition. ► Appointed poll works for the Aug. 23 general municipal election and Oct. 4 runoff, if necessary, as well as authorized their compensation. ► Approved a petition for Vacation of a portion of South Cove Drive filed by St. Luke’s Episcopal Church.
Mountain Brook police donate 2 cars to Louisiana police By SYDNEY CROMWELL MBPD Chief Ted Cook approached the city council at their Aug. 22 meeting with a special request for his counterparts dealing with severe, widespread flooding in Louisiana. Cook said the police department originally intended to fundraise to buy cleaning supplies and other materials to send to departments around Baton Rouge, Louisiana. However, he heard about officers buying used cars to continue patrolling after their police cruisers were destroyed in the floods. The MBPD has two cruisers that are currently unused and were already planned to become surplus and sold. Instead, Cook asked the council to donate the cars to the Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office. The council approved the “sale” of the two cruisers for $1 to the Louisiana department. A vote on a proposed new smoking ordinance was again postponed at the meeting due to the lack of unanimous consent needed to vote on the ordinance. Several amendments to the ordinance were presented in pre-council, including allowing property owners to decide whether to allow smoking on private properties outdoors. Smoking would be prohibited in “enclosed spaces” on private property except residences, cigar bars and private clubs. A cigar bar is any business that earns the majority of its business through sale of tobacco and tobacco accessories. The amendment would allow smoking outdoors on public property, such as parks, as long as the smoker is more than 20 feet away from a non-smoker. Council member Jack Carl was against voting at the Aug. 22 meeting due to his objection over the description of an “enclosed space” in the ordinance, defining it as an space bounded by at least two walls or windows. Carl said this definition would include breezeways,
Residents listen to the council discuss amendments to the Mountain Brook smoking ordinance. Photo by Sydney Cromwell.
which are outdoors, and that the definition should be revised to be more narrow. The council is going to take up the issue again at its next meeting on Sept. 12. The council also: ► Approved Skipper Consulting to conduct a traffic and pedestrian study in the area around Church Street, Vine Street and Dexter Avenue. City Manager Sam Gaston said the study was prompted by increased traffic due to the opening of the Piggly Wiggly and the new school year. The study will include five days of traffic counts, and Gaston said the study could begin as early as next week. ► Approved Fontenot Benefits & Actuarial Consulting (FBAC) for audit services related to the city’s post-employment benefits plan. ► Approved an agreement with Public Resource Management Alliance Corporation for a revenue enhancement and audit services. ► Set a public hearing on Sept. 12 to consider amending the ordinance regarding open houses, home tours and special events in residential zones. ► Approved a proclamation declaring September as Myositis Awareness Month. Myositis is any muscle inflammation or degeneration and can be caused by injury, exercise, certain medications or chronic diseases.
VillageLivingOnline.com
September 2016 • A9
Mountain Brook BOE welcomes new teachers
A sizable crowd attends the Mountain Brook Board of Education’s last regular meeting before the start of the 2016-17 school year on Monday, Aug. 8. During the meeting, the board and audience heard a recap of the city’s New Teacher Orientation. Photo by Ana Good.
By ANA GOOD In its last regular meeting before the start of the 2016-2017 school year, the Mountain Brook Board of Education heard a recap of its new teacher orientation by Missy Brooks, Ph.D., director of instruction, and by new teacher Paul Kustos, Ph.D. Kustos, who will be entering his first year of teaching at Mountain Brook High School, joked that he had a little bit of “buyer’s remorse” in his first few days preparing to teach in the city school system. “But I think that’s normal,” he said, before
adding that his doubts were quickly extinguished as he settled in and learned more about MBHS. Kustos said that he had spent the last few days preparing the curriculum for the courses he will teach at MBHS, including both regular and advanced pre-calculus, as well as a hybrid advanced algebra 2 with trigonometry/pre-calculus course that he will be piloting. Prior to joining the MBHS faculty, according to his online profile, Kustos taught for 12 years at Hoover High School and for three years as a graduate teaching assistant at Auburn University. At MBHS, Kustos will also help initiate a
math team. The Board also approved its more recent personnel recommendations and declared certain property, including books and a refrigerator, surplus. During the announcements portion of the meeting, President Brad Sklar reminded those in attendance to mind the newly posted cellphone-free zones throughout the city’s school zones. In July, the Mountain Brook City Council passed a Cell Phone Free Zones ordinance subject to minor revisions. The ordinance now prohibits the use of cellphones while operating a motor vehicle in school zones between
7:30 a.m. and 8 a.m., and then again between 2:30 and 3:30 p.m. Cellphone use will only be prohibited while cars, in and around carpool lines, are in motion. Cellphone use, according to the ordinance, includes “engaging in a call; writing, sending, or reading text-based communications; accessing, reading, or posting to a social network site or accessing or adding any information to the wireless telecommunication device.” Violators will be subject to a $25 fine. The Board’s next meeting will be held Sept. 12 at 3:30 p.m. at Mountain Brook High School. A second budget hearing will also be held then.
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Village Living
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VillageLivingOnline.com
Now Open Kinnucan’s Specialty Outfitters, 1 commonly known as KSO, is now open in the Lane Parke development, 201 Rele St. This is the Auburn-based store’s first Birmingham area location. 414-0446, kinnucans.com
Relocations and Renovations Gifts will be moving to its 2 A’Mano new location in Lane Parke, 281 Rele Street, in mid-September. A public grand opening will take place on October 20. 871-9093, amanogifts.com
September 2016 • A11
Hirings and Promotions Southern States Bank, 7 Office Park Circle, has named Dan Bundy as its market president for Jefferson and Shelby Counties. 877-0195, southernstatesbank.net
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Anniversaries Ollie Irene, 2713 Culver Road, celebrated its 5th anniversary in August. 769-6034, ollieirene.com
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Let us help spread the news! Email sydney@starnespublishing.com to submit your announcement.
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A12 • September 2016
Village Living
Ice House hot on barbecue scene By ALI RENCKENS For Tom Sheffer, the term “ice house” does not represent anything cool or wintery; it means sizzling steaks and the bold flavor of south Texas. Sheffer, owner of Avo and Dram, is opening a new “casual neighborhood hangout” called Ice House on Cahaba Road. The restaurant will serve Texas-style barbecue and a selection of tacos in addition to sandwiches and limited bar options, including snacks. “We’re going to do a few things really well,” Sheffer said. “I think what we’re doing is a unique concept for the area.” The idea for the restaurant came from Sheffer’s love of Texas. “I always say I want to be a Texan,” Sheffer said. “As corny as it sounds, Texas is really a passion to me.” The term “ice house” originated in the 1800s. It referred to a refrigerated place used to store perishable products, such as butter and eggs, and later evolved to describe a store that sold cold drinks. “If you’re in parts of San Antonio and Austin, you’ll see something called ‘west side ice house’ and it’ll be beer and maybe grilled sausage or something,” Sheffer said. “‘Ice house’ may not mean barbecue to Texans, but to me, it says Texas.” Ice House will operate as a self-serve, easy to-go place where customers place their orders at a counter, then pick up the food themselves. Projected to open in October, the restaurant will be located on Cahaba Road in the Spitfire Building, next to Barton-Clay Fine Jewelers. “We like the location, on the edge of the existing, old village, but facing across to the new,” Sheffer said. “I think it puts in us in the middle of a lot of activity.” Sheffer originally planned to open a breakfast
A rendering of the future Ice House restaurant. Courtesy of Tom Sheffer.
place called Biscuit Boy, but decided against it, partially because of the many breakfast options nearby. He said that he still likes the concept and may open Biscuit Boy someday, but not necessarily in Birmingham. Instead, Ice House will offer brunch, including the breakfast taco, a signature of Austin,
Texas, and remain open into the evening “with unique food and hospitality offerings to take advantage of the cool space our landlord is building and the opportunity the city has afforded us,” Sheffer said. Sheffer believes that the atmosphere and food that Ice House will provide is different from
anything currently available in Birmingham. “There’s a ton of barbecue in any Southern city or town,” Sheffer said. “But I still think we’ll do a good enough job to be a player and the Texas spin makes it different. It has its own flavor and it’s something we’d like to bring to Birmingham.”
VillageLivingOnline.com
September 2016 • A13
Bringing international style to Mountain Brook Mary Catherine Folmar draws inspiration from her travels in Asia and Europe and life in the South to create her handillustrated patterns. Photo by Ali Renckens.
By ALI RENCKENS Darius Rucker played over the store’s speakers while Mary Catherine Folmar sat in a bamboo chair and explained how Oriental, European and Southern traditions fuse together to inspire the hand-illustrated fabrics in her Mountain Brook showroom, Cotton + Quill. As an undergraduate studying industrial design at Auburn University, Folmar spent two semesters abroad: one in Europe, traveling through Ireland, Scotland and England, and another in Taiwan, studying Chinese painting. Now, she visits markets across the country, learning about the latest trends from different designers. When the Alabama fabric and wallpaper designer started her brand, Cotton + Quill, four years ago, she said she wanted to exhibit styles and trends she gathered from traveling both in and outside the U.S. “When I opened Cotton + Quill, I wanted to bring to not only Birmingham, but also Alabama in general, something different,” Folmar said. “I wanted to show people what I’ve seen at markets for years and just now seems to be kind of hitting the retail side of things.” As part of her desire to bring special styles to Birmingham, she collaborates with other designers, many of whom she met at markets. She said she is collaborating with other designers to expand her product line, such as turning her fabric into clothing with the help of a local fashion designer. “I can only produce so much and do it well, so it makes sense to partner with other people,” she said. “I’ve worked with these people over the past couple of years and feel confident about their product.” Folmar said she also hosts “Sip and Shop” every third Tuesday of the month to feature different craftsmen and businesses.
For her upcoming fall collection, which will debut in September, the Athens native said she relied more on her Southern roots, opting for patterns that include magnolia, equestrian and plaid elements. “The new collection was kind of tough,” Folmar said. “I didn’t know if it was venturing too far from Cotton + Quill, but ... I think the color and the hand-illustrated kind of keeps everything tied together.” Although some products are available online,
she said she prefers to sell from her store to keep her products easily customizable. “I feel like putting them online takes away something special,” Folmar said. “But the website shows you all the fabric patterns, the colors and the different options of what we can do.” Folmar’s designs can be purchased as fabric and wallpaper by the yard, pillows, drapery, bedding, accessories, stationery, decorative trays and gift wrap. In her store, she also sells jewelry, art, furniture, home accessories,
vintage pieces and gift items. “I’ve had so many people come in here and say, ‘It just makes me happy’ or ‘Thank you for color,’” Folmar said. “You can get something special here … I don’t know what else could happen being here, in Birmingham. We’ll see.” Cotton + Quill is at 53 Church St. For more information or to shop online, go to cottonandquill.com. Follow Cotton + Quill on Facebook for events and previews.
A14 • September 2016
Village Living
Pet Vet Express opens in Crestline Village By ALI RENCKENS Dr. Kris Mahaffey said she believes veterinarians do not just care for animals; they also serve people. For 15 years, Mountain Brook clients asked Pet Vet Express to expand to their neighborhood from their Vestavia Hills location. On Aug. 9, Mahaffey opened a satellite clinic in Crestline Village. “We listened, and we had a great opportunity, and we decided to make it happen,” Mahaffey said. “Hopefully, we can be here and be able to provide Mountain Brook with anything they may need as far as a veterinary clinic.” She said she hoped pet owners would find the new location, two doors left from the Pants Store in Crestline, convenient for running errands while someone grooms or examines their animals. “I’m a working mom, and I know how precious everyone’s time is,” Mahaffey said. “I think that we’re going to be providing a niche, something where people don’t have to travel a long distance in order to get things addressed … I know with my clients in Vestavia, it is so important that they’re able to do several things at one time.” Jackie Burks, a veterinarian with more than 30 years of experience, runs the day-to-day operations of the clinic. Burks takes a simple and straightforward approach to serving clients: Determine each
Dr. Kris Mahaffey, left, and Dr. Jackie Burks said they are glad to serve the animals and people in the Mountain Brook community. Photo by Ali Renckens.
animal’s needs and help the owners reach the best solution for them. “We’re going to recommend the best for people’s pets,” Burks said. “We are going to
help them, decide what’s going on, what’s the best to be done. Now, we realize that people can’t always do the best for various reasons, and then we’ll figure out what to do when that
time comes.” The clinic provides a full assortment of services, including wellness exams, vaccines, microchipping and dental procedures. Eventually, they plan to start food and prescription delivery. Grooming is available on Tuesdays and Thursdays and bathing and nail-clipping are Tuesday-Friday. Because the city does not allow overnight boarding, the Mountain Brook location performs minor, but not major surgeries. However, the Vestavia Hills clinic, five miles away, does offer these. Mahaffey said she expects the clinic to suit the Mountain Brook community well. “I love that this area, everybody’s out walking, enjoying the great outdoors,” she said. “Everybody’s getting healthy. I think that’s very important in this area.” Burks and his wife have always enjoyed their visits to Birmingham and are glad to live near their son, his wife, their 2-year-old grandson and their favorite restaurant. “We’re excited. We’ve always liked this area,” Burks said. “[Kris’ husband] said, ‘You know where Crestline Village is?’ I said, ‘Is that the one where La Paz is? Yeah, I know exactly where that is.’” The Mountain Brook Pet Vet Express is at 253 Country Club Park and is open Tuesday-Thursday from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Appointments are preferred but walk-ins are welcome. For more information, call 518-0606 or go to alpetvet.vetstreet.com.
VillageLivingOnline.com
September 2016 • A15
Community aTeam to host ‘Handbags and Heroes’ lunch
The logo for this year’s Handbags and Heroes event hosted by aTeam ministries. Courtesy of aTeam Ministries.
By ANA GOOD The Birmingham Botanical Gardens will be host this year to aTeam Ministries’ Handbags and Heroes Luncheon Sept. 22. The event, presented by Renasant Bank, will begin at 11:30 a.m. Handbags and Heroes is designed to honor mothers of pediatric cancer survivors as well as fighters. Attendees will have the opportunity to speak with the mothers and other real-life heroes who help care for children fighting pediatric cancer. ATeam Ministries, founded by Vestavia Hills residents Andy and Jan Thrower after their son, Anderson, battled acute lymphoblastic leukemia at just 16 months old, aims to provide “spiritual, financial, and emotional support, through a variety of programs, to children and their families within the pediatric cancer community.” Through the years, aTeam has helped families in different ways including offering extended stay housing near hospitals, paying people’s mortgages and financing
experimental therapy. Like its other events, including the Heart 2 HeART artist’s gala every February, Handbags and Heroes also will help raise money for aTeam and in turn, its families and children. A live and silent auction will feature items from Betsy Prince, SOCA and Gus Mayer. Kim Hudson, Founder of the Hudson Family Foundation, will be the event’s featured speaker. Hudson, who is also the wife of World Series pitcher Tim Hudson, will share her experiences of supporting mothers who have experienced the journey of pediatric cancer. According to its mission statement, the Hudson Family Foundation is “committed to making a positive and long-lasting impact in the lives of children who have a genuine need for assistance with regard to a specific physical, emotional or financial circumstance.” Tickets are $35, and table/event sponsorship opportunities are available. The event will conclude at 1 p.m. For tickets, visit ateamministries.org.
Staff members at the Sweet Repeats sale. Photo courtesy of Mountain Brook Community Church.
Bargains for missions at Sweet Repeats sale By JESSE CHAMBERS The Sweet Repeats Consignment Sale — featuring children’s and juniors’ clothing, along with toys, books, gear, furniture and maternity items — will be at the Mountain Brook Community Church gym Sept. 9 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sept. 10 from 9 a.m. to noon. Attendees can expect “a great shopping environment where you can find great products at a bargain price,” said MBCC pastoral assistant Stephanie Jones. But the money shoppers spend at Sweet Repeats also supports a good cause, since 25 percent of the proceeds go to the church’s mission programs, especially short-term mission trips, Jones said. The other 75 percent goes to consignors. Sweet Repeats, now in its fifth year, already has had a huge impact, making it more affordable for many individuals and families to serve on mission trips to such far-flung locations as China, Cambodia,
South Sudan and the Dominican Republic, she said. The sale also has helped local nonprofits, including The Foundry, Grace House and Sav-A-Life, Jones said. This year, Sweet Repeats will help support MBCC mission trips to Florida, Peru, Guatemala and Hungary. Perhaps most of all, Sweet Repeats is a lot of fun for both shoppers and staff, she said. “We have a great group of volunteers that love working the sale and will greet you with a friendly face,” Jones said. “We love seeing repeat shoppers who have shopped with us since the first sale, and it’s always fun to see new shoppers each year as the sale continue to grow.” Many items at the sale will be marked half off Sept. 10. No strollers are allowed at the sale from 9 to 11 a.m. Sept. 9. MBCC is located at 3001 U.S. 280. For more information about the church, go to mbcc.us. For information about the sale, go to mbccsweetrepeats.blogspot.com.
A16 • September 2016
Village Living
Artistic community grows in Mountain Brook By ALI RENCKENS More than 80 years ago, Deanny Hardy’s mother started Steeple Arts Academy of Dance. She wanted to create an artistic community in Mountain Brook that extended beyond dance. So when Hardy heard that Central Alabama Theater was looking for a new location, she quickly volunteered the Mountain Brook dance studio. After working in Los Angeles as a television actor for 14 years, Gardendale native Carl Peoples returned to Birmingham and started CAT, making his dream of owning a nonprofit theater company a reality in the same community that first inspired that dream. In its first year, CAT put on 13 productions, which included full-length plays and New York-style cabarets. However, it became difficult to find available nights for shows, which forced them to look for a new venue. “This area is a supportive community,” Peoples said. “They understand the importance of not only performing arts, but all arts in their community, and that’s how you really build a well-balanced community.” The appearance of the old-time church building inspired the selection of the first play CAT performed at Steeple Arts: “Smoke on the Mountain”, which tells the story of a Saturday Night Gospel Sing at a 1938 Baptist church in the Smoky Mountains. CAT will continue their bimonthly cabarets, featuring professionals from across the country. “It’s going to be a groovy night out,” he said. “Come in, have a glass of wine or a soft drink and listen to some great music and have
access to some really great talent.” Peoples said he plans to bring in actors he met while working in LA and New York for classes and performances. “You can sit down and have a class with someone who performs on Broadway. That’s huge,” he said. “When I was growing up, you used to have to pack a bag and uproot yourself to even see if you were good enough to be in this business.” Mark Cabus, who most recently appeared in the movie “Selma,” will perform his one-man show of “A Christmas Carol” Dec. 20-22. “I’ve been really lucky to have seen and done some really great things with some really talented people, and if I can bring that experience and some of those people back here to share with my home and my community, then I think we’re all better for it,” he said. Peoples said he still remembers standing in Tarrant High School’s new 875-seat theater as a freshman, feeling a strange sense of being home. Now, back in his hometown, he is grateful for the opportunity to educate and inspire others. “It’s come full circle that now I have the opportunity to do some of the things that inspired me,” he said. “When you get in a community that understands and supports the arts, you have a really cool marriage, and there’s success, both for the community and for the nonprofit that’s bringing those opportunities.” Hardy said he is glad to unite the two companies. “Years ago, my mom had a vision of this being a center for the arts, not just dance,” she said. “We think it’s great for the community. It makes the arts accessible for everyone.”
After 14 years in Los Angeles, Gardendale native Carl Peoples said he is excited to foster the theatrical community in Mountain Brook. Photo by Ali Renckens.
VillageLivingOnline.com
September 2016 • A17
Birmingham residents participate in the Boulevard Blast in Norwood. Photo courtesy of Von Palmer.
Boulevard Blast returns to Norwood By SYDNEY CROMWELL Take a run — or walk — through one of Birmingham’s historic neighborhoods this month with the Boulevard Blast 5K in Norwood. This year’s Boulevard Blast will be Sept. 24, with the 5K beginning at 9 a.m. and the onemile fun run and walk beginning at 9:30 a.m. The 5K path runs through the Norwood neighborhood of downtown Birmingham, featuring tree-lined streets and century-old homes. The run is part of the Norwood Resource Center’s “Get Healthy on the Boulevard” program. Other elements of the healthy living program include learning community gardens and a fresh produce market. The 5K has had Mountain Brook participants and organizers, including from St. Luke’s Episcopal, involved
for many years. This is Boulevard Blast’s third year. Prior to the race, there will be food vendors and family activities including Zumba and line dancing. Runners and walkers with strollers are welcome but asked to line up at the back of the start line. In October 2015, the Norwood Resource Center experienced a fire that destroyed part of their building. Proceeds this year will fund Norwood’s community programs, including the Get Healthy program, a variety of classes and utility bill assistance, as well as efforts to help the center recover from the fire. Registration is $30 on raceroster.com and free for kids ages 5 and younger. Go to norwoodresourcecenter.org or email jlittle@norwoodresourcecenter.org for more information.
ZooGala 2016 set for Sept. 16
ZooGala 2016 will feature an Asia-inspired theme in honor of the upcoming Asian Passage exhibit at the Birmingham Zoo. A rendering of the planned $18 million renovation at the Birmingham Zoo depicts the new entrance. Rendering courtesy of the Birmingham Zoo.
By ANA GOOD The Birmingham Zoo will host its biggest annual fundraising event, ZooGala, Sept. 16 at 6:30 p.m. The event, sponsored by IberiaBank, will feature cocktails, music, dancing and a silent auction through 11:30 p.m. Dinner and dessert will be provided by Kathy G & Company. A-Town A-List will provide the night’s music. The cocktail-attire event is for guests 21 and older. This year’s theme is Asia-inspired in honor of the new Asian Passage exhibit at the Birmingham Zoo. The Asian Passage exhibit is part of the zoo’s $18 million renovation. A second-story elevated walkway just off what will be a new promenade will lead visitors over the train tracks and into an enclosed area which will house the exhibit. The new exhibit, when complete, will replace the outdated predator building. Plans
for the new Asian Passage exhibit call for the construction of new habitats to house endangered Asian species such as the Malayan tiger, red panda, Komodo dragon and Sumatran orangutan. Construction of the new exhibit likely won’t be complete until sometime in 2017 or 2018, said Marketing Coordinator Kiki Nolen-Schmidt. Tickets to the event are on sale. Tickets are $150 each and VIP party tickets, including dinner, are $325 each. Tickets are nonrefundable. All funds raised at ZooGala go toward the zoo’s operational efforts. ZooGala 2016 is a rain-or-shine event. For information about the Birmingham Zoo’s Corporate Partners Program, which includes ZooGala tickets as a benefit, contact Kristin Martin at 909-4560 or email kmartin@birminghamzoo.com. To purchase tickets, go to tickets.birminghamzoo.com.
A18 • September 2016
Village Living
Exceptional Foundation to host ‘Dinnertainment’ Sept. 9
Crestline Christmas Shoppe reopening in September
The Crestline Christmas Shoppe opens Sept. 15. Photo by Lexi Coon.
By LEXI COON In 2015, the second annual Dinnertainment event raised $145,000 to help fund programs of The Exceptional Foundation. Photo courtesy of The Exceptional Foundation.
By ANA GOOD The Exceptional Foundation will host its third annual Dinnertainment fundraiser Sept. 9 at The Country Club of Birmingham. The event, which began in 2014 to raise money for The Exceptional Foundation’s original 400 participants, will include cocktails, hors d’oeurves, a seated dinner, auction and what organizers dub “Dinnertainment.” Performers, all participants at the foundation, will show off their talents in song, dance, theatrical skits and studio art. Organizers said the event is their way of showing the public what life is like every day at The Exceptional Foundation. Founded in 1994, Homewood’s Exceptional Foundation serves those ages 5-80, with autism, spina bifida, Down syndrome and other
conditions, providing them opportunities to play sports and engage in other activities. The first Dinntertainment, held Sept. 12, 2014, hosted more than 400 supporters, according to this year’s event description. In 2014, the event raised $140,000 for The Exceptional Foundation’s programs. In 2015, the event raised another $145,000. By its own estimation, The Exceptional Foundation now has more than 482 participants on its roll. Proceeds from Dinnertainment are a significant source of funding for its programs, according to the foundation. Space is limited. For tickets and more information, contact Tricia Kirk at triciakirk@ exceptionalfoundation.org, or go to exceptionalfoundation.org.
The holidays are always an exciting time, but for gift-shop manager Diane Wright and store owners Jan Cobb and Susie Hammers, the start of the holiday season holds extra meaning for them: They get to reopen their Crestline Christmas Shoppe. Cobb and Hammers were sorority sisters at Samford University, where they met their husbands, Mike and Scooter. Their husbands opened Crestline Pharmacy in 1990, and they soon added a gift shop in the storefront. “[The gift shop] was very small, and then we expanded on that,” Cobb said. When the Chinaberry Antique Shop went up for sale around the corner from the pharmacy, the ladies jumped at the chance for their holiday gift shop to grow. “We just thought it was such a quaint little location, and the people in this area already knew the Chinaberry,” Wright said. Over the years, the Christmas shop has become well known throughout the
community. “It’s unique and reminiscent of your childhood,” Wright said. They said they try to keep the space quaint and charming, but still manage to fill their store with nearly all elements of Christmas: Mercury glass, decorative pillows, angels, nutcrackers and ornaments fill the shop from floor to ceiling. “It’s a mixture of the old and the new,” Cobb said. “We do try to have things that are nostalgic as well as things that are current and trendy.” This year, the shop will feature special nativities and Cobb’s mother’s antique mantel in the window. “It has a very different look from last year,” Cobb said. Shoppers can visit Crestline Christmas Shoppe on Hoyt Lane starting on Sept. 15, Monday through Friday, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Hours will extend closer to Christmas. For more details, call the Crestline Pharmacy at 871-0317.
VillageLivingOnline.com
September 2016 • A19
Taste of Mountain Brook gets ready for rain date
Orchid show returns for 32nd year Judges score orchid arrangements by area vendors, growers and collectors. Photo courtesy of Glenn Bryant.
Take a bite of the best Mountain Brook has to offer at Taste of Mountain Brook. Staff photo.
By SYDNEY CROMWELL By GRACE THORNTON If you thought you missed your chance for this year’s Taste of Mountain Brook, then Sept. 18 may very well be a serendipitous moment for you and your culinary palate. The event — rescheduled because of rain in May — will be held that Sunday from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and will feature more than 20 local restaurants. Patrons can pick up specialties ranging from Church Street Coffee and Books’ famous Breakup Cookie to sushi from Maki Fresh. Here’s a glance at the current restaurant lineup: ► Davenport’s Pizza Palace ► Newk’s Eatery ► Piggly Wiggly ► Church Street Coffee and Books ► Maki Fresh ► Miss Dots ► La Paz Restaurant & Catering ► Vino ► Urban Cookhouse ► Taziki’s Mediterranean Cafe
► Continental Bakery ► Whole Foods Market ► Crestline Catering Co. ► Jersey Mike’s Subs ► Mafiaoza’s ► Yogurt Mountain ► Bongiorno Italian restaurant ► Tracy’s ► Taco Mama ► Habitat Feed and Seed- Grand Bohemian ► Billy’s Sports Grill ► Grille 29 Taste of Mountain Brook will benefit All In Mountain Brook, and food tents will line Hoyt Lane between the fire station, City Hall building and Oak Street Garden Shop. Local music groups will also provide entertainment for the event while patrons peruse the food offerings. Tickets are $15, and any tickets purchased for the rained-out event in May will be honored Sept. 18. Children under 12 get in free. Event coordinators recommend purchasing tickets beforehand, as a limited number is available.
The flowers in the annual Orchid Show and Sale at Birmingham Botanical Gardens are going to look a little brighter this year. The show, entering its 32nd year, will be in the Gardens’ newly renovated pavilion, and Alabama Orchid Society member Glenn Bryant said one of the biggest changes is better lighting. “For the first time this won’t be a dimly lit show, I hope,” Bryant said. The orchid show and sale will be Sept. 16-18 with about five vendors selling flowers and supplies from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. The event is free and open to the public. Vendors and other area orchid societies also will create displays as part of the annual show, which will be judged privately Saturday morning and then opened to the public after winners are chosen. Bryant, who has been part of the Orchid Society since 1990, said the displays can range from small tabletop flower arrangements to displays 50 feet in length. He enjoys “seeing people’s displays, seeing people’s creativity” in the show. “There’s always something to look forward
to,” Bryant said. Sharon Ritchie, the Orchid Society president, also said the “beauty and variety” of the orchids in the show and sale is one of her favorite parts. She regularly acts as a clerk for the show judges and said listening to their comments on each display helps her learn more about the flowers. “I always learn something different with each orchid society meeting we have and with each show,” Ritchie said. For shoppers who have never grown an orchid before or want to add to their collection, Ritchie said the orchid sale isn’t just a place to purchase a plant. The event will be full of vendors and Orchid Society members with expertise in nearly every area of orchid care and “who’ll talk your ear off if you let them.” “Other than just the beauty of the show, it’s a great place to get information that I may not have. There’s only so much that you can read on the internet. I think it’s nicer to talk to someone who’s enthusiastic about orchids,” she said. Learn more about the Alabama Orchid Society by visiting their Facebook page. Go to bbggardens.org for more information about the Botanical Gardens and the annual orchid sale.
A20 • September 2016
Village Living
140 Merit System employees successfully complete certificate programs The Training and Development Department of the Personnel Board of Jefferson County announces that 145 individual Merit System employees have successfully completed certificate programs! Sixty-seven have completed the Leading People Certificate, 36 have completed the Leading Processes Certificate, 34 have completed the Professional Development Certificate, 23 have completed the Technical Development Certificate, and 20 have completed the MPACT (Managers Preparing to Accomplish Change Today) program for a total of 180 certificates among 140 individual employees. They were recognized at a celebration on Friday, July 29 at 9 a.m. at the Bessemer Civic Center. The keynote speaker was Dr. Mark Nelson, Dean of the College of Communication and Information Sciences at the University of Alabama. The PBJC Leading People Certificate program is designed for current (and aspiring) supervisors to develop the necessary skills to lead the people on their team. This program covers topics such as communication skills, the art of delegation, and conflict resolution, and it is essential for those who have the desire to move from manager to leader. The PBJC Leading Processes Certificate program focuses on the crucial decisions that a manager must make to ensure work is accomplished. Sessions cover topics such as strategic planning, critical thinking, and project management. After completing this program, attendees will have learned the skills needed to be a strategic leader in local government. The PBJC Professional Development Certificate program focuses on helping our employees be the best possible employee they can be. Sessions cover topics such as personal branding, networking, professionalism and public speaking. Employees successfully completing this program will have a solid foundation to build upon as they continue
their career path in local government. The PBJC Technical Development Certificate program provides two options: a fundamental skills track or the Office Professional track. This allows employees to customize a program that meets them where they are. Basic Microsoft programs such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Access are offered, while the elective components allow participants to customize a program that works best for them. The MPACT program is the newest leadership training program. Participants completed this nine-month program by attending over 70 hours of training classes on trust, communication, accountability, and more. They also posted management issues on an electronic forum, interacted with guest speakers, visited local businesses, and completed a project designed to improve their department and jurisdiction. Training and developing the Merit System employees is a key driver for the Personnel Board of Jefferson County. “These programs are great tools that enable our supervisors and future supervisors from across the Merit System to enhance their leadership and computer skills” said Lorren Oliver, director of the Personnel Board of Jefferson County. “We are very proud of the time and effort that this class has applied towards their goals, and we are hopeful that their accomplishments will have a positive effect on their jurisdictions.” For more information about these programs or the Personnel Board of Jefferson County, visit their website at pbjcal.org. Employees recognized from Mountain Brook included: Joshua Belcher, Fire, Apparatus Operator (LPL), Daniel Davis, Public Works, Construction Equip. Operator (PROF/ TECH), Johnny Harris, Public Works, Public Works Supervisor, (MPACT/TECH), Daniel Steven Hicks, Fire, Firefighter (LPL) and Noah Johnson, Fire, Lieutenant (MPACT). – Submitted by Pete Blank.
Photo courtesy of Pete Blank.
VillageLivingOnline.com
September 2016 • A21
Faith Life Actually By Kari Kampakis
Be awesome and make history Recently I asked my 9-year-old daughter what she wants to be when she grows up. She eagerly replied, “I want to be awesome and make history!” Exactly how she plans to make history is still up in the air, because at her age, that part is irrelevant. All she knows is that she wants her life to count. She wants to matter. She wants a life of significance that people will remember for years and years to come. And if we’re being honest, don’t we all feel the same way? Don’t we all long to leave a legacy that outlives our time on earth and keeps our memory alive? Our desire for a meaningful life is good because God planted that desire in us. He created each of us for a special purpose meant to leave this world better than we found it. Sometimes, however, we mistakenly assume that a meaningful life must be grand and spectacular. We look for big signs, big assignments, and clearly significant work. And when they don’t come, we get discouraged. We question our value and wonder if God is ignoring us to tend to more important people. But God never ignores us. He thinks about us constantly and speaks all the time. The problem isn’t His lack of attention to us, but our lack of attention to Him. As Job 33:14 says, “For God speaks again and again, though people do not recognize it.” Usually when we miss God’s presence and God’s voice, it’s because we’re overlooking the small moments and small assignments where He quietly reveals Himself. Sometimes when I forget the value of small moments and small assignments, I think of Mother Teresa. Mother Teresa had a simple philosophy known as “the little way,” which involved doing small things with great love.
Her entire legacy was based on loving the person in front of her. Her inspiration was St. Thérѐse de Lisieux, who came up with “the little way” and has been acclaimed as the greatest saint of modern times because her spirituality has influenced millions. St. Thérѐse saw herself as the “little flower of Jesus,” created to give glory to God by simply being herself among the flowers in God’s garden. Just as a child becomes enamored with whatever is before her (and can be fascinated by a simple flower), St. Thérѐse believed we should also have a childlike focus and be completely attentive to the person right before us. In her autobiography “Story of a Soul,” St. Thérѐse said that not every flower can be a rose. Some flowers were created to be wildflowers, daisies or violets. She wrote: “I understand how all the flowers God has created are beautiful, how the splendor of the rose and the whiteness of the lily do not take away the perfume of the violet or the delightful simplicity of the daisy. I understand that if all flowers wanted to be roses, nature would lose her springtime beauty, and the fields would no longer be decked out with little wildflowers. So it is in the world of souls, Jesus’ garden. He has created smaller ones and those must be content to be daisies or violets destined to give joy to God’s glances when He looks down at His feet. Perfection consists in doing His will, in being what He wills us to be.” What St. Thérѐse recognized is how most humans, deep down, long to be roses. We believe that making an impact requires us to be the showstopper that gets noticed and continuously praised. We fear that being anything other than the rose makes us less special
— and less important to God. But every flower is special to God because God created every flower. He loves variety and the beauty that variety brings. Far more important than how the world sees us is how God sees us. And by blooming where we are planted, and staying true to our natural design, we bring God great joy. He delights in all the same, whether we’re a rose, a violet or a wildflower. The world’s idea of a significant life is to have a wide impact. But I truly believe that the most influential people are those who have a deep impact. More than altering the course of history, they alter the course of someone’s soul. They understand how bringing just one person closer to God makes them an undeniable success in His book. Whatever flower you’re made to be, be a good one. Use your life to make an eternal difference, not a temporary splash. If your name ends up in a history book for future generations that’s fantastic, but if not that’s okay too, because you’re still awesome in God’s eyes. You can still make history in heaven by valuing the size of your love for God over the size of your assignments, and finding peace in the pleasure you give Him even when nobody else is looking. Kari Kubiszyn Kampakis is a Mountain Brook mom of four girls, columnist, and blogger for The Huffington Post. Her newest book, “LIKED: Whose Approval Are You Living For?,” releases November 15 and is available for pre-order on Amazon. Her first book, “10 Ultimate Truths Girls Should Know,” is available everywhere books are sold. Join Kari’s Facebook community at “Kari Kampakis, Writer,” visit her blog at karikampakis.com or contact her at kari@karikampakis.com.
A22 • September 2016
Village Living
Mountain Brook grad touring US with band, The Roosevelts By ANA GOOD It’s been quite a year for Mountain Brook High School graduate-turned-musician Jason Kloess. In April, his band, The Roosevelts, released its first album, a 10-track debut titled “The Greatest Thing You’ll Ever Learn.” Along with bandmate James Mason, Kloess watched as the album climbed the iTunes charts, making it all the way to the No. 5 album spot. The Roosevelts are quick to say they don’t want to fit into a mold when describing their music. On their website, they say their music is “Southern-raised indie-rock” and “harmony-driven American rock, with a ’70s sensibility.” Still others call their sound “warm, rootsy pop.” However it’s defined, one thing is clear: The Roosevelts’ music has resonated with audiences. This year, their songs were picked up by Whole Foods Radio and Paste Magazine. In March, ABC’s “Nashville” featured their song “This is Life.” “We were thrilled to see our first full-length do so well,” said Kloess, the band’s guitarist. Kloess and Mason, self-proclaimed “brothers in song,” have been playing music together since they first met nine years ago in Austin, Texas. Mason, the band’s lead singer, said a mutual friend half-jokingly mentioned the two should get together to play some music. It was a joke at the time, he said, because starting a band was not on either of their minds. Mason had every intention of going to medical school as he worked his way through
This fall, The Roosevelts will perform in more than a dozen cities, including Birmingham. Photo courtesy of Christina Feddersen.
college as an ambulance medic. Kloess, who had recently graduated from Auburn, had begun to settle down in Austin and develop a career in the area’s tech startup community. How the two were drawn into music felt serendipitously timed, Kloess said. “It seemed like every single step of the way, before we could decide to step away from playing music, someone would encourage us to continue,” he said. Eventually, the duo made the decision to make the band their full-time gig and moved to
Nashville, where they continue to reside today. It wasn’t until the first time they were in the studio together — four years ago on President’s Day — that their producer asked for their band name. “We weren’t ready for that question,” Mason said with a laugh. “They told us they needed a name by the end of the day.” Kloess said they sat together going through a list of names when “The Roosevelts” occurred to them. “We thought, ‘It’s President’s Day. There were two of them, two of us.’ It worked,” he said.
It just so happened that both Kloess and Mason were also Eagle Scouts, yet another common factor with the presidents known for their conservationist views. Today, the band’s momentum continues to grow. This October, The Roosevelts will perform at the Austin City Limits music festival, an accomplishment Kloess said made him feel like a “mega fan-girl.” “It’s been on my bucket list for years,” he said. On Sept. 24, the band will perform at Birmingham’s WorkPlay — the sixth show in a concert tour set to begin in Austin that will also hit New York, Atlanta, Chicago and a dozen other cities in between. As if music didn’t already keep them busy, Kloess and Mason also founded The Roosevelts Beard Co. after neither could settle on a beard oil they truly liked. “We started researching which oils to use, which fragrances to mix, really just for ourselves at first,” said Kloess. The products eventually made it onto their merchandise table and were met with what Kloess described as “massive community interest.” “Even women buy it for their hair,” he said. Through all their recent success, The Roosevelts said they like to keep the focus on being grateful to their fans and supporters. “It’s all a testament to our fans and the relationships we have built over the years,” Kloess said. For more information, including tour dates and ticket information as well as the Roosevelt Beard Co., go to wearetheroosevelts. com.
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VillageLivingOnline.com
September 2016 • A23
City’s ‘ace,’ Steven Boone, celebrates 20 years with Mountain Brook By ANA GOOD
Steven Boone, Mountain Brook’s city finance director and city clerk, works inside his office at City Hall. Staff photo.
When it comes to just about every decision the city of Mountain Brook makes, one can almost bet City Finance Director and City Clerk Steven Boone is involved somewhere along the way. Boone, who recently celebrated 20 years with the city, is known as the problem-solver among department heads. Fire Chief Steve Mullins said Boone wears many more than just the already robust finance director and city clerk hats. “He helps me with everything from personnel issues to injuries and, of course, the budget,” Mullins said. “At some point in time almost every day, I reach out to him for something.” “He wears so many different hats,” said Police Chief Ted Cook. “Steve is really invaluable to the whole city. His wealth of knowledge is unprecedented.” Before devoting 20 years to Mountain Brook, Boone worked in Jefferson County, where he served as chief accountant. Previous to his work in Jefferson County, Boone was a partner with a Birmingham-area public accounting firm. He officially began working for the city of Mountain Brook in 1996 when, the city was looking to strengthen and improve its finances, Boone said. Though the city already had an accounting department, Boone said it did not yet have a finance director. Boone was the first and continues to be the only-ever finance director to serve the city. Boone said accounting and business administration were not exactly the topics he first thought he wanted to study. “I was a computer science major at first and was minoring in accounting,” he said. Pretty quickly, Boone said he realized he was more interested in the accounting side of his studies than his
computer science major. “That’s when I changed my major,” he said. Boone went on to earn a Bachelor of Science in accounting and management from the University of Alabama at Birmingham in 1983. In 1992, Boone earned a Master of Business Administration, also from UAB. Raised in the Birmingham area, Boone is a past president of the Government Finance Officers Association of Alabama (GFOAA) 2004-2005, a member of the Alabama City County Management Association (ACCMA), American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Alabama Society of Certified Public Accountants. Boone said the hardest part of his job is the need to be current on a lot of different things all at the same time. “Whether it’s a legal claim, an insurance claim, putting together bid documents or legal findings, helping to draft no-smoking ordinances or creating cellphonefree zones — you name it — I’m pulled into it,” he said. That broad range of ability doesn’t go unnoticed, Mullins said. “He’s our ace,” he said. Boone said he does feel the love and appreciation. In fact, he said it’s his favorite aspect of the job. “I believe I help make a difference,” he said, “that my work is appreciated.” City Council members and City Manager Sam Gaston conspired to surprise Boone and recognize his 20 years with the city during a recent city council meeting. Unlike most things Mountain Brook, it was one of the few times Boone was left out of the loop. Over the years, Boone said he believes his work has helped make significant improvements to the financial operations of the city. “I feel like a valued member of the city’s management team,” he said.
A24 • September 2016
Village Living
On the runway Mountain Brook students compete in this year’s Birmingham Fashion Week
By KATHERINE POLCARI This August, 60 select students had the opportunity to share their original designs with the community and fashion icons alike. Birmingham Fashion Week was held Aug. 25-27 in Boutwell Auditorium, and allowed younger fashionistas to show off their designs on the runway. This year, five students from Mountain Brook competed in the Rising Design Star competition. The youngest designer from Mountain Brook, Ellen Landy, is only 13 and in eighth grade at Mountain Brook Junior High. Landy competed in Birmingham Fashion Week for the first time this year, but this is not her first experience creating a dress. “I wrote [a] report one time about Trashion, which is making fashion out of trash, and I really loved it,” Landy said. “So I made a dress out of newspaper and Starburst wrappers.” This experience of working with unusual materials has helped prepare Landy to make her dress for BFW, seeing as the contestants are not allowed to use any fabric. “I’m using foam board and actual poster board, a lot of duct tape, newspaper, plastic tablecloth [and] a lampshade,” Landy said. “I got most of it at the dollar store.” Delaney Thomas, a sophomore at Mountain Brook High School, missed the deadline to apply for the 2015 competition, even though she also had already created a dress for school. “In English we had this thing called genius hour where we got to pursue any interest,” Thomas said. “So I decided that I wanted to make a dress.” Thomas did not let the opportunity to compete slip by more than once. When the applications went out for this year,
KATHRYN SOURS Thomas was excited to start on her design as soon as she learned the theme. “The [theme] is technology or futuristic,” Thomas said. “Whenever I think of that I think monochromatic and sharp edges.” Thomas brought this idea to life by creating a dress that is all black, except for the shine that she has created from metal pieces and CDs along the skirt.
DELANEY THOMAS A fellow sophomore, Mary Frances Tolbert, said she also saw the importance of having a metallic shine incorporated into her design. “I did a short cocktail dress,” Tolbert said. “It was designed to be comfortable and moveable, and it has lots of flash and bling to it.” Using material able to provide this flash is so essential to Tolbert’s design, she said, that she has put forth a lot of effort
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JOHN PRICE
and time to make sure that her design is perfect. “[It] took me about three months to figure out all my materials and get my design down,” Tolbert said. Kathryn Sours, a recent graduate of Mountain Brook High School, participated in the Rising Design Stars competition for her second year. Last year, Sours got a taste for how much needs to be put into creating her design, but also how rewarding that time can be. “I was waking up at five in the morning [to] work on the dress,” Sours said. “[but] I loved every minute of it.” All of this hard work proved to be worthwhile when Sours saw her dress walked on the runway, and she said that moment is what has fueled her to compete again. “I was standing on the stage and watching my best friend model [my dress],” Sours said. “I was watching her walk down the runway, and it was the most satisfying feeling.” The final rising designer, John Price, is also a recent graduate of Mountain Brook. While BFW was a new experience
September 2016 • A25
ELLEN LANDY
for Price, he has had his fair share of experience in the fashion industry. Price has been working with local stylist Megan Larussa for the past few years, and said this experience has lead him to realize that he wants to one day be a stylist or creative director. “With this particular dress, the material actually came before everything,” Price said. “I wanted to manipulate it in a way where I wanted her to be covered in metal.” Price said that he made his dress look like a flower or bird so that it could be something delicate made out of something rigid. This dress, just like Price’s fashion style, is based off of his admiration for art. “A painting in a museum can really impact you and make you feel a certain way,” Price said. “But if you could put on that painting on and walk down the street in it, which one is going to make you feel better?” Visit bhamfashionweek.com to learn more about BFW and how you can apply for next year’s Rising Star Competition.
MARY FRANCES TOLBERT
A26 • September 2016
Village Living
CATEGORY 1 WINNER CATEGORY 1 RUNNER-UP
Category 1 winner, left: Katherine and Willis Meriwether has some pool-side fun in Perdido Key, Florida. Photo courtesy of Willis Meriwether. Category 1 runner-up, above: Haise Ogilvie and other Boy Scouts from Troop 28 Vulcan District hiked 7, 000 feet up Mt. Ranier this summer as part of their Northern Tier trip to Washington and Canada. Photo courtesy of Jennifer Neil. Category 2 winner, below: RealtySouth Chairman Emeritus Ty Dodge reads Village Living’s “Getting the Pig Back Home” while floating the Dead Sea. Photo courtesy of Ty Dodge.
CATEGORY 2 WINNER
VillageLivingOnline.com
September 2016 • A27
A28 • September 2016
Village Living
a HEART for HEALING Mountain Brook graduate pursues passion for medicine, Spanish By ANA GOOD
MBHS graduate Laney Smith, far right, traveled to the Dominican Republic for the first time as part of a mission trip with Medical Ministry International the summer before her senior year. Photos courtesy of Laney Smith.
Some high school graduates hit the beach after graduation, but not Mountain Brook High School’s Laney Smith. She’s headed to the heart of the Dominican Republic, where she will be embedded among the people of Sabana Grande de Boyá. It’s part of a mission trip with Medical Ministry International where she will help deliver both life-saving and routine medical care. Medical Ministry International helps deliver medical aid to more than half a million people each year through the organization’s health centers, project teams and residency training programs, according to its website. For two weeks, Smith will do her part to help deliver that aid, taking vitals from villagers, assisting in basic medical care and creating relationships. Smith’s grandfather, Dr. James “Jimbo” Smith, a retired surgeon, also will be part of the trip, helping deliver surgical aid in and around Sabana Grande. Dr. Smith travels to the Dominican Republic four times a year, according to Smith’s mother, Ashley. This will be Smith’s second trip to the Dominican Republic, where she said she hopes to only expand on her previous experience. Her first trip was with a mission trip the summer before her senior year. Smith said she first learned about the opportunity to participate in the mission trip after her older brother, George, went on the trip years ago. Because of her interest in both the medical field and in learning Spanish, Smith said the opportunity was too good to pass up. “It was definitely incredible,” Smith said of
VillageLivingOnline.com her first experience. “It was like nothing I had ever experienced before.” She only knew her grandfather during that first trip, but Smith said the people she met influenced the rest of her life. “The people I met made the experience so great,” she said. “It was inspiring to see them caring so much about what they were doing. They were out there every single day helping people in ways no one else can. It was truly eye-opening.” Along with her grandfather, the team Smith traveled with included doctors, dentists, nurses, medical students and other volunteers. Each day, Smith would accompany the team to a different village in the Sabana Grande de Boyá area where they would create a makeshift clinic in a school or church building. The team would treat patients for diabetes, the mosquito-borne Chikungunya viral disease and other ailments. A traveling pharmacy was crucial to the work performed, Smith said. “In some of the areas we visited, it’s not as easy as going to the CVS … to get the headache or long-term medicine they need,” she said. “The pharmacy was able to deliver medicine the people needed but had no access to.” The dentists on the team performed a large number of tooth extractions, Smith said. They also gave demonstrations and lectures on proper oral hygiene. Smith said she helped with duties such as taking vitals, giving talks on topics such as how to brush your teeth and how to remove parasites from water, along with other vital, daily tasks that would help ensure better overall health. Smith also worked to play with the patients’ children while parents received medical care, or so they could pay attention to health lessons. While Smith traveled with the team of doctors and dentists, Dr. Smith stayed behind at the local hospital, where he would perform surgeries including hernia, keloid scar, benign tumor and gallbladder removals. An OB-GYN on staff also performed a hysterectomy, Smith said. Dr. Smith and the other surgeons operated on patients who had been either referred to the clinic by the team or had heard about MMI’s work in the area and
September 2016 • A29
Smith, posing with children during her trip to the Dominican Republic, said she would eventually like to be involved with Doctors Without Borders.
made their way there on their own. “They did some pretty incredible things,” Smith said. When she travels back this summer, Smith said she’d like to spend more time working in the hospital. Though she loved working in the villages where she got to see all types of patients, Smith said she’d like to learn from her grandfather as he works in the field she hopes to soon pursue. “I’m definitely very interested in becoming a surgeon,” she said.
Smith, who has always been more of a numbers-and-science person in school, said the experience cemented her resolve to study medicine and become a surgeon so she can continue to deliver the type of medical aid she’s witnessed her grandfather and the team of doctors and dentists deliver. Along with returning to the Dominican Republic, Smith said she’d like to also travel to countries in South America where she can capitalize on her other passion: Spanish. Learning Spanish has always been an
interest, but Smith said her determination to master the language strengthened over her past summer abroad, where she used it every day to communicate. “I love Spanish, [I] have a passion for it. But it was this past summer when I really began to realize how crucial knowing Spanish can be in the medical field,” Smith said. “When I went to the Dominican Republic, I was able to see the point of learning it. It’s incredible to learn a different language and be able to communicate with people about something as important as their health.” If all goes to plan, Smith, who took AP Spanish in her last year at MBHS, will be fluent in the next few years. “I’d like to study abroad in South America when I’m in college,” she said. “I’m interested in going to Argentina, going to explore and to help assist.” Eventually, Smith said she’d like to become involved with Doctors Without Borders. “Instead of being a bystander, I could use skills I learned in medical school to help people,” she said. Her journey to medical school will begin in August, when she will travel to Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia. There, she hopes to double major in Spanish and neuroscience. Smith said she will also be part of the women’s soccer team — a sport she has been playing for as long as she can remember. On National Signing Day, Feb. 3, Smith signed her college commitment letter to play for Washington and Lee. “We’re really proud of her development,” said Birmingham United Soccer Association coach Andrew Brower. “I couldn’t be happier for her for just doing a great job and continuing to get better.” MMI was founded in 1968 and works in more than 23 countries. In 2014, the organization provided health care services worth more than $170 million to 668,475 people throughout the world who typically would have had limited or no access to medical services, the organization’s website said. For more information, visit medicalministrytrips.org.
A30 • September 2016
Village Living
Left: A laying of the wreath and a bell ceremony,seen here during the Sept. 11, 2013, Patriot Day ceremony in Mountain Brook, will be part of the planned schedule during this year’s ceremony. Right: Mountain Brook Fire Chief Chris Mullins along with his daughter, Abrielle Mullins, a rising country singer. During the Sept. 11, 2013, Patriot Day ceremony, Abrielle sang the national anthem. Photos courtesy of the Mountain Brook Police Department.
PATRIOT DAY
CONTINUED from page A1 Mullins, who became chief following the retirement of former Chief Robert “Zeke” Ezekiel, said the cities discussed the possibility of hosting the event on another day this year since Sept. 11 falls on a Sunday, but decided against it. “We felt it was important to reflect on that day,” he said. Patriot Day is important “because the next generation will learn from it,” Natter said. “Hopefully, they will ask their parents why are we doing this and what happened. They can learn a lesson from the past and carry it forward.” Natter grew up in Trussville and Homewood, graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in
1962 and retired from the Navy in 1998 after service on active duty and in the reserves. Like most Americans, Natter recalls “very vividly” where he was when he heard about the attacks — driving to work downtown on I-65. He said his “immediate concern” was his three daughters, two of whom were in the Navy and one of whom worked for the FBI in San Francisco. Natter’s younger brother, U.S. Navy Admiral Robert J. Natter, was serving as Commander of the U.S. Atlantic Fleet. It was a shock for Natter when he heard about the attack on the Pentagon, where he had recently worked. “The office I occupied about two years earlier… was right above the ones where the plane hit,” he said. “There were a lot of personal emotions, because I knew a lot of people involved.”
In fact, Natter learned later he had served at the Pentagon with at least one of the passengers killed on the airliner that was flown into the facility. Immediately after 9/11, Natter returned to duty for a few weeks with his unit at a U.S. Navy headquarters in London, England, serving as Deputy of Resources and Readiness. “It was a busy time,” he said. Patriot Day rotates each year between the three cities. The host city, explained Mullins, is in charge of organizing the main details, while the other cities provide personnel and equipment. As in years past, Vestavia Hills will provide the large American flag set to be raised above the crowd using ladder trucks. Area residents, as well as off and on-duty firemen and police officers, are invited to attend.
The event will honor those lost in the attacks during a 45-minute program that will include a wreath laying, a bell ceremony and a moment of silence at the exact time two airliners struck the World Trade Center towers in New York. Events like 9/11 are important “because they had an impact on our history, our lives, our children and our future,” Natter said. “They impact how we go forward. Hopefully, we learn from some of these incidents and they will never be repeated.” In his remarks at Patriot Day, Natter said he will ask attendees “to remember where they were (on 9/11) and ask them what they’ve done to remind their children of what occurred and ask them why the United States is in the state of preparedness it is in today.”
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Village Living B Mountain Brook firefighter shares experience as 9/11 volunteer SECTION
School House B6 Sports B13
Calendar B22
SEPTEMBER 2016
By ANA GOOD
Sgt. Patrick Weeks traveled to Manhattan to volunteer at Ground Zero after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Photos courtesy of Sgt. Patrick Weeks.
Sgt. Patrick Weeks remembers the sights and sounds as if it happened yesterday. Standing on top of “the pile” at Ground Zero in Manhattan 15 years ago, Weeks recalls the hand. “It was sticking straight up,” he said. “The fingers were cold to the touch and weren’t moving.” Weeks, who has been a firefighter and paramedic for more than 20 years, said he has seen his share of tragedy, car wrecks and dead bodies. Something about that man’s hand, however, stopped him in his tracks and stayed with him forever. “He had a wedding ring on,” Weeks said. “I don’t know why, but that sight disturbed me so badly.” As Weeks and other firefighters worked to uncover the man’s remains, he spotted his blue jacket. The man had been a Port Authority officer. “I knew there were families everywhere thinking, ‘Where’s my husband, my dad, my brother?’ And there I was right by this gentleman knowing I couldn’t call his family to let them know,” he said. Weeks, who celebrated 18 years with the Mountain Brook Fire Department this August, had at the time also been working with the Warrior Fire Department. On the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, Weeks had returned home from a shift
with Warrior to an empty house. Newly married and with a newborn son, Weeks nestled on the couch while his wife and son were at the daycare where she worked. “I didn’t turn the TV on or anything,” he said. “It was quiet, so I just closed my eyes.” Weeks said he wasn’t asleep for long before his phone rang. It was his mother, frantically sobbing on the other end. “I thought someone had a heart attack or had died,” Weeks said. “My mom asked what I thought about what was happening.” When Weeks told her he didn’t know what she meant, she told him to turn on the TV. “She said it didn’t matter what channel I turned it to, just to cut it on,” he said. As the images focused on the scene, Weeks realized one of the World Trade Center towers had been hit by an airplane. At first, like most everyone else, Weeks believed it to be a tragic accident. He watched as the second plane hit. “That sunk in real slow,” he said. “I can’t explain what it was like to see that. It was impossible to believe that something that big had just happened.” As the news continued to trickle in, Weeks, along with the rest of the world, began to piece everything together. Sitting is his Alabama home, he watched as different screens popped up: The Pentagon had been hit. A plane had
See FIREFIGHTER | page B12
B2 • September 2016
Village Living
VillageLivingOnline.com
September 2016 • B3
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B4 • September 2016
Village Living
Kick MS kickball tournament raises more than $15,000
By SHAY ALLEN
Mountain Brook Junior High students participated in the third annual Kick MS kickball tournament Sunday, Aug. 14. Photos by Shay Allen.
More than 100 Mountain Brook Junior High students showed up on Aug. 14 to help “Kick MS.” A total of 139 kids and 14 teams participated in the third annual Kick MS kickball tournament at Mountain Brook High School, which was up from the 98 students who participated in the 2015 tournament. Each year, the tournament raises money and awareness for multiple sclerosis, and this year’s tournament brought in around
$15,818.63 as of Monday, Aug. 15. Mary Emily Yancey, operations administrator for the Alabama-Mississippi Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, said that number is likely to increase, as there are still a few fundraising checks outstanding. The kickball teams were captained by the 14 freshman members of the Spartan Council, and rising ninth-graders participated. For more information about the local National Multiple Sclerosis Society chapter, go to nationalMSsociety.org/alc.
We are excited to announce that our Village Dermatology 280 location will be moving to The Village at Lee Branch, which is conveniently located right off Highway 280. We invite you to stop by our new place, and check out our new spacious and comfortable waiting area. We have the same medical-grade skincare products you love, and Dr. Curl will be seeing patients in this location every Tuesday and every other Thursday beginning September 1st. Don’t forget to join us for Transformation Tuesday on the first Tuesday of every month. Enjoy personal, one-on-one consults and special discounts on Botox, Dysport, Restylane, Sculptra and skincare products. Call today to RSVP and reserve your spot. Our New Address: The Village at Lee Branch 201 Doug Baker Blvd. Birmingham, AL 35242 205.877.9773 villagedermatology.net
Dr. Kristy Curl
VillageLivingOnline.com
September 2016 • B5
B6 • September 2016
Village Living
School House Annual Lancer Walk honors 6th-grade graduates of MBE The MBE 2016 graduating class was honored by the annual Lancer Walk on the last day of school. The 96 graduates walked through the halls of the school one last time. Students, faculty and staff lined the halls to cheer, high-five and say good bye to the sixth-grade students. The Lancer
Walk, chaired by Diana Browning and Lauren Burgess, ended in front of MBE at the flagpole where students released red and yellow balloons, danced to music, took plenty of selfies and enjoyed Doodles ice cream truck. – Submitted by Shaun Flynn.
Sixth-graders Bibb Albright, Mary Cooper, Ellie Ingram, Kate Savage and Lawsie Jolly enjoy their final day at MBE and Lancer Walk festivities. Photo by Shaun Flynn.
BWF gets new tech space This summer BWF wasn’t just developing opportunities outside. The generosity of the PTO enabled the school to continue investing in technology for robotics, coding, engineering and other science and mathematics-based opportunities throughout the school. The additional equipment and opportunities prompted a move to an even bigger space for more students to enjoy. A group of teachers spent time during the summer training on the new equipment and preparing the new space for students to enjoy when the school year begins. – Submitted by Kathleen Woodry. BWF students work in the new technology space. Photo courtesy of Kathleen Woodry.
VillageLivingOnline.com
September 2016 • B7
CES welcomes new faculty
Linda Dobbins Dance honors those who serve
Dancers from Linda Dobbins Dance in Mountain Brook celebrate patriotic week. Photo courtesy of Linda Dobbins
Julia Waldrum, Elizabeth Gwaltney, Katie Carter, Chelsea Summerrow, Sarah Neale Williams and Lauren Anson are Crestline’s new faculty members. Photo courtesy of Mary Evans.
Six new teachers joined the Crestline Elementary School faculty this year. Julia Waldrum has been teaching for three years in Atlanta, Georgia, and is pleased to join the second-grade team at Crestline. She graduated from Mountain Brook High School and received her undergraduate and graduate degrees from Auburn University. Sarah Neale Williams comes to Crestline with nine years of teaching experience. Although she grew up in Atlanta, she received her undergraduate and master’s degrees from the University of Alabama. Following graduation, Williams lived and taught in the Birmingham area for three years. For the past six years she taught fifth grade in an Atlanta private school. She is very excited to be back in Birmingham and thrilled to teach fifth grade reading at CES. The CES kindergarten team welcomes two new teachers this year. Chelsey Summerrow and Katie Carter both have three years of teaching experience. Summerrow grew up in
Alpharetta, Georgia, and graduated from the University of Alabama. Carter is a native of Alabama and attended Auburn University. Elizabeth Gwaltney has been providing speech and language services to children in the Birmingham area for 16 years. She is excited to officially join the Crestline family as a fulltime speech language pathologist serving both the elementary students and the preschool. Gwaltney received her bachelor’s degree from Auburn University and her master’s degree from the University of Montevallo, both in the area of communication disorders. Lauren Anson has been teaching for three years, and Crestline’s special education teachers are delighted to have her join their team. Anson received her bachelor’s degree in elementary education, as well as her master’s degree in early childhood special education from UAB. She is currently working to finish her Ed.S in autism spectrum disorders at UAB and will be graduating at the end of the summer. – Submitted by Mary Evans.
Linda Dobbins Dance once again celebrates patriotic week. The week teaches the dancers about being thankful for our armed forces and our first responders. Each year they celebrate with patriotic music and a cookie bake for a branch of service. This year the dancers baked over
2,000 homemade cookies for the Mountain Brook fire department. They also made a music video featuring a few of their competition company dancers and the Mountain Brook fire department. – Submitted by Linda Dobbins.
The Bend gives back As the 2016-2017 school year kicks off, planning is in full swing for the school’s Community Awareness Committee’s goal of nine months of giving. The committee partners with the CBS sixth-grade service club, Chief’s Hands, who throughout the year formulates their ideas, presents their plan to administration and then executes the drive to benefit their selected charities. Other organizations that the Community Awareness Committee plans to make an impact on include: The Community Food Bank, YWCA Santa’s Workshop, pop tops for Ronald McDonald House, Smack Out
Cancer, Blue Bag snacks, Birmingham Reads and two Chief’s Hands projects that will be developed. – Submitted by Christina Smith.
B8 • September 2016
Village Living
Mountain Brook Debate team wins big at National Speech and Debate Tournament In June, the Mountain Brook debate team spent a week competing in the prestigious National Speech and Debate Tournament in Salt Lake City, Utah. The team scored highest in the newest division: middle school debate. The team took home semifinalist awards in both public forum and Lincoln-Douglas debate. In policy debate the team advanced to quarterfinals. Marielle Cornes and Harrison Hitson worked together in public forum while Chloe Kinderman and Ben Harris competed in the Policy Division. Pavel Shirley struck out on his own as a solo debater in Lincoln-Douglas. In the high school Lincoln-Douglas rising senior John Martin Weed made it past preliminary rounds and was eventually named one of the top 40 debaters in the nation.
A year ago the MBJH debate team was nonexistent, but over the past season the junior high debate program merged with the Mountain Brook High School program to compete at tournaments from Washington, D.C, to Los Angeles. The combined team was a force to be reckoned with on the national stage. The MBJH team went on to win the Junior High School of Excellence award for most wins in debate rounds. The Mountain Brook debate team had no plans to rest after their victory at nationals. Instead, the debaters planned to attend summer debate camps across the country in order to keep their skills sharp and develop new strategies for next year. – Submitted by Monica Sargent.
First row, from left: Theo Simonton, Fletcher Nunnelley, Emily Bebenek. Second row: Ben Harris, Jeff Schultz, Marielle Cornes, Harrison Hitson. Third row: John Paul Butrus, Pavel Shirley, Elizabeth Wood Weas, Griffin Darden, Chloe Kinderman. Photo courtesy of Monica Sargent.
BWF develops outdoor space This past summer, with the help of the PTO, Lowbird Outdoors and B.L. Harbert Construction, the BWF Rangers took the first steps in developing an exciting outdoor learning space for the school. The students expressed an interest in creating more hands-on learning opportunities outside, and a teacher committee spent the spring working with the Alabama Wildlife
Federation to design a space that would meet a variety of needs. The first steps were clearing space and building some planter boxes for the students to work in during the school year. Thanks to such support, BWF was able to take the first steps toward realizing the goal of another incredible opportunity for the students. – Submitted by Kathleen Woodry.
Some of the team that worked on the outdoor space this summer. Photo courtesy of Kathleen Woodry.
VillageLivingOnline.com
New preschool program at CES
Crestline Elementary School recently welcomed a preschool classroom into the family. This program is modeled after the Special Opportunities Preschool Programs at Mountain Brook Elementary and Brookwood Forest, and is designed for children 3 to 5 years old who are eligible for special education services, as well as typically developing peer models. Claire Lamkin is the teacher of the preschool class at CES. Claire has a BS and MA in early childhood special education from Auburn University and has taught special education at Crestline for the past six years. Lankin’s amazing team includes Elizabeth Gwaltney, a speech and language pathologist, Amy Dern, an occupational therapist, and Lynn Spicer, an experienced educational support staff member. The class consists of 11 students, including three sets of twins. “Lamkin’s Little Cougars,” as Lankin affectionately calls them, have already won the hearts of their new school family. – Submitted by Mary Evans.
September 2016 • B9
MBE presents its 2016-17 PTO board MBE will be led by a fabulous group of volunteers this school year. President Kristy Parrott stated, “We are looking forward to another exciting year at MBE! We have an amazing new playground that we will celebrate with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the beginning of the school year. We will continue our regular fundraising events, plus a Fall Festival and Spring Fun Run. We are thrilled to work with Principal McCombs and Vice Principal Aaron to help bring our MBE community together to celebrate all the great things that happen at our school every day.” – Submitted by Shaun Flynn.
Pictured left to right are Emily Lassiter, Parliamentarian; Paige Drew, VP Fund Development; Bragan Petrey, President-Elect; Katie Morrow, VP Communications; Kristy Parrott, President; Lydia Pursell, VP Events; Suzanne Perkins, Secretary; Ashley Blomeyer, VP Technology; Mary Virginia Mandell, VP Volunteers; Hill Weathers, Treasurer-elect; Not pictured is Angel Finch, Treasurer.
MBE boys enjoy Samford basketball camp In addition to traditional summer camps, many MBE students participated in a variety of sports camps at local and regional colleges around the state, including Samford, Birmingham-Southern, University of Alabama and Auburn University. These camps offer children a firsthand glimpse of college life, and the discipline and skill necessary to compete at that level. – Submitted by Shaun Flynn.
MBE boys at Samford basketball camp, from left Sam, Charlie and Whitmore Smith, Robert Flynn, Andrew Hanson and Cowan Moorer.
B10 • September 2016
Village Living
Crestline places in top 20 at Global Destination Imagination Tournament A group of fourth-grade students from Crestline Elementary recently competed in the Global Destination Imagination Tournament in Knoxville, Tennessee. Wiley Cooper, Patton Hahn, James Hard, Frederic Smith and Banks Tessier made up the group named the Meme Team. The Meme Team is the first team from Mountain Brook to compete at the Global level in the Destination Imagination Tournament. The team was led by Heather Phillips, a PAGE teacher at Crestline Elementary. The Meme Team won both the regional as well as the state competition in their category to qualify for Globals. Over 20 countries and 8,000 students competed in the Global Competition. The Meme Team ranked Top 20 in the Instant Challenge category, which is an “innovation under pressure” task. They competed against teams from around the world as they were required to engage in quick, creative and critical thinking. The challenge was given in a private room with judges and no time for preparation
as the group worked within a time constraint to deliver the best possible solution. The Meme Team also fared very well in the Meme Event, where they presented their solution to a community need. The Meme Team worked hard during the school year to create a “Maker Cart” that is used during Exploration time by the fourth-grade classes at Crestline Elementary. The Maker Cart was created by the group to inspire innovation and includes many functional items like batteries, wires, lightbulbs, pipe cleaners, Legos and straws to name a few. The Meme Team created online tutorials accessible during Exploration time to teach students how to use the Maker Cart to make lightbulbs light, to make motors move, and how to use the items in general to create individual masterpieces from ordinary items. The Maker Cart will be used for years to come at Crestline Elementary, and the opportunity to compete in the Global Destination Imagination Tournament was an experience
From left: Wiley Cooper, Heather Phillips, Patton Hahn, Banks Tessier, James Hard and Frederic Smith. Photo courtesy of Shauna Hard.
like no other. The Destination Imagination mission is to develop opportunities that inspire the global community of learners to utilize diverse
New class of Leadership Mountain Brook introduced, congratulated Students in the new class of Leadership Mountain Brook were able to introduce themselves to city leaders at a start of the year reception. This is the sixth year of the Leadership Mountain Brook program, which Mayor Terry Oden helped launch. Amber Benson, sponsor of Leadership Mountain Brook, said this year’s class of students all had excellent interviews. The 20 members of the 2016 class were selected from a pool 30 students who filled out their applications and underwent the interview. “I was extremely impressed,” Benson said of the student interviews, “and it was a hard, hard decision to make for the interview panel.” Oden said he was glad to see a new class of
Leadership Mountain Brook students, and said he believed the students would reap lifelong benefits from what they learned over the next several months. “We consider y’all the crème de la crème of Mountain Brook students,” he said. Officials from all of the city departments introduced themselves to the students, and then students were given the opportunity to introduce themselves and share what they were excited to accomplish this year. Students said they look forward to learn more about the community, see what happens behind the scenes, make a difference, work together and to see their ideas come to life. “Congratulations to you,” said Superintendent
Dicky Barlow. “You’re going to benefit from this so much, and we’re going to benefit from your ideas.” Students in this year’s class include: Kendall Alby, senior; Lane Berry, junior; Mary Frances Bloodworth, senior; Jennings Briley, senior; Matthew Bullock, senior; Will Bundy, junior; Fredda Cardwell, junior; Gracie Carmichael, senior; Isabella DeGaris, junior; Emily Ferguson, senior; Madison Gaston, senior; Sarah Gladney, junior; Caroline Goings, junior; Mary Louise Howland, junior; Sarah Hydinger, junior; Jonathan Jones, junior; Rose Levine, senior; Lily Rucker, senior; Noelle Thrasher, junior; Virginia Winn, senior.
approaches in applying 21st century skills and creativity. – Submitted by Shauna Hard.
NOTICE OF NON-DISCRIMINATION The Mountain Brook school system does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability, sexual orientation, or age in any of its programs and activities, or in matters of employment, and provides equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups. It is against the policy of the Mountain Brook Board of Education to have different rules or regulations on the basis of sex in employment, including recruitment, hiring classification, and other terms, conditions or privileges of employment. The Board, in accordance with Title IX (20 U.S.C. S1681, et seq.), strictly prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex or gender in its programs or activities, or any matters of employment. The prohibition includes sexual harassment based on sex, sexual assault, as defined by law and Board policy. Sexual harassment and sexual assault complaints should be filed and reviewed under the Board’s sexual harassment policies (G-32, J-49). All other complaints under Title IX will be filed and reviewed according to the Board’s general complaints and grievance procedures (G-34, J-41). The Superintendent is authorized and directed to designate a Title IX Coordinator, whose duties will include, but not be limited to receiving and responding to Title IX inquiries and complaints. The following persons have been designated to handle inquiries regarding nondiscrimination policies: Dr. Dale Wisely-Director of Student Services (Title VI); Dr. Susan Cole-Director of Personnel (Title IX); Dr. Missy Brooks-Director of Instruction (Title II); Mrs. Shannon Mundy-Special Education Director (Section 504). Contact Information: 32 Vine Street, Mountain Brook, AL 35213, 205-871-4608.
VillageLivingOnline.com
September 2016 • B11
‘Ultimate tailgate party’ Boiling N’ Bragging goes on despite rain, stormy skies By JESSE CHAMBERS Boiling N’ Bragging, an annual benefit for the Children’s of Alabama Critical Care Transport program, is billed as “the ultimate football season kick-off tailgate party.” And the party went on as scheduled in the parking lot near Otey’s Tavern in Crestline for the eighth year on Saturday night despite stormy skies and steady rain. At least 300 attendees showed up at the shopping center to support a good cause, hear live music, talk college football with fans of their schools and others, and eat great food – including hamburgers, hot dogs and a low-country boil with corn, shrimp, sausage and potatoes. Most attendees avoided the rain by huddling under the tents set up for a dozen colleges – including Alabama, Auburn, UAB and Troy State – or by retreating to the shopping center’s covered breezeways to eat and talk with friends. But they seemed to be “enjoying the night,” said Mary Jean Sanspree, spokesperson for Rotary District 6880, which has 53 clubs in North Alabama and sponsors the event with Otey’s, Children’s, Charter Spectrum and Waste Management. “It hasn’t deterred them from eating the shrimp,” Sanspree added, laughing. Jack Monroe, an Alabama fan from Shelby County, was sitting at a table in a light rain eating the low-country boil. He said he enjoyed “the food, the beer and just seeing everybody having a good time.” “One thing most Alabama people love is football,” said Kristen Gardner, a UAB cheerleader. “It’s cool that these people can come out to support a great cause and wear their different colors and get ready for football season.”
Cassie, Carsyn and Clark Whitaker show off their Auburn spirit during Boiling N’ Bragging on Aug. 20. Photo by Shay Allen.
Hoover resident Jason Bryant was working at the Auburn tent, along with other members of the Greater Birmingham Auburn Club. “You get to see a lot of people and socialize, and you get to see people from the other schools and talk about the upcoming football season and help a great cause,” he said. Arnold Mooney – an Alabama state representative from District 43 in Shelby County and a member of the North Shelby/Inverness Rotary Club that originated the fundraiser – said that working in the Legislature has helped show him
the importance of the cause. “We’re always trying to find ways to fund programs, so anything we can do locally to help spread the funds out is good, and transport is a huge issue,” Mooney said. “Critical care is important.” Rotarians locally have gotten to know the members of the Critical Care Transport team, according to Sanspree. “That means a lot to us to know the people who are actually going out and helping the children,” she said. One of those personnel is Michael Rogers, a
Critical Care Transport flight nurse. “I’ve been transporting kids for over 20 years,” he said. “I can’t imagine doing anything else. Kids are so innocent. Kids can’t control what happens to them.” The Critical Care Transport team includes nurses and respiratory therapists and transports more than 1,000 children each annually, according to childrensal.org. Lance Taylor from WJOX-FM served as emcee; singer and guitar player Sean Heninger provided the music.
B12 • September 2016
Village Living
Photos courtesy of Sgt. Patrick Weeks.
FIREFIGHTER
CONTINUED from page B1 gone down in Pennsylvania. On the phone with his mother, Weeks discussed the events. “It was terrorism,” he said. “They are coming for us on our dirt.” As Weeks watched the first tower collapse, he at first had trouble processing it. “That tower was built to withstand hurricanes, strong winds,” he said. “We thought it was indestructible.” As the cloud of rubble, dust and debris crumbled, Weeks shifted his thoughts to those inside. “The first thing that popped into my mind were my firefighter brothers,” he said. “As firefighters, we have a bond that is unknown to anyone else. It doesn’t matter if we’ve never met; we have each other’s backs.” Thinking logically, like he is trained to do, Weeks said he knew right away the odds were not in their favor. “I immediately thought of how many firefighters had died when the towers collapsed,” he said. “It’s mathematically impossible to survive that.” As he collected his thoughts, the firefighter in
him took over. Weeks made a call to his chief in Warrior, Fire Chief Clay Neely, and asked what could be done. “Before I could even finish getting the words out, chief said he was already working on a plan,” Weeks said. Days later, Weeks, along with firefighters Nick Burns, Chris Hardin and Chief Neely, were on their way to New York in a van donated by locals and filled to the top with what firefighting equipment they could fit. “We didn’t know what they would ask us to do when we arrived,” Weeks said. “But we wanted to do what we could — from handing out water [and] cooking for the other firemen to helping locate bodies.” The van, full of Alabama men and equipment, pulled up to the roped off area in the early morning hours of Sept. 13, Weeks said. “All you could do is look over and see this amazing ball of smoke traveling for miles,” he said. “I got the sickest feeling because I knew that’s where I was headed. At the time, no one knew what was going to happen, what else would happen, but we couldn’t worry about those things then.” Less than 45 minutes after pulling up to the scene, Weeks said he and his men were whisked through the crowd of others who had gathered
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to volunteer. “I can’t explain why they chose us,” he said. “But it was like God had a purpose for us.” When Weeks saw “the pile” for the first time, reality hit. “I was only about 23 years old at that point,” he said. “I was a relatively young buck. I was scared to death, but ready to get started. I wanted so badly to help find people and pull them out of that rubble.” For five days, Weeks helped with search and rescue, lifting and moving pieces of debris oneby-one so as to not further injure anyone who might still be alive. “It looked like a giant ant hill,” he said. “People were all over it, but looked so small in comparison to the rubble. I never saw the other half of it.” The size of the debris meant some recovery efforts were not immediately possible. Worried that large machinery could further injure survivors, Weeks and the others were asked to paint an orange letter “X” in a spot where they had found a complete body that was unrecoverable at that time. They painted a green “X” when they found a body part. “You think, as a fireman, you’d be ready to see that type of thing,” Weeks said. “But it was hard to swallow, difficult to fathom what we saw.”
When he first started digging, Weeks said he had illusions of finding person after person. “I’d like to say it was that way, but I can’t,” he said. When they did find someone, however, Weeks said everything went silent. “They would send the body bag over, drape an American flag over it and pass it down the line ever so gently,” he said. “It was an amazingly honorable thing to witness. Time stood still.” Weeks said he and the men he was with worked for as long as they could before it was time to head home. Hearing the announcement that the search-and-rescue mission had become a recovery-only mission cemented that reality for them, he said. Throughout the five days, Weeks said he encountered wives of firefighters draped in their husbands’ backup uniforms desperate for answers. He held a retired firefighter who had worked his way to Ground Zero in an effort to find his missing firefighter son. He saw giant fire engines smashed like beer cans and too many missing persons posters to count. But above all, Weeks said he saw the spirit of the American people like he had never seen before. “America pulled together that day,” he said, “and won.”
VillageLivingOnline.com
September 2016 • B13
Sports
Youth football program reaping benefits for all ages By KYLE PARMLEY
Will Wetzler, now a senior at MBHS, said “the bond is great” with his teammates. Photo courtesy of Ben Breland.
Many youth recreational football programs consider it a good year when they can field a single team at each age group and send those teams across the area to play against other teams and programs in a similar position. At Mountain Brook Athletics, there’s a different story. The city’s youth football program has enough kids sign up to play football every year, that multiple teams can be formed within each age group and a league created within itself. “It’s Mountain Brook playing Mountain Brook, and what that does, that gets more people involved,” said Chris Yeager, head coach of the Mountain Brook High School football program. Tackle football begins in the third grade for most Mountain Brook kids, and Yeager said there is not much fall off through seventh grade, when the ones still playing transition to Mountain Brook Junior High School. “Once they get to our seventh grade, we end up with 90-plus kids a year,” Yeager said. “That’s where it all starts and people start asking questions. The only thing I can attribute it to is the way we’ve got our structure of our program.” Levi Fingerman played for Yeager in the early 2000s, and has coached a third-grade youth team for the past few years. Family obligations are preventing him from coaching this year, but he’s noticed a trend among the coaches in the youth program. In last year’s third-grade championship game, all four coaches, two for each team, played football at the high school. Fingerman said alumni have been welcomed back by Yeager, are invited to practices and
scrimmages and encouraged to ask questions about the younger teams they help coach. Yeager said, “They may come to practice and they’ll say, ‘Coach, I’m trying to get my line to block (the) power (run play). Can you help me with that?’” The strength of a self-sustained youth league is still apparent when looking at the current high school team. Out of the 502 male students at Mountain Brook High, 133 of them play football, a 26% percent participation rate. The current team also consists of more than 40 seniors. Both of those numbers are easily some of the top in the state of Alabama, and Yeager believes that starts at the beginning. “If the groups are very close and there’s a strong personality within that group as far as a youth league coach or parent that keeps them all together, then that group most of the time will be successful,” he said. Will Wetzler, a senior linebacker for the Spartans who started playing in third grade, said “the bond is great” with teammates, due to how long they have competed with and against each other throughout the years. Wetzler has also benefited a great deal from the fact that Yeager’s high school system has bled into the youth programs. “What we do on defense and offense is extremely complex,” Yeager said. “The sooner that we can get them bits and pieces of that, the more successful they’re going to be.” Wetzler said, “It’s helped me tremendously because you have an idea of what you’re going to do before you even talk with the coaches. You’re comfortable with it.” Mountain Brook Athletics is online at mbathletics.org. William Galloway contributed to this story.
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B14 • September 2016
Village Living
Depth key ingredient to Spartan boys success The Mountain Brook boys cross-country team will rely on a tight scoring split in 2016 By SAM CHANDLER
Mountain Brook junior Charlie Slaughter is the Spartans’ top returner. He broke 16 minutes for 5K in 2015. Photo by Sam Chandler.
At his team’s preseason time trial on Aug. 1, Mountain Brook High School head cross-country coach Michael McGovern got a glimpse of what 2016 could hold for his Spartan boys. Fresh off a summer of training, McGovern’s top 10 runners completed the 2-mile trial course within 30 seconds of one another—an incredibly tight time gap considering the balmy circumstances. “That’s going to be the strength of our team, is our split,” McGovern said. “Obviously, up front we’re returning two All-State guys, but our strength is going to be a really tight split from one to five, and obviously it goes all the way back from one to 10 and even back to 15.” The numbers speak for themselves. In a sport where team success is frequently determined by the performance of its fourthand fifth-best runners, Mountain Brook’s immense depth could tilt the championship scale in its favor this fall. “It’s really exciting to see,” senior Ryan Kirk said. “With the talent we have, the work ethic we have, I mean, it could be impressive.” The Spartans last captured a state title in 2011, but have fallen shy the past four seasons. In 2015, the team missed out on a Class 7A blue trophy by only eight points, as threetime defending champion Auburn High School clinched a narrow victory, 54-46. “That loss to Auburn last year is our motivating factor,” senior Spencer Hinson said. “That’s definitely fueling our flame.” Mountain Brook returns nine of its top 11 runners from last season’s runner-up squad, and all have clocked 5K times under 17 minutes. Charlie Slaughter, a junior, and Gram Denning, a sophomore, both earned All-State recognition at the 2015 state meet, and McGovern said
VillageLivingOnline.com the pair is likely to emerge as the team’s front-running tandem this fall. Slaughter holds a personal best of 15 minutes, 55.12 seconds, and Denning has run 16:13. “Charlie was a contributor his freshman year, but he really stepped up last year, and Gram, last year was really his first year on varsity,” McGovern said. “I think that experience is really going to pay off, and I think they’re not going to be afraid to take anybody on.” But it’s the depth behind the duo that should make the biggest difference for the Spartans in 2016. Kirk, Hinson and fellow senior Griffin Riley will contend for spots in the Spartans’ scoring five, as will sophomores Hunter Harwell and Joseph Pitard. Juniors Jack Wedge and John Galloway should also be in the mix. “It’s going to be intimidating in November when we have 10 faster people than most people’s five fastest,” Kirk said. Riley, who has run 16:24 for 5K, said he thinks that the Spartans are capable of posting a one-to-seven split of less than a minute—a bold, but plausible, prediction. McGovern said his team’s abundance of talent provides it with a flurry of advantages. If somebody develops an injury or has a bad race, McGovern has other runners ready to step up and fill the void. Additionally, he said the prevalence of green and gold toward the front of a race can wreak havoc on an opponent’s mental fortitude. “I think the mental aspect of just the other teams seeing 10 of our guys right around their fifth, I mean, it’s devastating to the other team to see that many green jerseys,” McGovern said. The impact isn’t confined to race day, either. Riley said the depth of the group also pushes it to train at a higher level in practice. Among members of the Spartans’ lead contingent, that’s means there aren’t
September 2016 • B15 many easy days. “We’re all competitive, so if one guy is having a really good day, he’s going to drag the whole pack along to train harder,” Riley said. “There’s never really a relaxed day unless we’re meaning to have a relaxed day.” According to the team’s three seniors, that type of collective effort has already set the tone for the season. Riley, Kirk and Hinson said that the 2016 Mountain Brook boys team shares a tighter bond than in years past. As a result, they said the primary focus this fall will be on putting the team first, while also placing more of an emphasis on having fun and enjoying the training process. “We’re racing for our team, for Mountain Brook, not for any one individual,” Kirk said. “I think as long as we all understand that, which I think we do, we’ve got really cool things to look forward to.” McGovern said he expects it to be a special year of training and racing for his Spartan squad, especially since it’s adopted a group focus so early in the season. Team members, he said, have done a good job at striking a balance between being teammates and being friends. McGovern said that it’s typically harder for his runners to be good teammates than it is to be good friends, because good teammates will be there until the very end of a race and won’t hesitate to call out their peers for slacking. Sometimes, McGovern said, it’s much more difficult to tell a friend to pick up the pace. “They’ve found that balance of being good teammates and good friends already very early, which is pretty rare,” McGovern said. “They know they can count on one another, and they’re willing to hurt for each other.” The Mountain Brook cross-country teams will make their 2016 season debut on Thursday, Sept.1, at the Thompson High School 2 Mile Invitational.
Volleyball team set for 3 tournaments in September Mountain Brook participates in three tough tournaments this month to prepare for area play. Photo by Kyle Parmley.
By KYLE PARMLEY The Mountain Brook High School volleyball team wasted no time testing itself at the beginning of the 2016 season. The Spartans, the twice reigning Class 7A state champions, got the season started with a challenging tri-match against McGill-Toolen and Hoover on Aug. 25. The three teams were ranked Nos. 2-4 in the preseason 7A Alabama Sports Writers Association poll. Mountain Brook was one of 40 teams to participate in the Juanita Boddie Tournament Aug. 26-27, hosted at Hoover High School. The month of September does not make things much easier for the Spartans, as the varsity squad participates in three tournaments, along with beginning Class 7A, Area 6 play on Sept. 20. The Spartans travel to John Carroll Sept. 1, followed by a trip to Huntsville for the alwaystough Ironman Tournament. Vestavia Hills, Thompson and James Clemens
visit Mountain Brook over the next two weeks, Sept. 8, 13 and 15, respectively. The Rally High tournament is slated for Sept. 17, in Emerson, Georgia. Approximately 35 teams will participate in the inaugural tournament at the new 24-court facility at LakePoint Sporting Community. Those top-tier tournaments are scheduled to help the Spartans prepare for what coach Haven O’Quinn calls the most important part of the schedule. “Our area’s going to be stronger this year than it’s been in the past,” she said. “We have to focus on that and we can’t 100 percent not be thinking about that until that part’s done.” A trip to Spain Park opens area play, with the Jaguars expected to continue to improve under third-year coach Kellye Bowen. The Spartans conclude the month with a matchup at Hoover, a tournament in Lexington, Kentucky, and a tri-match against Bob Jones and Danville.
B16 • September 2016
Village Living
MOUNTAIN BROOK FOOTBALL: SEPTEMBER PREVIEW
4 region matchups on tap for Spartans in September By SAM CHANDLER When the Mountain Brook High School football team kicks off region play this month, head coach Chris Yeager said his team’s attention will be keyed in on one thing: itself. “The only thing you can control is yourself,” Yeager said. “I know every coach says that … you try to train yourself to focus on us. You just try to do better every day, control what you can control, and that’s what we’re doing.” Yeager said it’s the only approach his team can rely on, especially after a spate of tough breaks and unexpected injuries marred the Spartans’ 2015 season. Last fall, the team went 3-7 while accumulating a 1-6 record in Class 7A, Region 3 competition. Its woes included a 0-4 stretch during the month of September. “There’s so much parity in our region, and it’s so good from year-in to year-out,” he said. “Every year there are some good football teams sitting at home in the playoffs.” Mountain Brook was one of those teams last fall, but beginning this month, the Spartans will attempt to reverse their fortune. Mountain Brook opens Class 7A, Region 3 play when it travels to Hoover High School Sept. 2. The game at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium will be the first of four region matchups for the Spartans in September. Other opponents include Thompson, Spain Park and Tuscaloosa County. Mountain Brook began the season with a pair of non-region games against Gulf Shores and Helena. Last fall, Mountain Brook lost a hard-fought battle to then-top-ranked Hoover. The Spartans kept it close for much of the matchup, but a scoring drive late in the fourth quarter boosted the Bucs to a 21-14 victory.
The Spartans begin Region 3 play in September, looking to rebound from last season’s 1-6 region mark. Photo courtesy of Ben Breland.
Mountain Brook has lost seven of its past eight games against Hoover; its most recent triumph came in 2011. Up next, Mountain Brook will host Thompson Sept. 9. The 2015 meeting between the two teams yielded a near-identical result to the Spartans’ duel with Hoover: final-quarter defeat. After falling behind early, Mountain Brook persistently fought its way back into the game. Former quarterback Connor Adair threw a touchdown strike to wide receiver Sims Herron with less than five minutes left in regulation, tying the score at 14-14. The Warriors, however, scored a touchdown on the following possession to clinch a 21-14 victory. Prior to the defeat, Mountain Brook had won nine of its last 10 matchups against Thompson.
“You don’t make the number of mistakes that we did and win in this region,” Yeager said after the game. “As hard as the region is, it’s very unforgiving on this stage.” Following their home date with Thompson, the Spartans will play an away game at Spain Park Sept. 16. Even though Mountain Brook suffered a 21-7 loss to the Jaguars in 2015, the game provided then-sophomore quarterback Hamp Sisson valuable playing time. Sisson replaced Adair under center toward the end of the season, and he is now the Spartans’ full-time starter. “A 10th-grader should never have to start in our region.” Yeager said in regard to Sisson. “[This season] we’re going to see somebody that’s a lot more comfortable.” When inexperienced underclassmen are
thrust into a starting role, like Sisson was in 2015, Yeager said they have a tendency to focus solely on their own performance. But as the players gain experience and confidence, Yeager said they become more aware of their influence on the team as a whole. In 2016, he said he expects that to be the case with Sisson. “The big thing when you come into the game as a 10th-grader, just don’t get us beat. Do your job, and do only your job,” Yeager said. “Well, when you’re coming in now as a junior, that changes. You’ve got to make sure that the people around you — you’re a true leader — that they’re performing. When you step into the huddle, their play has got to elevate, and that’s what every great quarterback does, so I expect that type of leadership and that kind of impact and influence from Hamp this year.” The Spartans have an off week after traveling to Spain Park, but will return to action at home against Tuscaloosa County Sept. 30. Mountain Brook has won seven of its past eight matchups against Tuscaloosa County, and in 2015, the team’s lone region victory came against the Wildcats. Mason Dillard, the Spartans’ place-kicker, converted a game-winning field goal as time expired to give his team a 17-16 victory. The triumph secured Yeager’s 100th career win as a head coach. Yeager said he expects Dillard, along with long snapper Alex Pankey, to be assets throughout the season. “As much as they’ve worked together, that brings me quite a bit of comfort,” Yeager said. “It’s all about reps, and those two together have had quite a few. I think they’re going to perform and have a great year this year.”
VillageLivingOnline.com
2016
September 2016 • B17
INSIDE Highlands school ..............b18
indian springs school .......b19
The altamont School .... B20
Advent episcopal ........... B21
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Spring valley school .... B21
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B18 • September 2016
Village Living
HIGHLANDS SCHOOL
KEY FACTS • • • •
In 1958, Highlands School was founded by educator, civic leader and philanthropist, Evalina Brown Spencer. And, every bit as important today as it was in the school’s founding years, our school’s culture embraces the living principle that children learn and grow best in a supportive community, where each student is inspired and motivated by a successful and meaningful early education experience. Highlands School is an independent school distinguished by our diversity and a commitment to academic achievement, creative expression and leadership development. We prepare and motivate students to thrive and make positive differences in a constantly-changing, global world.
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Highlands’ education of the whole child is unsurpassed. The in-depth instruction in music, art and foreign language is an uncommon gift to our children. Friends and relatives express amazement at students’ knowledge of subjects such as music theory and history, art history and technique, and three foreign languages.
ACADEMIC PHILOSOPHY
Highlands provides a seamless approach to learning that systematically builds on one success after another. Teachers challenge every student by matching high academic expectations with individual learning potential. Through quality time with teachers, open and respectful dialogue with each student’s parents, a richness of learning opportunities spanning academics, arts appreciation, physical education, character development and leadership development, each vital element of the Highlands program comes together to create a special learning environment at a most special time in a student’s life.
WHOLE CHILD APPROACH
We focus on the collective physical, social, emotional, creative and intellectual development of our students. We celebrate and encourage intellectual ability, creativity, problem solving, critical thinking, health and wellness, character development and community service.
LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT
Our students are prepared to thrive and make positive differences as future leaders in an ever-changing, global world. We focus on instilling the habits of success
GRADES: 4K-8 WHERE: 4901 Old Leeds Road CALL: 956-9731 WEB: highlandsschool.org
in every student and cultivate a school environment that encourages acceptance, appreciation, respect, and tolerance for all citizens of our school and global communities. Students have many opportunities to share their ideas and academic achievements through public speaking at weekly school community meetings, as well as multiple individual and collaborative group project presentations.
This positive and proactive approach to teaching students universally- accepted values and ethical behavior has been adopted by Highlands as The Six Pillars of Character. These Pillars have been identified by Michael Josephson, the founder of the Josephson Institute, and they include: trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and citizenship.
CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT
► Ranked on The Best Schools list of the Top 50 Private Elementary Schools in the United States. ► Our 3rd-8th graders are in the top 10
"The Highlands Way" is an integral part of everyday life in the Highlands School community.
WHY HIGHLANDS?
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ALUMNUS AND PARENT OF TWO HIGHLANDS STUDENTS
percent of all independent school students in ERB mathematics test scores and in the top 14 percent of all independent school students in ERB reading comprehension test scores. ► School-wide curriculum concentrated on 21st century skills that include collaboration, communication, global learning, critical thinking and problem solving.
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September 2016 • B19
indian springs school For more than 60 years, our threefold mission has set us apart: We seek to develop in students a love of learning, a sense of integrity and moral courage, and an ethic of participatory citizenship. Our motto, “Learning Through Living,” continues to resonate with students, faculty and more than 2,000 alumni. Indian Springs prepares students not just for college, but for the world. We start with talented, award-winning faculty who are committed to the highest standards of teaching, and we give them freedom to innovate. We then bring together a diverse group of just over 300 boarding and day students from across the street and around the world and give them the tools they need to learn to think critically, listen respectfully, seek creative solutions and make a difference in their community. Our programs spark imaginations, both inside the classroom and out. Alumnus and award-winning writer John Green ’95, author of “The Fault in Our Stars,” “Paper Towns” and “Looking for Alaska,” says he became a learner at Indian Springs because he found himself in a “community of learners.” Springs’ comprehensive core curriculum, AP classes, electives and limitless opportunities for independent study allow students to explore their individual interests while also challenging themselves intellectually and academically. Hailing from 10 countries and 13 states, our boarding and day students come together to create opportunities for new styles of learning, understanding and growth. Last year, Indian Springs celebrated the opening of 18 new classrooms made possible through gifts to the largest capital campaign in the school’s history, Springs Eternal. The classrooms feature 75-inch Clear Touch
KEY FACTS • GRADES: 8-12 • WHERE: 190 Woodward Drive, Indian Springs, AL • CALL: 988-3350 • WEB: experiencesprings.org
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Schools with a boarding component like [Indian] Springs are able to bring a wonderful mix of students to campus to learn together, and that diversity is a vital part of what the best schools in the country are offering.
”
HEAD OF SCHOOL DR. SHARON HOWELL
interactive learning panels to foster interactive learning and global connectivity. Springs is one of the first schools in Alabama to have the movable panels, which also allow students to take virtual classes through the select Malone Schools Online Network. Built for energy efficiency using eco-friendly materials, Springs’ new classrooms integrate seamlessly with the school’s beautiful, 350-acre campus, which was designed in the early 1950s by the celebrated landscape architecture firm the Olmsted Brothers.
Located just 15 minutes from downtown Birmingham, the campus features the school’s organic Fertile Minds Learning Garden, a 12-acre lake, biking and hiking trails and numerous opportunities for outdoor learning and recreation. Inspired by their surroundings, our students challenge themselves and put responsibility into practice by taking part in Springs’ distinctive student government, which works with faculty in a model of shared governance; by singing in the school’s acclaimed, 120-member Concert
Choir, which performs around the world; by pushing themselves to excel through Springs’ competitive athletic and scholastic teams; and by giving back through countless student-run clubs and service opportunities. The result: happy, creative, motivated young people who ask much of themselves, love learning, and look for ways to make a difference. We welcome you to visit and experience Springs for yourself.
SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION
B20 • September 2016
Village Living
THE ALTAMONT school Altamont is more than a school where talented, smart individuals gather together to learn. It is a community of caring, like-minded leaders who come together with the common goal to inspire, educate and encourage one another to reach full potential. At Altamont, we are preparing students to be good citizens; educating compassionate, curious, students; committed to producing wellrounded students; a rigorous school with strong core values; a family. We will encourage and support our students’ interests; graduate mature, enlightened students who are prepared for their life and career; prepare the next generation to be critical thinkers; do everything in our power to see your child succeed. We do this because we care; we believe in unending possibilities; we’re small, passionate and competitive; we believe in truth, knowledge and honor. Each day at Altamont, we strive to improve the fabric of society by graduating compassionate, educated individuals capable of independent thinking and innovative ideas. That is never more important than in today’s changing and fast-paced world. Preparing students for the world requires both balance and breadth, and this is where Altamont’s faculty stands out. No matter a student’s passion or strength, each one is nurtured and allowed to grow, mature and learn in a caring environment. We are confident that our students are articulate, passionate and ethically aware young people who will make a difference in the world, hold themselves to a higher standard and lead trustworthy lives. Altamont is a small family with socio-economic, ethnic and religious diversity, and our honor code is essential to the fulfillment of our mission. The school has an intensive college preparatory academic program with a
KEY FACTS • • • •
personalized college search program, including an annual college tour. And the school offers many opportunities for children to develop multiple talents by participating in arts, foreign language, leadership programs, community service, clubs, class projects, science competitions and sports — all at the same time.
We seek highly motivated students who crave greater breadth and challenge in all areas of school life. The school awards about $1 million in merit and need-based scholarships each year in order to attract the best, brightest and most diverse student body. Altamont’s main campus is on 28 acres on
GRADES: 5-12 WHERE: 4801 Altamont Road S. CALL: 879-2006 WEB: altamontschool.org
the crest of Red Mountain just south of downtown Birmingham. The main school building houses 40 classrooms, two science wings, a fine arts center, a student center, an art gallery and sculpture garden, a computer lab, a 14,000-volume library and special studios for chorus, art, photography and orchestra. The athletic facilities include two gymnasiums with basketball and volleyball courts and a weight room. The main campus offers six tennis courts, a soccer field and a track. A second campus provides another gymnasium as well as soccer, baseball and softball fields. Please join us for one of our Open Houses to learn more about our school, our students, our mission and what sets us apart.
SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION
VillageLivingOnline.com
September 2016 • B21
ADVENT EPISCOPAL SCHOOL
SPRING VALLEY SCHOOL
Since its establishment in 1950 in downtown Birmingham, Advent Episcopal School has built a national reputation for academic excellence. Offering 4-year-old kindergarten through eighth grade, Advent is a diverse community of bright children who excel in an environment that is safe, stable and enriching. Our graduates attend the most prestigious high schools in the country, well poised for the road ahead. As the only PK-8 school in downtown Birmingham, Advent is able to take advantage of the rich and extraordinary educational and cultural opportunities at our doorstep. Meaningful exposure to fine art, music, foreign language and critical thinking spurs intellectual curiosity amongst our students. Advent is small by design, even though our students come from 44 different zip codes. Every Advent student is known by name. They are challenged, celebrated for who they are, filled with wonder and have a willingness to learn.
Spring Valley School is an independent, nonsectarian school for students in grades 2-12 who struggle with dyslexia, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and other learning differences. It is the only accredited school in central Alabama devoted to impacting the lives of children with learning disabilities, and it serves children from all over the Birmingham area and beyond. Founded in 2000 by parents seeking better educational opportunities for their children, the school is a nonprofit organization governed by a board of directors. The school recognizes that the learning processes of these students differ from that of their peers and that each student possesses unique academic needs. As a result, the school offers a multi-sensory (visual, auditory and tactile), language-based instructional program presented in small classes (between five and nine students). Core beliefs include: ► A successful student sets academic goals and monitors progress in achieving them ► Students excel when they are actively involved in the learning process ► Students thrive when high expectations
KEY FACTS • GRADES: PK-8 • WHERE: 2019 6th Ave. N., Birmingham • CALL: 252-2535 • WEB: adventepiscopalschool.org
Passions, such as Chinese, chess and soccer are realized and fostered here. Advent is an extraordinary place to be.
DID YOU KNOW?
► 14 percent of students are residents of Mountain Brook ► 31 percent of faculty and staff are residents of Mountain Brook ► Recipient of the 2015-16 AISA President’s Award ► 2015-16 AISA Blue Ribbon School.
Start Here Go Anywhere
OPEN HOUSE
Sunday,October 2 2-4 p.m.
• Top AISA K-8 School in State • State Math Champions • Blue Ribbon School Winner • Representing 44 Zip Codes
advent episcopal school
AdventEpiscopalSchool.org 2019 6th Ave North
KEY FACTS • • • •
GRADES: 2-12 WHERE: 2701 Sydney Drive CALL: 423-8660 WEB: springvalleyschool.org
are coupled with opportunities to achieve academic success ► The curriculum must incorporate a variety of teaching strategies to accommodate various learning styles ► Students become good citizens by contributing to their community through leadership and service. Spring Valley School is accredited through AdvancED (formerly the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools). To learn more or to discuss admission, contact their administrative assistant at 423-8660 to set up an interview with the executive director and a tour of the school. Spring Valley School thanks the many donors who helped make their dream of a new building a reality!
B22 • September 2016
Village Living
Calendar High School Football Sept. 2: @ Hoover, 7 p.m.
Sept. 16: @ Spain Park, 7 p.m.
Sept. 9: vs. Thompson, 7 p.m.
Sept. 30: @ Tuscaloosa County, 7 p.m.
Birmingham Botanical Gardens Sept. 8: Caring for Caregivers. 9 a.m.-12 p.m. Speakers, brunch and door prizes. Email mterry@ upchuntsville.org or call 256-859-4900. Sept. 10: Introduction to Botany: The Science of Plants. 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Learn the fundamental concepts of botany. $80 members/$90 non-members. Sept. 10: Seasonal Series. 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Instructed by Hank Siegel. Learn how to create a seasonal series of landscapes/nature scenes. $65
members/$75 nonmembers. Sept. 13: Thyme to Read Book Club. 6 p.m. Discussing “Food: A Love Story” by Jim Gaffigan. Sept. 14: Lunch & Learn: All About Bulbs. 11:30 a.m. Speaker: Amanda Clark. Free. Sept. 28: Lunch & Learn: Transplanting and Caring. 11:30 a.m. Discover the techniques of planting, propagating or moving established plants in your yard. Free.
Emmet O’Neal Library Call 445-1121 or visit.eolib.org. Children - regular programming will resume in September.
Wednesdays: Mother Goose Story Time. 9:30 & 10:30 a.m. Wednesdays: Movers & Makers. 1:30 p.m.
Mondays: Toddler Tales Story Time. 9:30 & 10:30 a.m.
Thursdays: Patty Cake Story Time. 9:30 & 10:30 a.m.
Tuesdays: Library Out Loud. Go! 3:30 p.m.
Thursdays: SNaP. 3:30 p.m. Grades 3-6.
Saturdays: Family Story Time with Mr. Mac. 10:30 a.m. Teens (Grades 7-12 )- regular programming will resume in September.
Adults Wednesdays: Brown Bag Lunch Series. Doors open at noon and programs begin at 12:30 p.m. Bring a sack lunch; beverages and dessert provided.
LJCC Events Sept. 1: After School Music at the J. Private piano and guitar lessons. By appointment only. All ages welcome. $160 (MVP $140) per month for four half-hour lessons. $280 (MVP $260) per month for four one-hour lessons. Contact: Monika Singletary, M.O.R.E. Director, monika@ bhamjcc.org, or 205-510-9027. Sept. 1-2: Scholastic Book Fair. LJCC Main Lobby. All proceeds benefit the Cohn Early Childhood Learning Center, and provide new books for the preschool classrooms. Sept. 7: Lunch & Learn with the Rabbi. 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Free. Bring your lunch and come learn with one of our community faith leaders, Rabbi Robinson. Discussions cover an array of topics, and are meaningful and memorable. All are welcome. September 7 - Rabbi Robinson.
to play bridge or need some refreshing. Cost: $150 MVP/$175. Sep. 12-Nov. 4: Gotta Get Up to Get Down. Small group training program with a group and a trainer once a week. Team 1- Friday 5:30 a.m. Team 2- Tuesday 5:30 p.m. Price $195 (MVP) $225 (Reg). Mondays and Wednesdays beginning Sept. 12: 365 Junior Performance training. 3:45 p.m.-4:15 p.m. Grades 1st-3rd. 365 junior will allow kids to start developing and improving their athletic skills as well as learning proper technique during exercise. We will create a fun non-competitive environment. Price $75 month (MVP).
Sept. 11: “Defying the Nazis: The Sharps’ War” film shown at Unitarian Universalist Church of Birmingham. 7:30 p.m. Free and open to the public.
Sept. 12: OLLI of Greater Birmingham Presents: The Holocaust. 10:30 a.m. Each week, a different speaker from the Birmingham Holocaust Museum will cover a specific topic about this tragic time in our world’s history. Course continues on Sept. 19, 26, & Oct. 10. Visit olli. ua.edu.
Mondays, Sept. 12-Dec. 19: Beginning Bridge Lessons & Open Play. 3 p.m.-5 p.m. Taught by Clay Hall, who has played bridge for 40 years and taught for 20 years. This is a 12-week series for those interested in learning
Tuesdays, Sept. 13-Dec. 6: Intermediate Bridge Lessons. 10 a.m.-noon. This is a 12-week course for those who have taken the beginning bridge class. Cost for the book is $20 and may be purchased from the teacher. Cost:
VillageLivingOnline.com $150MVP/$175. Register online. Sept. 13: ASO Coffee Concert Trip Features Tchaikovsky 5. Depart the main lobby at 9:30 am and travel to Alys Stephens Center by Buzz a Bus and return by 12:30 p.m. $23.00/ members only. Sept. 19: LJCC Health Expo. 3 p.m.-7 p.m.
September 2016 • B23 Featuring vendors from the community to show you how you can make your life even better through their products and advice. Free. Sept. 27: High Holiday Luncheon with Rabbi Barry Leff from Temple Beth-El. Join us for a delicious kosher lunch and educational program with Rabbi Leff. $8.50.
Area Events Saturdays through Dec. 10: Pepper Place Market. 7 a.m.-12 p.m. Visit pepperplacemarket. com. Sept. 1-5: Birmingham Barons v. Pensacola Blue Wahoos. Regions Field. $7-$14. 7:05 p.m. Thursday and Friday, 6:30 p.m. Saturday, 3 p.m. Sunday, 12:30 p.m. Monday. Visit barons.com. Sept. 3: Southeastern Outings Kayak and Canoe Trip. Depart 9 a.m. from Leeds Hwy. 78 gravel parking lot. Contact Dan Frederick 205-631-4680 or seoutings@bellsouth.net. Sept. 3: Saturday Morning Train Excursion. 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Ozan Vineyard and Cellars. Calera. $32. Visit ozanwine.com. Sept. 3: Ride the Calera & Shelby RR Train. 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Heart of Dixie Railroad Museum, Calera. $10-$35. Visit hodrrm.org. Sept. 3 & 10: The Little Engine That Could. Birmingham Children’s Theatre. Both days at 10 a.m. and noon. Visit bct123.org. Sept. 5: 25th Annual Labor Day Celebration and Moon Pie Eating Contest. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Tannehill Ironworks Historical State Park. $3-$5. Visit tannehill.org/events. Sept. 8-10: Saint George Middle Eastern Food Festival. 10:30 a.m.-9 p.m. daily. Saint George Malkite Catholic Church. Free admission. Food, live music and dance. Visit saintgeorgeonline.org. Sept. 9: 4th Annual Music Under the Stars Concert. 6:30 p.m. St. Mark’s Episcopal Church. Featuring Kim Scott, Cleve Eaton, P.J. Spraggins Band and the Alabama School of Fine Arts Jazz Band. $28. Visit stmarks.dioala.org. Sept. 10: Kem: An Evening of Love- 11th Anniversary Summer Concert Series. BJCC Concert Hall. $59-$89. Visit bjcc.org/events. Sept. 10: Southeastern Outings Dayhikes, Picnic, Swim and Bicycle Ride. Depart 9 a.m. from Kmart on Greensprings Highway. Contact Dan Frederick 205-631-4680 or seoutings@bellsouth.net. Sept. 10: Saturday Morning Train Excursion. 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Ozan Vineyard and Cellars. Calera. $32. Visit ozanwine.com. Sept. 10: Ride the Calera & Shelby RR Train. 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Heart of Dixie Railroad Museum, Calera. $10-$35. Visit hodrrm.org. Sept. 11: Sturgill Simpson. Alabama Theatre. 8 p.m. $22-$43. Visit sturgillsimpson.com. Sept. 12: BAO Bingo. Birmingham Aids Outreach. 7 p.m. $15 for 5 games. Visit birminghamaidsoutreach.org. Sept. 15: Live at the Lyric: Roseanne Cash. Lyric Theatre. 8 p.m. $40-$50. Visit lyricbham.com. Sept. 15-17: 44th Annual Greek Festival. 10:30 a.m.-10 p.m. Holy Trinity- Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Church. Food, fine jewelry, art and more. Visit bhamgreekfestival.com. Sept. 16: Alabama Symphony Orchestra Coffee Concerts. 11 a.m. Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center. Visit alabamasymphony.org. Sept. 16: Zac Brown Band. 7 p.m. Oak Mountain Amphitheatre. $36.50-$79.50. Visit zacbrownband. com. Sept. 16-17: Alabama Symphony Orchestra EBSCO Masterworks Series. 8 p.m. Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center. Visit alabamasymphony.org.
Sept. 17: Southeastern Outings Potluck Lunch, Kayak and Canoe Trip and Dayhike. Oak Mountain State Park. 11:30 a.m. Contact Dan Frederick 205631-4680 or seoutings@bellsouth.net. Sept. 17: Ride the Calera & Shelby RR Train. 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Heart of Dixie Railroad Museum, Calera. $10-$35. Visit hodrrm.org. Sept. 17-18: Tannehill Trade Days. 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Tannehill Ironworks Historical State Park. $3-$5. Visit tannehill.org/events. Sept. 20: Heart, Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, Cheap Trick. Oak Mountain Amphitheatre. $32.50$72.50. Visit heart-music.com Sept. 20: WWE Smackdown. Legacy Arena, BJCC. 6 p.m. $17-$102. Visit wwe.com. Sept. 23-25: Homestead Hollow Arts & Crafts Festival. Springville. $7 adults, $3 children 3-12, under 2 are free. Visit homesteadhollow.com. Sept. 24: Saturday Morning Train Excursion. 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Ozan Vineyard and Cellars. Calera. $32. Visit ozanwine.com. Sept. 24: Ride the Calera & Shelby RR Train. 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Heart of Dixie Railroad Museum, Calera. $10-$35. Visit hodrrm.org. Sept. 24: 3 Doors Down with Black Stone Cherry and Red Sun Rising. BJCC Concert Hall. 8 p.m. $36.50-$66.50. Visit 3doorsdown.com. Sept. 24: Irondale Whistle Stop Festival. 10 a.m.7 p.m. Historic Downtown Irondale. Free admission. Art and food vendors from around the region. Visit irondalewhistlestopfestival.com. Sept. 25: Birmingham Walk to End Alzheimer’s. Railroad Park. Free and open to the public. Sept. 25: 25th Annual Magic City AIDS Walk. Railroad Park. 4:30 p.m. Free. Visit birminghamaidsoutreach.org. Visit act.alz.org. Sept. 25: Vulcan AfterTunes: Dylan LeBlanc with Duquette Johnston. 2:30 p.m. Vulcan Park and Museum. $15. Visitvulcan.com. Sept. 25: Breakin’ Bread. 1 p.m.-6 p.m. Sloss Furnaces. Sampling food from the Birmingham Food Scene. $30 early bird general admission, gate price $35. VIP $89/$99. Kids 12 and under free. Visit birminghamoriginals.org. Sept. 27: Band of Horses. Alabama Theatre. 8 p.m. $30.50-$43. Visit alabamatheatre.com. Sept. 29: IOA Corporate 5K WEPOWER Birmingham. 6 p.m. 5K run or walk through the streets of downtown. Participant registration $39. Visit wepowercorporate5k.com/events/birmingham/ registration/ Sept. 29: Hearts After Dark. Iron City. 6:30 p.m. Fundraising event benefiting Pediatric Heart Transplant Study Foundation. $60 individual, $105 couple. Visit phtsfoundation.org. Sept. 29-Oct. 2: Southern Women’s Show. BJCC Exhibition Halls. Fashion shows, celebrity appearances, food sampling and more. 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Thursday and Saturday, 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday. $8 advance, $10 at the door. Visit southernshows.com. Sept. 30-Oct. 1: Broadway Night at the Cabaret. RMTC Cabaret Theatre. 7:30 p.m. Some of Broadway’s best perform. Tickets start at $20. Visit redmountaintheatre.org.