The Crimson White by The Crimson White

Special Edition of

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Serving the University of Alabama since 1894

Vol. 118, Issue 46

six months later

In Remembrance of

April 27, 2011 “Our resiliency, our generosity and our poise became profiles in courage and a lamp to so many who had lost so much. How we fight back, how we refuse to quit and how we rebuild will ensure that we never forget our victims, our survivors and our heroes.” - Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox

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P.O. Box 870170 Tuscaloosa, AL 35487 Newsroom: 348-6144 | Fax: 348-8036 | Advertising: 348-7845 | Classifieds: 348-7355 Letters, op-eds: letters@cw.ua.edu Press releases, announcements: news@cw.ua.edu

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Page 2• Wednesday, October 26, 2011

EDITORIAL Victor Luckerson editor-in-chief editor@cw.ua.edu Jonathan Reed managing editor jonathanreedcw@gmail.com

Student housing Students recover from, limited following reﬂect on storm’s effects Three students affected in different ways recount April tornado their tales of survival and return to normalcy Students ﬁnd new homes across city By William Evans Senior Staff Reporter wjevans@crimson.ua.edu

Will Tucker assistant managing editor wjtucker1@gmail.com Taylor Holland news editor newsdesk@cw.ua.edu Katherine Martin assistant news editor newsdesk@cw.ua.edu Stephen Dethrage assistant news editor newsdesk@cw.ua.edu Malcolm Cammeron community manager outreach@cw.ua.edu Ann Sample assistant community manager Stephanie Brumfield lifestyles editor lifestyles@cw.ua.edu Ashley Chaffin assistant lifestyles editor Tony Tsoukalas sports editor Marquavius Burnett assistant sports editor Tray Smith opinions editor John Davis chief copy editor Kyle Carey design editor Jessie Hancock assistant design editor Evan Szczepanski graphics editor Drew Hoover photo editor Megan Smith assistant photo editor Tyler Crompton web editor Lindsay Dennis assistant web editor Daniel Roth multimedia editor

ADVERTISING Emily Richards 348-8995 Advertising Manager cwadmanager@gmail.com Brittany Key 348-2598 Territory Manager Amy Ramsey 348-7355 National Representative Classifieds Coordinator Lauren Aylworth 348-8042 Creative Services Manager

Moving off campus after freshman year can seem like a natural step to take for upperclassmen, but that natural step can backfire when an unpredictable natural disaster strikes everything but the campus in its path of destruction. The April storms inflicted a 5.9-mile wound on the city students call home, but students living off campus suffered a more tangible impact to their daily lives when the April 27 tornado demolished apartment complexes and housing traditionally leased to students. “We observed the greatest impact [to students] with regard to off-campus houses,” said Alicia Browne, associate director for information and communication for housing and residential communities, in an emailed statement. “Offcampus apartment buildings, especially those located further from campus, continued to have vacancies into the late summer, and some have vacancies now.” The University offered temporary housing in Rose Towers from late April until the end of June free-of-charge for displaced students, faculty and staff. “These were mostly offcampus students, whose apartments or homes were damaged,” she said. “They needed somewhere to stay while they made other plans or repairs were made.” Most students who contacted the University for on-campus housing in Rose Towers during the summer because they had nowhere else to stay formerly had housing in Charleston Square managed by Sealy Realty, Cedar Crest Houses managed by H.A. Edwards or Arlington Square managed by Whitworth Real Estate, said Julie Elmore, assistant director for off-campus and greek housing, in an emailed statement. “The tornado destroyed several apartment complexes that housed mainly students, as well as rental houses in the

Forest Lake and Cedar Crest areas, while others were just damaged,” she said. “The rental companies did an excellent job of relocating students who did not leave town, as well as working quickly to make repairs where needed. If a property did not have options for relocating students, they released them from their lease.” The University was able to find housing for the students who lost their apartments or homes in April. “Students who contacted our office following the tornado were accommodated on campus, or we were able to assist them in locating alternate off-campus housing,” she said. “There were no challenges in assisting students who contacted our office with locating off-campus housing this summer or this fall.” The tornado caved in the roofs and blew out the windows of many living units at University Downs on 15th Street. Nathan Cook, a manager at University Downs, said when compared to the damage suffered by other off-campus sites for student housing, such as Arlington Square’s loss of 70 out of its 80 units, the University Downs endured mostly cosmetic damages. “We were affected, but not on a large scale,” he said. “The majority of our damage was roofs and broken windows. We were pretty lucky in terms of the scale of damage to some of the places. We were affected on a minor scale, and in terms of how it affected people, most of our residents were fine.” However, some residents of Regency Oaks, a one-story apartment complex managed by the same company that owns the Downs and lies closer to 15th Street where the tornado swept through, had their leases terminated. “There were a few units over there that had total roof damage,” he said. “We couldn’t expect them to live there without a roof. They moved out, obviously, and we didn’t hold them to a lease because there was nothing there to hold them to.” This home in Forest Lake was one of many damaged by the storm.

Nikki Amthor 348-8742 Greg Woods 348-8054 Tori Hall 348-6153 Rob Clark 348-4367 Will DeShazo 348-8041 Jessica West 348-8054 Ben Gordon 348-8042 Lauren Gallas 348-8042 Coleman Richards Special Projects Account Rep

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By Taylor Holland News Editor tlholland1@crimson.ua.edu Sixth months ago tomorrow, an EF4 tornado touched down in Tuscaloosa and destroyed most everything in its path. Six University of Alabama students died that day, and countless others lost their homes and businesses. Among the UA students affected were Adam Melton, who was in Arlington Square; Emily Fuller, who left Tuscaloosa for her home in Joplin, Mo., following the cancelation of finals; and Chelsea Thrash, who was thrown 150 feet out of her boyfriend’s Charleston Square apartment.

Melton Melton said he and girlfriend Jessica Colburn were unaware of the tornado’s location until the people in an apartment across the complex started yelling at them because they could see it coming. The two ran down to the cellar of a house in the front of

My perspective on life has changed completely. I am extremely blessed and more determined than ever before to drain every opportunity out of every moment I am given.” —Adam Melton

the complex, he said. “When it hit, the house lifted up off of us and then a Jeep Cherokee came right over us and hit me in the head,” he said. “We were underneath the Jeep on our knees and chest for the end of it. After we got hit, we pulled five or six people out, but it was gone. The house was gone.” Melton and Colburn said they walked across McFarland Boulevard to Rite Aid to meet Melton’s parents, who had driven from Birmingham to take them out of the city. “We stayed in Birmingham for the next seven days but drove back and forth between the two cities every day, except April 30 and the one day it rained, in a 15-passenger cargo van to shuttle things back and forth,” Melton said. Melton said volunteers assisted him in retrieving his belongings, but only to a certain extent. “You needed to know exactly what your stuff looks like, and from every angle,” he said. “Once I figured out the path my stuff blew, it got easier, but determining where my stuff went was definitely the hardest thing.” On April 28, Melton said he was at a Zaxby’s en route to Tuscaloosa from Birmingham when he received a call from a Piers Morgan correspondent who asked if he could meet up with a crew at CNN’s satellite truck for an interview. “My stepdad gave me a white polo, so I looked good from the waist up, and we used Google Maps to get to the trailer because all of the road signs were missing,” Melton said. “We pre-recorded my interview, so I talked about my experience and then got back into our van and headed to my apartment.” Melton said he and Colburn crawled through holes and insulation to retrieve his items that weren’t damaged by the storm, including many of his electronics and stereo-cooler, which he used to broadcast news to those in Arlington Square. “We never found my bed or any other piece of furniture I had prior to April 27,” he said. “It totaled my FJ Cruiser as well. A spare tire had gone

CW | Drew Hoover UA student Chelsea Thrash goes through physical therapy after being thrown from her apartment in the tornado. through my windshield and ended up in my driver’s seat.” All in all, Melton said he and Colburn had been on Piers Morgan, the Discovery Channel, Weather Channel, MSNBC, BBC, Good Morning America, the Washington Post and AOL.com. “It’s hard to believe all this happened half a year ago,” Colburn said. “I still think about the tornado every day. It is amazing how things that used to seem like such a big deal to me rarely matter to me anymore. I almost lost the love of my life that day. My perspective on life has changed completely. I am extremely blessed and more determined than ever before to drain every opportunity out of every moment I am given.”

Fuller Only three weeks after April 27, another tornado ripped through Joplin, Mo., the hometown of UA student Emily Fuller. Fuller, who had returned home to Missouri following the cancelation of the university’s finals, once again found herself

“We’ve learned a lot since then and hopefully we’ll be prepared if anything like that ever happens again.” — Emily Fuller

in the midst of tornado warnings. “It was still sunny in Joplin, but I was already freaked out from Tuscaloosa, so I went home and asked my mom to do the same,” she said on June 8. “My mom, my dad and I were all home when it hit.” Fuller said although her home, car and belongings were not taken away by either of the two tornadoes she experienced in the one-month span, she is now extremely terrified of storms. “I haven’t been in an awful storm yet since the Joplin tornado, but this spring should be interesting,” she said. “I went home to Joplin in July and volunteered a little bit with debris cleanup, and I’ve been following the news on Joplin and Tuscaloosa recovery. I think about those storms almost every day.” The EF4 tornado in Joplin reportedly had high wind speeds reaching between 225250 mph, while the tornado in Tuscaloosa, an EF4, topped out at 190, according to the National Weather Service. On Thursday, Fuller said she would be in New York City with her sisters. “I won’t be [in Tuscaloosa] to do anything for the six month anniversary,” she said. “But of course I’ll be thinking about everyone.” In the past six months, Fuller said she thought Tuscaloosa has done a good job recovering

from what happened. “We’ve learned a lot since then and hopefully we’ll be prepared if anything like that ever happens again,” she said.

Thrash

Chelsea Thrash, a UA student who was at her boyfriend’s Charleston Square apartment on April 27, was thrown from the apartment to the complex’ courtyard and was unable to feel her legs. “[I] looked up to see the entire apartment destroyed, and I couldn’t feel my legs,” she said in an interview following the tornado. “Being a biology major, I knew that if I panicked and moved, I could cause way more damage.” Susan and Derek DeBruin, a couple trained in wildlife rescue, found Thrash 150 feet from her boyfriend’s apartment. They used parts of a dining room table to serve as a backboard for Thrash, who was transported to DCH and ultimately UAB. Thrash’s official diagnosis was an L1 burst fracture that caused her spinal cord to shift. She was taken into emergency surgery and received a spinal fusion and had bone fragments removed from her spinal nerves. Despite the injuries sustained from the tornado, Thrash was able to walk to class this semester. Since classes began, Thrash said she’s been attending physical rehab at DCH Northport since August. “They have helped out tremendously,” Thrash said. “Without them, I wouldn’t be where I am today. I still use the cane to go to classes so I can get off curbs and such, but around the house, I walk around on my own with no assistance.” On Thursday, Thrash said she planned on going back to the site where she was hit to take it in. “...just kind of meditate on what has gone on since then, how far I have progressed, where I want to be years from now, and also to remember all those who perished, especially my sorority sister, Nicole Mixon, who was one door down from me,” Thrash said. With the sixth month anniversary of the storm approaching, Thrash said she feels great gratitude with all she has accomplished, but at the same time, a great sadness that many others did not get the same opportunity as she did. “Deep in my heart, I feel they all deserved the same opportunity,” she said. “I also feel an overwhelming sense of warmth and togetherness thinking back on all my family, boyfriend, sisters and friends have done for me and for the community.” Thrash said she hoped to be walking on her own fully by the tornado’s one year anniversary. In the near future, she said she wants to volunteer in Tuscaloosa in a relief effort and show others that even with great disasters come great miracles.

The Crimson White

TORNADO REMEMBRANCE

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

UA professor still standing after hard hit by April tornado Journalism professor Meredith Cummings and her eight-year-old daughter are still struggling to rebuild their house six months after the EF4 tornado destroyed it.

By Melissa Brown Staff Reporter mbrown104@crimson.ua.edu Journalism professor Meredith Cummings and her eight-year-old daughter took shelter in a closet as they heard their home being destroyed by the tornado on April 27. “You couldn’t not know it was being destroyed,” Cummings said of her house in The Downs, a neighborhood hit hard by the storms. “It sounds like a train from a ways off, but like a fighter jet in your living room.” Even after six months, Cummings said the experience rarely leaves her mind. “The tornado happens in my head every day. In small ways, like doing insurance and mortgage paperwork,”

Submitted Photo

she said. “But in big ways too, like the flyover in BryantDenny last Saturday. I teared up – it sounded just like that day.” Cummings’ home was heavily damaged in the storm, but the structure was left standing. She said they did the best they could to save it that Wednesday night and the next day, moving out belongings and patching the roof and windows up with blue tarp. Nothing has happened since. “Our house looks exactly as it did April 28,” she said. “That is frustrating beyond belief. The houses next to us were totally gone and are now rebuilt. It’s hard to see prog-

ress around you and be stuck in the past.” Cummings, who said she and her family recently signed a year’s lease for an apartment after moving four times in three months, hired a lawyer this past week in hopes to expedite the rebuilding process. For now, she said the insurance process is just as stressful as anything else. “Coping is hard. I’ve started seeing a counselor,” she said. “It took me a while to see someone because my anxiety today stems from the lack of progress more than the tornado. When I walk into my house, I don’t think ‘comfort-

ing home.’” But while she waits, life goes on, evident in work for the adults, school for the children, doctor appointments, Halloween trick-or-treating and football games. In the midst of it all, though, the events of six months ago remain in her mind. “Last night, my daughter brought me one of her Barbies. She said the Barbie was so sad because she had lost her boyfriend,” Cummings said. “I asked her where he was and she told me, ‘He was loose and got blown away.’ In the grand scheme of things, not that important. But it was heavy. We still have those moments.”

Volunteer opportunities still available in Tuscaloosa By Heather Lightsey Contributing Writer Six months after an EF4 tornado swept through Tuscaloosa and surrounding areas, local charities and volunteer efforts still need help. While many organizations were bombarded with generous donations of clothes, food and money immediately after the storm, what these organizations still silently ask for is manpower. Temporary Emergency Services, a nonprofit organization that serves the needs of the community by giving clothing, toiletries and food to certain clients, is one of the many organizations that continues to ask for volunteers. Sophomore nursing major Julia Harris takes volunteers to TES weekly to help sort through donations and prepare packages for families. Harris, assistant student director for hunger and homelessness at the Community Service Center, said the organization has had an overwhelming response to the tornado relief. “Before the tornado, there was nothing,” Harris said. “Now, it’s difficult to get through the hallways because they’re packed with donations. It’s a problem because it’s difficult to maneuver around the office, but it’s a good problem to have.” Schilling Nechtman, assistant student director of civic engagement and outreach at the Community Service Center, said the organization has most recently worked on a house on 13th Street that was damaged by

SL PRO INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO VOLUNTEER IN THE TUSCALOOSA AREA: 1. Log on to http://slpro.ua.edu

available to students.

2. Click on “Student”

7. When you ﬁnd a project that interests you, click “register now” and you will be signed up to serve.

3. Select “Create a profile” 4. Enter your personal information and create a username and password (we recommend using your myBama username and password since it’s easy to remember). 5. Click “submit profile” at the bottom of the page, and you will be logged into your SL Pro homepage. 6. Click “browse” in your profile to see the volunteer opportunities currently the tornado. “The man that lives there has been living in the same house in Tuscaloosa for nearly 50 years,” Nechtman said. “He is very thankful that Project Blessings has given him the opportunity to continue doing so.” In order to help with the immense amount of volunteer opportunities available, the Career Service Center organizes weekly visits to different charities, like TES and Project Blessings, in the Tuscaloosa area. The CSC has been working with the Tuscaloosa Area Volunteer Reception Center to help with debris removal in Alberta City. They have also been working with the Student Government Association for the last month to encourage students

8. You can return to SL Pro at anytime to log your volunteer hours, review your service record, and sign-up for new volunteer opportunities. Questions? For further assistance with SL Pro, contact Amy Buchanan in the Center for Ethics and Social Responsibility at (205) 348-1691 or aabuchanan@aalan. ua.edu. to volunteer with the Tuscaloosa Area Volunteer Reception Center on Sundays through the Sunday Service Initiative. Wahnee Sherman, director of community service at the Community Service Center, believes that student involvement in the ongoing tornado relief is key. “There is still a lot of work to be done here in Tuscaloosa,” Sherman said. “Our students can continue to be a major part of that rebuilding effort.” There are many other groups in the Tuscaloosa area that students can volunteer with such as Project Team Up, Habitat for Humanity and the Salvation Army. To find out more about volunteering with the Community Service Center, visit www.volunteer.ua.edu.

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The Crimson White

TORNADO REMEMBRANCE

6 8 0 , 22 Registered Volunteers

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Tornado by the Numbers

1,200 Treated by Druid City Hospital

12% of city

DESTROYED

52 Deaths

5,362

52,000 Meals by UA Greek Relief

530 $ Million in Federal Funding

for Alabama

97%

of debris removed

Homes Damaged |

What it’s like to be hit by an EF4 tornado By April Ivey Contributing Writer adivey@crimson.ua.edu

I opened my eyes and looked around what had once been my bedroom, my sanctum. It was now an unrecognizable pile of rubble. Deafening silence surrounded me. The lower half of my body was pinned and beginning to go numb. I was alone and terrified. I had just been through the most harrowing experience of my life. It was April 27, 2011, and I had been hit by an EF4 tornado. The morning began like most others. I got up and ate breakfast while watching CNN, then got dressed and headed for class. I remember being excited because it was my last day of teaching music, and I wasn’t particularly fond of that class. After class, I went to the Baptist Campus Ministries to help with a luncheon we were giving, but due to the storms of that morning, many people were unable to attend. My minister sent me home. I came home and took a nap and then ate. After my nap, I walked outside and took a peek at the sky. Some of my neighbors were out on the balcony, and we discussed how dark the sky was. It was darker than I had ever seen it. It looked like night. I went back inside and, because my five o’clock class was cancelled, I decided to check my email and watch some television. As I was sitting there, the tornado warnings came on the screen. Having grown up in Tornado Alley, I paid them no heed. After all the time I spent waiting for the tornado that never came, I was certain that this one wouldn’t come either. I was sadly mistaken. I heard a sound as though all the world’s oceans had combined into a single loud roar. The sound struck fear into my heart. I instantly thought that it was a tornado, but then thought that it was surely not what I was hearing. I went to the window and peered out. There, behind the other build-

April Ivey’s Apartment

Path of the April 27, 2011 tornado Destruction caused by the tornado on April 27, 2011 April Ivey’s apartment at Arlington Square in Alberta ing in my complex, was a gigantic, swirling gray mass. It was unquestionably a tornado, and it was heading in my direction. My fear was crippling. I stood at the window and stared at the tornado, unable to move. The only thing I could do was think or verbalize the words, “Oh my God!” It was at that moment that my fate was changed. The voice of God spoke to me and said, “April, get your phone, run and get in your bedroom, and lay down in the floor.” I was shaken out of my reverie. I instantly snatched my phone off of the bedside table, ran to my bedroom, and hurled myself into the floor beside my bed. Mere seconds later, the tornado hit. I lay facedown and listened as the roar grew louder and the tornado tore through my apartment. I heard a myriad of crashing and banging, as though my entire apartment was being bent. Then, just as suddenly, it was gone and I was left lying in the eerie silence. I took stock of the situation. There was something large and heavy pinning my behind. There was a piece of sheetrock inches from my head. My apartment was leveled. My parents were three hours away

Submitted Photos April Ivey spent over two months in the hospital recovering from injuries sustained during the April 27 tornado. Ivey was initially taken to DCH, but was transferred to Princeton Baptist Medical Center in Birmingham when there wasn’t enough room. thanking God for sparing my life but also asking him to send help. After that, I began a pattern. I would scream for help a little while, and then I would attempt to call 911 for a little while and then pray for a little while. At one point, my phone got service, and I got text messages from friends, so I tried to text them back and have them call for help, but, like my 911 calls, my texts did not go through. After a while, one of my screams was answered. Someone said, “We hear you. We’re coming to get you. Just hold on.” I was under so much rubble that the rescue workers and didn’t know that I had losing feeling in my legs, and my had to work for hours, but they been hit. It could be days before air supply was limited. However, were eventually able to move my friends became concerned an EF4 tornado had leveled my enough rubble and cut a hole enough to come and look for me. apartment and I had survived, so in a piece of sheetrock and get I had no idea if help was coming I was blessed. I put my face down me out. I was rescued at last! or how long it would be. I was in the floor and said a prayer, The workers put me in a net and

carted me across the rubble to the waiting ambulance. I was at first taken to DCH, but after someone from the hospital came on the ambulance and told us that there was no room for me, I was carried on to Princeton in Birmingham. The emergency room was crowded with other tornado victims. I was taken for numerous scans to make sure that my spine wasn’t damaged. They finally settled me in the emergency room for the night. The next day, a room opened up, and I got to move upstairs. The doctors determined that my legs had suffered a crush injury and that the muscle in my right leg was destroyed. This leg muscle secreted a poison that caused my kidneys to malfunction. I was placed on dialysis for 12 days before my kidneys started working again. I was in the hospital for a month, followed by a month’s stay at an inpatient physical therapy rehab to learn how to walk again, among other things. When I came home, I continued physical therapy outpatient for about six weeks and was able to get down to a cane. I moved back to school in mid-August and continued outpatient therapy here for about a month and gradually phased out the cane. I am now almost fully back to normal. I go to class and have even been able to go to most of the football games. However, I still bear the scars of that night, both physical and emotional. I have a scar on my neck from the dialysis line. I can’t hear about the six students who lost their lives without wanting to cry. Driving through Alberta City and seeing where my complex used to stand still breaks my heart. Yet, most predominantly, I have realized how fleeting life is and try to be thankful for each and every day. I think that is a lesson we can all take from April 27, 2011.

April lived at Arlington Square Apartments in Alberta City. She is a senior majoring in elementary education. She is a contributing writer for the Crimson White and an active member of the BCM.

The Crimson White

TORNADO REMEMBRANCE

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Tornado relief efforts get the artist’s touch Tuscaloosa tornado relief beneﬁts from creativity of artists and musicians both local and national By Stephanie Brumfield and Ashley Chaffin The Crimson White lifestyles@cw.ua.edu

works related to the tornado, with the understanding that the proceeds from any works sold would be divided 80/20, with 80 percent going to United Way of UA alumnus and photogra- West Alabama for tornado relief Kerry Kennedy, pher Miller Mobley and his wife and 20 percent to Kentuck to tornado-shaped Jana took family photographs of cover the costs of the show. tornado victims free of charge ceramic mugs during the month of May. Various artists, Kentuck artist-in-residence Aptly named “Relief Portraits,” Beauty Amid Kerry Kennedy, a potter and Mobley hoped to help families owner of FireHorse Pottery replace lost photographs by pro- Destruction banner Studios, created what she viding new ones. hangings calls “twister tumblers” to raise money for tornado relief Various artists, Long-time Tuscaloosa through nonprofit organizaCounty resident Jean Mils tions like United Way and the Kentuck’s “Turmoil began coordinating artists Red Cross. These tornado- and Transcendence” this summer to submit upliftshaped ceramic mugs, which ing art to be displayed on banart show Kennedy glazed in different ners in Tuscaloosa’s damaged colors, sold like wildfire; 54 sold neighborhoods. So far, nearly Downtown Northport’s on the first day alone. Kennedy, 30 banners hang in damaged a full-time artist, donated 100 Kentuck Art Center hosted the neighborhoods all around percent of the sales from the work of local artists during the Tuscaloosa, displaying imagfirst 100 tumblers to charity month of July for an exhibit es of flowers, hot air balloons, and 50 percent of the proceeds called “April 2011: Turmoil and butterflies and other “beaufrom the rest. She sold more Transcendence.” Artists were given the opportunity to submit ties amid destruction.” than 140 tumblers.

Miller and Jana Mobley, Relief Portraits

Various artists, Monster Makeover II charity art show

On Oct. 6, The Tuscaloosa News sponsored a live auction of art made by 42 artists from the surrounding community, including artists from Tuscaloosa, Northport and Gordo. The artists were asked to recreate first-graders’ drawings of monsters using any medium they wished. Paintings, sculptures, photographs and more were auctioned, and nearly $4000 was donated to local schools through the Tuscaloosa Forward fund. Monster Makeover professional art work.

The Tuscaloosa News | Robert Sutton

RELIEF CONCERTS May 25, 2011 – Kenny Chesney, Tuscaloosa Amphitheater Instead of canceling the Tuscaloosa stop on his “Goin’ Costal Tour,” country star Kenny Chesney decided to donate all of the money from the show to tornado relief. June 14, 2011 – Bama Rising, BJCC Country music superstars such as Alabama, Dierks Bentley and Martina McBride came together on June 14 to raise an estimated $2.2 million for tornado relief. The sold-out show raised money through ticket prices, merchandise and an online auction of donated items.

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Jul. 11, 2011 – Rihanna, BJCC In the wake of the tornado, Rihanna decided to add a stop at Birmingham’s BJCC on her summer tour. Her show, which included a cover of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Sweet Home Alabama,” raised $250,000. Skip Bolen/Alabama Relief Sept. 2, 2011 – Alabama, Tuscaloosa Amphitheater Following the success of the Bama Rising show, the Above: Alabama plays at BJCC during the Bama Rising concert band Alabama came out of a seven-year retirement to Bottom left: Martina McBride performs at BJCC during the Bama Rising play their first full show since their farewell tour. All concert. proceeds from the concert went to tornado relief. Oct. 13, 2011 – Pretty Lights, Tuscaloosa Amphitheater Pretty Lights came to Tuscaloosa to support two causes: $5 from every concert ticket sold went to tornado relief and attendees who brought more than 10 cans for the West Alabama Food Bank were given a limited edition poster.

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Submitted Photos Above: Kenny Chesney performs at the Tuscaloosa Amphitheater during his relief concert. Right: Rihanna performs at BJCC, where she raised $250,000 for tornado relief.

UA STUDENT MEDIA

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

TORNADO REMEMBRANCE

The Crimson White

REMEMBERING THOSE WE LOST

Ashley Harrison

Marcus Smith

By Alyssa Locklar Senior Staff Reporter arlocklar@crimson.ua.edu

By Stephen Walker Senior Staff Reporter stephenwalker1986@gmail.com

In the midst of the tragedy that is death, pain is often recognized first and foremost. This pain has the power to cloud even the best memories, but when the fog clears, memories and love conquer, and the beauty that was a person’s life resurfaces. Ashley Therese Perret Harrison was a loving daughter, a dedicated student, an athlete, a hardheaded pursuer and a faithful, strong woman who didn’t accept or acknowledge the possibility of failure. Although she suffered a heartbreaking death at the hands of the April 27 tornado, a victim was not a trait or characteristic Ashley would have wished upon herself. “From the moment she was born, she held her head up and looked at the world,” said Harrison’s parents, Darlene and Dave. “No matter what the obstacle, she had the faith she would overcome the issue as it was meant to be. She was relentless in her mission to make the most of everything she did. “It was not uncommon for Ashley to juggle and succeed with school, sports, family, dating, friends, jobs, sorority, shopping, playing and exercising with her beloved puppy, Ms. B, and traveling in just a week, while planning for the next weeks and months, so everyone else knew what they were going to do as well.” Family, friends and acquaintances adored Harrison. Her infectious smile, desire for a great life and her dedication to her loved ones inspired and encouraged those close to her. “Ashley was a young woman of excellence,” said Debbie Tinker, mother of Crimson Tide long snapper Carson Tinker. “When you were around Ashley, you were challenged to be the best you that you could be. [Ashley] never made you feel bad about who you were, but her drive to be the very best at whatever she did made you feel that you could accomplish your best, as well.” Tinker, whose son Carson was Harrison’s boyfriend and the love of her life, explained that Harrison was a dream come true. “Ashley was the girl you wish you could look like, the personality you wish you had, the character you would aspire to possess, the confidence that would illuminate an entire room, the vulnerability of a little girl, the tenacity of someone who did not know how to quit, the drive for excellence that would take you to the top, the uncanny ability to expose anyone who was less than genuine, and the girl every mother wishes their son would bring home,” Tinker said. In addition to her Phi Mu sorority sisters, childhood friends and loving family, Harrison touched many lives throughout the UA community. “Ashley was extremely vivacious,” said Stewart Freeman, her roommate and friend. “She was strong but poised, stylish and graceful. She was literally the girl every girl wants to hate but can’t. By this I mean she was drop-dead beautiful, so she makes every girl jealous, but she was so nice that you had to love her.” Nearly everyone who knew her knew she was destined to take all of her skills and talents to make the world a better place. “Ashley loved to help others,” said friend Erin Murphy. “Whether it was sticking up for her friends, notes for people in class or helping someone study, she just wanted to see everyone succeed. Ashley stood up for her friends, even if she knew you were wrong. And she never liked to lose an argument. She was an excellent debater, knew how to craft words and form an argument to the point that it was almost impossible to argue with her. She wanted to use that talent to help others, and being a lawyer was her way to do that. Ashley would have been awesome.” Prior to her time at the University of Alabama, Harrison had already begun to make her mark on the world. She enjoyed many years of gymnastics, Girl Scouts, dancing, performing in the Russian Nutcracker Ballet, and playing club and school volley-

Nearly six months after University of Alabama student Marcus Smith died from injuries sustained in the April 27 tornado, friends and acquaintances reflected on the many things they miss about him. “He was one of those really nice guys,” said Clark Hilton, who was in the same fraternity as Smith. “Every time I saw him around campus, he would get a big smile on his face, and we would have a coupleminute conversation about what we were doing and everything.” Hilton said that he remembers Marcus as being a friendly, outgoing and overall genuinely good guy. The Theta Omicron chapter of the Sigma Pi fraternity, where Smith was a brother, along with Sigma Pi chapters at Auburn University and the University of West Alabama, dedicated a plaque in Smith’s honor a few weeks ago, fraternity brother Sonny Age said. The plaque is located in one of the public rooms of the fraternity house and serves as a memorial of Smith to the fraternity. Justin Roberson, who was a good friend of Smith and also a minister at Northwood Church of Christ, where Smith attended church, said he remembers Smith as being someone who was always genuinely happy and seeking ways to encourage other people. Roberson attended a Bible study that was taught by Smith a

ball and lacrosse. She gained a position for two years with the Texas National Lacrosse Team, worked with several charities since first grade, and was a success in her jobs. She would not settle for being average and letting life pass her by. “Everyone could see she enjoyed challenges. She loved to get her way, and law school was perfect for her,” the Harrisons said. “She settled on a difficult major in economics. Her professors said she was not only a gifted, bright person but also a beautiful, well-rounded student who was not afraid to challenge even them. This year, she had studied and tutored others for the LSAT, became a leader with Delta Sigma Pi and obtained an internship with UBS in Washington, D.C.” Although she was eager to succeed and focused so much on her schoolwork, Harrison was about more than studying and long nights at the library. “Ashley was always a kid at heart,” said her uncle Marion Perret, who searched for Harrison all night after the tornado. “She believed in miracles, the Easter Bunny, Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, French Little Christmas – The Epiphany, where in our home, you celebrated with the gifts of the Magi, too. No matter how old you were, you had to believe to have a full holiday.” While maintaining a strong faith, work ethic and passion for life, Harrison was able to go above and beyond for the people she loved. “Ashley Harrison was always there for the people who knew her; she embodied what it meant to be a true friend,” said James Schanzer, a lifelong friend. “One stark, extraordinary and remarkable quality of Ashley’s was that you always knew where you stood with her. There was never a moment where she wasn’t genuine and, just as often, blunt, depending on the occasion. In this regard, Ashley was always honest with you. She never avoided telling her friends what she thought was wrong or right and always had their best interests at heart.” Schanzer said Harrison had truly impacted his life and would continue to influence him in the years to come. “My last moments with Ash, ironically midday April 27, were possibly the most cherished,” Schanzer said. “Ashley and I hadn’t spoken in months, and I had just informed her I was to have a little girl. Today, Ashley is her namesake and her guardian angel, as my daughter was born nine months to the day from Ashley’s birthdate. “For me, Ashley and I continue to grow together as she watches over my family and me. I hope my little girl becomes the boisterous, witty, funloving and beautiful, fullof-life sweetheart that Ashley was.” Scholarships were established to continue the legacy of Ashley Harrison helping others. Contributions can be directed to Ashley Harrison Memorial Scholarship and sent to P.O. Box 180098, Dallas, TX 75218. This year, donations can also be made to Sigma Chi Derby Days, which is focusing philanthropic efforts to Ashley’s scholarships, as well.

She loved fishing, art projects, musicals, New Orleans and fried pickles. Antonio Banderas was her heartthrob of choice. She ate banana peppers out of the jar. These are just a few trivial things that made up parts of Danielle Downs, a 24-year-old UA senior who lost her life in the April 27 tornado – but things, nevertheless, that friends and family have missed and remembered every day for the past six months. “I could never fully explain Danielle’s impact on my life. I’m disappointed I’m not more articulate,” said Debra Graff, Downs’ friend of six years. “I remember she always had a story to tell. She loved bragging on her friends and family – she loved her sister more than anyone.”

When Debbie Burton remembers, she recalls Downs’ warmth and cheerful attitude. “I miss her smile,” said Burton, a UA employee in program assistant orientation and special programs. “Danielle had a very bubbly and excited personality.” Burton said she and her family welcomed Danielle into their home after meeting at church. She also remembers Downs’ love for her family – friends included. “Danielle started attending our church and became a very good friend of my children and our whole family. She called me her second mom,” Burton said. “I remember most her deep love of her mom, dad, sister and cousins. She always looked forward to the times when she could go home and see them.” Downs, a social work major, was slated to graduate on May 7. Graff said Downs was always

ty much there every Friday.” During church services, Roberson frequently looks back at the pew where Smith used to sit and thinks about him. “I thought about him a few weeks ago, when church let out,” he said. “Marcus and his girlfriend would always sit in the third or fourth row from the front. Turning around and looking back and not seeing him sitting there is pretty hard. After church service, he would always be the one to have a big smile on his face and be very humble and kind. That’s probably one of the things I miss about him the most.” As a good friend of Smith, Roberson said he misses how genuine Smith was in every aspect of his life. “He was a very humble person,” he said. “I can’t remember one time that he ever bragged or was prideful. He always was a very humble, genuinely kind and loving person. I miss that about him.”

Scott Atterton By Rich Robinson Staff reporter rarobinson2@crimson.ua.edu History and the hardwood – those were Brandon “Scott” Atterton’s two biggest passions. The high school basketball star from Bryant, Ala. was one of the lives lost during the April 27 tornado. Atterton was a lifelong resident of Bryant and enjoyed playing basketball, golf and other sports when he was not being a model son, brother and uncle. “Scott was such a sweet and caring guy. He always welcomed everyone with open arms and a big hug,” said Brittany Defur, a friend who attended the University with him. “He didn’t care to just be himself, no matter what others may have thought of him – although I didn’t always understand his tattoo choices.” Cory Sanders, another friend of Atterton, had a similar view of him. “Scott was my friend, my main man,” Sanders said. “He was a man of few words, but when he spoke, he got his point across.” Atterton attended North Sand Mountain High School, where he was a standout point guard for the basketball team. He was also very active in his community and an always-present figure at his church, Ebenezer Baptist. “We grew up together,” said Tillman Merritt, a childhood friend and one of his roommates during the tornado. “We played

Danielle Downs By Melissa Brown Staff Reporter mbrown104@crimson.ua.edu

few nights before the tornado hit Tuscaloosa. “The Sunday night before the tornadoes hit, he taught a college Bible study in one of the homes of our members,” Roberson said. “That’s the last memory I have of him.” The last time Roberson and many of Smith’s peers ever saw him, he was encouraging them to put God first, Roberson said. “That night, he was sitting in the recliner with his Bible and notes in his lap, talking about how we should put God first in our lives,” he said. “He did an excellent job and was very encouraging. That’s how Marcus always was. He always cared about serving God.” According to Roberson, some of Smith’s favorite hobbies were sports, school and serving God. “Marcus really liked sports,” he said. “We used to go out on Friday afternoons to Snow Hinton Park and play football. Marcus was pret-

an advocate for the underdog and willing to offer a helping hand. “Danielle had the biggest heart of anyone I had ever met,” she said. “She wouldn’t stand for seeing someone treated badly or unfairly. Danielle wanted to do all she could and would do what she could to help people. That’s why she would have been great at her field.” When Downs was three years old, her father left to serve in Desert Storm, Burton said. This experience spurred Downs toward a degree in social work to help military families adjust with the deployment of a family member. “Her career goal was to graduate and move to Eglin Air Force Base to help military families,” Burton said. “I have been told that her last research paper was on the needs and behavior patterns of military children. This was very dear to

sports together; we went to the same church, although he was there a lot more than I was.” Scott was also not a fan of handshakes. Instead, he opted for hugs whenever possible. “Scott was the most forgiving and least judgmental person I’ve ever met,” Merritt said. “He had the best heart of anybody.” After high school, Atterton attended Northeast Alabama Community College for two years before transferring to the Capstone. He became focused on his studies, with a difficult set of classes for his double major in history and business. However, he also worked hard at the DCH Regional Medical Center in Tuscaloosa. For fun, Atterton enjoyed going to the Rec Center and working out

with his friends. After college, Atterton planned on pursuing a career in education as a teacher, but his real love was on the hardwood. “Scott wanted to be a history teacher, but what he also wanted to do was be a basketball coach and get involved in the game by teaching it to others,” Merritt said. Atterton and his roommates – Merritt, Alabama student Morgan Sigler and her boyfriend Blake Peek – all lived offcampus at a home in the Cedar Crest neighborhood near 15th Street. On April 27, the roommates huddled in the hallway of the house and waited for the storm to pass. Moments later, Atterton, Sigler and Peek were flung more than 20 yards, along with the rest of the house. All except for Merritt, who dove into a closet just before the tornado took hold of the building, died in the storm. “Scott was someone who you meet and know right then that you will never forget them,” Defur said. “We all lost a great friend, but he will always be in our hearts.” Sanders said Atterton’s death was startling. “He had a lot to accomplish and will be dearly missed,” Sanders said. Merritt said Atterton was the most forgiving person he’s ever known, and that’s what he hopes people remember about him.

we weren’t doing anything, and she loved meeting new people. Danielle could talk to anyone.” Calling her a “fireball,” Graff said Downs was never afraid to stand up for her beliefs or argue to prove a point. Graff recounted an encounter on a Mississippi State game day when Downs’ sister visited Tuscaloosa wearing Mississippi State apparel. When people started teasing her sister about her clothes, Downs stood up to defend her. “She sometimes got herself into arguments with guys twice her size to prove her point,” Graff said. “It shows her protectiveness over her family and friends and her willingness and courage to stand up for what she believed.” However, even with a friendship worth of memories to choose from, Graff agreed with Burton: Downs’ smile will be missed the most. “She was an avid football fan her heart.” “If I had to choose one thing, Despite her focus on educa- and was in the student section I miss her smile,” said Graff. tion and career, Downs was cheering every chance she got,” “Sometimes it would look as if very much the typical college Graff said. “She loved just hang- her eyes were closed because ing out with her friends, even if she was smiling so big.” student as well.

The Crimson White

TORNADO REMEMBRANCE

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

REMEMBERING THOSE WE LOST

Morgan Sigler By Caroline Murray Staff Reporter cemurray@crimson.ua.edu

Morgan Sigler wanted to marry Nick Saban. When her bunny Izzy died, she made her friends miss the Braves in the playoffs to come to the funeral. She wanted to start a wedding planning shop with her mother in her hometown of Bryant, Ala. She wanted to combine her engineering and art backgrounds to make the engineering department’s concrete canoe more aesthetically pleasing. Her favorite color was purple (she said Izzy’s was too), she loved Lil’ Wayne, and more than anything, she loved her friends and family. Six months later, the death of Morgan Sigler in the April 27 tornado still moves the many people who loved her. “Morgan was the kind of person who made you happy to be alive,” said Craig Wedderspoon, an art professor of Sigler’s.

Christian. She wasn’t perfect, but she was not ashamed of that.” Cody Kirk had known Morgan since the fourth grade. They went to middle school and high school together and came to UA together. “She was so full of life,” Kirk said. “Morgan was life to me. She meant everything to a lot of people. She was very kindhearted, but she stood up for herself. She didn’t take anything from anybody. She was definitely the prettiest girl I’ve ever seen. She never met a stranger, and she made every person feel like they were loved. I loved Morgan more than anyone in the world.” Julia Paulk, a friend of Morgan’s, agreed that Morgan positively impacted the people in her life. “Morgan had a great impact on the lives of those around her. She had a smile on her face and said the sweetest things,” Paulk said. “She always helped those around

Sigler, who was set to graduate in May 2011, received a posthumous degree in studio art in August. Vega Sigler, Morgan’s mother, said Morgan had an eye for art. “She would see something and know it could be turned into a piece of art, where we wouldn’t see it,” Vega Sigler said. Adam Hill, a senior majoring in sculpture and ceramics, said her enthusiasm and curiosity made him enjoy the time he had with her in class. “She always had ideas running and was fun to work with,” Hill said. “Even as an intro student, she was malleable. She would think before she shut us off, and she was eager to learn and listen.” Vega Sigler said her daughter’s open-mindedness went beyond the art world. “She believed in the good in everybody, until you proved her wrong,” Vega Sigler said. “She had a great love of life, and she was loyal to her friends and family. She was a strong

her, and she was a truly beautiful soul. God received a very precious angel on that horrible and scary day.” Wedderspoon said Morgan’s acceptance of herself was part of what made her so great. “She was who she was. There was no pretense,” Wedderspoon said. “She wasn’t trying to be anything, and she was never caught up in any crap.” Brooke Howell, a senior majoring in sculpture and graphic design, agreed that Morgan had an undeniable spark. “I did not know a single person who had met Morgan and didn’t like her,” Howell said. Wedderspoon said it is the little things that will always remind him of Morgan. “A couple of days before the storm, she came up to me with the button we used to close one of the bay doors. She said, ‘I didn’t break this, but it came off,’” Wedderspoon said. “Every time I close that damn door, I think of her.”

Nicole Mixon By Jasmine Cannon Senior Staff Reporter jmcannon@crimson.ua.edu It’s been six months since the University lost six classmates due to the April 27 storms. Nonetheless, each student has left a lasting impression and their lights still shine today. Melanie “Nicole” Mixon was a junior accounting major and an honor student. Following graduation from Minor High School in 2008, Mixon completed her business associates degree at Jeff State Community College in 2010. While at JSCC, she graduated magna cum laude and was a member of Phi Theta Kappa international honor society. After leaving her mark in her hometown, Mixon moved on to begin her college career at The Capstone. “Nicole had this positive attitude that was infectious,” said Jill Hershman, president

of Golden Key International Honour Society. “She would walk into the room, and the mood would instantly become happier.” Mixon was involved in a number of organizations on campus, including Golden Key and Gamma Phi Beta sorority. She stepped in as treasurer for Golden Key during her first year in the club and was elected as vice president for this year. “Nicole was like a breath of fresh air,” said Golden Key advisor Lynn Hamric. “Immediately upon joining Golden Key, she became an active member and inspired others to enjoy membership opportunities. She approached service projects with the same determination as she did academics.” Hershman said, “Nicole had great ideas that improved our Golden Key chapter. She was elected vice president due to her leadership skills and her

motivation. She is greatly missed.” Hershman said the society will recognize Mixon during the scholarship presentation at its induction ceremony in November. Mixon was a 2010 initiate into the Epsilon Lambda chapter of Gamma Phi Beta. “Nicole was the most amazing person and definitely not someone that will ever become forgotten,” Lauren Whitten, president of the chapter, said in a statement. “In our organization, our mission is to promote the highest type of womanhood, and I can honestly say that not only did she achieve that, she inspired each and every one of us, as well as everyone she encountered, to achieve as well. Nicole was one of the most beloved sisters of our chapter and will be deeply missed.” Many people that were around Mixon attest to her joy, dedication and positivity.

“Nicole was one of the most incredible people you could have ever met,” Hershman said. “Always with the brightest smile on her face, she lit up everyone’s day. Never could I walk into our chapter house and see her and not feel warmth inside. She was not only our sister, but our best friend.” Hamric said, “Following the last regular Golden Key meeting, Nicole wanted to stay and talk with me. We visited for over an hour. She shared much about her life growing up and family background, as well as her aspirations. Her life was cut short for a reason, and it is not mine to question why, but rather to see her short life as an example for me to strive to follow. I know her parents are proud of her. UA GK is proud to have had her as a member. Personally, Nicole Mixon is a young woman I would be proud to call daughter.”

Loryn Brown By Ashanka Kumari Staff Reporter akumar317@bellsouth.net

stepfather, DeWayne Mims. “She had just started a sports blog called The Low Down,” DeWayne Mims said. “She was a very hardworking person and always set an example for her brothers and her sisters. They all looked up to her.” Leah Price, a close friend of Brown, said Brown was one of the friendliest people she had ever known. “She was always willing to give the shirt off her back for someone in need,” Price said. “We would do things that any other college girlfriends would do. I am truly blessed to have called her my friend.” Nicki Rumanek, a coworker and friend of Brown’s, said Brown always loved her family and was positive and energetic with all of her friendships. “I’ll never forget her. She was one-of-a-kind and was such a positive and kind person,” Rumanek said. “We all were lucky to have her in our lives, and although she is no longer physically with us, we will never let her memory fade.

Loryn Brown never got a chance to take a class at Alabama. Brown, 21, was found dead in her Tuscaloosa home with roommate Danielle Downs after their apartment was leveled by the April 27 tornado. The Shelton State student’s mother, Ashley Mims, said she was on the phone with her daughter when the tornado hit and could hear the fear in her voice. “She said, ‘Mama, I am really scared; I have never seen anything like this before,’” her mother said. “We were on the phone until it cut off at 5:13, and I knew she was gone. I felt like a part of me was gone.” Brown was aspiring to be a sports journalist and was finishing up her sophomore classes at Shelton State University. She had been accepted to the University of Alabama and was slated to start in August, according to her

She will always be with us.” According to her stepfather, Brown had five siblings: brothers Parker and Collin and sisters Holly, Anna Lynn and Anna Kathryn. The Loryn Alexandria Brown scholarship fund has been established by her family in her honor. “Loryn was a very sweet girl,” DeWayne Mims said. “She was the type of person who respected everyone, no matter who they were or why they were the way they were – it didn’t matter to her. She was a really good person to be around.” DeWayne Mims said he and his wife have learned a lot about their daughter through her friends and how much they all cared about her. “She was the glue that held a lot of her friendships together,” DeWayne Mims said. “She always found the positive side of people.” I n memory of Brown and all those lost in the April 27 tornadoes, Sean Rivers, a friend of Brown’s, wrote the song “My Mind on Tuscaloosa.” To hear the song, visit YouTube.

FULL LIST OF VICTIMS’ NAMES Minnie Acklin, 73 Ovella Andrews, 81 Jeffrey Artis, 51 Scott Atterton, 23 Jennifer Bayode, 35 Caiden Blair, 2 months Michael Bowers, 3 Samuel Brasﬁeld, 50 Loryn Brown, 21 Mary Bryant, 43 Hugh Graham Davie, 55

Ta’Christianna Dixon, 1 Danielle Downs, 24 Arielle Edwards, 22 Makayla Edwards, 5 Melgium Farley, 58 Thomas Hannah, 81 Keshun Harris, 5 Cedria Harris, 8 Ashley Harrison, 21 Robert Hicks, 83 Sheena Hutchins, 26

Judy Sheerill, 62 Carolyn Jackson, 50 Yvonne Mayes, 30s Christian McNeil, 1 Morgan Sigler, 23 Letoya James, 97 Marcus Smith, 22 Jacqueline Jefferson, 45 William McPherson, 85 Zyqueria McShan, 2 Will Stevens, 20s Helen Kemp, 80 Melanie Nicole Mixon, 21 Justin Leeric Thomas, 15 Thelma Krallman, 89 Patricia Turner, 55 Perry Blake Peek, 24 Mozelle Lancaster, 95 Willie Turner III, 20s Lola Pitts, 85 Andrew Lee, 80 Helen Wurm, 98 Terrilyn Plump, 38 Davis Lynn Lathem, 57 Colvin Rice, 78 Velma Leroy, 64 Kevin Rice, 36 Dorothy Lewis, 61 Total fatalities: 52 Annie Lois Sayer, 88 Thomas Lewis, 66

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

TORNADO REMEMBRANCE

The Crimson White

Mayor Maddox reﬂects on relief efforts, progress By Taylor Holland News Editor tlholland1@crimson.ua.edu While reflecting on the six months that have passed since April 27, Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox said he would most remember Tuscaloosa’s citizens and their actions immediately following the tornado. “Their resiliency in the hours and days after the event were inspiring because everyone came together in such a powerful way that it ensured that this city would not only survive, but be reborn,” Maddox said. “I will never forget the hours upon hours that I spent at aid stations across this city, meeting with our citizens who had either lost everything or were volunteering and being captivated by their resiliency and their confident hope. That will stay with me for the rest of my life.” He said the outpouring of students who volunteered in the city inspired everyone to do more to help the recovery process. “Immediately after April

27, students filled the gap in terms of providing humanitarian assistance throughout the city, whether it was clearing debris, raising funds or working in many of the different service organizations,” Maddox said. “Since that time, I’ve been struck by how the momentum has continued, and I think that’s going to be a necessity in the future because we have a lot of long-term needs that are going to require a vast amount of assistance from volunteer organizations.” Maddox said the city’s greatest accomplishment was its ability to respond to the disaster after losing so much of its internal infrastructure and network. “To lose so much, yet be able to provide services necessary during a catastrophic event, is remarkable and speaks volume about the staff here at the city,” he said. “I think the second biggest accomplishment is the speed of debris removal because that in and of itself was a very complex task that required an extreme amount of coordi-

nation on many different levels. I think third was passing Tuscaloosa Forward and not only passing it, but establishing a very open and transparent process that allowed every citizen to have input in deciding their future.” With debris removal about 99 percent complete, Maddox said the city would now transition into several different areas, whose goals and objectives will take years to achieve. “The first is developing a housing plan, which will layer on top of what we passed with Tuscaloosa Forward,” he said. “The second is economic developing, assisting the 600 businesses that were damaged and opening their doors. Third is repairing our infrastructure, both as it relates to the city’s internal facilities and the city’s external infrastructure, traffic lights, roads, curbs and gutters. Fourth is going after [federal] and state funds that are available to assist in our recovery. Those funds can help us with safety rooms, floodway acquisitions and other grants geared towards recovery.” Maddox said anniversaries

of catastrophic events are difficult because they require the affected to reflect and, in some ways, take a step back. “For me, moving forward has always helped in overcoming the emotional part of this, which is difficult,” he said. “And I know it must be that way for those who lost so much. I know these anniversaries are a very difficult time for all of our citizens who were impacted so greatly. At the same time, I understand these events help us to celebrate what we’ve accomplished.” Upon completing a slew of interviews with the media and attending a prayer service, Maddox said he plans to spend Oct. 27 reflecting on all that’s happened in the past six months. “I think in some ways, I’ll be reflecting on what we’ve been through and just how difficult it’s been, but also celebrating what we’ve accomplished as a community,” he said. “And I hope our citizens feel a great sense of pride knowing that CW | Drew Hoover Tuscaloosa is now the model for how you respond to a cata- Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox and Alabama Governor Robert Bentley embrace after the tornado. strophic event.”

Athletes help rebuild Tuscaloosa By Jasmine Cannon Senior Staff Reporter jmcannon@crimson.ua.edu

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It’s been six months, and Tuscaloosa has made progress toward rebuilding. Volunteers came from across the state and from across the nation to clean up and piece back together a city that was ravaged by the April 27 tornado. Nonetheless, there are young adults who have taken it upon themselves to help as many people as they can. While there are few Alabama student-athletes who have called Tuscaloosa home since birth, each one came together with his or her respective team to assist the people of

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Tuscaloosa and the surrounding areas. Sophomore women’s tennis player Mary Anne Macfarlane did a lot of philanthropic work with her church. Sophomore men’s tennis player Carlos Taborga worked as an interpreter for those who could not speak English at all or very well. Over the summer, the women’s basketball team partnered with Russell Relief for a school supplies drive. Senior guard Ericka Russell started the relief organization. The team gathered supplies, ranging from backpacks to crayons, for students at elementary schools that were damaged or destroyed by the tornado.

“I think it showed the community that athletes do think about other things besides sports,” Russell said. “I think people are just happy to see us go out and give back to the community and just show that we do have a heart and care about the community as well. It touched my teammates as well, just being able to help to do whatever they could do.” Junior guard Jessica Merritt got involved with tornado relief efforts with the team by doing volunteer work through Habitat for Humanity, helping to build houses for those who lost their homes during the tornado. “Tuscaloosa is our community,” she said. “I’m not from here, but being here, I feel like

I’m a part of it. If anybody can help their community, I feel like we should take a big part in that because this is our home now. This is our community.” Junior Ben Eblen spoke on behalf of the men’s basketball team’s tornado efforts. The team participated in projects including helping at Holt. Eblen said working with tornado relief helped bring the team together and gave them the opportunity to help those in need. After the season starts, Eblen said he looks for the team to continue its work helping to rebuild the city throughout the semester. The softball team recently worked with student-athletes from The University of Notre Dame during the school’s fall break service trip. The groups worked in Alberta City, cleaning up debris. Notre Dame students also got to tour some of the University’s sports facilities and meet athletic director Mal Moore. The volunteering was done through Project Team Up. The football team has been recognized for its efforts helping the city that the players carry on their backs. Since the season kicked off, players have donned the yellow ribbons on their helmets as a means of recognition and remembrance. There is also the Houndstooth painted ribbon on the field that is to be put on other athletic playing grounds. Some other teams will be sporting embroidery on their uniforms as well. The football team recognized first responders at the first game of the season and will have the uniform and field markings through April 27, 2012. While almost all teams are about to be deep into their regular season schedules, athletes said they still want to help any way they can. “I would love to keep helping in tornado relief,” Merritt said. “It’s fun knowing that you’re giving back.”

DOWNTIME

WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 26, 2011

PAGE 9

Classifieds & Fun-filled Time Wasters

HOUSING

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10 Wednesday, October 26, 2011

TORNADO REMEMBRANCE

The Crimson White

ALBERTA CITY

A local constant in the midst of destruction By Jared Downing wdowning@crimson.ua.edu Staff Reporter

The bridge is still there, but the rest is empty. There used to be a neighborhood, a lumber warehouse and Alberta Flea Market; now it’s just a field dotted with a few concrete slabs and one or two trees, stripped bare. All that’s left is the bridge and, of course, the man under it selling his vegetables. But the bridge is all Woodie Sanders needs. He’s parked his truck where University Boulevard passes over Kicker Road season after season for 14 years, the bed brimming with watermelons and the hood covered in tomatoes and peas. “I couldn’t find a better place,” Sanders says. “I don’t have to worry about rain.” He has peaches, plums, tomatoes, cucumbers and every vegetable Alabama grows; but at the start, he sold just water-

Alberta faced signiﬁcant devastation following the April 27 tornado.

CW | Kelsey Stein melons. His first customers were whoever happened to drive by. Soon, people began to seek him out from other neighborhoods, Northport, and even Moundville, and the watermelon man on Kicker Road became a small legend in

Tuscaloosa. Sanders doesn’t even really like watermelon. “I sell a lot of it, but I don’t go for it.” For most of Sanders’ customers, he’s just the man under the bridge. They know him by

his maroon pickup and grubby baseball cap, some for years. But they’ve always been loyal. “Once they come by here, that’s it. They come here from now on. “These are new,” Sanders says as three girls approach

the truck. They’re from the Retreat and pass Sanders on the way to class. They’re looking for peaches, but the season is over. Sanders says the older folks buy his vegetables, but students go for the fruit. “I don’t think many of ‘em know how to cook anything,” he says. But everyone likes his watermelons. Sanders says they buy his produce because it’s fresh and locally grown, but James Jones, an Alberta native, has been coming to him for years, and he doesn’t care where it came from. “That ain’t the good part. The good part is it’s good,” Jones says. A friend drives up, and she and Sanders shoot the breeze, talking about that little house on 13th Street her uncle used to have, and if his boy still lives by the plumbing place in the big yellow house that used to be green. Her name is

Jeannette Barnes; she says her father bought from Sanders before he passed away. “The people that have been affected by the tornado, they still come by,” she says. In fact, not much has happened for Sanders since he parked his truck under the bridge for the first time, even after the April 27 storm made the area a wasteland. “ No t h i n g changed. Everything went on as usual,” he says. The season is winding down, and it’s already too late for watermelons. Sanders comes out just two days a week now to sell tomatoes and greens, and he’ll pack it in around Christmas. He’ll be 80 years old when he comes back next June, but he hasn’t thought about quitting. The tornado transformed Alberta City, but under the bridge over Kicker Road, it’s just another season for the watermelon man.

In the storm, Tuscaloosa artists ﬁnd a muse By Katrina Sharpe Contributing Writer

Emily Mitchell, a local retired school librarian and graduate of the University of Alabama, has been painting steadily for 10 years. She enjoys painting pet portraits. As an animal lover, Mitchell decided to focus on the pet survivors of the April 27 tornado. Mitchell was first inspired when she read an article in the Tuscaloosa News by Robert DeWitt entitled “Through the Destruction Never Give Up Hope.” It was a story about a man named Melvin Vines who had lost his eight-pound cat, Lucky, and kept a vigil for a month to find her. Long story short, he found her. Mitchell found out where Vines worked and gave him a call to ask if he would like a portrait done of Lucky. That is one of the artworks she created related to the tornado, “One Small Survivor.” “I just wanted to do this painting so Mr. Vines would have a record of that happy ending,” Mitchell said. Her artworks were displayed in Kentuck’s Turmoil and Transcendence show during the month of July. “I wanted to include these for people that still needed that happy ending,” Mitchell said. Another one of her artworks is her creation of the

Local artists have created works inspired by the April 27 tornado, from portraits of surviving pets to recreations of the tornado itself.

tornado with a collage of photos of pets that survived and are up for adoption. The work is a mixed media of nylon knit, oil and paper, and it was created for the Humane Society of West Alabama. “You might still find animal tornado survivors among adoptables,” Mitchell said.

When asked about the positives that came from this disaster, Mitchell said she believes any individual can make a difference by continuing to help with the recovery. “Everybody has something they can contribute,” Mitchell said. “Tuscaloosa has done well.”

Mitchell will be exhibiting her other works at the Art Fair in the Kentuck courtyard on Nov. 19. During the month of December, her art will be displayed in Chloe’s Cup. All the money she receives from selling paintings at both venues will go to local animal adoption services. For Mitchell and others, art is a way to face their fears. Henry Busby, a senior majoring in telecommunication and film, said he became inspired to create artwork related to the tornado about three weeks after it hit, when everything was slowing down. “It was the first time I really started to process what had happened,” Busby said. “I wanted to get it out in some way.” His art is in mixed media form. He used cotton, wire, pieces of clay, a lamp, his hand and a camera on

self-timer. He constructed the camera,” he said. Busby was born and raised tornado with the cotton, wire in Tuscaloosa. When asked what it felt like to see his hometown damaged by the “It was the ﬁrst time I re- tornado, he said he didn’t what it was like not to ally started to process what know be from Tuscaloosa, and it had happened. I wanted to didn’t necessarily affect him get it out in some way.” more than others – it just affected everyone differently. — Henry Busby During the tornado, he was at his mom’s house, out of the tornado’s path. They and pieces of clay. He then were seeking shelter in the used the lamp, rather than closet with the door cracked, Photoshop, to add lighting to watching the tornado from the TV. His mom’s home was the piece. Busby began to take art untouched. Their neighbor’s more seriously when he start- home, where tornado victim ed college, and he picked up Ashley Harrison resided, was photography. Right after the completely gone. “There will be little tornado hit, he walked from Rosedale to the Rec Center, moments that make you taking pictures of the destruc- think about it,” Busby said. “Tuscaloosa has done such a tion along the way. “I didn’t have my car with good job coming together and me, so I walked with my making things happen.”