Village Living September 2015

Village Living neighborly news & entertainment for Mountain Brook

Volume 6 | Issue 6 | September 2015

Community unity

Leading the charge Mountain Brook residents are encouraging people from all over Birmingham to come to Norwood for a special 5K this month.

Features page B1

The big 5-0 Mountain Brook business leaders a driving force behind return of UAB football

By STEVE IRVINE

The Emmet O’Neal Library is celebrating its 50th anniversary this month. Find details on the planned festivities inside this issue.

Community page B5

INSIDE Sponsors ........A4 City ..................A6 Business .........A10 Community ....B2

School House...B14 Sports ...............B18 Faith .................B21 Calendar ........ B22

Why would Hatton Smith step to the fore, summoning some of the top business leaders in Mountain Brook and around the metro Birmingham area to help lead the resurrection of UAB football?

Smith, a resident of Mountain Brook and CEO emeritus of Royal Cup Coffee and Tea, has a ready answer.

“You know why the business community did it?” Smith said. “Because they believe

Royal Cup Coffee and Tea CEO Emeritus Hatton Smith, the chairman of the UAB Athletics Campaign Committee, leads cheers before the campaign’s public launch on Aug. 18 at the UAB Alumni House.

Photo by Ron Burkett.

that UAB is good for Birmingham. And they believe that football is good for Birmingham.”

Smith is the chairman of the UAB Athletics Campaign Committee. It was Smith, along with a few friends, who began recruiting committee members.

The committee is not filled with deep UAB ties. There are some longtime boosters, including Nowlin & Associates founder Charlie Nowlin; Don Hire, the retired president of Armstrong Relocation Company; Steve DeMedicis, president of Red Mountain

Technologies; and Jimmy Filler, retired president and treasurer of Jefferson Iron & Metal Co. But most of the committee members don’t have UAB connections.

So how did they come together? It began with a phone call from Nowlin to ARC Realty chairman and CEO Tommy Brigham, who were longtime friends. That conversation led to a breakfast meeting at Birmingham Country Club that included Nowlin, former

See UAB | page A25

Rebuilding amid rubble Mountain climber who was in Nepal during earthquake to speak at chamber luncheon

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Pre-Sort Standard U.S. Postage PAID Memphis, TN Permit #830

VillageLivingOnline.com

By MADOLINE MARKHAM For miles the only thing Kent Stewart could see was rubble.

On April 25, he had been in the dining tent at the base camp of Mount Everest, preparing for his second attempt to summit the mountain, when the ground began to buckle around him.

The tent pelted him with debris, but Kent said he wasn’t scared because there were no buildings that could fall.

“As soon as it was over, we didn’t see what else had happened,” he said.

See EARTHQUAKE | page A26

Kent Stewart first attempted to climb Mount Everest in 2013. This year he was there when an earthquake struck Nepal. Photo courtesy of Kent Stewart.

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Village Living

A2 • September 2015

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September 2015 • A3

Outdoors - Active - Unplugged 205-999-8878 • treeline-expeditions.com Spring Break 2016 Sea Kayaking in the Bahamas March 26 to April 2 9th grade to adults

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After-School Adventures Mountain Brook, Homewood, Vestavia area schools 3:30-6:00 Tuesdays and Wednesdays: 4th and 5th grades Thursdays: 2nd and 3rd grades Sample activities: kayaking on the Cahaba River, hiking at Ruffner Mountain, Red Mountain Park Adventure Area, outdoor skills, team building games, outdoor crafts

“Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.” - Neale Donald Walsch We look forward to seeing you on the trails and water! - Bill and Suzanne Andrews

Village Living

A4 • September 2015

About Us Please Support our Community Partners

Photo of the month This summer, Kami and Carter Ralph hosted a teenage orphan from Eastern Europe through the program New Horizons for Children. Her country and name cannot be shared publicly. “We also have four boys of our own, so this was a big change,” Kami Ralph said. “We had a wonderful time showing her what it means to be in a family, to show her love and teach her that God loves her too. Having B in our home changed us all.”

On her last full day with the Ralphs, they visited Vulcan (pictured). To read more about their journey, visit yourwondersnevercease. blogspot.com. Photo courtesy of Kami Ralph.

Editor’s Note By Jennifer Gray Most people only dream of climbing Mount Everest. Mountain Brook resident Kent Stewart has quite the story to tell of his attempt at climbing the famed peak. Stewart was on Mount Everest on April 25 when the earthquake struck, killing 19 people on the mountain and destroying structures in the already impoverished area. Stewart will be speaking at this month’s chamber luncheon, sharing his passion for climbing (he has climbed six of the seven highest peaks in the world), the story of that fateful day on Everest, and how he and his wife have aided in the recovery of those in Nepal. In this issue, he shares his experience with us. You can also find information about the luncheon and how

you can attend the event.

With the kids back in school and busy fall schedules in full swing, many families look for ways to make dinnertime easier. A new business in Crestline might have just what you’ve been looking for. Black Sheep Kitchen is set to open next to Church Street Coffee and Books. It will sell tasty casseroles, soups and meals that you can pick up from their freezer and serve at home. Chef, owner and Mountain Brook resident Julie Grimes has developed recipes for Southern Living and Cooking Light for years. Now she shares her recipes through her new business.

The Grand Bohemian is scheduled to open soon, and we sat down and chatted with the new general manager about

the new hotel and his vision. Thomas Hoffman has lived all over the world and run several Four Season hotels. He is bringing his experience and also his love of the culinary arts to the newest Kessler property. Even if you don’t stay the night, there is plenty to do at the new hotel. You can eat at the new restaurant, create your own personal wine blend or take cooking classes.

Lastly, there are several great events taking place this month that benefit some worthy organizations, including the Exceptional Foundation’s Dinnertainment and the Norwood Resource Center’s Boulevard Blast. Get all the details in this issue.

Village Living Publisher: Creative Director: Community Editor: Managing Editor: Sports Editor: News Editor: Staff Writers: Community Reporter: Copy Editor: Graphic Designer: Advertising Manager: Sales and Distribution:

Contributing Writer: Interns:

Published by:

Dan Starnes Keith McCoy Jennifer Gray Madoline Markham David Knox Sydney Cromwell Katie Turpen Erica Techo Roy L. Williams Louisa Jeffries Emily VanderMey Matthew Allen Warren Caldwell Don Harris Michelle Salem Haynes Brittany Joffrion Rhonda Smith Kari Kampakis Jordan Hays Chris Griesedieck Olivia Burton Village Living LLC

School House Contributors: Catherine Gasque - Cherokee Bend, Trish Hand - Crestline, Kathleen Woodry - Brookwood Forest, Elizabeth Farrar - Mountain Brook High School, Shaun FlynnMountain Brook Elementary, Collins Clegg - Mountain Brook Jr. High Contributing Photographers: Image Arts Contact Information: Village Living #3 Office Park Circle, Suite 316 Birmingham, AL 35223 313-1780 Dan@VillageLivingOnline.com

Please submit all articles, information and photos to: Jennifer@VillageLivingOnline.com P.O. Box 530341 Birmingham, AL 35253

For advertising contact: Dan@VillageLivingOnline.com 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, faith, 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) 370-0732 or by email.

Please recycle this paper

20 Midtown (A19) A Little Something (B22) Addiction Recovery Program at UAB (A17) Alabama Allergy & Asthma Center (B7) Alabama Foot Institute (B8) Alabama Goods (A10) Alabama Outdoors (B5) Alabama Partners for Clean Air (A6) Alabama Power (A5) Alabama Waldorf School (A23) Always Best Care: ABC Senior Services (B16) Amy Smith (B12) Artists on the Bluff (B1) Backstreet Treasures (B22) Bahama Bucks (B17) Barton-Clay Fine Jewelers (A6) Bedzzz Express (B24) Birmingham Bicycle Company (A25) Birmingham Botanical Gardens (A11) Birmingham Speech and Hearing Associates (B7) Bromberg & Company, Inc. (B14) Brookdale University Park (B10) California Closets (A27) Canterbury Gardens (B17) Chickadee (B13) Classic Gardens (A8) Decorating Dens Interiors (B21) Dish’n It Out (A27) Do Di Yo’s (A8) Ex Voto Vintage (A9) Family Share Massage (B12) Great Smiles Orthodontics (B4) Hufham Orthodontics (A18) Indian Springs School (A23) Issis & Sons (B3) Jacqueline DeMarco (A20) JJ Eyes (B19) John-William Jeweller (A25) Lane Parke - Evson Inc. (B15) Liberty Park (B2) Morningside at Riverchase (B11) Mountain Brook Chamber of Commerce (B9) Otey’s (A10) Over the Mountain Glass (A20) Planet Fitness (A12) PreSchool Partners (A17) RealtySouth (A28) Red Mountain Theatre Company (B10) Renasant Bank (A26) Resolute Running Training Center (A16) Road Runner Movingm (B14) Russian Ballet (A7) Samford University Center for Science and Religion (A9) Savage’s Bakery (B13) Simply Ponds (A20) Spring Valley School (A22) Swoop (B17) Taco Mama (B8) The Altamont School (A24) The Fitness Center (B20) The Maids (A1) TherapySouth Crestline (A2) Tom Williams BMW (A13) Total Beauty and Skin Dermatology (A15) Total Fitness Consultants (A14) Treeline Expeditions, LLC (A3) Vitalogy Wellness Center (A21, B6) Wee Peat Boutique (B22) Weigh To Wellness (B18) Western Sales and Service (B23) Whale of a Sale (B12) Willow Homes (B23)

APSA-1007_2.pdf 1 8/18/15 VillageLivingOnline.com

11:28 AM

September 2015 • A5

A PUBLIC NOTICE FROM ALABAMA POWER

TREE CREWS WORKING IN MOUNTAIN BROOK THROUGH EARLY 2016 Alabama Power crews are working in several Mountain Brook neighborhoods, removing trees and other vegetation that threaten the safety and reliability of our electrical system.

As part of this process, Alabama Power goes to great lengths to talk with individual property owners. Company representatives are going door to door, leaving notices at locations where work is needed.

If you have any questions before crews come by your home, please call Alabama Power at 205-257-2155 and ask for someone in the Vegetation Management Group to contact you. Or you can email us at apcvm@southernco.com. Work in Mountain Brook and nearby areas is expected to continue through early 2016.

Also, you can go online to alpwr.co/vm for more information about these safety and reliability measures, as well as resources for property owners who would like recommendations about planting the right tree in the right place.

Thank you for your understanding. We appreciate your business.

Vegetation Management Group 205-257-2155 | apcvm@southernco.com

Š 2015 Alabama Power Company.

Village Living

A6 • September 2015

City Council discusses Overbrook drainage issues

Police recommend storing handguns to prevent theft

By MADOLINE MARKHAM

Four total handguns were stolen July 23-Aug. 5, Mountain Brook police reported, and three of those handguns were in unlocked vehicles.

Between Aug. 3 and 5, an unknown suspect or suspects entered an unlocked vehicle in the 4000 block of Montclair Road and stole a handgun. Between July 31 and Aug. 1, an unknown suspect or suspects entered an unlocked vehicle in the 1000 block of Richmar Drive and stole a handgun and a pair of sunglasses. During that same time period, a car in the 100 block of Overton Road was entered, and a handgun was stolen.

To combat these robberies, Lt. Jay Williams said gun owners should take their guns inside or lock them in their trunk.

“I would take the gun inside the house,” he said. “[That] would be the best suggestion that I would have because it’s really doing no good if you have it for personal protection and it’s in your car and you’re not in your car.”

If gun owners are concerned about bringing their guns in a house because of children, Williams said they should take precautions to keep the weapons secure.

“That’s part of being a gun owner is trying to be as safe as you can,” he said.

Williams said it is possible that one group was involved in these thefts because they all occurred in the Crestline area and in a similar time frame. These suspects taking handguns is concerning, Williams said.

“I’m concerned that there’s criminals out there that have a gun now or have three guns now, that’s very concerning to me,” he said.

Another handgun was taken in a residential burglary, reported on July 30. The burglary was at a residence in the 2900 block of Fairway Drive between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m., and an unknown suspect or suspects forced entry to a door.

Electronic equipment was also taken.

The city is looking into studying drainage issues on Overbrook Road.

Walter Schoel of Schoel Engineering has proposed a drainage study of the area under Pine Crest Road through Canterbury United Methodist Church’s property. He presented the plan to the city council at its July 27 meeting.

The drainage basin area is about 400 acres in total and includes Mountain Brook Junior High School’s campus. The study would quantify the drainage issues especially those at the residence at 326 Overbrook Road.

Schoel said he has studied the area and the Overbrook home in the past, and that he is looking back at it after Public Works Director Ronnie Vaughn had called him to say the city was concerned. Schoel would calculate flow rates and other figures so they would know how often and to what depth the house would flood. The study would not necessarily provide solutions to the drainage issue but would cost $11,800.

City Manager Sam Gaston said that during heavy rains the homeowner at 326 Overbrook gets heavy water in her house, and in the past

The proposed drainage study includes the Canterbury United Methodist Church’s campus. Photo by Madoline Markham.

couple of weeks vehicles in a lower lot at Canterbury were swamped in a rainstorm.

“It floods because it’s a creek with a big drainage area and the house was built too low,” Schoel said.

Council member Billy Pritchard said he wanted to know more about the purpose of the study and what would be done after it was complete.

“It’s not likely to lead to a solution,” Schoel said. “A mitigation study is different…The best solution is to get that

house out of where it is.”

Pritchard said he didn’t see any reason to go forward with the study because he didn’t see what they are going to do with it afterward.

Schoel suggested he walk the creek with a representative from the city for an hourly fee to see if he sees something that could change the nature of the study and if there could be a solution he is not currently aware of. The council agreed that this is the best next step for the issue.

By ERICA TECHO

VillageLivingOnline.com

September 2015 • A7

COUNCIL UPDATES

Mayor Terry Oden presents a resolution to Carey Hollinsworth to thank him for his service on the Parks and Recreation Board. Photo by Madoline Markham.

By MADOLINE MARKHAM At its recent meetings, the Mountain Brook City Council: }} Heard a request to add a section of sidewalk and a crosswalk across Overbrook Road near Canterbury United Methodist to make it safer for children walking from Mountain Brook Junior High toward the church. Richard Caudle of Skipper Consulting did not recommend a flashing light but did recommend installing signage for a crosswalk. A representative from Canterbury said the church would be willing to provide an easement if needed for the crosswalk. }} Heard a request for $5,000 of funding for the Prescott House request from David Barber.

Barber founded the nonprofit organization in 1987 to provide better care for young victims of physical and sexual abuse as their cases proceed through the criminal justice system.

“We use them far more than y’all would ever imagine,” Police Chief Ted Cook said. “I feel so strongly about it that I personally write them a check every year.” Council member Billy Pritchard encouraged Barber to provide information about how their services specifically affect people in Mountain Brook. }} Discussed extending the sidewalk on the east side of Vine Street north to the alley.

The project is estimated to cost $7,280 for 130 feet of sidewalk and 140 feet of curb and gutter. The council favored moving forward with the sidewalk. }} Recommended ABC Board give a liquor license to the Grand Bohemian Hotel that is under construction in Mountain Brook Village. }} Reappointed Robert Thomason to the Jefferson County Board of Equalization and Adjustments. }} Heard a request for $2,100 of funding for the Jefferson-Blount-St. Clair Mental Health Authority from by Dr. Richard Craig. The city provides funding to the authority each year. }} Proclaimed the month of September 2015 as Ovarian and Gynecologic Cancer

Awareness Month. The city will also be tying teal ribbons around trees as a part the awareness month. }} Authorized an encroachment agreement between the city and W. Banks Petrey and Bragan D. Petrey of 12 Norman Drive. The Petreys plan to renovate the Colonial Hills property }} Appointed Susan Elliott to the Emmet O’Neal Library Board to serve without compensation through Sept. 30, 2019. }} Presented a resolution to Carey Hollinsworth to thank him for his service on the Parks and Recreation Board from 2004 to 2015. }} Appointed Jorja White to the Jefferson County Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Authority. White replaces Russ McElroy. }} Appointed Helen Drennen to the Parks and Recreation Board. Tom Warburton and Leigh Ann Speake also applied for the position and were recommended by the Park Board. }} Declared a group of properties either abandoned/unclaimed or surplus and authorized its destruction and/or sale at public Internet auction. }} Awarded a bid for an LED Lighting Project to Innovis Lighting and authorized the execution of a contract for it. It will cost $195.80 per unit for 105 LED retrofit light fixtures to be placed on existing pole top acorn fixtures.

They will be placed in English Village, Overton Village and neighborhoods this year and in other areas in next year. They will save the city money in power costs. }} Heard a presentation on the audit report for the City of Mountain Brook Emergency Communications District for the years ending Sept. 30, 2013 and 2014 from Whitney Atchison of the Alabama Department of Examiners of Public Accounts. }} Discussed a first amendment to the lease with American Tower Corporation for the cell tower located at the high school athletic complex. }} Authorized the city clerk to issue notice to Judicial Correction Services, Inc. of the city’s intent to cancel its contract.

Authorities identify body found in apartment garage as missing man

By ERICA TECHO The body of a man found in a garage at Lane Parke Apartments in Mountain Brook Village was identified Aug. 5.

Jefferson County Chief Deputy Coroner Bill Yates said the body was identified as Ananya Chakrabarti, 27. Chakrabarti was originally from Atlanta, Georgia and had been living in the Birmingham area for a few years.

Chakrabarti’s family reported him missing in January, and that was the last time he was known to be alive.

Lt. Jay Williams of Mountain Brook police

said the body was found when someone was looking to rent an apartment in one of the apartment complex’s detached garages. The body was found in a car in one of the garages.

Chakrabarti never rented an apartment at Lane Parke Apartments, Williams said.

The body was in an “advanced state of decomposition,” Yates said, and it is likely the body was in the garage for some time. An autopsy was completed Aug. 4, and the coroner’s office is waiting on lab results including a toxicology report to determine the cause of death.

“It is my understanding that there are no signs of foul play,” Yates said.

Village Living

A8 • September 2015

New stop sign coming to Brookwood Road One stop sign will soon be added on Brookwood Road at its intersection with Crosshill Road, although two were originally planned. The city council authorized the sign’s placement and provided for punishment for violations of it at its Aug. 10 meeting.

It will be added at the south end of the intersection where traffic is flowing southbound.

The council had initially moved to approve two new stop signs at the intersection at the recommendation of Richard Caudle of Skipper Consulting.

However, several residents who live around the intersection voiced objections to the second one at the July 27 council meeting. Lorelle Baddley said

the stop sign would make it more difficult for her to pull out of her driveway during peak traffic times.

Sean Hannon said he did not think the stop sign was necessary.

Following subsequent study, Caudle recommended the city add the stop sign where traffic is flowing southbound because of limited sight distance around it. You can now only see 170 feet, which is short of the 335 feet required. The northbound stop sign would have more significantly decreased a queue that forms during about 20 minutes of peak traffic in the morning, but its necessity is not as critical.

No one at the meeting spoke in favor or against the proposed ordinance.

“I certainly think that as you travel southbound

Site work for Lane Parke retail begins

By ERICA TECHO The retail space at Lane Parke is set to open by summer 2016.

Hoar Construction started site work at the development in early August. Construction of the building will begin in September, said Trippe Gray, project executive for Hoar Construction, and the majority of site work will be completed by March 2016. Landscaping will be wrapped up closer to the retail center’s opening next year.

A new road will be constructed to connect Montevallo Road to Lane Parke. The road will alleviate traffic and provide easier access to the hotel and shops, Gray said.

“Hoar Construction is excited to start work on the retail phase of this development,” Gray said. “The extensive planning, design and mix of tenants make this development a wonderful addition to Mountain Brook Village and the community.”

Hoar Construction also worked on the construction of Lane Parke Apartments.

The development will include eight tenants, including new restaurants and retailers CharBar No. 7, Kinnucan’s Specialty Outfitter, The Local Taco, Revelator Coffee and YEAH! Burger. A’Mano, M&S Interiors and Western Supermarket are also retailers opening new versions of existing Mountain Brook Stores.

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By MADOLINE MARKHAM

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Crosshill Rd

Proposed stop signs Existing stop signs

This map shows the existing and proposed stop signs at Brookwood Road and Crosshill Road. Only the proposed sign where traffic flows southbound will be added.

will be an acceptable first step,” Council Member Lloyd Shelton said.

There are currently four stop signs at the

northern end of the intersection and three at the southern end.

Joint city ceremony to remember Sept. 11, 2001 events

By MADOLINE MARKHAM Mountain Brook is joining with the cities of Homewood and Vestavia Hills to hold their annual Patriot Day Celebration. The three cities alternate hosting the annual event, and this year it will be held at plaza in front of the Homewood City Hall at 2850 19th St. S. The ceremony will begin at 8 a.m.

“The purpose is to take a moment out of our busy days to remember what happened on that day that changed all our lives,” Homewood Police Deputy Chief Bob Copus said. “It should be a very meaningful

ceremony.”

Army Captain Christopher Tanner will be the keynote speaker for the ceremony.

Tanner has served in Iraq and Afghanistan and now serves as an assistant professor of military science at UAB. A Birmingham native, he attended the United States Military Academy.

Also during the ceremony the Homewood High School show choir will also perform, the Homewood Fire Department will conduct a bell ceremony, doves will be released and a bag piper will play “Amazing Grace.”

VillageLivingOnline.com

September 2015 • A9

Crestline Christmas Shoppe to reopen

Diane Wright, Jan Cobb and Susie Hammers run the Crestline Christmas Shoppe. Photo by Madoline Markham.

By MADOLINE MARKHAM Mountain Brook Chamber of Commerce Director Suzan Doidge has been getting calls every week asking if the Christmas Shoppe in Crestline is reopening. Now she can tell them it is.

Jan Cobb and Susie Hammers operated the shop behind Crestline Pharmacy from 2005-2012 and now plan to reopen and unveil a new window display Sept. 10.

Cobb and Hammers first met each other and their husbands, Mike and Scooter, as students at Samford University. When their husbands started working as pharmacists at Crestline Pharmacy in 1990, they became the buyers for its gift selection. And after the pharmacy acquired the former Chinaberry Antique Shop, they decided to convert it into a space exclusively for holiday décor and gifts.

“I think [it’s so popular] because it’s quaint,”

Hammers said.

The small storefront that faces Hoyt Lane is filled floor to ceiling with anything and everything Christmas — ornaments, nutcrackers, mercury glass, angels, stuffed animals, nativity sets, vintage items, music boxes, collegiate items, pillows and more. They also sell collector’s items such as Byers Carolers, Jeremie and Roman.

“We have just about anything you want,” Cobb said.

This year they have seen more glitter, more gold and more lights on signs and other objects trending.

Cobb said more traditional items are also coming back in.

The store will be open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. and on weekends closer to Christmas. It will also stay open later on Thursdays. For more information, call the pharmacy at 871-0317.

Class rank and GPA study findings released

By MADISON MILLER Mountain Brook City Schools released its findings on its recent study on class rank and GPA calculations on July 28 and is now considering feedback received afterward from residents.

A committee was put together during the 2014-2015 school year to evaluate the school system’s process and answer the following questions: }} What is the purpose and influence of class rank on our students’ college admission application and scholarship competitiveness? }} Does the method used by Mountain Brook Schools to determine our students’ GPA benefit our students? Does it maintain the academic integrity of the school system?

After evaluating research on each question, the committee recommended removing class rank as part of the transcript and adopting a grade distribution as an alternate form of class comparison.

Through its research, the committee found that only 26 percent of the nation’s high schools continue to use class rank as a student comparison on transcripts. Interviews were conducted with admissions officers at Vanderbilt, Wake Forest and Washington and Lee Universities.

The committee asked the admissions officers to review transcripts of students without class rankings. Two of the three transcripts reviewed would have been admitted. However, when the committee revealed class rank of the students,

several admissions officers noted that the rank would “have negatively influenced their decision to review the student as a candidate for admission.”

Admissions officers did emphasize the importance of a comparison system, however. The committee found that alternate comparison systems, such as providing a student’s decile. Under this system, students in the top 10 percent would be in the first decile. Students in the 11-20 percent would be in the second decile, and so on.

Another option would be for the school system to provide a grade distribution showing colleges how many students have GPAs within certain levels.

The committee also recommended no change at this time for the way that Mountain Brook City Schools calculated GPA. Currently, the school system uses a 100-point weighted and unweighted GPA as well as a four point GPA on its transcripts.

This system proved to be the most beneficial to Mountain Brook City School students, according to the report. Although a change in weighted courses was considered, the committee felt weighting courses that are currently unweighted might take emphasis off of academics.

The committee will look at the 63 comments it received and make sure all issues brought up are addressed, Superintendent Dicky Barlow said at an Aug. 10 Board of Education meeting. From there they will make a recommendation to Barlow that will be discussed by the board.

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Village Living

A10 • September 2015

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Now Open ColeidoScopes has opened at 15 Office Park Circle, Suite 150. Its services include deep tissue massage, neuromuscular therapy, posture alignment, neurokinetic therapy, RockTape and FMS. 259-6303, coleidoscopes.com

1

Coming Soon Gourmet takeout food business Black Sheep Kitchen is opening this month next to Church Street Coffee & Books at in Crestline Village. Owner Julie Grimes is a former food editor at Cooking Light and Southern Living. The business address is 81 Church St., Suite 104.

612-3510, blacksheepkitchen.biz

2

Jersey Mike’s Subs is opening in the shopping center across from Publix on Overton Road. It will hold a grand opening fundraiser on Sept. 16-20 to support Vestavia Hills City Schools Foundation and Mountain Brook City Schools Foundation. jerseymikes.com

3

Crestline Pharmacy’s Christmas Shoppe is reopening on Sept. 10. It is located behind the pharmacy on Hoyt Lane facing City Hall. The store was previously open during the Christmas season from 20052012.

871-0317

4

Judith Bright Artisanal Jewelry is opening Sept. 18 in Mountain Brook Village in the former Christine’s location at 2411 Montevallo Road. The line of handmade jewelry

September 2015 • A11 has stores in the 12 South neighborhood of Nashville and the Virginia-Highland neighborhood of Atlanta. judithbright.com

News and Accomplishments Two Maids & a Mop, a residential maid service headquartered at 16 Office Park Circle, Suite 18, continues to expand its franchise footprint. It has opened new franchise locations in Tuscaloosa; Tallahassee, Florida; Alpharetta and Suwanee, Georgia; Ft. Worth and Dallas, Texas; and Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

870-8643, twomaidsfranchise.com

6

Hirings and Promotions RealtySouth’s Mountain Brook Cahaba office, 2807 Cahaba Road, welcomed Trevor Atkins and Stephanie Byrne as new agents, and the Crestline office, 105 Euclid Ave., welcomed Briana Burgess as a new agent.

870-5420 (Cahaba), 879-6330 (Crestline), realtysouth.com

7

Anniversaries Little Hardware moved to its new location in English Village one year ago last month. Its address is 2117 Cahaba Road.

871-4616, little-hardware.com

8

5

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Village Living

A12 • September 2015

The man behind the new Grand Bohemian

By MADOLINE MARKHAM Thomas Hoffman grew up in Germany, spent the last two years in Bangkok and has managed luxury hotels in six countries over 14 years. Now he’s making his home in Mountain Brook.

As the new Grand Bohemian’s general manager, he’s been busy preparing for the hotel’s opening next month.

“We wanted to make sure we launch with an emphasis on customer experience,” he said.

Hoffman managed Four Seasons hotels for 14 of the 20 years he has worked in the industry, so he said his experience was a good fit for Kessler Collections’ new luxury boutique hotel, the first of its kind in Birmingham.

“Their innovative ideas really appealed to me,” he said. “Every hotel is different.”

Hoffman, who has a culinary degree, also noted the strong food and beverage component of the hotel with its restaurant, cooking school and wine blending room. He has been working with Kessler to finalize the restaurant concept and select the best chef for the job.

“We want to get a good chef for this foodie city,” he said.

In addition to the food, he also said they want the community to come enjoy the spa and art gallery, a freestanding building that can also host events for up to 50. The ballroom will seat up to 400 people without a stage, and the cooking school and private dining room can also be booked for events.

“We have already had inquiries and booked a wedding and fundraising events,” he said.

The interior design of the hotel will feature whimsical botanicals inspired by neighbors Birmingham Zoo and Birmingham Botanical Gardens, as well as elements inspired by the state’s auto industry and nearby Barber Motorsports Park.

Hoffman met his wife, Meredith, in Atlanta in 1997, and while they have enjoyed the chance to travel the world, they have been wanting to move back to the South with their three children to be near her hometown in Georgia. Hoffman said he is enjoying how accessible Birmingham is.

“You can be anywhere in 15 minutes, and I am seeing how everyone is excited about the food scene,” he said. “I have heard it called the Portland of the South, and I can see it. We want to grow some roots here.”

PF Crestline Grand Opening_10x7.5 - Starnes-Crestline FIN_Layout 1 8/13/15 11:31 AM Page 1

German native Thomas Hoffman is the new general manager of the Grand Bohemian Hotel, which is slated to open next month. Photo by Madoline Markham.

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VillageLivingOnline.com

September 2015 • A13

Nashville designer opens jewelry store Judith Bright designs pieces for her line from her Nashville home. Photo courtesy of Judith Bright.

By MADOLINE MARKHAM Her first stop was Nashville. Next up was Atlanta. So Birmingham was the natural third location for Judith Bright’s jewelry. The Mountain Brook Village store is scheduled to open by late September.

Judith Bright offers 25 different gemstones sourced from all over the world and cut in India.

Designs come in rose gold, 14-carat gold filled or sterling silver. They are not precious metals but they are the next best thing, she said.

“You come in and you can design whatever it is you want within the parameters of the designs we put out there,” Bright said.

Bright and her team of artisans make each piece by hand, so “nothing is perfect.”

“It has a very clean aesthetic with very modern lines. It’s unfussy,” Bright said. “Our jewelry is meant to layer, and there is no end to the layering. We are big on stacking.”

Her jewelry starts at $38, and couture pieces top out around $1,000. The designs have been

worn in films by Meryl Streep, Jennifer Lopez, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Frances McDormand, among other stars.

Her latest collection, Mollie, is themed around a marquis shape and named after a Nashville sales associate. Likewise, each collection has a name that means something special to Bright.

Bright said her sandalwood pieces are particularly meaningful. Aromatic sandalwood beads are blessed by the Buddhist Lama in Kathmandu, Nepal, and mailed with rice and marigold dust.

Judith Bright stores also share the meaning of different gemstones to add another layer of meaning to gifts. For instance, blue topaz, which represents success, is popular for graduation.

Bright has always had a passion for making jewelry, but she maintained it as a hobby for many years while she pursued a career in media.

In 2004, she and her family decided to leave Los Angeles for Nashville, a place they thought would be good to raise their three boys. But first, they spent a year in Italy, where Bright developed her voice in the craft.

“Italian jewelry is my favorite. Italian everything is very inspiring for me,” she said. “Taking classes there, I remember walking through cobblestone streets after classes thinking, ‘I’m Cinderella and the shoe finally fits.’”

The niche Bright ultimately started to pursue was “affordable heirloom quality” jewelry.

Today she said her pieces bridge the gap between fashion jewelry and fine jewelry.

“People like me who were on a budget were able to buy great-looking pieces without breaking the bank,” she said. “I wanted to give people expensive-looking jewelry at a price that was reasonable.”

Her showroom started in her windowless basement in Nashville and worked its way to her upstairs and then, in 2010, to The Mall at Green Hills in Nashville across from Tory Burch and next to Free People. From there, she moved the showroom to the 12South neighborhood in Nashville and opened a second location in the Virginia-Highland area of Atlanta.

Bright has been holding trunk shows in

Birmingham since 2008 that have became an “integral part of business.” Seth Adams, who owns Village Sportswear and Marella, encouraged Bright to take the former Christine’s space in Mountain Brook Village when it opened up.

They knocked down the wall between Marella and the new Judith Bright storefront so shoppers could fluidly move from one to the other to pair clothing with jewelry.

“We have so many loyal Birmingham customers shopping with us online that a store here just made sense,” Bright said. “Birmingham is a city on the move with an entrepreneurial spirit much like that of Nashville.”

2415 Montevallo Road 918-3600 judithbright.com

Village Living

A14 • September 2015

Scratch-made foods to go

New business opening in Crestline

By MADOLINE MARKHAM Julie Grimes has always dreamed of having a sheep farm, but since she said she is “still two to three steps away from that,” sheep have inspired her new gourmet takeout food store.

Grimes has spent the past 17 years developing recipes for home cooks as a food editor for Cooking Light and Southern Living. Now she’s bringing her own recipes to the former Michelle’s storefront next to Church Street Coffee & Books in Crestline Village. Black Sheep Kitchen is scheduled to open this month.

Six days a week you’ll find scratch-made chicken potpie (stock from scratch, roasted bird and fresh veggies) and a set of other regular meal staples lining fridges in the front of the store.

You can call ahead or place an order online to reserve a meal in advance, or see what is available at any given time. Customers can also join a Supper Club, paying a monthly fee to get a meal once a month, twice a month, once a week or as frequently as you want along with a ceramic casserole dish to cut down on disposable dishes.

Each day will also feature a different theme that Grimes found to be popular when she catered the past several years. They all show off how she “likes for food to be playful.”

Meatloaf Monday could feature her classic Italian-style loaf with ground beef, Parmesan

and marinara or a variation of a turkey meatloaf.

On Taco Tuesday, there might be braised pork authentic carnitas one week or plank salmon fish tacos the next. Hunk-a Hump Day (Wednesday) will feature a hunk of meat such as a roast or pork shoulder. Throwback Thursday will always be Grimes’ grandmother’s Texas brisket recipe served with bacon onion jam and brioche rolls.

As for the specifics of the other days, Grimes said she will see what people respond well to and go from there. On Saturdays, she will feature a “Sunday dinner” that she hopes people will reheat for a big meal the next day. These might feature a champagne-braised chicken or pork pot roast with mushrooms and onions.

In everything she does, Grimes wants the food, like black sheep, to stand out from other options in Birmingham.

Her chicken salad will be made with roasted poulet rouge, a smaller chicken raised humanely, and tossed with a buttermilk dressing and multicolored heirloom tomatoes. A set of salads will feature “next generation grains” like farro now that, she said, “quinoa has gone mainstream.” In her Three Bean Salad, chickpeas, edamame and French green beans will be tossed with lemon, herbs and shallots. Her Wedge is a head of romaine with a marinated tomato dressing with bacon crumbles. Her ranch dressing is a hearthealthy Avocado Ranch made with buttermilk,

Former food editor Julie Grimes will serve home cooked meals and other food items togo from a storefront next to Church Street Coffee & Books. Photo by Madoline Markham.

herbs and citrus.

As she has worked on recipes, Grimes has received feedback and new ideas from her chief taste tester, her son Matthew Bottcher, a seventh-grader at Mountain Brook Junior High.

When she describes her gourmet takeout concept to someone, he is quick to add that his mom will also have cookies and homemade ice cream.

In addition to her own desserts, Grimes plans to sell artisanal products that will transform her space into more of what she calls a “groceraunt.”

She will bottle her salad dressings and sell Dayspring Dairy’s sheep milk cheeses and caramel spreads; cakes and tarts from Sugar Chef, a side business of pastry chef and Cooking Light test kitchen professional Deb Wise; and other unique goods she curates along the way.

Everything Grimes does in the store stems from her background, growing up in Texas the granddaughter of grocery store owners, in

culinary school and most notably developing recipes for both Southern and “light” food magazine readers.

“I’m a Texas and Southern cook at heart because that’s what I learned from my grandmother and mother,” she said while also noting the influence of 17 years in magazine kitchens.

“It’s an interesting time in the South. We are evolving with an homage to the past but tweaking it to make it more healthy and fresh.”

81 Church St., Suite 104 383-7422 blacksheepkitchen.biz Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-7 p.m.

Sunday, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.

VillageLivingOnline.com

September 2015 • A15

Sugar and spice and everything nice Resident’s mustard now available in stores

By MADOLINE MARKHAM Many people have tried to guess the secret ingredient in Caroline “Cal” Sirkin’s mustard, but her lips are sealed.

“It’s the spicy kick that people seem to like,” she said. “It has just the right balance of sweet and spicy. There’s something about the consistency that’s better [than other mustards].”

Even people who say they don’t usually like mustard have told Sirkin they like it.

It all started with Sirkin’s grandmother, who got the mustard recipe from a friend where she lived in Marblehead, Massachusetts.

Sirkin started making the mustard more when she started staying home with her kids, who were 9, 7 and 5 when they moved to Mountain Brook 11 years ago. She created batches to give to friends at Christmas each year, just as her mom and grandmother had done. Requests still spike leading up to Christmas and the Super Bowl, and now Sirkin has branded it as Cal’s Sweet & Spicy Mustard, pulling the name from her own nickname, and is packaging it to sell.

Sirkin recommends serving the mustard with grilled Conecuh sausage or pork or mixing it in marinades and salad dressings, spreading it on sandwiches or dipping pretzels in it. It also complements cheese well, she said.

The process to create the special mustard takes 24 hours. Sirkin mixes some of the ingredients one day and then the next adds more and cooks it before completing the final product.

Now Sirkin is working on a label with

More Made-in-Mountain Brook Products T-Lish Dressing & Marinade Created by Tiffany Denson Denson started bottling her Sweet Garlic Vinaigrette for friends in 2006. Today the original dressing, along with her Chipotle Vinaigrette and Asian Sesame Vinaigrette, is available in grocery stores in 27 states. tlish.com

Salsa Senorita Created by Lori Sours

Caroline “Cal” Sirkin created Cal’s Sweet & Spicy Mustard and is now looking to get it in more retail locations.

nutrition facts and on logistics to use either a commercial kitchen or a packer to produce the mustard on a larger scale.

In the meantime, she is working on getting the brand name out and developing recipes using the product. She set up a vendor table at an American Heart Association event at Birmingham Country Club and showcased the mustard at a table at the Village 2 Village Run. While she has earned her real estate license and started working for Ray & Poynor, Sirkin is also experimenting with a balsamic salad dressing that

could be a future Cal’s product. The mustard in it takes the “bite” out of the balsamic vinegar and helps the consistency, she said.

She has talked with Mountain Brook resident Lori Sours, who created Salsa Senorita, for advice.

“Everyone has been really supportive,” Sirkin said.

Currently, the mustard is on sale at The Pants Store for $4 for a 4-ounce jar or $7 for an 8-ounce jar. For more information, email calsmustard@ gmail.com.

Sours, a New Mexico native, and her brother developed Salsa Senorita from flavors from their home state in 2008. It was first sold at Oak Street Garden Shop and is now available in grocery and specialty stores from Alabama to California. salsasenorita.com

Holmsted Fines Chutney Created by Rebecca Williamson Inspired by her time in culinary school in London, Williams crafted traditional English chutneys. She started with a traditional green tomato recipe and added Southern twists for Peach and Balsamic-Red Onion varieties.

They are available at Whole Foods, Western Supermarkets, Piggly Wiggly and other local retailers. holmstedfines.com

Village Living

A16 • September 2015

Larger than life New satirical novel based on author’s teacher at Altamont

By MADOLINE MARKHAM Norman Laney is a morbidly obese English teacher. Like the Altamont teacher who inspired this character, he influenced countless future writers and artists. Katherine Clark will tell you he’s the center of her new satirical novel, and Pat Conroy will tell you the book’s setting acts as its second most important character.

Clark grew up in Mountain Brook and graduated from The Altamont School in 1980. From her Florida home, she has recreated the Mountain Brook of her high school years and the man she thanks for her direction in life in The Headmaster’s Darlings, which debuts this month through Conroy’s Story River Books, a fiction imprint with the University of South Carolina Press.

Altamont teacher and later headmaster Carl Martin Hames was an influential figure to Clark even in the years

before she took one of his classes.

“He was physically such a large presence and intellectually such a large presence in the school,” she said.

“His office was right near the library, so he was always walking around the library looking at what students were doing. He would comment on the book they were reading and engage them about it. He would comment on your doodling. He made himself known and he made himself felt.”

And when Clark did have him in class later, she said the experience was “like nothing I have ever had before or since.” He not only taught painting, history and philosophy, but he also emphasized what art could do to individual lives, an influence Clark credits to how many of his students have gone on to become artists and writers. Fannie Flagg and Mountain Brook writer Lanier Isom were both his students as well.

“He made literature and art seem

like the highest calling a person could answer to,” Clark said. “He instilled in so many of us a sense that if you wanted to live life to the fullest that art was the best answer. Pursuing a career in the arts is very difficult, but he gave us the courage to go out on that limb or at least give it a try. The passion that he brought to teaching his favorite writers fires me up still today.”

The Headmaster’s Darlings was Clark’s way of bringing Hames, who died in 2002, back to life. She changed some facts and details to better fit the plot, but others are true. For instance, on Clark’s college tour with Altamont, Hames stopped their bus on the side of a busy street in New York City for 45 minutes to go inside and speak with Diane McWhorter, who was writing what would become Carry Me Home: Birmingham, Alabama: The Climactic Battle of the Civil Rights Revolution at the time. To Clark, the stop demonstrated how important Hames believed

Altamont School graduate Katherine Clark’s debut Mountain Brook novel released in August. She will hold a launch event at the school this month.

McWhorter’s work was.

Hames, like the fictional Laney, grew up in Pratt City, and Clark chose to use his perspective as an “outsider” to Mountain Brook to provide a viewpoint distinct from the one she grew up with as a resident of the community.

Clark’s critique of Mountain Brook within her fictional “satirical comedy of manners” might seem harsh to local readers, but the author, who still has family in Mountain Brook,

emphasized why she depicts things as she does. She purposely set the first book in the early 1980s to show how the viewpoints of the characters change through the late ’90s, when the final book in the series is set, as more students leave following high school and exert influence on the community either by coming back or just by visiting and remaining a part of their families’ lives.

“I wanted to show the evolution

VillageLivingOnline.com

September 2015 • A17

Altamont Alumni Author Series Presents:

The Headmaster’s Darlings: A Mountain Brook Novel

By Katherine Clark, Altamont Class of 1980 With special guest Pat Conroy Thursday, Sept. 3 6 p.m. Doors, 7 p.m. Program and Dessert Reception Shuttle service from Independent Presbyterian Church begins at 5:45 p.m.

The Altamont School $50 ticket includes first edition signed by both authors Space is limited. To make a reservation and for shuttle information, visit altamontschool.org/ alumniauthorseries or call 874-3506.

on Altamont. All the Governor’s Men is scheduled to come out in the spring of 2016 and The Harvard Bridge in the fall of 2016, with the fourth in late spring 2017.

“I hope readers will go along for the ride for the whole series, because I do want to show an evolution for the whole community,” Clark said.

For now, though, Clark is taking a break from the novels to work on an oral biography of Pat Conroy — a genre in which she already has two books under her belt.

“

With a jaundiced eye reminiscent of Tom Wolfe, Katherine Clark takes aim at the ‘tiny kingdom’ of Mountain Brook, Alabama, in her frank and feisty debut novel, The Headmaster’s Darlings. In her riveting narrative, Clark delves into the mores and foibles of a hermetically sealed southern suburb and its prep school, where an obese, quixotic college counselor Norman Laney — a combination of Ignatius Riley, Truman Capote and a Florentine prince — wields his wit, aspiring students and sheer size as weapons of social change in his battle against a traditional Confederate mythology.

-Lanier Scott Isom, author, Mountain Brook resident and Altamont alumna

“

of the Southern community and how things can and do change,” she said.

“When I was growing up, I felt like there was a lot of racism in the air in Birmingham and in Mountain Book.

There still is, just like there is in the South and the rest of the country, but it is so much less that way now than when I was growing up. I know that schools and teachers are a part of the reason for that.”

Author Pat Conroy edited The Headmaster’s Darlings as well as other novels in the Mountain Brook novel series, all set at a school based

A18 • September 2015

In celebration of the beauty around you

Crestline woman pens book of garden watercolors

Passion for Native Plants: A Journey and a Journal Tuesday, Sept. 15 Birmingham Botanical Gardens 5:30 p.m. refreshments, 6 p.m. talk

By MADOLINE MARKHAM Lida Inge Hill’s Crestline backyard lives in her journal. Inside a black spiral book, she has created watercolors of her trees and shrubs, delineating what is native and what is alien. She started it as a personal project to share with friends, but many of them told her she should publish it.

“What touched me the most was when they told me they could see the love in the paintings,” she said.

Copies of Journal of a Cottage Garden are available beginning this month. The published version, spiral bound and printed on recycled textured paper, feels like a journal as well. Hill cleaned up spelling errors to publish it, but the text is all her original handwriting.

Hill started with a map of each plant in her yard and would devote hours to sitting in a lightweight green yard chair to capture what she saw. Next to the paintings, she used a black pen to list a fact or two she had researched about each and to describe her memories associated with it.

There’s a bald cypress former homeowner Henry Hughes started from seed that now you can’t see

Village Living

Wed., Sept. 30 Noon Emmet O’Neal Library

Lida Inge Hill paints plants from her Crestline backyard in her journal, which was recently published.

Photo by Madoline Markham.

the top of. (Hughes, the director of education at Birmingham Botanical Gardens, also wrote a preface for the book.) An aucuba came from her first house, and cuttings from it were used for her daughter’s wedding day.

The fig tree is one she and her mother bought together in Montgomery.

Douglas Tallamy, author of Bringing Nature Home, took note of what

Hill conveys in the book: “The heartfelt relationship Lida has with plants in her yard can be felt in every drawing. She plants seeds of awareness that our garden choices have consequences at home and beyond.”

Hill said the project has increased her passion for native plants. As a result, she is gradually replacing all alien varieties in her yard, which she

sees as invasive.

“Filling gardens with alien plants upsets the balance of nature,” she said. “We don’t’ realize how birds are taking seeds into the forest. It’s not just invading our yards, it’s invading our forests.”

Hill hopes the book helps readers be more aware of what they look at around them as they enjoy the

watercolor and recollect their own memories.

“It’s so easy to get caught up in doing programmed things, and I think this is my way of saying, ‘Let’s slow down and realize life is about interacting with other people but also with the natural world of plants, insects and spiders,” she said.

Hill is also planning to hold talks on native plants (see event box above) as well as garden journaling workshops at the botanical gardens on Jan. 9 and another one at Petals from the Past in early 2016.

Journal of a Cottage Garden is available for $20 (with tax) at Little Hardware, Leaf N Petal at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens, Little Professor, Crestline Pharmacy, Birmingham Museum of Art and Aldridge Gardens. To contact Hill about speaking or the book, email dawntoduskpress@gmail.com.

VillageLivingOnline.com

September 2015 • A19

Recollections of the gift of a life New book features essays about the influence of the Rev. John Claypool

By MADOLINE MARKHAM Carolyn Ratliff remembers the first time John Claypool preached at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in 1987.

“It was so clear to me that he was such a holy man and so authentic,” she said. “People felt God’s love through him.”

In fact, she said it was after that Sunday that she and her husband decided to start coming back to church. Almost three decades later, Ratliff has memorialized Claypool’s influence in a new book. The collection of 99 essays, Life Is Gift, will be released Aug. 30.

Forty of the essays were written by members of St. Luke’s, where Claypool served as rector for about 14 years, but the remainder come from those he knew in other chapters of his life.

Claypool grew up in Kentucky and served as a Baptist minister for the first part of his career. His preaching developed a strong following.

“People were so drawn to him,” Ratliff said.

“They say his sermons were confessional. Other preachers would pick things from his sermons to use in their sermons, and they’ll admit to that.”

Claypool was active in the civil rights movement in the 1960s, as evidenced by the photo of him with Martin Luther King Jr. in the book, but he had to withdraw from his involvement when 8-year-old daughter was diagnosed with leukemia. Her death two years later would lead him to write a book of three sermons Tracks of a Fellow Struggler, which the Amelia Center in Birmingham still gives out to families.

“The questions he asks about human suffering and death were so profound that that book is a comfort to people who have lost children,” Ratliff said.

His daughter’s death would also redirect Claypool’s life. He and his wife grieved in different ways, Ratliff said, and after 10 years they divorced. At the same time, his theology had evolved to help him understand and manage his grief.

John Claypool, left, served as rector of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, prior to Rich Webster, right. Photo courtesy of Carolyn Ratliff.

“He came to understand every single day is a gift, and that this child was a gift,” Ratliff said.

“That helped him live with the loss.”

His divorce and soul searching along with changes in the Baptist church led him to enroll in an Episcopalian seminary, and from there he was called to St. Luke’s.

“He had these two lives,” Ratliff said. “He was a total superstar in the Baptist church and then such a superstar in the Episcopal church.”

Ultimately, his life story would come full circle. After leaving St. Luke’s, he later taught at Mercer University’s McAfee School of Theology, a Baptist school, before he died of cancer

in 2005.

Ratliff’s book recounts perspectives from people from all phases of Claypool’s life, revealing his humor and wisdom as well as his compassion and clarity regarding all facets of life.

The beginning of the book also includes a page of his sayings, such as: “God’s middle name is surprise,” “None of us has earned our way into this life,” and “The worst things are never the last things,” Life Is Gift is available for $35 at St. Luke’s or saint-lukes.com. Proceeds benefit the St. Luke’s Episcopal Church ministries, including the Claypool Lecture Series.

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Village Living

A20 • September 2015

Author Tom Spencer captured this view from the Cave Creek Trail at Cheaha State Park.

Beholding the beautiful Local hiking enthusiast shares insights from writing area hiking guide

By MADOLINE MARKHAM Mountain Brook native Tom Spencer recently published a new guide to hiking in and around Birmingham. We talked with him about Five-Star Trails: Birmingham and the hiking research behind it.

How did you come to author this book?

For a dozen years I was a reporter at The Birmingham News, and in the last part of that I covered the environment and the outdoors. I reported on a lot of the development of green spaces and preservation of public lands, and it’s something I have always been interested in, having

grown up hiking, backpacking and camping in Alabama.

When I was leaving The Birmingham News, I was approached by Menasha Ridge Press. They were conscious of the establishment of Red Mountain Park and expansions at Ruffner Park and Railroad Park and wanted an updated guide. They had previously published 60 Hikes

Within 60 Miles guidebooks across the country. Now they are moving to more Five-Star Trails guides and did not have one yet for Birmingham.

How did you decide which hikes would make the book?

Part of the process was narrowing down regional hikes in Cheaha and Little River Canyon, but the primary

focus was the main hiking attractions here in Birmingham: Ruffner, Red Mountain, Moss Rock, Oak Mountain, etc. In-town hikes are easy for the spur of the moment. Some were chosen because they were integrated in the fabric of the community and others because they tell aspects of the stories of the community.

VillageLivingOnline.com

September 2015 • A21

Tom Spencer and his family take a photo at the trailhead for Cave Creek and Pinhoti Trail at Cheaha State Park, one of the hikes featured in his new book, Five-Star Trails: Birmingham.

What did you discover or rediscover about the area you have lived in most of your life in writing the book?

I grew up on Greenbriar Lane in Crestline, practically within throwing distance of Montevallo Road, but it never occurred to me that what would become the Irondale Furnace Trail was one of the earliest settlement routes in the area. They carted iron from Irondale Furnace to Montevallo to load on rails to go to a Confederate arsenal in Selma.

What was your research process like?

The hiking took close to a year with writing interspersed. I tried to get aspects of all the seasons in there, starting in early summer hitting Cahaba lilies and hitting Cheaha and Sipsey in the fall. The research was fun, and I dragged my kids out a lot.

I accumulated notes and pictures and then had to get serious about writing it during spring and summer.

What have you learned about hiking with kids?

One of the most rewarding parts of the whole experience was taking my kids along and getting them to see some of these places. You almost always run into resistance from kids about going.

They would complain, but once we got them there, they were almost immediately running and jumping on rocks and eager to see what was around the bend.

Having some sort of destination, a scenic overlook or body of water, is key to enticing them along and firing the imagination. You want to push them some, but not too hard.

My daughter, Anna, has gotten into taking pictures, so she often was my chief photographer. It was great to see

Tom Spencer ventured back near his childhood home to document the Irondale Furnace Trail for his new book. Photos courtesy of Tom Spencer.

her budding interest in that field.

What were some of your favorite hikes?

The epic adventure of getting to the big tree in the Sipsey Wilderness is the marquee. Cheaha’s Chinnabee Silent Trail is a beautiful walk with a few waterfalls, Devil’s Den and Cheaha Falls. I was involved early on in Friends of Red Mountain Park, so it’s been a real pleasure to go out there and watch it develop and watch it grow into a full-fledged park. The Ruffner hike out to Hawk’s View is always a favorite. I took my wife there on our first date, and it helped convince her that Birmingham might be someplace she would like to settle.

The subtitle of your book is “Your Guide to the Area’s Most Beautiful Hikes.” How does the beauty of the

area compare to other places you have hiked?

I have hiked out West in the Rockies and some in Tennessee and Virginia, and I went to school at UVA. I think what’s amazing is that from Birmingham, in a short distance you can go to very varied terrain. A place like the Sipsey preserves a different kind of forest than you find most anywhere else, with coves and canyons with these prehistoric trees and big poplar trees.

And then you can go around Cheaha and you’d swear you had driven into North Carolina and the Blue Ridge Parkway with its dramatic peaks and overlooks. Little River Canyon is just up the road, and you find yourself in the grand canyon in the east. Going along the Cahaba, there is nothing more beautiful than when the lilies are in bloom.

In town we have developed sidewalks, Red Mountain, the Ruffner expansion,

urban walks downtown; we are beginning to rediscover walking as a pastime and important part of living.

Is there anything else you want to say about hikes around town?

I think it’s important that everyone realize that these parks don’t succeed without citizen involvement and private support. We don’t have a lot of local tax dollars that go to funding some of these venues, so it’s important that anyone who cares about these places gets involved as a volunteer and support them, and that we make it a public priority.

Five-Star Trails: Birmingham is available at Little Professor Book Center, Church Street Coffee and Books, Books-A-Million and Mountain High Outfitters.

Village Living

A22 • September 2015

Birmingham

Private School Guide Special Advertising Section

Spring Valley School A22 Alabama Waldorf School A23

Indian Springs School The Altamont School

Spring Valley School

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 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 – (1) A successful student sets academic goals and monitors progress in achieving them. (2) Students excel when they are actively involved in the learning process.

(3) Students thrive when high expectations are coupled with opportunities to achieve academic

Key Facts Grades 2-12 605 Hagood Street Birmingham, AL 35213 423-8660 springvalleyschool.org success. (4) The curriculum must incorporate a variety of teaching strategies to accommodate various learning styles. (5) Students become good citizens by contributing to their community through leadership and service.

Spring Valley School is accredited through SACS (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.

A23 A24

Private School Guide

VillageLivingOnline.com

Special Advertising Section

September 2015 • A23

Alabama Waldorf School

Indian Springs School

The mission of Alabama Waldorf School is to cultivate healthy, confident, compassionate learners who excel academically, socially and civically. Waldorf schools provide a rigorous academic curriculum and incorporate strong arts and humanities components to support a well-rounded, liberal arts education. Teachers support each individual child by understanding and valuing his or her developmental capabilities and unique gifts. Offering an inquiry- and experiential-based teaching and learning environment fosters the development of analytical, creative and flexible thinking, which inspires successful problem-solvers and community leaders and prepares students for future jobs that have yet to be identified.

Specialty subjects complement the academic curriculum. Spanish and Russian are taught immersion-style to emphasize both language and culture. Movement Education focuses on games and skill-building. Handwork builds fine motor competency and self-sufficiency.

Music provides a fine arts outlet and another approach to building math skills.

Our mission is clear. We seek to develop in students a love of learning, a sense of integrity and moral courage and an ethic of participatory citizenship. Inspired by the motto “Learning through Living,” we are committed to the idea that in learning to balance individual achievement with the values and principles of democracy, students can develop to their full potential.

Named by Business Insider one of the smartest boarding schools in the nation, Indian Springs School brings together students from across the street and around the world, creating a diverse, respectful community that builds bridges among people and cultures and creates opportunities for new styles of learning, understanding and growth. Taught by dedicated, award-winning faculty on an idyllic 350-acre campus, our programs awaken intellectual curiosity both in class and out.

Our students love learning because they get to explore their own interests. Unique class schedules and independent studies allow them to push themselves to new heights, and creative

Key Facts Pre-K through Grade 8 1220 50th St. South Birmingham, AL 35222 592-0541 alabamawaldorf.org Alabama Waldorf graduates are passionate and eager for future challenges in higher learning. They go on to succeed in a variety of high school programs in the Birmingham area, in everything from math and science, to visual arts and creative writing, to engineering and business. College-age alumni attend North Carolina School for the Arts, Sewanee, Auburn University, University of Montevallo, UAB, Berry College and Appalachian State University.

Life Success through Academics and the Arts – Early Childhood through Grade 8 –

Alabama Waldorf School provides a balanced and engaging educational experience.

Waldorf education is grounded in strong academics, enriched by the arts, and built on practical, hands-on experience.

Because our teachers cultivate wonder and a reverence for life, Waldorf graduates have joyful successes not just in school and work, but also in life.

Tuesday Tours 9am-10am

1220 50th Street South Birmingham, AL 35222 205-592-0541 alabamawaldorf.org

Key Facts Grades 8-12 190 Woodward Drive Indian Springs, AL 35124 988-3350 ExperienceSprings.org excellence beckons — in the arts, on the field, in school governance, in student-run clubs and in our brand-new, state-of-the-art classrooms, which opened in August thanks to the generosity of many dedicated alumni, families and friends.

Most importantly, our students are happy as they discover who they are and who they want to be. With our mission to guide us, we know that they will be ready for college and prepared for the world.

A24 • September 2015

Private School Guide

Village Living

Special Advertising Section

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 their full potential.

At Altamont, we are preparing students to be good citizens; educating compassionate, curious, students; committed to producing well-rounded 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 every day 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 personalized college search program, including an annual college tour. The school also 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 approximately $1,000,000 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 located on 28 acres on 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 14,000volume 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

Key Facts Grades 5-12 4801 Altamont Road South Birmingham, AL 35222 879-2006 altamontschool.org

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.

VillageLivingOnline.com UAB

CONTINUED from page A1 UAB football player and current Nowlin & Associates president Justin Craft, Smith, Brigham, O’Neal Industries chairman and CEO Craft O’Neal and a few others.

“We sat down with Justin and Charlie and began talking about what it could look like,” Brigham said. “I guess the neat thing was this was more important than just football, it’s important to our city. We thought very strongly that if we could get in front of some of the city leaders… it would help.”

That turned into a recruiting effort that was spread out among several people and eventually landed more than 50 of the most influential business leaders in Birmingham.

“All of a sudden you just have this wide array of people who, historically, have never been associated with UAB, particularly the athletic side of it, deciding that this matters for the city of Birmingham,” Brigham said.

That’s the ray of hope that UAB football coach Bill Clark had been looking for.

His UAB football program — the one he took over in January of 2014 after leading Jacksonville State to the Football Championship Subdivision playoff quarterfinals — was shelved this past December. Clark quietly worked in the background while the UAB community banded together and fought for the return of the program. Plans to bring the program back were announced in June, with the 2017 season as the target date to be back on the field, but Clark, who has yet to receive a needed contract extension, still felt unsure. That changed, however, when Clark looked around and spotted community leaders everywhere he glanced.

“I feel great about our people and how hard they fought, but it was one of the most exciting times in all of this,” Clark said. “It was probably one of the best meetings I’ve ever been in. It was guys who were serious. It wasn’t, ‘Well, we hope,’ it was, ‘We’re going to do something.’ I think that’s where we are right now.”

Craft, who played for the Blazers from

September 2015 • A25 1994 to 1996 and was instrumental in the fight to bring back UAB football, said the tone changed once everyone was on board.

“I’m just so happy that those guys had the belief and passion for Birmingham that they have and they stepped up,” Craft said. “I said to someone, ‘It’s hard to get that many people to agree that the sky is blue.’ Every one of those guys on that list agrees that UAB football and a successful UAB football program is great for Birmingham and great for the economy. I think that’s what drew everyone together is realizing we have an asset that is being minimized, and what we need to do is maximize it.”

Maximizing the university’s athletic program means improving the athletic facilities. UAB Athletics Director Mark Ingram detailed facility upgrade proposals when the Finish the Drive Capital Campaign for Blazer Athletics was launched with a celebration at the UAB Alumni House on Aug. 18. Included in the plans were a two-story football operations building with coaches’ offices, locker rooms, a weight room and training room, a turf practice field for football, a new track and field complex that would include a turf field for band practice and intramurals, baseball and softball clubhouses, a practice facility for men’s and women’s basketball and volleyball, a new beach volleyball stadium and a tennis facility.

“Right now we are woefully behind the pack in facilities, and that’s where this campaign becomes such a priority to me and all the coaches,” said UAB men’s basketball head coach Jerod Haase.

Ultimately, though, this is much deeper than a football team and improved facilities. This is about a city moving forward.

“First of all, when you look at where Birmingham is today, what’s taken place with the development of Regions Field and Railroad Park, there is a significant amount of development taking place right now,” Brigham said. “There is a renaissance going on in Birmingham. It just seemed obvious to me and our group that this was a common sense step continuing this renaissance forward.”

UAB Athletics Campaign Committee ÌÌ Hatton C. V. Smith (Chair), CEO Emeritus, Royal Cup, Inc. ÌÌ Adam S. Cohen, Partner, Cityscape Development Group ÌÌ Alicia Huey, President, AGH Homes, Inc. ÌÌ Brian H. Bucher, Regional President, PNC Bank ÌÌ Brian Hilson, President and CEO, Birmingham Business Alliance ÌÌ Brooks Harris, Co-President, Harris Doyle Homes ÌÌ C. Phillip McWane, Chairman, McWane, Inc. ÌÌ Charles A. Collat Sr., Chairman Emeritus, Mayer Electric Supply Company, Inc. ÌÌ Charles E. Nowlin, Founder, Nowlin & Associates, Inc. ÌÌ Danny McKinney, CEO, McKinney Capital ÌÌ David L. Faulkner Jr., State Representative and Partner, Christian & Small ÌÌ David L. Silverstein, Principal, Bayer Properties, LLC ÌÌ Don Logan, Co-Owner, B.A.S.S., LLC ÌÌ Donald M. Hire Jr., Retired President, Armstrong Relocation Company ÌÌ Giles G. Perkins, Partner, Adams and Reese LLP ÌÌ H. Craft O’Neal, Chairman and CEO, O’Neal Industries ÌÌ Harold W. Ripps, CEO/General Partner, Rime Capital Account, Inc. ÌÌ Izell Reese, Executive Vice President, NCSA Athletic Recruiting ÌÌ J. Richard Cashio, Owner and President, Total Alloy Steel Service Company ÌÌ James J. Filler, Retired President and Treasurer, Jefferson Iron and Metal Co. ÌÌ James C. Lee III, Chairman and CEO, Buffalo Rock Company ÌÌ James Spann, Chief Meteorologist, ABC 33/40 ÌÌ James T. McManus II, Chairman and CEO, Energen Corporation ÌÌ The Honorable James T. Waggoner, Alabama State Senator ÌÌ Joel T. Welker, President and Publisher, Birmingham Business Journal ÌÌ John J. McMahon Jr., Chairman, Ligon Industries, LLC ÌÌ Joseph L. McGee, President and CEO, Legacy

Community Federal Credit Union ÌÌ Justin R. Craft, President, Nowlin & Associates, Inc. ÌÌ Leigh V. Collier, Regional President, Wells Fargo Bank ÌÌ Lenora W. Pate, Shareholder, Sirote & Permutt, P.C. ÌÌ M. James Gorrie, President and CEO, Brasfield & Gorrie, LLC ÌÌ M. Miller Gorrie, Chairman, Brasfield & Gorrie, LLC ÌÌ Michael F. Pizitz, President, Pizitz Management Group ÌÌ Merrill H. Stewart Jr., President and Founder, Stewart/Perry Construction ÌÌ Michael D. Thompson, President and CEO, Thompson Tractor Co., Inc. ÌÌ Nelson S. Bean, President and CEO, First Commercial Bank ÌÌ R. Lee Smith Jr., Executive Vice President, BBVA Compass Bank ÌÌ Richard Murray IV, President and CEO, National Bank of Commerce ÌÌ Robert A. Simon, President, Corporate Realty Associates Inc. ÌÌ Robert P. MacKenzie, III, Partner, Starnes Davis Florie, LLP ÌÌ Steve DeMedicis, President, Red Mountain Technologies ÌÌ Thomas H. Brigham Jr., Chairman, ARC Realty, LLC ÌÌ Thomas R. Cosby, Fundraising Consultant, Birmingham Landmarks ÌÌ T. Michael Goodrich, Chairman, Timberline Holdings LLC ÌÌ T. Michael Goodrich II, Principal, First Avenue Ventures, LLC ÌÌ W. Lee Thuston, Managing Partner, Burr & Forman ÌÌ W. Stancil Starnes, Chairman and CEO, ProAssurance Corporation ÌÌ Walter Howlett Jr., Chairman and CEO, A.G. Gaston Enterprises ÌÌ William B. Morton Jr., President and CEO, Robins & Morton ÌÌ William R. Ireland Jr., Executive Vice President, National Bank of Commerce

Village Living

A26 • September 2015

Mountain Brook Chamber of Commerce Luncheon

Kent Stewart’s friend Pemba, who served as his guide on Mount Everest this year, rebuilds his home in Phortse, a village near Everest that Kent’s nonprofit organization helped support.

EARTHQUAKE

CONTINUED from page A1 Then the guides’ radios started going off.

Teammates on the mountain had been hit with an avalanche.

Tents transformed into hospitals as climbers who were doctors by trade came on duty.

Kent assisted with a tent of the most critically injured, those facing head trauma. Five of the eight people he helped care for would survive.

Tuesday, Sept. 15 11 a.m. doors, 11:30 a.m. luncheon Birmingham Botanical Gardens Speaker: Kent Stewart $25 members, $30 nonmembers Visit welcometomountainbrook.com

Nineteen would die on Everest that day, the deadliest day in the mountain’s history.

“It was amazing how everyone pitched in,” he said. “Everyone came together — doctors, cooks, Sherpas. I wish someone had been there to film it.”

Three days after the quake, Kent got a helicopter ride back to Kathmandu. That’s when he saw the miles and miles of rubble. He had hiked through those villages on his way up to the mountain three times now and knew each by name. Many of the Sherpas he had gotten to

know on Everest live in the area.

Kent returned home to Mountain Brook, where he has lived since 1981, but his connection to those villages never stopped. He and his wife, Julie, had set up a nonprofit organization, Seven Summits Foundation, several years ago to help the communities surrounding the “seven summits” they were seeking to climb. So they already had an avenue to raise funds for Nepal.

Previously, the Stewarts had focused on paying tuition for children of Sherpas who had died on Everest, but this year they used the

Kent and Julie Stewart climbed Mount Aconcagua in Argentina in 2009.

organization to provide funds to rebuild two villages where Kent knew Sherpas, Thame and Phortse.

They planned a Hike for Nepal at Oak Mountain State Park, and between that and other donations raised about $84,000.

All the funds raised at the hike were divided among 99 families in the villages to pay for roofing supplies.

There it’s typical to build homes out of local rock and mud and craft woodwork around doors and windows. Generations of residents have also used shale on their roofs. The shale was free but so heavy that it killed people when it fell during the earthquake. Using the funds the Stewarts have raised, the villagers can now purchase a lighter weight steel roofing as they seek to rebuild in a safer way that still maintains their culture.

“Rebuilding is slow, but I get pictures from my friends over there,” Kent said. “It’s almost like a barn raising with them all helping their neighbors.”

Kent is also concerned for the villagers since

VillageLivingOnline.com

September 2015 • A27

Kent Stewart on climbing What are the Seven Summits?

Kilimanjaro in Africa, Elbrus in Europe, Vinson in Antarctica, Kosciuszko in Australia, Aconcagua in South America, McKinley (Denali) in Alaska and Everest in Nepal. Julie and I summited the first five, and I did McKinley in 2011 and am now working on Everest.

What keeps you going back to each summit?

It’s such a definable goal. Going to the top and back down gives you a feeling of accomplishment. You also make friends with people and bond very quickly What is it like after the climb ends?

You don’t enjoy it until you are back at home because you are so physically exhausted and scared. Then all the good memories come back.

What are some of your most memorable climbs?

In Argentina we came upon a man who was almost dead on the summit ridge and helped him get back down.

Antarctica was such a unique experience. It was minus 40 degrees everywhere. Every mountain has its own personality and its own set of challenges. Nothing seems to go exactly as planned, which is part of the appeal.

Everest’s climbing and trekking season closed early this year. It usually runs from March to May. “Their economy is taking a hit,” he said.

“They rely on the tourist money. If the country recovers by next year, I think it will be their biggest year ever.”

He hopes the earthquake and a new movie on Everest coming out this fall will attract new people to the area. Most of his teammates are planning to go back next year if possible.

“Most people know an earthquake is a rare event

Mountain Brook resident Kent Stewart and other climbers helped injured persons into their dining tents following the April 25 earthquake. Photos courtesy of Kent Stewart.

and it’s unfair to blame a mountain,” he said. “It was just a natural disaster no one could predict.”

Kent has been on a mission to climb the seven summits since he and Julie climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in 2006, just after his 50th birthday.

At the time, he, a longtime golfer, had just worked his way up to running three miles. Today his training is more in line with Julie, a marathon runner. On Aug. 1 he started spending three to five hours a day in endurance training with the coach of a Norwegian cross-country endurance team.

Everest is the only one that remains on his

list. Last year his trip was canceled, and the year before he got sick.

When he first started in 2006, the climbs were all about making the summit. These days, he has come to value the relationships he forms on the trips along the way.

When he returns to Nepal, he will see, and hopefully summit, Everest. But he’ll also return to see steel roofs and the Sherpas he knows who live under them.

Kent will speak at the Mountain Brook Chamber of Commerce luncheon on Sept. 15. See the

sidebar for more information.

For more information on the Stewarts’ foundation or to make a donation, visit sevensummitsfoundation.com. One hundred percent of proceeds go to the causes they serve, as the title insurance and real estate closing firm Kent founded, Reli, pays all overhead and administrative expenses for the work. The Stewarts plan to hold the hiking fundraiser again next year, possibly with funds going to another cause.

Village Living B SECTION

Events B5 Sports B12 Real Estate B18 Community Awards B20

SEPTEMBER 2015

Communities to unite at Norwood 5K

By MADOLINE MARKHAM Natalie Isom Sansom remembers a day last fall being “magical.”

“We started with Zumba,” she said. “It was amazing to see old and young, black and white, all shapes and sizes out there smiling.”

Sansom recalls watching neighbors from Norwood, a historic neighborhood north of downtown Birmingham, come out to cheer on runners in the Boulevard Blast 5K and lots of volunteers encouraging participants across the finish line.

This year she is looking forward to the event’s return on Sept. 26 and is hoping even more people are introduced to the neighborhood through it.

“We want to bring people from other communities to see what Norwood is about and see what the Norwood Resource Center is doing,” said Sansom, whose dad Chervis Isom grew up in Norwood.

The resource center offers educational activities and services to improve Norwood out of a home in the neighborhood. It offers a Junior Master Gardener Program for elementary students, runs learning gardens on vacant lots, provides tax assistance and helps residents with other needs. All proceeds from the event go to its work.

Sansom is co-chairing the event committee with fellow

See NORWOOD 5K | page B6

The route for the Boulevard Blast 5K runs through the historic Norwood neighborhood. Photo courtesy of Natalie Isom Sansom.

Village Living

B2 • September 2015

Community Symphony 30 to hold annual picnic benefiting ASO Symphony 30 will host its 18th annual family-friendly picnic on Sunday, Sept.

27, beginning at 4 p.m. at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens.

This annual fundraiser will feature food catered by Jim ‘N Nicks, and pop concert selections by the Alabama Symphony Orchestra. There will also be a raffle of gifts from local business and a children’s activity and craft area. Musical highlights will include Aaron Copland’s Rodeo, selections from A Midsummer Night’s Dream and music from Pirates of the Caribbean. ASO’s new Music Director Carlos Izcaray will be conducting.

Symphony 30 is a nonprofit group of approximately 98 women who are committed to the legacy and future of the Alabama Symphony Orchestra. The organization has raised

close to $360,000 for its education programs, and all proceeds from this year’s picnic will help to continue this support.

Picnic chair Ensley Darnall, picnic co-chair Colin Mitchell and Symphony 30 President Emily Branum are planning this year’s event. Its presenting sponsor is Schaeffer Eye Center, and the percussion level sponsors are Brasfield & Gorrie, Brookwood Medical Center and Protective Life Corporation. In-kind contributions at the picnic will be provided by our community partners Buffalo Rock, Bud’s Best Cookies, Golden Flake, United-Johnson Brothers of Alabama, Western Supermarkets and Whole Foods.

Tickets are $75 for a family or $30 for an individual. To learn more or to purchase tickets, visit symphony30.org.

Picnic Co-Chair Colin Mitchell, Picnic Chair Ensley Darnall, Symphony 30 President Emily Branum and Lindsay Moore of Jim ‘N Nicks.

Thomas Byrne earns Eagle rank Thomas Byrne became the newest Troop 320 Eagle, the 258th for the troop. Thomas is the son of Russell and Stephanie Byrne.

Thomas’s Eagle project was to build a bridge over a tributary near the Jemison Trail along with the help of 13 scouts from Troop 320. He will also be presenting a donation to Red Mountain Park in excess of $1,000 from fundraising efforts for his project.

Thomas comes from a family with a rich history in Troop 320. His father,

Russell, is Troop 320 scout master emeritus. His uncle Kelly Byrne is a current adult leader at Troop 320 and also the adult leader for Troop 2010 Venture Crew. His uncle Matt Byrne, who passed away shortly after a major winter hike to Mount Mitchell, was very active as an adult leader at Troop 320 and organized many trips. He was buried in his Scout uniform. Thomas also has three cousins who received their Eagles from Troop 320: Paul (son of Matt Byrne) and Robert and Will Byrne (sons of Kelly Byrne).

Thomas has been active in Troop 320 since crossing over and receiving his Arrow of Light from Cub Scouts.

He has shown leadership as a patrol leader, chaplain and most recently troop representative to Pack 320, where he assisted as a den assistant and helped with New Scout backpacking, the Pine Wood Derby, the Blue and Gold banquet and weekly pack meetings. Thomas plans to stay active in scouting with the Venture Crew and is hopeful that his sister will be joining him.

Thomas is a senior at Mountain Brook high School. He is on the varsity lacrosse team, where he has been the starting goalie for the past two years; varsity football team, where he was a starter for special teams and also played defensive end; and the varsity wrestling team, where he made it to state last year in the 170 lb. class. After high school he plans to attend Millsaps College and major in business or science and play lacrosse.

Thomas Byrne

VillageLivingOnline.com

September 2015 • B3

A new Little Free Library for Overton Park

By MADOLINE MARKHAM Overton Park is home to a new Little Free Library thanks to Emma and Olivia Craig.

The small, enclosed bookshelf allows anyone to pick up a book or two and drop off another to share. The new library joins more than 25,000 registered Little Free Libraries in all 50 states and over 70 countries. Only three are currently registered in Birmingham: one in Highland Park, one in Homewood and one in Roebuck.

Originally designed to look like a one-room school or a “house of books,” the libraries have taken on a wide variety of sizes, shapes and themes since the movement began in Wisconsin in 2009. Many are in front yards, but Emma and Olivia thought it would get the most traffic at Overton Park since they often walk there to play and know there are a lot of kids there.

The girls had each come up with a family project this summer. Emma, 7, raised money to buy stuffed animals for kids at Children’s of Alabama, and Olivia, 4, wanted to start a Little Free Library. She had seen it advertised on the Disney Channel, and since then her family had

spotted them when traveling to Chattanooga and Fairhope.

“I think it’s a great idea to share books you love and encourage reading,” said Amber Craig, the girls’ mom.

A family friend made the library from recycled materials, and the girls painted it red to match the Cam’s Corner fire truck at the station and resemble a schoolhouse.

After they decided on a location, Amber contacted Parks and Recreation Director Shanda Williams, who presented the idea to the park board using a video Emma and Olivia had made, and the board arranged for the library to be posted at the end of July.

Since then, the girls have been checking the library and have found new books in it each time.

In each new book they imprint a stamp that says “Little Free Library, Overton Park” along with a Dr. Seuss quote so that future readers knew it was once there.

A sign on the library says it welcomes children’s and adult books. So far it’s housed mostly children’s books, and so Williams suggested they look into creating an adult box in the future. The

Emma Craig, 7, checks out new books in the Little Free Library at Overton Park that she and her family established. Photo by Madoline Markham.

Craigs are currently working on getting their library registered on the Little Free Library website and reading new books they have found at the library. Emma enjoys Berenstain Bears and

Junie B. Jones, while Olivia likes Pinkalicious and Sophia.

For more information on existing libraries or how to start your own, visit littlefreelibrary.org.

Western’s Wine & Food Festival to benefit library Western Supermarket’s annual Fall Wine & Food Festival will once again benefit the Emmet O’Neal Library. The event will take place at the Birmingham Zoo on Friday, Sept. 25 from 6-9 p.m.

It will feature more than 600 wines from around the world for tasting. Food vendors will be present as well. These include Belle Chevre,

Stone Hollow, GMomma’s Cookies, Pickled Pink, Copper Pot Kitchen Olive Oils, Alabama Pond-raised Shrimp, Nabeel’s, Zeigler Meats, Boar’s Head, Hissho Sushi, Limeaux Seafood gumbo, Dirt Road Gourmet, Fox Valley, Millie Rays, Merry Cheese Crisps, T.Lish, Pure Alabama Honey and Dean’s Cakes.

The experience doesn’t end at the event either.

Western’s staff and wine vendors can suggest wine pairings for your upcoming party, and you can order cases of wine at a discounted price.

Sue DeBrecht, library director at Emmet O’Neal, has never talked to anyone who did not have a good time. She said the staff and wine

stewards at Western Supermarket work diligently to create the perfect atmosphere and experience.

Tickets are $60 in advance, $70 at the door and $50 for persons in groups of 10 or more. Tickets can be purchased at the Emmet O’Neal Library, Western Supermarket or westernsupermarkets. com.

Village Living

B4 • September 2015

Public invited to vote on Crestline Rocks lineup

Consignment sale returns to MBCC

Event scheduled for Sept. 26

A shopper checks out the selection at the spring Sweet Repeats sale. Photo by Madoline Markham.

Residents watch local bands play on stage at last year’s Crestline Rocks event. Photo courtesy of PreSchool Partners.

By MADOLINE MARKHAM Come Sept. 26, Crestline Village will rock again, and you can help determine who will be on stage.

PreSchool Partners is bringing back its local music festival, Crestline Rocks, in a slightly amended form. Bands will play on stage on the grassy lawn in front of the Emmet O’Neal Library from 5-10 p.m., and part of the lineup for the event will be determined by a Vote by Donation system. Hugh Rowe Thomas as well as Will and Sarah Mason will perform, with Sarah Simmons from Season 4 of The Voice wrapping up the evening From Sept. 1-8, you can visit preschool-partners.org and vote for your favorite band by making a donation to PreSchool Partners. Each dollar counts as one vote, and the top two winners earn a spot on stage. The lineup will be announced on Sept. 10.

Band submissions for the voting period will be accepted through Aug. 28. To enter

your band, submit a YouTube video to crestlinerocks@preschool-partners.org.

Money raised from the event will support PreSchool Partners, which was founded more than 20 years ago to provide quality preschool education for at-risk children in the Birmingham area. The program serves to support and educate both the students and their parents through its highly structured learning environment.

Students in the program receive more than 800 hours of instruction and enrichment annually, and their parents attend more than 100 hours of classes on topics such as child development, money management and family literacy.

Regions Bank is the title sponsor for Cretline Rocks, which was originally scheduled for Oct. 11 but has been pushed up to Sept. 26.

For more information about sponsorships for the event, contact Allene Neighbors at allene@preschool-partners.org or 951-3398.

For more information about PreSchool Partners, visit preschool-partners.org.

On Sept. 17 and 18, the Mountain Brook Community Church (MBCC) gym will transform into a massive consignment store for children’s clothes and toys.

The biannual Sweet Repeats consignment sale offers gently used clothing in infant through junior sizes. Twenty five percent of the proceeds support MBCC Missions while the remaining 75 percent goes to the consignor.

Sweet Repeats will be open on Friday, Sept. 17 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on Saturday, Sept. 18 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. On Friday, no strollers will be allowed from 9-11 a.m. On Saturday, many items will be reduced to half price.

Visit mbccsweetrepeats.blogspot.com or email mbcc.sweetrepeats@gmail.com for more information.

Gardens to host orchid show and sale The Birmingham Botanical Gardens will host the 31st Annual Orchid Show and Sale on Sept. 18-20.

On Friday, Sept. 18, the event will kick off with a sale from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. On Saturday, Sept. 19, a sale will take place from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. along with a show

from noon to 6 p.m. On Sunday, Sept. 20, both a show and sale will take place from 11 a.m.-4 p.m.

Admission to the sales and shows are free. For more information, visit facebook. com/alabamaorchidsociety or bbgardens. org.

Call us to schedule a complimentary initial exam!

VillageLivingOnline.com

September 2015 • B5

Library celebrates 50 years

By MADOLINE MARKHAM Celebrating 50 years of the Emmet O’Neal Library is about more than a building. It’s about all the people who have made it into a cultural and learning center for the city.

The original library building, completed in 1965, was a gift of the Elizabeth and Kirkman O’Neal Foundation. It was named in honor of Kirkman’s father, Emmet O’Neal, who served as governor of Alabama starting in 1910 and set up a rural library system during his time in office.

An article announcing the library’s opening boasted that it was “all-electric,” “heated and cooled by an electric heat pump” and earned an All-Electric Building Award.

Due to rising interest, an east wing was added onto the library starting in 1966, enlarging the original Georgian brick structure.

Doris Young, circulation department head, has worked at the library since April 1976. She remembers adding a reference library and front entrance onto the original building before the current building was constructed in 2001.

Young recalled the years when the staff typed out overdue notices and left them at the circulation desk so that they could check them before anyone checked out a book.

She also remembers when books came with their own card catalog cards and when children had to write reports on books to add them to their summer reading logs.

The library joined the Jefferson County Library Cooperative when it began in the late ’70s. Today, unlike other libraries in the system, Emmet O’Neal still stamps due date cards and puts them in the back pocket of each book at checkout.

Over the years, the library’s collection has grown from an initial 8,000 books to its current approximately 141,000 books, 7,000 DVDs and 6,000 audiobooks. Today it hosts 140 adult programs, 40 teen programs and 780 children’s programs each year.

“As it grew, this community is on the cutting edge, and the library has always strived to give it to them,” former children’s department head Carol Melton said.

To celebrate 50 years of growth and service to the community, the library is ordering lots of cake and hosting special events detailed on this page. For more information, visit eolib.org.

Elizabeth and Kirkman O’Neal look at books with David White, Penny Page and Craft O’Neal in 1967, two years after the library opened. Page was a part of the planning committee for the library’s anniversary events this year. Photo courtesy of the Emmet O’Neal Library.

Library Anniversary Events Photo Tour All month Photographs from the library’s history and popular books and movies from the ’60s to the present will be on display around the library.

Children’s Photo Booth All month Children can pose with retro props and one photo for each decade.

Teen Trivia Sept. 3, 6:30-8 p.m.

Teens can test their knowledge of the past 50 years.

Family Night: Funikijam Sept. 8, 5:30 p.m.

Dinner and birthday cake will be served with a concert at 6 p.m.

Every Treasure Has a Tale: Conversations with Antiquities Expert John Jones Sept. 12, 9:30 a.m.

Jones will present some of the most interesting items he has brokered in his career. To register, call 8790459, visit eolib.org or visit the Adult Services desk.

An Evening With the Author: Doris Kearns Goodwin Sept. 12, 6-9 p.m.

Tickets are $50 each and available only at the second floor reference desk. Call 445-1121 for availability and details.

B6 • September 2015

Village Living

Dinnertainment fundraiser to be ‘full of surprises’

The Exceptional Foundation participants perform as a part of last year’s Dinnertainment event. Photo courtesy of The Exceptional Foundation.

By JORDAN HAYS The Exceptional Foundation participants will show off their talents at the upcoming Dinnertainment fundraiser.

The event began last year as a way to give dinner party attendees an understanding of what happens at the center on Oxmoor Road every day. This year it is scheduled for Friday, Sept. 11 at The Country Club of Birmingham.

The foundation is a nonprofit organization that provides social and recreational activities for people with mental and physical needs.

“I think that everybody, after they’ve been there, will know that The Exceptional Foundation is a fun, happy place because of what comes from the participants’ hearts and from their talents,” said Carmine Jordan, secretary of The Exceptional Foundation Board of Directors. “When they

Dinnertainment Benefiting The Exceptional Foundation Friday, Sept. 11 The Country Club of Birmingham exceptionalfoundation.org are there that night and doing a performance for a room full of people ... they shine and you just see the joy in their hearts.”

Without these sorts of fundraisers, The Exceptional Foundation would only be able to serve a third of the people it does now, according to Jordan.

Tickets are $150 and include a cocktail hour and a seated dinner provided

by The Country Club of Birmingham.

Proceeds from the event will help fund the foundation’s work.

The route for the Boulevard Blast 5K runs through the historic Norwood neighborhood. Photo courtesy of Natalie Isom Sansom.

NORWOOD 5K

CONTINUED from page B1 Mountain Brook resident Graham Smith, whose mother-in-law Betsy first toured her around Norwood three years ago before she moved here from Long Island.

“I thought, ‘This is a very interesting community with the broad promenades and beautiful elementary school,’” Smith said. “It’s ripe for revitalization.”

Sansom noted that the community’s elementary school is currently being renovated to reopen and that young families are moving in and renovating homes in the area too.

“You’ll see some that are spectacular,” she said.

The 5K event will feature music, vendors, cooking demonstrations and other festivities in addition to the run itself. It will also be the last week of the Trolley Stop Market that sells produce from the center’s gardens.

Through the event, organizers hope to help teach the community about the importance of

Boulevard Blast 5K Benefiting the Norwood Resource Center Saturday, Sept. 26 9 a.m. 5K 9:30 a.m. Fun Run/Walk 3136 Norwood Blvd.

Register at active.com

eating better and exercising. Many community members are already preparing through a Couch to 5K program.

Birmingham City Council Rep. William Parker and four clergy members from St. Luke’s Episcopal, two who are over 65, are preparing for the run as well. St. Luke’s members, including Sansom and Smith, have long been involved in Norwood, but organizers hope others come out for the event as well.

“Anyone can feel the energy in Birmingham,” Smith said. “To not know about Norwood is to miss out. It is a hidden gem.”

To learn more about the Norwood Resource Center, visit norwoodresourcecenter.org. If you are interested in volunteering at the event, email nataliesansom@ gmail.com or gmsmithwlu@gmail.com.

VillageLivingOnline.com

September 2015 • B7

A home for teen fitness LJCC program trains athletes and non-athletes alike

By MADOLINE MARKHAM A newly renovated room at the Levite Jewish Community Center looks like a small version of other fitness areas, but its purpose is unique. In the former office space, children and teens now engage in strength training through a program called 365 Performance Training — all thanks to a donation made in Alex Sokol’s memory. It was completed in mid July.

“Alex had a passion that if the youth in a community were vibrant, the community was healthy,” said the donor, Bruce Sokol, Alex’s father and an active member of the LJCC. “This would have been right in his wheelhouse. Many of the kids in the program are Alex’s friends’ kids.”

In the room, a group of 10- to 18-year-olds use barbells, TRX suspension training, dumbbells and other adult-sized equipment for age-appropriate exercises. They also do sprints and other speed work outside the room, all to advance their

conditioning.

“You would be surprised how many athletes have not been taught technique for running,” said Spencer Lynch, who leads the program with Kreston Collins.

The program began 16 months ago and has trained many athletes and teams outside of their regular season, providing general fitness training to prepare them to go back into the specific athletic skills they use in sports seasons.

“We can give a lot more individual attention and care to get them to start the season ahead of the eight ball,” Sokol said. “They are ready to go right from the get-go.”

The program also welcomes children and teens who do not play sports. Many of them have become regular attendees. Collins recalled a fifth-grader who was scared his first session.

Before long, he couldn’t stop smiling. That would be the first of five workouts in a row he attended, many times alongside a lacrosse player who will be on the Fresno State team next year.

Kreston Collins, right, works out with kids like Ford Moffatt, left, in a new fitness room created in Alex’s Sokol’s memory at the LJCC. Photo by Madoline Markham.

In addition to fitness, Collins coaches the participants about what and how often to eat.

“Recovering is just as important as working out, and that comes through rest and nutrition,” Collins said.

365 is a unique time in the day for Lynch and Collins, who primarily work with adults at the LJCC.

“These kids are like a sponge,” Lynch said.

“They want to absorb anything you can teach them. They want to get better every day.”

“You can change a kid’s life,” Collins said.

The LJCC holds 365 classes Monday through Thursday at 4 p.m. For more information, contact Collins at kcollins@bhamjcc.org or 510-9020.

Village Living

B8 • September 2015

From the heart of the Via Dinarica in Bosnia and Herzegovina MBHS grad reports from the Balkans

By OLIVIA BURTON On a reporting trip with The Yale Globalist in May, I researched the Via Dinarica, a new mega trail in the Balkan Peninsula. The Via Dinarica passes through isolated villages, lush green valleys and jagged, snowcapped mountains as it spans seven countries from Albania to Slovenia. With the motto of “Connecting Naturally,” the Via Dinarica crosses more than physical borders in this fragmented region.

In past years, the Globalist has sent groups of reporters to South Africa and Vietnam; this year, we traveled to Bosnia and Serbia. Each of the 17 members of our group had a topic to research, ranging from the cultural memory of the Bosnian War to turbofolk, a controversial musical genre that mixes elements of Serbian folk and pop. I chose to write about the Via Dinarica because of my love of the outdoors and my interest in environmental protection.

Without speaking the language and having very little knowledge of the Balkans from school, I was not sure what to expect. Fortunately, Tim Clancy, an ecotourism expert and member of the Via Dinarica project’s team, included me and three other Globalist reporters on a hike to the heart of the trail: Prenj Mountain.

Clancy moved from the United States to Bosnia in 1992 to help with relief

Hendrik Morkel (left) and Tim Clancy (right) break for lunch. Photos by Olivia Burton.

efforts during the war and now lives in an eco-home outside of Sarajevo working as a freelance writer. We were helping him bring climbing gear and food to Hendrik Morkel, a Finnish adventure journalist of the blog “Hiking in Finland,” and his Via

Dinarica project manager and team leader Kenan Muftic, a mountaineer and demining dog trainer from Sarajevo.

After a hectic week of exams and packing, I was still getting used to Bosnia’s slower pace. We stopped in

the town of Konjic to buy Bosnian coffee and uštipci, a beignet-like piece of fried dough served with a salty, spreadable cheese. The patio of the restaurant overlooked the clear Neretva River crossed by an Ottoman-style triangular bridge. Although

I was anxious to get to the mountain so I could take pictures for my article, I had to remind myself that I was on Bosnian time.

After Konjic, Clancy drove us up the mountain through a web of rocky logging roads, many of them freshly,

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VillageLivingOnline.com

September 2015 • B9

Trail signs guide hikers at the heart of the Via Dinarica, Prenj Mountain.

and illegally, cleared. A few miles in, a truck was blocking the narrow road. Four men were loading cut logs onto the back of the car. “Would one of you write down the tag number please?” Clancy asked. Unfortunately, he explained, Bosnia has few regulations on logging and they are scarcely, if ever, enforced due to corruption and apathy towards the environment.

In addition to building natural

Olivia Burton takes in the view at the valley below Prenj Mountain.

connections in a fragmented region, part of the goal of the Via Dinarica is to promote environmental protection.

Clancy said that what he loved most about the Via Dinarica is its wildness.

But if logging, river damming and strip mining are not limited, the Via Dinarica’s wildness will be at risk.

The government offers little help; with an almost incomprehensible system of three presidents and over 150 political

parties, the government of Bosnia and Herzegovina is currently ineffective at creating and enforcing environmental regulation. Grassroots projects such as the Via Dinarica must take the initiative themselves.

As we drove farther up the mountain, red signs with white skull and crossbones warned travelers to stay on the roads because of remaining mines from the Bosnian War. Prenj Mountain

was on the front lines, since military strategy prioritizes taking the highlands in order to have an advantageous position in taking lowland areas such as Konjic. I asked Clancy if mines posed a challenge to the Via Dinarica project. Hikers on the Via Dinarica are safe, especially if they stay on the trail. Still, the signs on the road to the access trail served as reminders of the scars of the war.

Patches of snow made the logging road impassable by car a few miles from the valley, so we got out to walk.

Clancy, photographer Olja Latinovic, media consultant Stefan Pejovic and Latinovic and Pejovic’s 8-year-old daughter accompanied us.

It was raining during the drive and still drizzling when we started to hike, but after a few minutes the rain cleared and a strong, crisp wind began to blow the wispy fog over the mountains.

After about an hour and a half of walking down the logging road, the trees began to thin out and the panoramic view of a vast green valley opened up below us. Prenj Mountain, still partly shrouded in clouds, towered over the opposite end of the valley.

Energized by the view, we walked into the valley, where we found Morkel and Muftic. We sat down on the grass for a lunch of bread, cheese, apples, and Bosnian pastries made by Clancy’s wife, Sabina. Meanwhile, the sun began to burn off the fog so that we could see the top of Prenj Mountain, capped with snow at almost 7,000 feet.

I could see what Clancy meant when he described the Via Dinarica as “wild.” Not only is it a new trail that few have hiked or even heard of, but it also passes through a rugged, strange and gorgeous landscape far older than the countries or peoples who travel it.

For more information on the Via Dinarica, visit viadinarica.com. To read about The Yale Globalist’s reporting trip to the Balkans, visit globalistbalkans.wordpress.com. Look for another feature on the Via Dinarica in the Balkans issue of the Globalist this fall at tyglobalist.org.

Olivia Burton, a 2014 Mountain Brook High School graduate, is a rising sophomore at Yale University, where she plans to major in English.

She wrote for Village Living this summer.

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Village Living

B10 • September 2015

Summer FUN

Photo Contest

WINNERS

Mountain Brook residents Isabella & Frederic Maldia read the latest Village Living at Jekyll Island Club Hotel.

Photo by Dr. Mark Maldia.

Anne Raines Doidge paraglides in Switzerland. Photo courtesy of Susan Doidge.

Find more contest photos by visiting villagelivingonline.com

VillageLivingOnline.com

September 2015 • B11

CONTEST RUNNERS UP

Forest Summers, age 8, rides a wave at the beach in Fort Morgan. Photo by Chris Summers.

Big T and Rhodes feed the minnows at Lake Martin. Photo by Dana Norton.

Elly Curtis teaches English to students in Ngobe, a village in Panama. Photo by Melinda Curtis.

Stuart Summers and his son, Thomas, age 5, at the Grand Canyon. Photo

by Chris Summers.

Bergin, Georgia and Ben Hairston at FAO Schwarz in New York. Photo by Monique Hairston.

Village Living

B12 • September 2015

MBHS grad lands Seventeen internship

By OLIVIA BURTON Wesley Shaw’s creative talent rook her from the quiet, shady streets of Mountain Brook to the bustling and vibrant avenues of New York City, where she interned this summer at Seventeen magazine.

Shaw, a 2012 Mountain Brook High School graduate and a senior at the University of Alabama, moved to New York in May after finishing exams.

“It really hasn’t been as scary as I thought it would be,” she said this summer. “The biggest thing is the change of pace. Everything is so fast.”

When she left her Midtown apartment each morning, Shaw always packed a pair of sneakers in her purse so she can be prepared for any errand or assignment. On a typical day, she conducted photo research and gathered props for photo shoots as she learned about the fashion magazine industry.

She often found herself sifting through props at State Supply Equipment & Props in Upper Manhattan.

After she sent pictures of props and supplies to her boss for approval, she put in an order so the props would be delivered in time for photo shoots.

Although Shaw cannot reveal all of the details of Seventeen photo shoots, some of the props she has handpicked will be featured in future issues.

It may sound like something out of the 2006 movie The Devil Wears Prada, but Shaw insists that her experience was nothing like Andy’s miserable internship with Miranda Priestly.

“I’m so happy to be here,” she said, explaining that Seventeen employees hate the stereotype of the overworked,

2012 MBHS graduate Wesley Shaw spent this summer working in fashion photography in New York. Photo courtesy of Wesley Shaw.

over-ambitious fashion magazine employee. “They definitely get their work done and they’re very serious about it, but at the same time they’re human.”

Shaw’s interest in fashion photography began in high school. “I started taking pictures on the first phone I ever had, and they were awful,” she said. “It kind of grew from that.”

After expressing her interest in learning about photography to her parents, they gave her a more professional camera, and she began to stage photo shoots with her friends in downtown Birmingham.

Over time, Shaw’s hobby grew into a job. As Shaw developed her skills by practicing with her friends and taking classes with Andy Meadows at Mountain Brook High School and at the Savannah College of Art and Design in Atlanta, people began hiring Shaw to take senior portraits and eventually wedding photos.

Shaw describes her style as rooted in fashion photography, but with a classic twist: “I like to play with color a lot, but I also appreciate the vintage flair. I love old Hollywood vibes.”

In addition to her photography business, Shaw also maintains a fashion

and lifestyle blog, “Have a Wesley Day,” that she began in March. Her internship with Southern Shirt Company during her junior year of college introduced her to the world of blogging.

“My job was to communicate with bloggers and to ask if they would be interested in us sending them products for them to style and put on their blog,” she said. “I became totally obsessed with blogging.”

On “Have a Wesley Day,” Shaw balances fashion photography with written content.

“One of my pet peeves is blogs that

don’t have words on them,” she said.

“I always try to include content that’s interesting to read.”

Shaw’s posts have featured clothing that has a story behind it, her experiences living in New York and internship advice for other girls with similar interests.

Shaw has received numerous sponsorships for her blog, from the local jewelry brand Ex Voto Vintage and the Pants Store to Kendra Scott.

In order to get an internship at Seventeen, Shaw had to start early and be persistent.

“I probably shouldn’t have emailed them until March, but I emailed them in December,” she said.

After five emails, the interviewer still did not respond. Shaw was going to New York one weekend for an interview in the same building, so she emailed her interviewer again: “I said I’m going to be in the building on this day and I’d like an interview. Here’s my resume and my portfolio, so get ready. It was one of the most gutsy things I’ve ever done.”

The interviewer thanked Shaw for following up and set up a time for an interview. A few weeks later, Shaw learned that she had received the internship. “I started crying,” she said.

Shaw said that she definitely sees herself in the publishing industry in the future, especially after her experience at Seventeen this summer.

Visit Wesley Shaw’s blog at haveawesleyday.com or check out her photography business at wesleyshawphotography.com. You can also find her on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

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VillageLivingOnline.com

September 2015 • B13

Up in

smoke

A rise in the use of e-cigarettes among youth

By SYDNEY CROMWELL Imagine a cigarette without its distinctive smell or telltale puff of smoke.

It looks like a pen, doesn’t leave behind cigarette butts and can easily be hidden away.

This is the reality that schools, youth pastors and parents are facing as electronic cigarettes and vaporizers become more popular with underage smokers.

Stephen Ingram said he has seen significant rise in e-cigarettes among the students he works with.

“There’s a novelty to it,” said the director of student ministries and whole family spirituality at Canterbury United Methodist Church. “There’s a fun, electronic kind of part to it that I think entices kids. There’s something different about having a little electronic, sleek, pen-looking device as opposed to burning a cigarette and smelling of cigarette smoke all day,” Ingram said he has caught three or four students using an e-cig during youth group activities in the past few years, and they seem to be “normalized” among adolescents and carry less of a stigma than normal cigarettes. Since e-cigarette liquids can come in a variety of flavors, he is now automatically suspicious when he smells something he can’t identify.

“They are remarkably easy to conceal which, of course, means it is very difficult to catch young people with them,” said Dale Wisely, the director of student services at Mountain Brook City Schools. “When they are being used, they produce no visible smoke, just a bit of wispy vapor which dissipates rapidly. There doesn’t seem to be a specific, recognizable smell.”

E-cigarettes are battery-powered and emit a vapor that the user inhales. The vapor contains nicotine and flavorings, which can range from tobacco to various fruits or chocolate, but it does not include tar or many of the other chemicals that make regular cigarettes so unhealthy.

This has led many proponents to claim that e-cigs and “vaping” are a safe smoking alternative, but other researchers have countered that the devices are still addictive and contain potentially toxic chemicals. So far, there has not been conclusive evidence about their health effects. The FDA does not currently regulate the e-cigarette industry and neither does the state of Alabama, though it is illegal to sell them to anyone under 19.

According to a study by Shawna Carroll Chapman, published in the Journal of Psychiatric Research in March 2014, around 10 percent of U.S. high school

students reported trying e-cigs at least once as of 2012.

Wisely said Mountain Brook Schools just became aware of them in the past two years, but a number of students have been caught with e-cigs at school since then. In the summer of 2014, the board of education revised its policies to ban e-cigarettes from any school grounds.

The ease of concealment and perceived safety of e-cigarettes, Wisely said, makes it likely that they will only grow more popular with students.

Ingram hears about e-cigarette use more often among junior high students, as high schoolers tend to gravitate toward drinking. At such a young age, he said many pre-teens don’t fully understand the consequences of their risk-taking behaviors.

Based on his observations, Wisely sees no evidence that e-cigarette use at the junior high is above national averages or more frequent than at Mountain Brook High School.

“The usual pattern with all substances of abuse is that the use of them increases as teenagers get older. So, we doubt that the use of these is more prevalent among younger teens than older teens,” Wisely said. “If it is, one explanation for that could be that younger students have a more difficult time accessing other substances of abuse, like alcohol, marijuana

and other drugs.”

Vaporizers and e-cigarettes aren’t solely an issue for adolescents within school buildings.

“To whatever extent these are a problem at school, I have to assume that they are more of a problem away from school and that use at home and when teenagers are out and around,” Wisely said.

As with any other illegal substance, parents can prevent use of e-cigarettes through frequent conversations with their children, explaining the dangers and

setting clear consequences. Ingram additionally suggested communicating with other parents, teachers and youth pastors to watch for signs of e-cigarette use.

“I don’t think they understand the ramifications on their health, and I think they think that because it’s just this vapory puff, it’s OK and it’s not going to hurt them,” Ingram said. “I think because it’s not actual smoke and that it’s not a tar-based product, [they think] that they’re safe. But what we’re learning, more and more, is that they’re not.”

Village Living

B14 • September 2015

School House MBE receives grant to create innovative STEM room Students at Mountain Brook Elementary will plan, think analytically, collaborate, communicate and innovate in a new Makerspace this school year. MBE’s Makerspace Team, which includes Shannon Millhouse, Jennifer Jinnette and Bill Andrews, received a grant to develop a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) room that will provide students access to modeling software, 3-D pens, 3-D scanners and 3-D printers.

MBE students will apply curriculum concepts to challenging and engaging real-life tasks and problems across all subject areas. They will dream, visualize, create and see their creations become realities.

As MBE continues to invest in this space, future

STEM projects could expand to circuitry, coding, robotics, animation and other areas of the maker movement. In the MBE Makerspace, students will have opportunities to use powerful technological tools that are becoming integral parts of most college majors and career choices.

-Submitted by Shannon Millhouse MBE teachers Jennifer Jinnette, Shannon Millhouse and Bill Andrews are pictured at the Emmet O’Neal Library with the same 3-D printer that MBE will use in its STEM room.

Items created with the 3-D technology at the library range from iPhone cases to chess pieces to the Eiffel Tower. Photo by Shaun Flynn.

Mountain Brook Elementary announces new PTO Board The upcoming school year at Mountain Brook Elementary will be led by a new group of parents on the PTO Board.

“We are looking forward to a year full of exciting events at MBE, some that have been past favorites and others that will be new and fresh,” VP of Events Mary Virginia Mandell said. “There will be lots of opportunities for everyone to be involved.”

-Submitted by Shaun Flynn The Lancer PTO Board consists of President Emily Lassiter (not pictured), President-Elect Kristy Parrott, VP Fund Development Paige Drew, VP Events Mary Virginia Mandell, VP Volunteers Ashley Halsey, VP Communications Caroline Ezelle, VP Technology Bragan Petrey (not pictured), Secretary Hill Weathers, Treasurer Joan Short (not pictured), Assistant Treasurer Angel Finch and Parliamentarian Melanie Toranto (not pictured).

VillageLivingOnline.com

September 2015 • B15

BWF completes STEM room, luncheon renovation

BWF Principal Nathan Pitner

BWF alumni Andrew Putnam, Michael Putnam, Stephen Woodry and Dru Gresham stand in the lunchroom with current students Christopher Woodry and Laura Woodry and Principal Nathan Pitner.

Two big projects were completed at Brookwood Forest Elementary at the end of the summer. Students and parents were welcomed back with a new STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) room and luncheon room.

The STEM room will be a learning area for all students to develop a variety of skills that are essential for success including critical thinking and problem solving, creativity and innovation, collaboration, and entrepreneurship. STEM is a framework for teaching that is based on natural ways of learning, is customizable for all types

of students and is fun.

The lunchroom renovation involved removing the outside wall of the room and replacing it with retractable garage-type doors. The doors will open up to an outdoor patio area with seating for up to 50 people. The students and administrators are very excited about the new lunchroom and are looking forward to enjoying lunch outdoors on special occasions and special school events.

The funding for both projects included donations from the Brookwood Forest PTO. -Submitted by Kathleen Woodry

A new Bend’s Den for CBS

The Bend’s Den is a new learning space at Cherokee Bend Elementary.

Cherokee Bend Chiefs started the school year with a new centrally located collaborative space where students and teachers are able to exercise and put into action 21st-century skills. It is known as The Bend’s Den. Fourth grader Ava Gillis won the naming contest for this innovative space where students will learn, explore, problem solve, create, analyze and critically think. They will be able to explore their personal ideas and notions with their peers and teachers who support their passion and curiosity for learning.

“The Bend’s Den is about having the right

technology in the space as the recipe for innovative thinking and for accomplishing the tasks that are created and designed by our students and teachers,” said Cherokee Bend Principal Betsy Bell. “We want our students and teachers to use this space to become effective leaders, challenged thinkers and engaged lifelong learners. We know that the world our children are stepping into will have challenges and opportunities beyond what we can imagine today — problems and possibilities that will require creativity, ingenuity, responsibility and compassion.”

-Submitted by Catherine Gasque

LANEPARKE.INFO

Village Living

B16 • September 2015

Crestline welcomes new teachers Four new teachers are joining the Crestline Elementary faculty this year.

Tara Davis has five years of teaching experience and is excited to join the third-grade team at Crestline.

She attended Crestline Elementary and graduated from Mountain Brook High School. She is married and has one son. Her husband’s former career as an Army Special Forces Green Beret required multiple relocations across various states over the past six years, but her family has now decided to make Mountain Brook their permanent home.

Lori Mutert has been teaching for 11 years and is thrilled to now be teaching first grade at Crestline. A graduate of the University of Alabama, she spent her last semester of college studying abroad and teaching third grade in Sydney, Australia. She has been married for 12 years and has three children. Her family enjoys going to the beach and playing outdoors with their dog.

Marlyss Corriher’s 22 years of teaching experience

make her a valuable addition to Crestline’s first-grade team. A native of Alabama, she received her bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee, and her master’s degree in education from Tusculum College in Greenville, Tennessee. She received the honor of Teacher of the Year for 2014-2015 at her former school, Yates Primary in Cleveland, Tennessee, and is now happy to be teaching in her home state.

Stephanie Jones has been a teacher for three years and is the newest member of Crestline’s special education team. Although she was born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, she received both her undergraduate and graduate degrees from the University of Alabama.

After completing her master’s degree in special education in 2011, she moved to Birmingham and married in July 2014. She is excited about being part of Crestline’s faculty and looks forward to seeing her students grow and learn.

-Submitted by Trish Hand

Tara Davis, Lori Mutert, Marlyss Corriher and Stephanie Jones all will begin on the Crestline Elementary faculty this year.

Author Jakicic returns to CES Chris Jakicic, Ed.D., a nationally known author and consultant, came to Crestline Elementary this summer to speak to teachers about how to write more valid and reliable assessments for students. The Crestline PTO funded Jakicic’s visit, which was her third to Crestline over the past two years.

She has been working with Crestline teachers on understanding the role of essential standards and designing assessments to measure the standards and guide instruction. The ultimate goal is to use data about students’ performance to systematically design instruction to be more effective, challenging and engaging.

Assistant Principal Josh Watkins said that Jakicic’s information is so beneficial that Crestline plans to schedule a final teacher workshop with Jakicic on lesson design and teaching strategies in January 2016.

-Submitted by Trish Hand Dr. Chris Jakicic speaks to CES teachers about designing valid and reliable assessments during a summer workshop.

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VillageLivingOnline.com

September 2015 • B17

MBHS launches campaign to fund mall improvements and more

MBJH’s Culbreth mentors teachers, brings innovative techniques to state

Renovations to the Mountain Brook High School mall, lunchroom and library are in the works, and the school is looking to the community for support. In May a two-year capital campaign, Transformations 2017, launched to raise money for the updates.

Phase I of the transformation was completed in August, and students began the year with a newly decorated mall. Students in Leadership Mountain Brook worked with architects and designers to address the best use of the space, and the mall now features portable, ergonomic furniture that dramatically increases seating and work areas.

A grab-n-go cart makes getting lunch or a snack between classes easier for students, while long, centrally located tables feature charging stations for students to keep their new school-issued laptops ready for use. This year all MBHS students were also issued a Dell touchscreen Chromebook to support instruction and increase access to online textbooks, assessment tools and other resources.

“We are very excited about the technology bundle and the resources that it will provide our students and faculty,” Principal Amanda Hood said.

“The Transformations 2017 campaign is allowing us to transform the entire campus into a multipurpose learning space.”

Phases II and III of the transformation will include renovations of the lunchroom and library. In the redesigned lunchroom, students will be able to gather in a booth and eat lunch while

As the staff development specialist at Mountain Brook Junior High, Suzanne Culbreth works with administrators and teachers as she facilitates professional development. During her time at MBJH, Culbreth has mentored new teachers and worked with current them as they implement the College and Career Ready Standards and develop engaging lessons integrating cooperative learning and technology.

In early June, Culbreth attended a Laying the Foundation program in Indianapolis that is put on by the National Math and Science Initiative through the A+ College Ready Partnership. The goal of A+ College Ready in Alabama is to increase the number of students, both urban and rural, enrolled and successful in AP classes. Culbreth has been learning how to “train the trainers” to integrate calculus concepts and vocabulary into their math lessons beginning as early as the seventh and eighth grades. For the remainder of June, she traveled around Alabama to train geometry teachers specifically to integrate these concepts into their lessons.

In July, Culbreth attend the National Network of State Teachers of the Year conference in Salt Lake City. Culbreth

Sophomores Mary Inzer Hagan and Nancy Kate Nicrosi check out the new furniture in the MBHS mall.

working in a bright, open and inviting new space.

Hood perhaps is most excited about the planned changes to the library.

“Currently, the library sees over 900 student visits each day, but offers seating for only 60 students,” she said.

“The transformed library will include technology upgrades and increased seating that will allow our students to work individually and in groups, while dedicated classroom areas will allow our teachers to best prepare students to learn in an ever-changing environment.”

Campaign chair Elizabeth Farrar and corporate liaisons Lyle Cain, Sam Tortorici and Marc Tyson are helping

Hood with the fundraising efforts.

The next fundraising event will be a silent auction in September, when elementary and junior high school parents will be able to bid on unique experiences for their children. High bidders may win a dance party with Dorians, ball boy packages or private lessons with members of one of the high school’s many state championship teams. More events are planned throughout the next two years, including a family dinner fundraiser in the spring.

For more information, visit the MBHS website and click the Transformations 2017 logo.

-Submitted by Elizabeth Farrar

Suzanne Culbreth

was selected to present on “Encouraging Teachers to be Innovators,” a talk that features Mountain Brook’s Innovation Institute.

Culbreth grew up in Grant, Alabama, and earned a degree in secondary education for biology and math at Auburn University. She has taught at Homewood, Opelika, Oak Mountain and Spain Park before coming to MBJH in 2013 — her first step out of the classroom after 30 years of teaching. Derek Deerman, assistant principal at MBJH, was one of her former students, along with technology coordinator Suzan Brandt. Suzanne is married to James, and has two daughters, Bethany and Jordyn.

She was the 1999 Milken Educator of the Year and the 2013 Alabama Teacher of the Year.

-Submitted by Collins Clegg

Village Living

B18 • September 2015

Sports MBJH names new football coach Derek Jones began his dream job this year when he was named head football coach for the seventh and eighth grade teams at Mountain Brook Junior High following the retirement of longtime coach Greg Morrow.

Jones is no stranger to MBJH as he has been involved in the athletic program since he was a freshman at UAB. His passion for coaching began when he was in high school. As a sophomore at Spain Park, Jones broke both of his wrists and had to take a break from playing football and baseball. He and a friend coached eight-yearold recreational league baseball, where he fell in love with coaching and with kids. He attended UAB so that he could volunteer coach at MBJH, helping with football, wrestling, and seventh and eighth grade baseball.

Upon graduation, Jones took his first job at Oak Mountain High School, where he taught tenth grade honors history, coached the defensive line for the varsity football team and was the head freshman baseball coach. The following May, he got an offer from MBJH to teach seventh grade civics and geography, to assist with the football program and to be the head wrestling coach. When he began his wrestling coaching position, there were only 13 kids in the program. Now he has 30-40 kids and will continue to coach wrestling along with his new duties as head football coach.

Seven new coaches and a new lab puppy named Chief are join Jones in leading the MBJH Spartans this football season. They plan on modeling the football schemes for offense and defense put in place by MBHS coach Chris Yeager to

bolster consistency in the program.

Jones is also teaching three sections of physical education and will oversee students in the lunchroom. He sees this as an opportunity to develop relationships with a large number of students.

He loves to work with this age group as he sees the chance to make the most impact as kids are discovering who they are and who they want to be. He feels that this position is most aligned with his strength, which is positive growth through athletics. When asked where he sees himself in five years, he says that he plans to be at MBJH coaching junior high football, his dream job.

-Submitted by Collins Clegg Derek Jones

8U national team wins area tourney The Spartans 8U National boys scored a big win during the National Metro Area Tournament on June 14 to be named Metro Champions.

The team was led by head coach Eric Goldis, who encouraged every player to play every

pitch of each game. With the motto, “One Team, One Heart, Go Spartans,” the boys were 13-0 in tournament games and 4-0 in scrimmage games for a total of 17-0 over the Metro season.

-Submitted by Yvette Weaver

Front row: Parker Redden, Will Woodke, Becker Mayor, Will Mather and Bo Currie. Second row: Miller Brooks, Will Weaver, Hulsey Boehme, Henry Bell, Jack Bakken, Micah Goldis.

Back row: Brian Woodke, Michael Brooks, Chuck Redden, Robert Boehme, John Bell and Head Coach Eric Goldis.

VillageLivingOnline.com

September 2015 • B19

MBJH cheerleaders attend cheer camp

Front row: Lillian Perkins, Hannah Doss, Catherine Haas, Mallie Bradford, Anna Rose Alexander, Margaret Elise Allen, Britt Ware. Back row: Hadley Rosenthal, Mallie Reed, Lucie Kline, Elise Druhot, Molly Simpson, Vale Lightfoot, Julia Baddley, Emilie Brown and Brice England.

Mountain Brook freshman cheerleaders attended Cheer Camp this summer at Mississippi State, led by sponsor Helen Pruet.

The girls received several awards, which included first place in the Extreme routine, the Leadership award and the Spirit award.

Six of Mountain Brook cheerleaders were chosen as All American Cheerleaders: Margaret Elise Allen, Brice England, Vale Lightfoot, Mallie Reed, Hadley Rosenthal and Britt Ware.

-Submitted by Collins Clegg

Brothers turn backyard rivalry into athletic success stories

Jacob and Zachary Carroll

By ELIZABETH FARRAR Brothers Jacob and Zachary Carroll have fond memories of summer days spent playing sports in the backyard. Those backyard games soon transitioned to varsity games, and both boys quickly became standout athletes. Recent MBHS graduate Jacob is headed to Windsor, Connecticut, to play football and complete a post graduate year at prestigious Loomis Chaffee preparatory school, while Zachary, a junior, recently committed to play lacrosse for the 2015 NCAA Division I men’s lacrosse championship team at the University of Denver.

Jacob, the starting quarterback for the Spartans for the 2012-2014 seasons, has been invited to showcase his talents at several major events. As a sophomore, he was a finalist in the David Cutcliffe QB College Competition at Duke. The following year, he was named QB MVP, Top Performer and Best of the Best at the NUC Combine in Albany, Georgia. Those honors also earned him spots on the 2013 All Combine Team and the 2013 All American Watch List and invitations to the NUC Super 25, Rivals 100 and Elite 11 competitions in California and Georgia. Carroll’s senior year afforded him the opportunity to represent our state at the annual Alabama-Mississippi AllStar Classic.

Despite his successes, accolades and scholarship offers, Jacob said he didn’t find the right collegiate fit after graduation. “Loomis Chaffee gave me the best opportunity to reach my ultimate goal of playing football at a top academic university. Loomis was just a great fit for me,” he said.

Younger brother Zachary found a love for

lacrosse in the fourth grade, playing first for a community-based team. He soon grew to be a starter for the highly competitive Bamalax and Atlanta Higher Game lacrosse travel teams and garnered invitations to play in numerous all-star lacrosse tournaments across the country. Bamalax coaches Matt Aiken and Casey Kear, who also is the lacrosse coach at Birmingham-Southern, first guided Carroll in the college recruitment process, and Higher Game Atlanta coach Jason Breyo put him on the radar screen of coaches at the University of Denver. “It’s just a unique program, and I think [Denver] is the best fit for me overall,” Zachary said.

While the brothers say they are looking forward to working with Coach Chuck Reid at Loomis Chaffee and Coach Bill Tierney at the University of Denver, they note the invaluable lessons and support they received from their Mountain Brook coaches. “[Retired Mountain Brook Junior High] Coach Morrow made us work hard,” Zachary said. “He whipped us into shape and set the tone for the rest of our athletic career.” Jacob had similarly complimentary things to say about MBHS head football coach Chris Yeager: “He’s truly a player’s coach who will do anything to help you. I’m thankful to have played underneath him for three years.”

The brothers also are grateful for the fraternal rivalry that came from those many backyard games. They agree that the rivalry has made them the competitive players they are today and greatly attributed to their success on the field. Jacob also was quick to mention, “We may be each other’s biggest rivals, but we’re also best friends.”

Village Living

B20 • September 2015

Spartans ready for another championship run

By DAVID KNOX It was one of those practices.

A volleyball drill that should take five or 10 minutes had stretched out to over an hour. You name it, it went wrong.

Frustrating to go through, brutal to watch.

But Mountain Brook coach Haven O’Quinn watched her girls. No bickering. No finger-pointing. No rolling of eyes.

And when practice was over, the girls were talking and laughing and wanting to stay and hang with their coach.

There was some serious bonding going on in the face of adversity at this early preseason practice. Maybe that comes from being the defending Class 7A state champions. Or maybe that’s how you come to be Class 7A state champs.

The state’s reigning Gatorade Player of the Year, the Class 7A tourney Most Valuable Player and the unquestioned top player in the state entering the season shared a little about what makes the Spartans special.

“When I go to practice, it’s fun,” Sara Carr said. “When you come to practice, it’s like you’re coming to practice with your 11 best friends.

Playing with all those girls I’ve gotten to know over the past few years, it’s amazing.”

The Spartans have solid parts to

Sara Carr (24) goes high to hit the ball during the 2014 Class 7A State Championship match against Hoover.

Photo by Keith McCoy.

build around. Besides Carr, senior setter Sara Chandler Mitchell was an all-tourney selection. Payton Selman, who returned from an injury last year in time to add another postseason weapon, is also back for her senior season as outside hitter. Besides those three seniors, six others return, with a few newcomers in the bunch. Emmy Kilgore, Caroline Davies, Ellie Ritter, Victoria Morris, Mimi Meadows, Sydney Carlson and Ellie Gorman are expected to play key roles in 2015.

Gone is libero Julia Smith, who was without a doubt the best defensive

specialist in the state.

“It’s a huge loss,” O’Quinn said.

“I give her a lot of credit for putting our program on the map. And she was a huge reason (for their success) not only as the best libero in the state but as a phenomenal leader.”

But she’s excited about her options at the defensive specialist spot.

“Libby Grace Gann and Lacey Jeffcoat are freakin’ good,” O’Quinn said. “My problem right now is I don’t know who it’s going to be, and that’s a good problem to have. I have two liberos — not just two defensive

players I have to turn into a libero.

I’ve got two girls I want out there for six defensive rotations, and I have to pick one.”

But Carr is the key. O’Quinn doesn’t deny that she’s a “once-in-alifetime player.” Carr racked up 648 kills last season and holds the school record with 1,434 kills entering her senior year.

What drives Carr?

“She is so self-motivated,” O’Quinn said. “I think she was born with it. You can’t coach that. I think she’s a good player who has gotten all

these accolades and honors because of everything she brings to the table — the way she competes and the way that she works and her self-motivation. There are players out there — more athletic, taller, maybe a better volleyball player — but if Sara goes up against them, Sara’s going to win.

She’s just special.”

Carr said she strives for perfection, and the Emory commitment said she knows she can get better at everything.

“Every pass can be better than it was, every hit can be harder than it was.

I’m always competing with myself to be the best I can be.”

Her coach said Carr’s the definition of a true six-rotation player, able to play any position and be the best at it.

“It’s really exciting to have a player like that,” O’Quinn said. “When she rotates up to the front row, I’m like, ‘Yes, Sara’s up, all right, let’s go!’ And then she rotates to the back, it’s the exact same thing, ‘I’ve got her serve and I’ve got our best defender back there.’ She’s really great at every skill she has to do.”

Carr said she just has a passion for volleyball.

“My love for the sport has just made me want to get better,” she said.

“I’m very competitive when it comes to just anything. Any chance I get to play volleyball, it’s just fun.”

Even after one of those practices?

“It really is. It’s not easy, it’s hard, but it’s fun.”

VillageLivingOnline.com

September 2015 • B21

Faith Life Actually By Kari Kampakis

Three words our kids need to hear It is Monday morning, and my daughter drags into the kitchen. She sits on a barstool, slumps her shoulders and casts her eyes down at the bowl of Cheerios I slide in front of her.

She moans and groans and tells me how tired she is. Part of me is irritated. I need her to step it up because I have four kids to get to school in 30 minutes. I don’t have time for this.

But then I remember — I get tired, too. And like me, this child really needs her sleep. So instead of rushing her, I take a minute to let her wake up.

“I get it,” I tell her, remembering the many times I’ve struggled to get out of bed. “Mornings can be hard for me, too.”

It is Wednesday afternoon, and I can tell by the look on my daughter’s face as she walks toward my car that she’s upset. As she buckles her seatbelt, she blurts out what’s troubling her.

Once again she didn’t place in the school art contest. Once again her friend won first place.

With a bitter tinge in her voice, she complains that it’s not fair. Part of me wants to correct my child. I want to tell her to be happy for her friend.

But then I remember — I get jealous, too. And being jealous of a friend is the hardest kind to overcome.

“I get it,” I tell her, remembering the times I’ve felt overshadowed. “You worked hard on that piece, and I know you wanted to place. I get

jealous of my friends sometimes, too.”

It is Sunday, and on the way to church I argue with my daughter because she didn’t brush her teeth like I asked. We’ve had this argument, so often I feel compelled to describe how her mouth will look when her teeth begin to rot.

Inside church I reflect on my words, and I feel bad about being harsh. I wish I’d held my tongue. I lean over to my daughter and whisper an apology.

She shakes her head and pushes me away.

She’s mad and not ready to forgive. Part of me is hurt. I want closure to ease the guilt. But then I remember — I need time when I’m mad, too.

Forgiveness isn’t always instant.

“Okay,” I say, kissing her head and giving her space. I ask God to forgive me and to work in her heart so our little arguments don’t lead to resentment.

The mistakes I make as a parent are relatively common. And in terms of our children’s moods, we often expect them to have mastery over their emotions. We expect them to get over unpleasant feelings, soldier on and not need time to process them.

But our kids are human, and like all humans, they have some messy emotions that need to be acknowledged and worked through. They have good days and bad days, highs and lows, shining moments and moments we wonder where our

child has gone.

I am learning, as my kids get older, the importance of being empathic. Taking even a minute to listen and understand how they feel can make a huge difference in whether they open up and talk through their feelings or keep them bottled up.

My tendency is to react too soon. I throw out quick solutions or express my thoughts on how my children should feel without taking into account how they do feel. And of all the tools I’m using to break this habit, the most effective one is compassion. Sometimes what my kids need most is permission to feel what they feel with 100 percent honesty. They want a sounding board, not a problem solver. They feel comforted when I nod and say, “Yep, I’ve been there. That happens to me all the time.”

Everyone knows the cornerstone phrase of parenting: I love you. But I believe we need three other words in our vocabulary, too, words that build bridges between hearts and strengthen the parent-child relationship.

I get it.

I get it you don’t feel like going to school.

I get it you’re jealous of your friend.

I get it you need time to cool off before we talk again.

Saying “I get it” isn’t a green light for our kids to act on unpleasant emotions or dwell on them. It doesn’t lower or compromise our

expectations. More than anything, it connects us with our children and reassures them they aren’t alone. It reminds us they are human, and sometimes it helps to cut them a little slack in honor of that fact.

A little empathy can go a long way in growing a relationship. So can the right words. One goal I have in parenting is to have less of a lecturing mouth and more of a listening ear. The conversations that result when my kids express their real emotions bring priceless insights. They teach me about my kids and teach my kids to be comfortable expressing their inner reality.

I want my kids to know that if I get it, others will get it, too. Someone will relate to any messy emotion they wrestle with. Knowing this makes the world a more approachable place. It gives them the courage to be real, and the power to build relationships based on truth, empathy and our perfectly normal humanity.

Kari Kubiszyn Kampakis is a Mountain Brook mom of four girls, columnist and blogger for The Huffington Post. Her first book, 10 Ultimate Truths Girls Should Know, is now available on Amazon and everywhere books are sold. Join her Facebook community at “Kari Kampakis, Writer,” visit her blog at karikampakis.com or contact her at kari@karikampakis.com.

Village Living

B22 • September 2015

Calendar Mountain Brook Events Sept. 1-8: Vote by Donation for Crestline Rocks. Visit preschoolpartners.org to vote for bands for the lineup for Crestline Rocks on Sept. 26.

Sept. 3: Altamont Alumni Author Series Presents: The Headmaster’s Darlings: A Mountain Brook Novel. 6 p.m. doors, 7 p.m. program and dessert reception. The Altamont School. $50 ticket includes first edition signed by authors. Visit altamontschool.org/ alumniauthorseries or call 874-3506.

Sept. 7: Have a Blast on Rosh Hashanah. Noon. Levite Jewish Community Center. Lunch provided by Bo’s Kosher Café. $8.50. RSVP to Mindy

at mcohen@bhamjcc.org or 510-9024

by Sept. 3.

Sept. 13: Scream Free Marriage: Calming Down, Growing Up, and Getting Close. 9:30 a.m., 6 p.m. Canterbury United Methodist Church. Hal Edward Runkel, a bestselling author, conflict mediator and licensed marriage counselor, will speak. The evening event is ticketed. Visit canterburyumc.org/ speakers.

Sept. 15: Mountain Brook Chamber of Commerce Luncheon. 11 a.m. doors, 11:30 a.m. luncheon. Birmingham Botanical Gardens. $25 members, $30 nonmembers. Visit

welcometomountainbrook.com.

Sept. 15: Passion for Native Plants: A Journey and a Journal. 5:30 p.m. refreshments, 6 p.m. talk. Birmingham Botanical Gardens.

Lida Inge Hill will speak about native plants and her new book.

Sept. 18: ZooGala 2015. VIP Party 6 p.m., Gala 8 p.m. Birmingham Zoo. Dinner and dessert by Kathy G & Company, cocktails, music by Compozitionz, dancing and a silent auction to celebrate the zoo’s 60th anniversary. Visit birminghamzoo.com.

Sept. 18-19: Sweet Repeats Fall Consignment Sale. Friday

9 a.m.-6 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m.-noon.

Mountain Brook Community Church. Visit mbccsweetrepeats.blogspot.com.

Sept. 18-20: Alabama Orchid Society Show and Sale. Friday 10 a.m.-6 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m.-6 p.m., Sunday 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Birmingham Botanical Gardens. Visit facebook.com/ alabamaorchidsociety.

Sept. 21-24: Charitable Tablesetting Contest. Bromberg’s.

Visit brombergs.com.

Sept. 25: Western Supermarkets Wine & Food Festival. Birmingham Zoo. $50 in advance, $70 at the door Tickets available at the Emmet O’Neal

Library, Western Supermarkets and westernsupermarkets.com/wine-shop.

Sept. 26: Crestline Rocks. 5-10 p.m. Crestline Village. Family friendly music festival benefits Preschool Partners.

Visit preschool-partners.org.

Sept. 27: Symphony 30 Picnic Featuring Alabama Symphony Orchestra. 4 p.m. Birmingham Botanical Gardens. Visit symphony30.org.

Sept. 30: OLLI Wine Class. 5:307 p.m. Levite Jewish Community Center.

Wine tasting class offered by Foster Smith of Foster Wine. Refreshments served.

Free, donations welcome. Visit olli.ua.edu.

Emmet O’Neal Library Events 50 Oak Street, eolib.org, 879-0459

Adults

a.m. Will discuss books by Doris Kearns Goodwin.

Teens

Wednesdays: Brown Bag Lunch Series.

Noon doors, 12:30 p.m. program. Bring a sack lunch.

Beverages and dessert provided.

Sept. 12: Every Treasure Has a Tale: Conversations with Antiquities Expert John Jones. 9:30 a.m. Free. Registration required. Call 445-1121.

Aug. 29: Game On Tournament. 1-3:30 p.m.

Sept. 1-16: 50th Anniversary Challenge.

Read 50 books since November 2014 and return a log available on the second floor reference desk. Five winners will receive a $50 Village Gold card.

Sept. 12: Evening with the Author: Doris Kearns Goodwin. Ticketed event. Call 445-1121.

Sept. 3: Teen Trivia 50th Anniversary.

6:30-8 p.m. Trivia from the past 50 years to celebrate the library’s 50th anniversary. Prizes will be awarded.

Sept. 14: Great Books Book Group. 6:30 p.m. Will discuss Nuns at Lunch by Aldous Huxley.

Children

Sept. 29: Genre Reading Group. 6:30 p.m.

Will discuss books on diet and nutrition.

All Month: Photo Booth Contest. Take a picture and enter to win.

Sept. 5-7: Library Closed for Labor Day. Sept. 8: The Bookies Book Group. 10

Sept. 1: Teen Advisory Board. 5-6 p.m.

Mondays: *Toddler Tales Story Time.

9:30 and 10:30 a.m.

Tuesdays: Together Story Time. 9:30 and 10:30 a.m.

Tuesdays: Evenings @ EOL. 6 p.m.

Wednesdays: *Mother Goose Story Time. 9:30 and 10:30 a.m.

Wednesdays: *Movers & Makers Story Time. 1:30 p.m.

Thursdays: *Patty Cake Story Time. 9:30

Expires 9-30-2015

VillageLivingOnline.com

September 2015 • B23

Calendar Library Events (continued)

and 10: 30 a.m.

Thursdays: SNaP. 3:30 p.m.

Saturdays: Family Story Time with Mr. Mac. 10:30 a.m.

Sept. 8: 50th Anniversary Family Night: Funkijam on the Lawn. 5:30 p.m.

Sept. 23: LEGOs at the Library. 3:30 p.m.

Sept. 24: *Bookmania: Land of Stories series.

6 p.m. Rising third-graders. *Space is limited. Call 879-0497 or visit eolib.org to register.

Area Events Sept. 1: Chris Brown: One Hell of Nite Tour. Oak Mountain Ampitheatre.

Visit theoakmountainamphitheater.com.

Sept. 3: Birmingham Art Crawl.

5-9 p.m. Downtown Birmingham. Visit birminghamartcrawl.com.

Sept. 3: Lady Antebellum Wheels Up Tour. Oak Mountain Ampitheatre. Visit theoakmountainamphitheater.com.

Sept. 7: Labor Day Celebration and Moon Pie Eatin’ Contest.

Tannehill Ironworks Historical State Park.

Visit tannehill.org.

Sept. 11: Dinnertainment benefitting The Exceptional Foundation. The Country Club of Birmingham. Visit exceptionalfoundation.org

MBHS Athletics Sept. 3: JV/Varsity Volleyball vs. Spain Park. 5 p.m.

Sept. 4: Varsity Football vs. Hoover. 7 p.m.

Sept. 8: JV/Varsity Volleyball vs. Bob Jones. 5 p.m.

Sept. 10: JV/Varsity Volleyball vs. Vestavia Hills. 5 p.m.

Sept. 11: Varsity Football at Thompson. 7 p.m.

Sept. 15: JV/Varsity Volleyball vs. Hoover. 5 p.m.

Sept. 17: JV/Varsity Volleyball vs. James Clemens. 5 p.m.

Sept. 18: Varsity Football vs. Vestavia Hills. 7 p.m.

Sept. 25: Varsity Football at James Clemens. 7 p.m.

Sept. 11-Oct. 4: Big Fish. 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Saturday, 2 p.m. SaturdaySunday. Red Mountain Theatre Company Cabaret Theatre. Tickets start at $30. Visit redmountaintheatre.org.

Sept. 16: Lecture: Spiritual Moderns: Twentieth-Century American Artists and Issues of Religion. 6:30 p.m. Birmingham Museum of Art. Visit artsbma.org.

Sept. 17: Van Halen. Oak Mountain Ampitheatre. Visit theoakmountainamphitheater.com.

Sept. 17-19: St. George Middle Eastern Food Festival. 10:30 a.m.-9 p.m. Saint George Melkite Catholic Church. Visit saintgeorgeonline.com.

Sept. 18: Jeanne Robertson. 7:30 p.m. The Alabama Theatre. Family-friendly comedy. Visit alabamatheatre.com.

Sept. 19: Dash of the Dead Zombie 5K. Warehouse 31, Pelham.

Visit warehouse31.com.

Sept. 19: National Eating Disorders Walk. Avondale Park. 9 a.m. check-in, 11 a.m. walk. The first annual event seeks to raise awareness and funding to battle anorexia, bulimia and binge eating disorder. Visit nedawalk.org.

Sept. 19: Monkey C Monkey Run. 8 a.m. 5K, 9 a.m. F aun Run. Homewood Central Park. The run benefits Camp Smile-A-Mile’s programs for children with cancer. Visit campsam.org.

Sept. 20: Trucks by the Tracks.

11 a.m.-5 p.m. Railroad Park. Live music, food trucks, beverages and more. $5 adults, free for children 12 and younger. Visit railroadpark.org.

Sept. 20: Ariana Grande. 7:30 p.m.

Birmingham-Jefferson Civic Center Legacy Arena. Visit bjcc.org.

Sept. 20: Vulcan Aftertunes:

Langhorne Slim & The Law. 3 p.m. opening act, 4 p.m. headliner. Vulcan Park & Museum. $15 adults, $8 members and children 5-12, free for children 4 and younger. Visit visitvulcan.com.

Sept. 20: U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team vs. Australia. 1:30 p.m. Legion Field. Visit ticketmaster.com.

Sept. 24: For Better or Worse. 7 p.m. A gospel stage play by Tyesha Brown.

Visit alabamatheatre.com.

Sept. 24: The Art of Hope: Speaking the Unspoken. 6:30-8:30 p.m. Avondale Brewing Company. Event by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention Junior Board for local artists to express the effects of mental illness. Visit afspartofhope.com.

Sept. 25: Russian Grand Ballet Presents Swan Lake. The Alabama Theatre. 7 p.m. $15-55. Swan Lake, based on Russian folklore and German legend, follows a heroic young prince as he works to free the beautiful swan maiden from an evil spell. Visit ticketmaster.com.

Sept. 26: Boulevard Blast 5K. 9 a.m. 5K, 9:30 a.m. Fun Run/Walk. 3136 Norwood Blvd. Benefitting the Norwood Resource Center. Register at active.com.

Sept. 27: Magic City AIDS Walk & 5K Run. 3:30-6:30 p.m. Railroad Park.

Visit birminghamaidsoutreach.org.

(Progressive Financing)