Village Living neighborly news & entertainment for Mountain Brook
Volume 8 | Issue 6 | September 2017
ALL IN A DAY’S WORK S
By LEXI COON
Mountain Brook firefighters give insight into their lives away from the station
hifts at the Mountain Brook Fire Department — aside from varying calls from the community — look very similar. “The first part of the day … we’re checking on the truck, making sure everything is where it needs to be. Then, we kind of go into a cleaning routine,” said fireman Mark Franklin, an apparatus operator for Engine 3. During the 24 hours the firemen are on their shift, they clean the firehouse, check equipment, complete training and respond to calls, among other tasks. Sometimes the crews cook together, like the
crew with whom Jon Head works. He’s been a part of MBFD since 2004. Tony Ratcliff, a plugman for a MBFD engine crew, said many firemen will go to the gym since being fit and in shape is part of a fireman’s job.
Mountain Brook firefighters, from left, Jon Head, Mark Franklin, Eric Meyers and Tony Ratcliff pose together in Firehouse No 1. Photo by Sarah Finnegan. For the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, Mountain Brook Junior High teacher Derek Kennedy takes the time to show his students videos from the event before asking them to look at the situation from different perspectives. Photo by Lexi Coon.
INSIDE Sponsors........... A4 News................... A6 Business............ A9 Events...............A13 Celebrations....A17 School House.....A17
Private School Guide................A22 Sports................ B4 Community......B10 Medical Guide.... B12 Calendar.......... B22
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See FIREFIGHTERS | page A26
An Important Piece A do-it-all H-back, senior Spartan Clay Stearns is owning the versatile position in unique way.
See page B1
9/11: Teaching tragedy to young students By LEXI COON
Working Together Mountain Brook’s volleyball program enters a new season with young team full of potential.
See page B4
The Sept. 11 attacks are something that many Americans lived through. They watched the twin towers fall, the clouds of smoke envelop the streets of New York City; maybe they even stared at their TVs in horror as the second plane struck. For individuals who lived through Sept. 11, 2001, many
remember where they were that day. But for a majority of grade school students, Sept. 11 is not a memory — it’s a history lesson. Mountain Brook High School teacher Joe Webb said he began teaching the event the year it happened.
See TRAGEDY | page A25