WED THU
FRI
SAT
SUN MON
Food Scores
TUE
60 39
63 56
67 65
70 48
65 53
66 61
67 55
10%
0%
60%
80%
20%
60%
60%
Shoplifting Review
Page 2
HT track Gold
Page 3
Page 11
The Trussville Tribune TRUSSVILLE • PINSON·CLAY • CENTER POINT • ARGO • SPRINGVILLE • LEEDS • MOODY
www.TrussvilleTribune.com
January 8 - 14, 2020 Man charged in burglary of Trussville Zales Jewelers
50 Cents
Tragedy in Trussville
Trussville mayor announces events planned for city’s Bicentennial celebration
Community mourns after body of Paighton Houston found
From The Trussville Tribune staff reports
Olaja Burnett. Photo: Trussville Police Department. See ZALES, Page 4
Center Point man is wanted on charges of capital murder, slew of other felonies From The Trussville Tribune staff reports
BIRMINGHAM — The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office and Birmingham Police Department are looking for a Center Point man who is wanted on a capital murder charge along with a slew of other felonies. See MAN WANTED, Page 5
TCS Bus Drivers of the Year named From The Trussville Tribune staff reports
TRUSSVILLE — The Trussville City School system’s Bus Drivers of the Year were recently named. George Cook drives for Magnolia Elementary. Cook has been a bus driver for TCS since 2015. Cherie Billingsley drives for Hewitt-Trussville Middle School. Billingsley has been a bus driver for TCS since 2014. See BUS DRIVERS, Page 6
Opposition voices concerns in rezoning of property in Leeds, attorney responds By Nathan Prewett
LEEDS — Public hearings were held at a regular meeting, on Monday, Jan. 6, of the Leeds City Council, for several items on the agenda, including a rezoning request from property owners. See PROPERTY IN LEEDS, Page 4
Inside the Tribune
News - Pages 1-5 Tribune Living - Page 6 Politics - Page 7 Obituary - Page 8 Calendar - Page 9 Classified - Page 9 Faith - Page 10 Sports - Pages 11-14
TRUSSVILLE — The medical examiner’s office in Jefferson County has completed an autopsy on the body of 29-year-old Paighton Houston. Coroner Bill Yates said the cause of death has not yet been determined. Further examination and testing will be performed, according to Yates. “We do toxicology on every case if it’s possible,” said Yates. “The only case that we don’t do toxicology on is if it’s skeletal remains or if it’s a delayed death of weeks to months because in that case, there’s no point in testing because whatever was in their system has now been filtered out.” Toxicology results could take weeks to be revealed. Houston’s body was recovered from a shallow grave in Hueytown, on Friday, Jan. 3, 2020. Investigators were first seen searching the area late on Jan. 2, after they received information during the investigation into Houston’s disappearance. Birmingham Police said she was reported last seen at
See BICENTENNIAL, Page 3
Tin Roof in Birmingham, on Friday, Dec. 20, 2019. Police said after leaving the bar, she texted a friend saying that she did not know who she was with and that she might be in trouble. The community came together on Saturday, Jan. 4, to honor Houston by placing yellow ribbons around Trussville. Several local businesses, including Home Depot, Shirley’s Florist, Norton’s Florist and Jimmy Johns, do-
nated supplies. The family said everyone loved to be around Houston and she will be remembered as a sweet, caring young woman who had so much potential. Her uncle, George Harding, said he organized what he called “Painting Trussville Yellow” in order to keep Houston in the forefront of everyone’s minds. “She really was a special person,” said Harding. “We appreciate so much what ev-
eryone has done for us. It’s unbelievable.” The Trussville Police Department assisted in the investigation to find Houston, after she disappeared on Friday, Dec. 20, 2019. Detective Ben Short released a statement saying, “Our thoughts and prayers are with the Houston family as they begin the grieving process.” See PAIGHTON HOUSTON, Page 3
Moody pastor to begin church services at Leeds Elementary School By Erica Thomas, managing editor
“We are all broken and imperfect, but when you put us all together it can be a beautiful thing.” LEEDS — When Morgan and Libby Jones felt a calling to start a church a couple of years ago, it didn’t make sense. They knew they were feeling the draw to do something, but couldn’t figure out why, according to Morgan Jones. “We had a good job and a good church,” said Jones. “It was like, ‘How is this going to work?” It wasn’t long before things started to come together for Mosaic Chapel. Similar to a mosaic, the pieces of building the church fit together like a masterpiece. “There were about 30 of us meeting at our house in Moody and it continued to grow,” said Jones. But the couple knew they couldn’t continue to host church at their home if they wanted it to grow even more. So, they began praying. “We moved around to a couple of other locations and having Bible studies, and a couple of months ago, we made it official,” Jones revealed.
Pastor Morgan Jones
They made a new, larger location official. Mosaic Chapel will meet at Leeds Elementary School starting in February. “It’s really exciting,” Jones said. While there are already numerous churches in the Leeds area, Jones said his church is something God called his family to do. Jones said there are things that are different about Mosaic Chapel. “We’re starting a missional, community-driven church,” he explained. “Our goal is to be missional in everything that we do.”
Even down to the details, Jones wants everything in the church to focus on missions. “Even the coffee we serve,” said Jones. “We’re ordering from Non-Fiction Coffee and they give 100% of their proceeds back to missions and non-profits.” A day at Mosaic Chapel will start with a sip of philanthropic coffee and Jones said, throughout every service and group, that focus will continue. “We really reach out to people where they’re at,” explained Jones. “I feel like for so long, the church has done a really good job at being the
TRUSSVILLE — A neighborhood sign in Trussville was vandalized sometime overnight between Jan. 1 and Jan. 2, 2020 and the homeowner’s association president made changes, in hopes of deterring further crime in the neighborhood. See STONEGATE, Page 4
Center Point Fire District sees record year in 2019 By Erica Thomas, managing editor
See MOSAIC CHAPEL, Page 6
See MARCHING BAND, Page 6
www.robinshoppe.com 5886 Trussville Crossings Pkwy 205.655.3388 Fabric Machines Classes Demos
By Erica Thomas, managing editor
church within the four walls, but sometimes churches don’t always do a great job of being the church outside the four walls.” As the lead pastor at Mosaic Chapel, Jones hopes to see his church spread love and benevolence to others in the community. “Our philosophy is, “Hey, we realize that you may have some issues and some trouble in your life. We have the answer, his name is Jesus. Let us walk beside you in your community and show you how Jesus can help,” Jones said. The church calls itself “a family of families.” In fact, children from first grade to fifth grade will have an integral part of the worship service. Jones said he wants children to learn how to pray, worship and give, by watching their parents. He also hopes church can become part of regular, quality time that parents want with their children. “A lot of times families will skip out on church to spend time with their family,” he said. “So, we’re trying to create an environment for families to come in so they can use that time to spend time as a family.”
Robin’s Sewing Shoppe
-
Trussville PD investigating after Stonegate sign vandalized
CENTER POINT — The Center Point Fire District responded to a record-breaking number of calls in 2019. The department received 9,245 emergency calls in 2019. In 2018, there were 9,039 calls. The engine with the most calls was Engine 1, with 3,869 calls. See CPFD, Page 3
St. Clair County High School ‘Sound of the Saints Marching Band’ performs in London’s New Year’s Day Parade 2020 By Joshua Huff, sports editor
LONDON — A chance of a lifetime welcomed members of the St. Clair County High School marching band over the holiday weekend as the Sound of the Saints Marching Band.
Casa Fiesta Mexican Grill
5084 Pinnacle Sq Suite 112 Trussville
655-3530