OTMJ OVER THE MOUNTAIN JOURNAL u OTMJ.COM
SOCIAL
THURSDAY, JULY 29, 2021
SPORTS
Mask Up?
BACK TO SCHOOL
Local School Systems Deciding on Mask Rules Ahead of the New School Year
Journal photo by Jordan Wald
By Emily Williams-Robertshaw
Homeward Bound GBHS Transport Program Seeks Volunteer Drivers for Life-Saving Road Trips By Emily Williams-Robertshaw
F
ALL ABOARD Greater Birmingham Humane Society volunteers Eddie Hernandez, above left and Dalton Noble, with two puppies headed for a new home in Wisconsin last week.
or the Greater Birmingham Humane Society, the “dog days of summer” not only bring high temperatures, but they also bring an influx of animal residents. Summertime is a precarious balance for the organization because animal intake is at its peak. “We’re basically bursting with animals,” GBHS Director of Marketing Lindsey Mays said. “Anything from guinea pigs and rabbits to cats and dogs.” It’s a time when the organization depends on its transport program, led by Transport and Rescue Coordinator Elisia Tillis. Tillis coordinates about 120 trips a year, placing pets into GBHS vans and organizing volunteer drivers to transport them to shelters that need adoptable animals. “These transports are a highly needed release of pressure, not only on our staff but on the animals themselves,” Mays said. See RUFF ROAD TRIP, page 8
Here we go again. Throughout the spring and much of summer vacation, things were looking up on the coronavirus front. It looked like the 2021-22 school year would be a 180-degree turn from the first days of 2020-21. But rising cases of COVID-19 in the state and the country have some communities debating whether masks should be required in BACK TO SCHOOL schools. special section begins While on page 18. Over the Mountain public school districts are leaning toward mask-optional policies, the COVID-19 climate has been heating up as the Delta variant has become prevalent. The highly transmissible variant now accounts for more than 80 percent of new COVID-19 cases in the country.
‘... all grades and schools will be opening with full capacity in-person learning and masks will be optional and virtual learning will be offered to grades 9-12.’ DICKY BARLOW, MOUNTAIN BROOK CITY SCHOOLS SUPERINTENDENT
New daily COVID-19 cases in Alabama have increased by more than nine times the number reported early in the month, according to the Alabama Department of Public Health. Unvaccinated patients represented an estimated 96.2% of COVID-related deaths in Alabama from April 1 to July 13, according to a release from ADPH.
See MASK UP?, page 21
