The Suburban Newspaper for Mountain Brook, Homewood, Vestavia Hills, Hoover and North Shelby County
OVER THE MOUNTAIN
inside
JOU RNAL otmj.com
th
ursd ay, Oct ober 30, 2014
V ol . 23 #20
A Life in
Samford Son: Emmy winner to be honored at alma mater
Service
about town page 3
By Keysha Drexel Journal editor Photos special to the Journal
For retired Navy Rear Adm. Jack
‘It’s honorable to serve your country but you should also serve your community. I firmly believe that every citizen should do something which betters the community, that betters the country and the world around them.’ retired Navy Rear Adm. Jack Natter
Natter, Veterans Day is more than just one day out of the year to thank military veterans for their service to the country. “Sometimes saying thank you can be kind of shallow,” the 75-year-old Hoover City Councilman and former deputy commander of the U.S. Navy forces, said. “Do you really mean it when you thank a vet? Do you understand your role in supporting them in their mission to support our freedoms?” Those questions are something the former deputy director of the U.S. Navy Reserve says more U.S. citizens should be asking themselves this Veterans Day–and every day. “Veterans Day is a great way to reflect on how our military has defended our freedoms,” Natter said. “But there’s an old adage saying you should reflect on the past but you shouldn’t stare at it. By See service, page 8
Hope Gala Honoree: ACS event pays tribute to Birmingham artist
Social page 18
A graduate of John Carroll Catholic High School, Jack Natter joined the U.S. Navy in 1962. The retired Navy Rear Adm. was first appointed to the Hoover City Council in 2011.
Parade Highlights Home of America’s First Veterans Day Page 8 Updated Southern Charm: Inspiration Home opens Nov. 13 at The Preserve
A Dog’s Best Friend
Home page 36
By Cathy Adams
Journal contributor
A Vestavia Hills resident is being honored for her devotion to the four-legged residents of the Over the Mountain area. Ruth Henry was recently named the Adopt-a-Golden Birmingham’s 2014 Volunteer of the Year. “I joke that I left a job working 10-15 hours a week making pretty good money, for a job working 10-15 hours a day earning nothing but a happy heart,” Henry said. The Golden Retriever rescue group, which has found homes for 300 dogs since its founding in the spring of 2012, is an
all-volunteer army of around 90 members, 30 of whom are most actively involved in monthly “Meet and Greets,” foster care, transport, communications and fund raising. As Adoption Coordinator, Henry is hands-on with every adoption, devoting a minimum of six hours a day, six to seven days a week to her volunteer work. Retired after 30 years as a professor of dance at Birmingham-Southern College, Henry first learned about AGB from a 2012 newspaper article announcing the group’s formation by Lorraine Donald and John Sellers. Henry said she saw Adopt-a-Golden as the perfect opportunity to spend time with the full-blooded and Golden mixes for
See Henry, page 13
Photo special to the Journal
Ruth Henry Named Volunteer of the Year
Setting the Stage for Scares: Spain Park senior specializes in gruesome makeup
schools page 42
3still looking for fun stuff to do this Halloween? p. 9 • Homewood to kick off the Holidays p. 26 • The urban & Ingle show p. 43