Vestavia Hills Magazine, June/July 2020

PAINTINGS BY LAUREN DANIEL • DEAR VHHS CLASS OF 2020 • A BACKYARD QUARANTINE WEDDING

VESTAVIA HILLS’ BEST WINNERS THE RESULTS ARE IN

IT TAKES A VILLAGE RELIEVING HUNGER AROUND US

MOUNTAIN

BOUND

JUNE/JULY 2020 VestaviaHillsMagazine.com Volume Four | Issue Three $4.95

WHAT YOUR TEACHERS DID WHILE YOU WERE IN QUARANTINE

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2 June/July 2020

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FEATURES

44

WE ARE FAMILY Want to see a coworker in quarantine? Go for a virtual walk. Here’s how teachers did just that as part of the Rebel Challenge.

VESTAVIA HILLS’ BEST WINNERS You voted. We tallied. See just who Vestavia Hills’ favorites are.

4 June/July 2020

PHOTO BY ALISHA CROSSLEY

50

37

13

PHOTO BY MARY FEHR

arts & culture

13 Thanks a Million: Lauren Daniel’s Pet Portraits & Beyond 20 Read This Book: What the Librarian Wants to Read Next

schools & sports

21 Dear Class of 2020: Reflections Upon an Unexpected Graduation 28 Five Questions For: Liberty Park Teacher Rachel Stanley

food

& drink

in every issue 6 Contributors 7 From the Editor 8 The Question 9 The Guide 58 Out & About 62 Marketplace 64 My Vestavia Hills

29 It Takes a Village: A Hunger Awareness Project in Action 36 Five Questions For: Troup’s Pizza’s Terrill Brazelton

home

& style

37 Among the Blooms: A Backyard Quarantine Wedding

VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 5

contributors EDITORIAL

Stephen Dawkins Alec Etheredge Madoline Markham Keith McCoy Scott Mims Emily Sparacino

CONTRIBUTORS

Karen Askins Alisha Crossley Mary Fehr Stephen Stair Elizabeth Sturgeon Lauren Ustad

DESIGN

Jamie Dawkins Kate Sullivan Green Connor Martin-Lively

MARKETING

Darniqua Bowen Kari George Caroline Hairston Rachel Henderson Rhett McCreight Viridiana Romero Lisa Shapiro Kerrie Thompson

ADMINISTRATION Hailey Dolbare Mary Jo Eskridge Daniel Holmes Stacey Meadows Tim Prince

Alisha Crossley, Photographer Over the last decade, Alisha has captured countless narratives from sacred vows to new babies—each story unique and special in its own right.

You will likely find her with a book, golf club or full bodied red in hand (if not a camera). She and her husband Patrick have been married for 16 years, and they share three little ones, two cats and one dog in Mountain Brook

Mary Fehr, Photographer

Mary is a wedding and portrait photographer based out of Birmingham.

She studied art and art history at University of Montevallo. She likes to teach and plans on getting her MFA in order to do so. Mary also loves to travel and has a goal of photographing a wedding in every state! She enjoys reading non-fiction, going to concerts and spending time with her family.

Elizabeth Sturgeon, Writer Elizabeth Sturgeon was born and raised in Birmingham and has stayed close to home ever since. You might find her searching for a thrift store gem or ordering a meal she’s never tried before. A recent Samford University graduate, Elizabeth works in Birmingham-Southern College’s communications department, writing about students, alumni, and campus culture.

Lauren Ustad, Photographer Lauren lives in Birmingham with her husband, Joe, their three daughters, and their 2-pound Yorkie they refer to as “Boobie.” She spends her professional time posing itty bitties and chasing little munchkins. In her free time you can probably find her slaving away at their most current renovation project or building Legos with her self-proclaimed super heroes.

Vestavia Hills Magazine is published bimonthly by Shelby County Newspapers Inc., P.O. Box 947, Columbiana, AL 35051. Vestavia Hills Magazine is a registered trademark. All contents herein are the sole property of Shelby County Newspapers Inc. [the Publisher]. No part of this periodical may be reproduced without written permission from the Publisher. Please address all correspondence (including but not limited to letters, story ideas and requests to reprint materials) to: Editor, Vestavia Hills Magazine, P.O. Box 947, Columbiana, AL 35051.

Vestavia Hills Magazine is mailed to select households throughout Vestavia Hills, and a limited number of free copies are available at local businesses. Please visit VestaviaHillsMagazine.com for a list of those locations. Subscriptions are available at a rate of $16.30 for one year by visiting VestaviaHillsMagazine.com or calling (205) 669-3131, ext. 532.

Advertising inquiries may be made by emailing advertise@vestaviahillsmagazine.com, or by calling (205) 669-3131, ext. 536.

6 June/July 2020

from the editor

W

ON THE COVER

Weird. Strange. These are the words I keep putting on the past few months. As quarantine set it so did an underlying anxiety. I didn’t want to read, I didn’t want to cook, even though I usually love to do both. I just wanted to be, and preferably to fast forward to when this whole COVID-19 mess was over and we could look back on it. I just wanted to feel normal, and to do normal things.

But in the midst of all of that going on in my head, I had a job to do, a magazine to make in quarantine. So from my front porch “office,” I started looking around at what was happening in Vestavia Hills in the midst of this crazy season, and there was much sweetness to be found.

Teachers in all Vestavia Hills schools were taking on a fitness challenge and bonding with coworkers, all from a social distance. A team from Leadership Vestavia Hills was filling a need to both feed kids and support local restaurants. Weddings were moved to backyards, and car parades ensued for these and so many other occasions. Teachers were getting on video calls with students to share lessons and laughs alike. The Class of 2020 had many of their expectations dashed, but they had much to reflect on the good and hard of it all. Over in Cahaba Heights, a new pizza restaurant was opening, starting with carryout options only.

These are the stories that you’ll find in the pages that lie ahead.

And you know what? As I started to gather them, a funny thing happened. Quarantine was still in effect, the future was still rife with uncertainty, but the underlying anxiety started to lift as we all realized we were in a new normal—still strange in some regards but one we could in some ways settle into, often in our pajamas and gym clothes. And there was good laced through it too, as made oh so evident to me in the pages in this issue you are holding.

You’ll also find a few stories in it that could have been told quarantine or no quarantine, but we likely wouldn’t have chosen Lauren Daniel’s backyard for a photo shoot of her artwork or gotten as creative with our photos of Vestavia Hills’ Best winners like we did—all markers of a season we certainly will never forget in all its mess and all its beauty.

Thanks for reading, and happy summer to you! May it be filled with many sweet moments no matter the circumstances we can’t control!

Rebel Challenge

Vestavia Hills High School teacher and girls soccer coach Brigid Littleton rides her mountain bike as a part of the Rebel Challenge during the COVID-19 quarantine.

madoline.markham@vestaviahillsmagazine.com

Photo by Lauren Ustad Design by Connor Martin-Lively VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 7

“ ” THE QUESTION

What’s one thing your family would NOT have done if it weren’t for the COVID-19 quarantine?

Went through my son’s bedroom to donate old toys he doesn’t play with anymore. Gave several to the neighbors so they had “new” toys to play with during the quarantine.

We would never have had the opportunity for our youngest child in college to be home with us for an extended period of time - EVER AGAIN! This mama is soaking it all up!

Zoom birthday parties, teacher and birthday parades, backyard dinners at sunset, and understanding my kids’ strengths and weaknesses with schoolwork.

Participated in birthday parades for our friends!

-Alicia Sherman

-Karla Johnson Thomas

- Liz Tucker

We’ve eaten at a table every night at supper.

Priceless.

Volunteered to foster dogs for the Greater Birmingham Humane Society, who to put every animal into foster care that would normally have been at its Snow Drive location.

Teaching my 10-year-old life skills... how to scramble an egg, boil water for rice, make a pie using electric mixer, wash dishes, separate laundry, vacuum out car.

My husband’s honey-do list is slowly becoming a honey-did list. Turns out we just needed all sports to be cancelled.

-Lorena Conyers Webster

- Tonia Riley Patterson

8 June/July 2020

-Jill Jowers Edwards

- Rebecca Suits Hartsough

-Trisha Heckman Gilbert

THE GUIDE

UNITED BY BOWS As families started to stay home to quarantine in March, Youth Leadership Vestavia Hills encouraged the community to put a red, white or blue bow—or even a wrapping bow or hair bow or whatever they had—on their mailboxes to remind us we are all in this together. Before long, orders for bows started flooding into local shops like Flower Buds. Bradley Gilbert, owner of Homewood Flowers and Gifts and a Vestavia Hills resident, reported selling and delivering 1,064 red bows. “I know these are scary times, but this community is connected in such Photo by Lauren Ustad VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 9

THE GUIDE SCHOOLS

C-Level Award

Vestavia Hills City Schools Director of Technology Keith Price has a new title: CTO. Keith received the certified Chief Technology Officer designation from the Alabama Leaders in Educational Technology association this spring. This yearlong program provided Keith with knowledge and training to meet the unique technology demands of school systems so the school system can continue to grow learning opportunities for all students.

FIRE DEPARTMENT

For the Firefighters

During the COVID-19 quarantine, Liberty Park Middle School gave its extra digital thermometers and boxes of disposable thermometer probe covers to the Vestavia Hills Fire Department. Firefighters and medics were required to check their temperatures throughout the day as part of a new COVID-19 wellness protocol, so they were short on supplies. “We had a good supply of the probe covers, and so we were happy to be able to donate these to first responders,” LPMS Principal Tonya Rozell says.

CHURCH

The Hunt Goes On The COVID-19 quarantine might have cancelled traditional Easter egg hunts, but that didn’t mean they could go on in a new style.

The week before Easter Vestavia Hills United Methodist Church invited its families to download an Easter egg printout to place in the window of their house for neighborhood children to safely “hunt” from their cars. The church also distributed bags of eggs for families to hold their own at-home egg hunts.

ARTS

Light in the Hallway “Count your blessings every day, it makes the monsters go away, and everything will be okay.

You are not alone...” Vestavia Hills High School a capella group Just Singin’ chose just the right words to sing and record from their homes in quarantine with “Light in the Hallway” for a social media post that brought beauty and smiles to homes throughout the community. You can watch it in the @vestaviahillschoir post on Instagram or on YouTube (search for “Just Singin’ Light In The Hallway”).

RETAIL

Share What You Have As the COVID-19 pandemic set in, Moran’s Rocky Ridge Hardware donated its remaining N95 respirators and dust masks to area health care professionals who are seeing shortages of them.

Likewise, Vestavia Hills High School and Pizitz Middle School donated their science masks and other protective gear to local hospitals.

Find Upcoming Event Listings

Due to the COVID-19 quarantine that began in mid-March, many local events have been cancelled, and as of producing this magazine issue in mid-April, it was unknown when scheduled events would resume. To give our reader the most up-to-date information, we will be posting events details as they are confirmed on vestaviahillsmagazine.com and on our social media at @vestaviahillsmag. Please check those places for event updates for June and July.

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THE GUIDE SCHOOLS

NONPROFIT

Grants in Action

$1.1 million—that’s the total amount Vestavia Hills City Schools Foundation has given to Vestavia Hills City Schools since its founding in 1996. And this spring it gave its largest donation to date to the school system, $142,169.55. Those funds will go toward 25 grants for all eight schools and the system as a whole for innovative classroom technology and instructional programs, as well as unique professional learning opportunities for faculty.

Brick by Brick Come this fall, Pizitz Middle School will have a new home on the former Berry High School campus on Columbiana Road, and the school is inviting the community to be a part of its building by donating a commemorative brick.

Bricks can be given in honor of students, teachers, family, or friends, and they can memorialize a special achievement, cherished event or graduating class.

To purchase a brick, visit bricksrus.com/donorsite/pizitzbrick.

The foundation’s grants last year went toward equipment for digital media, kits for learning robotics and coding, STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics) programming, and the school system’s ongoing Teacher Leaders Program and summer professional development initiatives. Learn more about their work and how to donate to it at vestaviafoundation.org.

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&CULTURE

ARTS

THANKS A MILLION

Lauren Daniel’s pet portraits have earned her the label of artist even if the term is new to her.

BY ELIZABETH STURGEON PHOTOS BY MARY FEHR VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 13

T

“Thanks a million.” The simple expression of gratitude was one Hugh Etheredge added to each goodbye, and one that stood out to his granddaughter Lauren Daniel when she named her painting business. Through the process and the final product, she wanted to keep the kindness behind the phrase at the heart of A Million Thanks.

From pet portraits—her most requested and staple piece—to seasonal works and abstracts, Lauren’s painting portfolio appears to span years of practice in the medium. In reality, the breadth of her work comes from only a few months of truly calling herself an “artist,” a label she’s shied away from in the past.

Lauren has always been creative and has loved to paint and craft, but her first few sales in December and work displayed in the Makers DIY retail space were a surprise. “It was nothing planned,” she says.

“I’m just as shocked as everyone who tells me that

14 June/July 2020

they didn’t know I was an artist. I didn’t know either.”

By February, she had built up her @amillionthanksbylaurendaniel Instagram account to show her work and painted her first commissioned pet portrait. Based on a painting of her own dog, Lauren’s pet portraits embody warmth and familiarity that we associate with our animals. She keeps a tight focus on the face as she captures each one as any traditional portrait would. “I really like to focus on the eyes. To me, that brings the painting to life,” she says.

Up until the past few months, her work has only been displayed in her own home. When she had her first daughter, Lauren painted lady bugs and frogs to match the bedding in the nursery. Fast forward a few years after she left her marketing job to become a fulltime mom, and Lauren made the wall above her stove a kind of rotating display space for different seasonal paintings.

Lauren Daniel works on one of her pet portraits from her backyard during the COVID-19 quarantine.

VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 15

A FEW TIPS AND TRICKS Lauren

offers

a

lot

of

encouragement to those who think they might like painting but are scared to jump right in. Here are a few of her basic pointers if you’re ready to pick up a canvas!

Start with your darks. Lauren

adds her darkest colors to her canvas as her base right after

sketching her subject. This method came naturally to her, and she’s seen other painters do the same thing when beginning a portrait.

Make use of simple techniques.

When working with texture or

abstract styles, Lauren uses a spray bottle with water to create a runny look with the paint. She also uses her fingers to move the paint around if brushes don’t get the job done.

Remember that you can start

over. Starting fresh is always an option. “Don’t listen to your

internal monologue. You’re not going to fail. Just paint over it and start again,” Lauren says.`

A little encouragement, along with the right opportunities at the right time, pushed Lauren to take her practice to the next level. Her friend Chad Martin, noticing how Lauren signed each of the pieces on her own walls, recognized her talent and told her she should pursue painting. “That was the first time I could hear that ring true,” Lauren says. “It put a seed in my mind that this was something I could do.”

Chad asked her to paint a couple of pieces for his daughter’s college dorm room—her first pieces that would go in someone else’s home. From there, Lauren’s office soon became a studio as she completed commissioned work and explored more styles. “I like it all —all the pieces are so different. And it’s so cool to know that people would put one of my pieces in their own homes,” she says.

16 June/July 2020

Lauren makes sure to name all of her paintings and often shares the stories behind each one on Instagram.

Soft blues and neutral golds appear often, working together to create a gentleness and lightness to her pieces. There’s a magic to the process that even surprises Lauren when she layers paint, steps back, and sees the subject emerge in a completed work.

When she first played with an abstract style, Lauren began moving paint around and watching that magic happen. She painted an abstract piece for a Vestavia Hills United Methodist Church auction, and from the layers of whites, golds and blues, a sailboat and lighthouse emerged without her noticing—just happening to fit right in with the lighthouse in the church’s student ministry. A few spontaneous brushstrokes brought out something beautiful, which

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“When I’m working on a piece, I lose myself in that moment. It shuts off the part of my brain that can get carried away and puts the other side in fuller focus. It settles everything down.”

- Lauren Daniel comes so naturally to Lauren.

The joy behind the process, which includes moments of beauty and surprise like the lighthouse, is why she started and continues to paint. “When I’m working on a piece, I lose myself in that moment,” Lauren says. “It shuts off the part of my brain that can get carried away and puts the other side in fuller focus. It settles everything down.” During rough patches here and there, painting has helped her find peace through it all.

The business side of her art is still new and growing, and Lauren is excited to take on more projects and challenges. “I had no idea I could do this until I started,” she says. “I think most people would surprise themselves. You just never know what you might be able to do.”

The research we’re doing is making it possible for kids like Allie to survive, grow up and make things happen.

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READ THIS BOOK

What the Librarian Wants to Read Next Recommendations from

Carla Johnson

Teacher Librarian Vestavia Hills Elementary West

Carla is passionate about reading, kids and teaching, so her job overseeing 42 classes a week and using literature as a connection to classroom learning is quite the dream. She’s even gotten to meet Mr. Schu (John Schumacker), Scholastics Ambassador of School Libraries, pictured. In her spare time, she runs, reads, bakes and makes lists of what she wants to read next. Here are some on her to-read list for elementary schoolers heading into summer.

Pass Go and Collect $200

By Tanya Lee Stone Monopoly is a favorite game in our house, so I can’t wait to get the story behind this fun and favorite game. In the late 1800s, Lizzie Magie’s attention was drawn to rising financial inequality. One day she had an idea: create a game that shows the unfairness of the landlord-tenant relationship. But game players seemed to have the most fun pretending to be wealthy landowners. Enter Charles Darrow, a marketer and salesman with a vision for transforming Lizzie’s game into a staple of American family entertainment.

The Bug Girl (a true story)

By Sophia Spencer I don’t love bugs, but I love to learn about them. And I’m ready to learn about Sophia Spencer and how she was able to learn more about something she was passionate about. Seven-year-old Sophia was bullied for loving bugs until hundreds of women scientists rallied around her. Now she tells her inspiring story in this picture book that celebrates women in science, bugs of all kinds, and the importance of staying true to yourself.

Rip and Red Series

By Phil Bildner I’ve got this series in my stack to read next because I like stories that include friendship, differences, and school.

I’m a fan of basketball too, so I’m sure this series will be a hit with a ton of kiddos at my school. Best friends Rip and Red’s fifth-grade year is nothing like what they expected. They have a crazy new tattooed teacher named Mr. Acevedo, who doesn’t believe in tests or homework and who likes off-the-wall projects. They also find themselves with a new basketball coach: Mr. Acevedo!

Rocket to the Moon

By Don Brown NASA and space have been on my mind since I was a kid when I built a diorama of the moon and won first place in a photo contest. I’ve been hooked on all things space since. I can’t wait to find out more about the moon landing and the technology and the people who helped get the Apollo 11 to the moon in 1969. Instead of examining one person’s life, this book focuses on the moon landing itself, showing the events leading up to it and how it changed the world.

The One and Only Bob

By Katherine Applegate The One and Only Ivan will soon be in a theater near you, but in this story Bob will be the star! This sequel is focused on the dog and I’m hopeful this will be one families will love like the original. Newbery Medal-winning and #1 New York Times writer Katherine Applegate really knows writing and spins the most beautiful stories for readers.

20 June/July 2020

SCHOOL

&SPORTS

DEAR CLASS OF 2020

Senior year ended abruptly and robbed of many traditions, but there was much to reflect on for this class.

LETTERS CONTRIBUTED PHOTOS BY KAREN ASKINS, STEPHEN STAIR & CONTRIBUTED VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 21

On the night on which RISE’s biggest event had been planned in April, the Vestavia HIlls HIgh School stadium was lit up to honor the event and spring sports whose seasons were cancelled during the COVID-19 quarantine.

Senior year in many ways came to an unexpected halt for the Class of 2020 a week before their final Spring Break due to the COVID-19 pandemic. There would be no prom or graduation as planned, no final group pictures or parties with friends. In light of this, we asked some members of this group of Vestavia Hills High School students to share their reflections addressed to their classmates as they wrapped up their high school careers from at-home quarantine. Our editors recommend you have Kleenexes on hand to read on.

22 June/July 2020

From the Class of 2020 Director of Graduation Dear Class of 2020, Martin Luther King once said, “There can be no disappointment where there is not deep love.”

When people would ask me if I was ready for school to be over before this pandemic, my immediate response would be, “I can’t wait to get out of here and be in Auburn.” As a senior, every day of school seemed to last an eternity, and I would count the minutes leading up to that final bell. I did not appreciate all the little moments of laughter with my school mates. I took for granted the love and dedication my teachers put into every single lesson. If this pandemic has taught me one thing, it is that there is deep love rooted in Vestavia Hills High School.

Our school is so unique in its atmosphere. There is a genuine love that ties us all together; the deep disappointment that we have all felt throughout this experience proves this to be true. Being apart has shown us the bonds and unlikely friendships we have formed and grown to miss. Although this situation is disappointing, it has made clear how special and valuable our high school experience was. I have gone from counting the days until school was over to looking forward to our Google Hangouts.

Class of 2020, while you may not have gotten to nervously exchange corsages with your prom date, or suffer through that awkward small talk at the pre-prom dinner with the boy from your forensics class, or focus on not falling flat on your faces in front of thousands as you walk across to shake hands with Dr. Burgess, there are so many experiences that we DID get to have like:

- Winning the Toga Pep Rally - Friday night lights with your best friends - Going to playoffs for football - Getting on the news for starting a petition for no school the day after Halloween (We’re basically all famous!)

- Winning the Powderpuff game - Homecoming Week - Sadie Hawkins - $56,575 for Ady’s Army - Hiding the Spirit Stick (Does anyone know where it is?)

- Losing our voices at Wallace State - Outshining Mountain Brook’s student section at every game - Seeing a new face in the hallway every day There are disappointments because of this, we can’t deny that.

But these disappointments have brought us closer than ever. Let’s lean on each other and come out on the other side stronger. Life will get better, and, just think, one day we will be a part of our child’s history textbook.

My final message, seniors, is this: Do not let this disappointment take away all of the happy times we had together as 1Rebel. We started this journey together 13 years ago, and we will end it together through many Facetime calls, Google Hangouts, and hopefully a super delayed and proud walk across that stage. I know that my love for Vestavia Hills High School and the people it holds has only grown stronger through this.

We are a family. We are 1Rebel.

Julianna Perrigo speaks at graduation.

Sincerely, Julianna Perrigo VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 23

From the Senior Class President Dear Class of 2020, I knew that when I became class president I would get to write a graduation speech, so I decided to start writing it at the start of the year and add to it as the year went on. Looking back on what I had written, I realize that so many things have changed for us, and the old speech is no longer relevant.

I am sitting here today, a day that was meant to be RISE day, thinking of the things we might have been robbed of. Spring break plans were canceled, spring sports have been canceled, and players won’t get to play their last game. We might not get to walk at graduation, senior trips are being called off, and prom would have been this very weekend, yet no one is getting ready for it.

This isn’t easy. Not everyone understands how this has affected us, and not everyone will understand. My family keeps asking if I am okay; they try to avoid topics like my senior trip or my senior lacrosse season. But they don’t realize I am a part of a very special class, the class of 2020, and there is nothing in this world that could shake that foundation.

The coronavirus has taught me to not take things for granted and has shown me that the bonds I have built with my classmates cannot be broken by this virus. Because of my classmates and the friendships I have built with my peers over the past four years, I am not sad about the way this year ended.

That may not make sense right off the bat, but let me explain what I mean by that.

The class of 2020 creates history. We created the best toga pep-rally the school has ever seen. We created an atmosphere at the school that welcomed everyone and respected everyone.

We were a key element in creating RISE and supporting our peers who are fighting or have fought cancer. We created Division 1 athletes, amazing leaders, amazing people, and we even created four military academy commits, which is the most from one class in Vestavia history.

The things that our grade has accomplished won’t be forgotten, and although our time at the school may have been cut short, the Class of 2020 set a standard for the next generation of Rebels, and I am proud to be a part of it. That is why I am not heartbroken that our time is over. What we have accomplished in high school will now be carried into colleges all over the nation. Good luck next year wherever you may go, and remember once a rebel always a rebel.

Sincerely, Hunter Smyth 24 June/July 2020

ABOVE: Carter Dewees speaks at a socially distance graduation ceremony held on May 19 at the high school stadium.

BELOW: Victoria Rohner receives her diploma from Principal Dr. Tyler Burgess, who wore a face mask and gloves as he congratulated each student at graduation.

From the RISE Chairs Dear Class of 2020, As we wrap up our final RISE season, we would like to extend the greatest thank you to all of you who decided to join us in the fight against cancer. For us and many others, RISE has been an all-year event, but no matter how hard we worked, it would not be possible without the help from all of you. We are certain that none of this would have come to fruition if it wasn’t for the Class of 2020’s enthusiasm and support in creating and helping continue this incredible organization. Working for something bigger than ourselves has changed us more than any amount of money could.

It has been an honor to be so involved in something that the whole school and community rallies behind and is so passionate about. We understand how hard it is not to get to experience our last RISE day together, but we should not be quick to forget all of the wonderful memories and the impact we made together. Thank you for all the support over the past four years, and we hope you all will continue to serve others. You all have truly been and forever will be the best friends. Thank you for Being the Difference in so many ways.

Go Rebels, go RISE!

Sarah Beth Corona, Emma Leggett, John Ingram & Hunter Smyth

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From the VHHS Principal Dear Senior Class 2020, Each year I write a letter for our seniors “Dear Senior Class ____,� that appears in the yearbook and I read the letter to you, our graduates, prior to the graduation ceremony as we sit together, you in your blue caps and gowns and me on stage, together in an empty arena. It’s a nice moment to share with you before you leave.

This year we will not be able to share this brief little moment, and it ranks low on the list of memorable moments that we will not have, or at least traditionally have, with our Class of 2020 due to a global pandemic and international quarantine during the last months of your senior year.

I hope that each of you knows that in no way does this change our memories of you and our appreciation for not only how you have grown, learned, led, celebrated, and championed high school, but for how you have handled the unique circumstances and challenges this senior year has presented. To make the yearbook edit timeline, I usually write this letter in early spring, and it would have looked different because of our current times, but it still holds value for the true sentiments of love and encouragement I have for you. I hope to get to read it to you in person at a ceremony in our near future, but only time will determine that.

26 June/July 2020

And now for the words I wrote early in the spring: You have been wonderful, a true pleasure to work with! You enjoy one another and embrace your circumstances with peace and gratitude. As Vestavia Hills Rebels, you have experienced much success and been fortunate to celebrate the wins, grieve through the losses, and lean on one another to get to the end of high school in a good way, together. Flipping through your yearbook down the road, you will recall these memories. The facts will be fuzzy and the stories will grow more fantastic, but the relationships you have made with one another will be the most memorable.

You have been a strong leadership class, full of the Rebel Spirit! I can honestly say I witnessed a “first” seeing you lend your energy and volume to support others, remarkably when you helped your band and sophomore friends capture the spirit stick in consecutive pep rallies! You have left a positive indelible mark on our school community of Vestavia Hills.

As your principal, I truly hope you have created lasting happy moments at VHHS. As teachers, we know you will not remember every detail, lesson, fact, equation, and literary device. But we hope the skills and character you leave us with will carry you forward to find success in pursuing your passions in life ahead.

You each take with you, and have been a part of creating, the Rebel Edge. You are hardworking, prepared, confident, and compassionate graduates. You are Vestavia Hills Rebels. We are proud of you; we love you, and we hope life blesses each of you with joy and success. Congratulations and remember, “Once a Rebel, always a Rebel.”

With love and gratitude, Dr. B Tyler N. Burgess, Ed.D.

Aviya Khan at VHHS graduation

VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 27

SCHOOLS & SPORTS

5

FIVE QUESTIONS FOR

Rachel Stanley

Vestavia Hills Elementary Liberty Park Second-Grade Teacher PHOTO CONTRIBUTED

In August Rachel Stanley welcomed a crew of highly energetic second graders to her classroom, and for three-quarters of the school year they filled their days with laughter and fun alongside learning with themed dress up days when they read books like BFG or James and the Giant Peach. Little did they all know that their classroom would be a virtual one the last part of the year due to the COVID-19 crisis. “I feel really lucky that Vestavia has approached this in a way that we are supporting the whole child,” Rachel tells us about e-learning. “I check in on their learning, but it’s more to listen to them share about their bird feeder and how brave their dad is when he has to come home and shower before he comes inside.” We chatted with Rachel to get a glimpse of a teacher’s quarantine life.

What does “home school” really look like?

The state has identified second-grade standards, and we have solely focused on those and just doing one subject a day.

Right now we are building what they know about two-digit addition to learn threedigit addition, and we are learning about problems and solutions, habitats, and branches of government. Our goal in Vestavia is not to overwhelm our students.

We want them to continue learning, but we understand that life is happening. My goal is for them to log into their computer at one point in the day and do one fully focused learning task.

and discussed what listening looks like. I have met bunnies and cats and dogs. I think my students love being able to invite you into their home in a way we don’t get a chance to do at school. I think they are dying for any sort of connection, so those video chats are a lifeline. It reminds me each week why I do this, and I make myself available for one-on-ones for students who have needed a pick-me-up or extra help with a math problem.

for having fun with them or helping them or working in a hospital and being brave.

You have to be ready for anything. We did a show and tell one day and had a bunny who jumped on the computer and logged the student out. Sometimes the link you use doesn’t work or the platform you have chosen is down. As a teacher you want to plan for everything possible that could go wrong, but everybody has to be patient and flexible.

How are you and other teachers innovating in this time?

We’re finding ways to do what you normally do in school when we are not together. Some of my coworkers have done What do video chat class meetings look crazy hat day on their Google meetings, and another did a scavenger hunt with her like?

We have meetings as a class every students. Teachers have been doing read Tuesday on Google video chat. It’s more alouds on their meetings. Every Friday my about staying connected, to keep us all class shares appreciations when they are in seeing each other’s faces. We started off school, so today we shared appreciations. A our first meeting with video chat etiquette lot of them were for their parents or siblings

What’s it like for you working from home while also parenting?

The balance is difficult. Before I was at work and I could focus on work, and then I could leave and come home and focus on home. Now those boundaries are blurred.

Sometimes my 2-year-old is screaming in the background and that’s life. It also reminds me what my kids’ families are going through. I can’t expect them to do something with their kids that I can’t do with my son.

28 June/July 2020

&DRINK

FOOD

IT TAKES A VILLAGE

When there’s a need to feed kids and support restaurants, the community rises up from quarantine.

BY MADOLINE MARKHAM PHOTOS BY KEITH MCCOY & CONTRIBUTED VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 29

E

Ever thought about hunger issues in Vestavia Hills?

As it turns out about 500 Vestavia Hills City Schools students receive free or reduced lunch. That’s about 7 percent of the school system population. There’s also one food bank in the city through Vestavia Hills United Methodist Church, and around 45 seniors receive Meals on Wheels with another 18 on waiting list.

“These aren’t huge numbers but they are somewhat surprising given the affluent community we are in,” says Episcopal Church of the Ascension priest Jack Alvey, “which tells me people are sacrificing health care or food to be in a good school system, that they understand the premium a good school system has on raising a child.”

These facts were all uncovered by a Leadership Vestavia Hills (LVH) Hunger Awareness group project this year that was looking to raise awareness

30 June/July 2020

Leadership Vestavia Hills participants Shelley Gentle, June Clark, Chris Simmons and Chad Gay pass out meals at Vestavia Hills Elementary West during quarantine.

about hunger in Vestavia Hills, point people to ways to alleviate it and make sure those who are hungry had the resources they need.

With data in hand, the group talked about supporting some sort of feeding program in the school system or restarting a program that places food in the backpacks of kids who are in need of it for the weekends. Mostly they decided to focus their efforts on raising awareness at events like Wing Ding. Little did they know there would be no Wing Ding this year, but there would be a project. Here’s how it all came about, from each of the perspectives of different people involved.

THE ORGANIZER When it was announced that schools state-wide would be closed starting in mid-March, hunger

issues were already on LVH group member Shelley Gentle’s mind. She immediately thought of those 500 kids who were receiving free or reduced lunches. Since school superintendent Todd Freeman was in their LVH class, she reached to see how they could help.

At the same time, she and her husband had been talking about how restaurants were starting to hurt in this pandemic since his IT company works with a lot of eateries. That’s where she came up with an idea to unite the needs of the kids and restaurants. Why not raise money to pay restaurants for meals for the kids and also support their businesses?

A GoFundMe page and a few thousand dollars later, that’s just what she and her group did every day during Spring Break week with meals from The Ridge, Diplomat Deli, Moe’s Southwest Grill, Slice and Ashley Mac’s. In the weeks that followed, the school system handed out two breakfasts and two lunches to students every Monday and Wednesday at Vestavia Hills Elementary Cahaba Heights and Vestavia Hills Elementary West, and on Fridays the LVH team organized meals for the kids from a different local restaurant each week.

One week Milo’s chicken sandwiches might be on the menu, and the next Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint might cater chicken

LEADERSHIP VESTAVIA HILLS HUNGER AWARENESS GROUP MEMBERS Jack Alvey Cindy Echols Chad Gay Shelley Gentle Erin Holtz Tracy Lemak Learn more about Leadership Vestavia Hills at leadershipvestaviahills.com.

VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 31

Diplomat Deli staff bring out lunches to be delivered to children during the quarantine.

tenders and pork sliders.

“The amount of money we have raised through the community has astounded me and made me feel so good about the city,” Shelley says. “(Initially it was) mostly small donations, $20 or $50, coming from a lot of people who want to help the students and help the small businesses, And this is a program that allows them to help both groups at one time.”

THE KIDS During Spring Break week about 150 kids were picking up meals daily from West and Cahaba Heights elementary schools, but in the weeks that followed that number was up to around 250. Meals were all passed through windows or placed in trunks—with smiles shared on either side of the car. No forms were needed, no questions were asked. “For a lot of families it’s their outing that day,” Shelley says.

These students might not have been seeing their teachers, they might not have been seeing their friends, but they were seeing smiling faces in familiar settings—and some days those faces were those of their principal or counselor too.

“We’re trying to provide the distance learning,” says Cindy Echols, an assistant principal at Vestavia Hills Elementary East and member of Shelley’s LVH group. “But in order for the kids to learn, they need nutrition to learn and stay active. This is a huge part of their growth too. When they are at home, we want to provide them the strength they need.”

The schools have jumped in to pool their resources with LVH too. When child nutrition staff saw their supply of milk, fruit and snacks that would go bad if not eaten soon, they added them 32 June/July 2020

to the LVH meals. Elementary school counselors also donated their snack stash for these kids, and Chick-Fil-A gift cards that they use for a character education program will be given out at the end of the year to continue to help these families in need.

“It just all fell into place,” Cindy says. “It’s something that is a need and it’s grown and the need has grown.”

THE PRIEST As COVID-19 came into our lives in all regards, much of priest Jack Alvey’s time was spent on pastoral care for his members at Episcopal Church of the Ascension and preparing to celebrate Holy Week and Easter through technology, but in the weeks that followed he turned to the Vestavia Hills faith community to support the Friday lunches financially.

Often churches operate in their own silos, he says, and that’s understandable. But if ever there were a time to change that, it was now.

“In times like these it’s a powerful for all the churches to come together and get behind one cause to have a display of unity to show all these churches really love this community and are here to help in any way we can,” he says. “I haven’t had to do a lot of selling.”

The more he spoke to pastors and priests, the more churches began to commit dollar amounts to support the community through this project.

Checks came in one at a time from Redstone Church, Vestavia Hills Baptist, St. Stephen’s Episcopal, Shades Mountain Baptist, Vestavia Hills United Methodist, Episcopal Church of the Ascension and others, quickly bringing the effort to its fundraising goal to provide meals for

OTHER HUNGER PROJECT SUPPORTERS These efforts also funded the Leadership Vestavia Hills Hunger Awareness Project for school lunches: uKristin Tunnell organized the sale of yard signs in honor of Vestavia Hills High School 2020. uTealla Stewart of Monogram Plus sold hand towels. uJeff Florio, who usually competes in the Episcopal Place Gumbo Gala event each year that was cancelled, made his gumbo anyway and sold it.

VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 33

Paige Bradley’s two sets of twin daughters, all Girl Scouts, assemble bags of snacks to share with fellow community members in need.

restaurant,” owner Joseph Hoskin says. “We greatly appreciated it.”

And LVH wouldn’t have it any other way.

“Restaurants in normal times are the first people to sponsor sports teams and fundraisers,” Shelley says. “We don’t want to ask them to give us a break, we just want to pay them for their work and to give them the business.”

Like other restaurants, Diplomat was doing whatever they could to drum up business during THE RESTAURANT OWNER quarantine. They put up banners, posted on social In week one of quarantine, the Diplomat Deli was media, displayed their beer and wine selection in looking to find their stride in these strange times their windows, and catered to UAB and other when they got an unexpected order for 150 sack hospitals—complete with hand-written thank you lunches on their menu. So they prepped 150 ham, notes Josephs’ kids made for their “art lesson.” turkey and roast beef sandwiches and bagged them “Everyone is trying to giveback however we can,” up with chips and brownie—plus an off-menu Joseph says. sucker for the kids who would get them placed in THE GIRL SCOUTS their cars.

LVH paid the restaurant full price, $8 each, for June Clark and Paige Bradley were sitting the meals. “We wish were in a position to donate, but we are in a struggling position like every other together at a softball game the day after getting the remainder of the school year.

“Generally speaking people have a heart for children and to make sure their needs are met in a chaotic time,” Jack says. “I think a lot of them see the world through the lens of their own children, and people are excited we are working with local businesses so you are also supporting the local economy.”

34 June/July 2020

word that school would be cancelled for three weeks due to quarantine, both with an itch to do something to help and for something for their daughters to focus on. Before long, they’d reached out to the service unit leader of Girl Scouts of North Central Alabama of the Girl Scouts to recruit other Vestavia area troops for an effort to provide snacks for kids in need during school closures.

A few households including both of theirs volunteered to be collection sites, and they set bins on their front porches to collect snack items and shared what they were looking for on social media. Before long, friends and strangers alike were dropping off Cheez-Its, goldfish and more.

From there the Girl Scouts—June has two daughters and Paige has two sets of twin daughters— in each home set to work to evenly distribute hearty items like mac and cheese cups, breakfast items like a Pop Tart of Nutri-Grain bars and a few different snacks. They put on gloves, counted and assembled hundreds of gallon-sized Ziploc bag that would be distributed with the Leadership Vestavia Hills lunches at West and Cahaba Heights.

“It was exciting for (my daughters) to load up the bags knowing it was going to other kids in their school system,” Paige says. “At the stores you see shelves wiped out, but people were opening their pantries to donate to kids in their neighborhoods.”

June, who is on the LVH team with Shelley, had also had her eyes opened to hunger in the community too. “A lot of times kids who don’t have enough to eat really do depend on the food that’s provided at school,” she says. “We tend to forget that there are kids here who struggle too, so it’s great to have an opportunity to provide them with some food they can take and supplement what they need.”

As it turned out the project was good for more than just the kids who would get snacks. “It’s so good to be out and to do something,” June says. “We all get bogged down in our own experience and how hard it is to work from home and manage kids and their schoolwork. To be able to step outside of that and help someone whose experience is different from yours is really rewarding.”

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5

FOOD & DRINK

FIVE QUESTIONS FOR

Terrill Brazelton

Troup’s Pizza Owner + Founder PHOTO SUBMITTED

A pandemic wasn’t going to stop Terrill Brazelton from opening the pizza restaurant he had in the works for Heights Village in Cahaba Heights. A classically trained fine dining chef, he used the quiet of the COVID-19 quarantine to make sure he sourced the best possible local ingredients for the Troup’s Pizza menu. Since they were already planning to do a lot of take-out business and offer online ordering, his team went ahead and opened their doors curbside-style in late April during the quarantine with a limited menu and family-size meals. When we talked to him, he was eagerly anticipating the day when they could also welcome customers into their dining room and onto their patio.

Can you tell us about your background in food?

When my wife, Ashley, and I met, I was working at Open Door Café, and she was working at Ocean. We later bought Open Door Café and ran that for about five years.

Ashley has worked front-of-the-house for Ocean, FoodBar and Daniel George, and I went from Kathy G & Company to OT’s on Acton to Slice Pizza for about seven years.

It’s always been on our minds that we wanted our own place again, and one day a gentleman asked me if I wanted to go to lunch and said he’d be happy to help us open our own place. With my experience in pizza and how everyone loves pizza, it seemed like a good fit.

Where did the name come from?

Troup was my great-grandfather, and he was everywhere I turned. He developed the street car line over the mountain where Vulcan is that led to Edgewood, and on Lakeshore Drive he had a track to race cars in the early 1900s when cars were a novelty.

36 June/July 2020

There are some historical markers that have his name on it. All of the Brazeltons go by their middle name, Troup, and my greatgrandfather, grandfather and my father were all Troups. It’s a reminder of what it took for us to get here.

What’s your vision for Troup’s We want a family-friendly place where people feel comfortable coming more than one time a week. We want people to feel at home and like they are family. My wife and I will be here all the time. We’ll also have some sandwiches, salads and appetizers, and we’ll have beer and wine for dine-in or to-go.

and Sanctuary Farms to get as much local produce as possible. We will have fun with pizza flavors like Smoked Oyster Rockefeller, Pork Belly and Potato, and Prosciutto and Roasted Grape with Arugula. We’ll bring in specialty ones by the season too. On Sundays we’ll do some breakfast items, pizzas with eggs and mimosa

What else will be on the menu?

We’ll have a cheese plate and charcuterie plate and cheeses from Sweetgrass in Thomasville. We’ll have five or six salads with homemade dressings, and we’ll have classic wings and appetizers like hummus and pork belly. We’ll do a hot braised beef sandwich with peppers and fresh bread, and we’ll do sausage and homemade What will the pizzas be like?

Our 12-inch or 16-inch pizzas will be hand meatball sandwiches. When it comes to beer crafted with dough made daily, and we are and wine, we will have as many local beers as sourcing as many local ingredients as we possible with 11 on tap. All of our wines will can. We’ll have Arnoni’s Sausage from be high-end canned wines. It’s a trend we are Birmingham and Spotted Trotter pepperoni going to embrace and have fun with. They from Atlanta that uses pigs raised in Georgia, make single serving ones and two-serving and we will use places like Ireland Farms cans.

&STYLE

HOME

AMONG THE BLOOMS

A quarantine might have limited this wedding’s guest list, but the Clements’ backyard ceremony was still full of excitement and joy.

BY MADOLINE MARKHAM PHOTOS BY ALISHA CROSSLEY PHOTOGRAPHY VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 37

W

When Gabe Clement and Anne Grace Schmidtke got engaged last September, they had no idea that their wedding date, March 28, 2020, would arrive with a global pandemic. The plan had been to marry at Shades Mountain Baptist Church where Anne Grace had grown up with a reception with nearly 300 guests at Vestavia Country Club. More than anything, Anne Grace says they were “excited to have our friends and loved ones all in one place and to have a Christ-centered ceremony.”

As the day neared and COVID-19 was becoming more prevalent in March though, the couple grew more been hesitant to ask Anne Grace’s family from North Carolina and Michigan to travel. Then 13 days before the ceremony the CDC came out with guidelines limiting events to only 10 people. The

38 June/July 2020

next day Anne Grace and Gabe sat down with Anne Grace’s parents to talk out what to do. The wedding would go on but with just their immediately family in the backyard of the house Anne Grace had known her whole life, from birth through her graduation from Vestavia Hills High School in 2011 through her wedding day. “It was a tough decision to make, but getting married was what we wanted most,” Anne Grace recalls.

From there the four of them split up the guest lists and sent texts to each person on it to let them know the celebration was being postponed to a Friday night in July and that only the couple’s parents, siblings and their spouses would attend the March 28 ceremony. Anne Grace works as a physical therapist at Children’s of Alabama, so while she was

“It was a very intimate sweet special feeling with only our family who have known us our entire life. It kept the focus on what was important of the day” - Anne Grace Schmidtke Clement at work that week, her mom Michelle took the lead on contacting their vendors to see who could still participate and worked with Ashley Stork of Magnolia Vine Events to reschedule some of them for their July reception at Vestavia Country Club.

Photographer Alisha Crossley and her associate Anna Roberts were still in and would shoot from a social distance, and the same went for videographer Four 10 Films. Florist Lisa Bailey gathered blooms from her yard and her neighbors’ to create bouquets for Anne Grace and her matron of honor and setup an arch of greenery and blush and white blooms for the backdrop of the ceremony.

Michelle also called up Pappas’ Grill to see if they could get Anne Grace’s favorite chicken fingers, and the restaurant opened up that Saturday to make that happen. In fact, when Anne Grace was 8 years old she’d asked if she could have those very chicken fingers at her wedding, and as it turns out Plan B made that happen along with other food her mom made to serve. They also got a small strawberry cake from Edgar’s Bakery and champagne for a toast by Anne Grace’s dad Brian following the ceremony.

Anne Grace was disappointed not to have her 15 bridesmaids there for the wedding, but they all FaceTimed in for a bridesmaids luncheon on Friday and while she was getting ready on Saturday. Other changes brought about sweet moments Anne Grace and Gabe wouldn’t have had with their original plans. Anne Grace did her own makeup, and her sister Sloan did the bride’s hair. For the sisters it ended up being a fun morning at their parents’ house, especially since Sloan has three boys and they don’t often get time with just the two of them.

Without all the need for extra time for wedding party pictures, they skipped their first look and saw each other for the first time as Anne Grace and her dad rounded the corner from the front of the house through the white azalea bushes to where Gabe VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 39

Shades Mountain Baptist Pastor Danny Wood married the couple at 4:06 p.m. based on a church-wide prayer focus based on Philippians 4:6.

stood with Pastor Danny Wood—a moment that they both especially loved. A violinist played “Canon in D” as Anne Grace approached Gabe and later “In Christ Alone” during a time of reflection in the ceremony. During the recessional song, their family threw rose petals on them as they walked back up the aisle. “It was a very intimate sweet special feeling with only our family who have known us our entire life,” Anne Grace says. “It kept the focus on what was important of the day.”

They also changed the start time to 4:06 p.m. after Shades Mountain Baptist had been encouraging its church members to pray at 4:06 p.m. for the COVID-19 crisis based on Philippians 4:6: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every 40 June/July 2020

situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” “We felt like March 28 had been prayed for for so long,” Anne Grace says. “We had a peace about the whole day, and it ended up being the most beautiful afternoon. You could tell there were people praying for us throughout the day.”

For the backyard ceremony, Anne Grace’s sister and sisters-in-law wore their light blue bridesmaid dresses as planned. Likewise the bride donned her “dream dress” designed by Heidi Elnora, and Gabe a white dinner jacket and black cowboy boots (he wears some form of cowboy boots daily, which Anne Grace loves).

The biggest surprise came at the end of the

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VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 41

Anne Grace and Gabe’s friends surprised them with a car parade after their backyard wedding ceremony.

reception with their family. Anne Grace and Gabe thought a few friends were going to drive by in their cars and wave, so they made their way to the end of the driveway to watch. But what they didn’t know as they stood in front of Gabe’s truck—which neighbors decorated with white balloons and a “just married” sign—was that the bridesmaids had taken action to recruit a whole parade of around 100 cars to drive past with balloon and signs.

42 June/July 2020

In those moments they got to see all the friends who have been cheerleaders for their relationship from the start, the friends who will dance to a live band at Vestavia Country Club in July to celebrate too. “It was so exciting,” Anne Grace recalls. “We felt so loved and supported because even when they couldn’t be by our side as planned, they still made a way to be there. You could see the excitement and joy on all of their faces.”

VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 43

44 June/July 2020

We Are Family Want to see a coworker in quarantine? Go for a virtual walk. Here’s how teachers did just that as part of the Rebel Challenge.

By Madoline Markham | Photos by Lauren Ustad & Contributed A shoe. An old tennis shoe. That’s what chemistry teacher Laura Casey wanted, and it’s what Vestavia Hills High School principal Tyler Burgess handed over to her this winter when she asked for it. With that, Laura attached the shoe to the top of an old second-place cheerleading trophy and wrote the words “Rebel Challenge” in Sharpie on it.

“The kids thought it was hysterical,” Laura says. “(The trophy) sat in my room for a while, and the chemistry students would ask, ‘What in the world is that?’” And that’s how the students found out that their teachers were in the middle of a fitness competition and started to “trash talk” with them about whose team was ahead.

Later art teacher Suzie Newbill would get ahold of

the trophy and create a, well, more polished spin on it with gold paint. By April it would have a goldpainted face mask on it too, but we’ll get to that part later. (Don’t you ever want to pretend we still didn’t know about the face-mask era yet?)

Each week in February a team of teachers and staff was awarded the trophy in all its glory for their points in the fitness challenge. Chafing the Dream won for the best team name, besting the Sweating Without Limits, Red Hot Chili Steppers, Runnin’ Rebs, Turna Prima (credits to the school’s Latin teacher for the name) and other teams in the competition. Every team that got at least 275 points earned the coveted ability to wear jeans for the entire month of March too.

VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 45

VHHS teacher Brigid Meadow rides her mountain bike during quarantine as part of the Rebel Challenge.

#RebelChallenge Posts

Herr Chase Trautwein Explored Birmingham via cicycle with Magic City Nutrition as the halfway point Face savouring food & stumbled upon the location of the first Iron Bowl - @HerrTrautwein

Counselor Vines #rebelchallenge with Hank!

-@CounselorVines

Gwendolyn Meister Hiking with my boys!!! #rebelchallenge -@daschund264

46 June/July 2020

Along the way, one teacher lost 10 pounds, one dropped two pants sizes, one ran a marathon, and all did more than hit fitness goals. They could gain points not just from the number of minutes of exercised but also by doing so with a coworker. And as a result, “some of our coworkers who had never connected before and really built strong relationships especially with the group walks,” says VHHS teacher Jordan Singletary, who organized the Rebel Challenge with Laura and Stacy Pugh as a part of the VHCS Teacher Leader Cohort with inspiration from a similar fitness program in Homewood City Schools.

“In a school as big as Vestavia we struggle with ways to make a big school feel small, and I feel like the Rebel Challenge did that in February,” Stacy says. “It got people out of their classrooms and connected them with people they didn’t usually see.”

For some teachers that looked like taking on a half-mile walking course that the team had mapped out through the school—the “Walk of Champions,” they called it. They could join in on a group walk before or after school, all put in place to get people moving and get them moving together.

The initial Rebel Challenge went so

VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 47

VHHS Health Sciences Getting a walk in with my Rebel family this beautiful Sunday morning 6 feet apart.

-@VHHealthScience

Nicole Slowik Wrapped up day 3 indoors with my favorite workout buddy and 15-pound weight #rebelchallenge -@slowiksci

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: Teachers Stacy Pugh and Laura Clark demonstrate how to walk and talk quarantine-style. Ben Davis works out with a rucksack filled with weights. Jordan Singletary pushes her daughters up a neighborhood hill.

Jennifer Isbell Day 2 #rebelchallenge.

Run this morning, then a garage workout and FT with @singletaryvhhs while Harps created a chalk stain glass window in the driveway!

-@isbell6thgrade 48 June/July 2020

well that the organizers were planning to try district-wide in October. And then came the COVID-19 quarantine. After finding out school would be out for at least three weeks, Jordan texted Laura and Stacy. “We need to revive this for quarantine,” she wrote. Within 48 hours they had a plan to do it quarantine-style with a competition among all of the Vestavia Hills City Schools.

In its quarantine mode, the Rebel Challenge gave out a point for each 45-minute segment of exercise and an extra point for doing a Facetime call with a colleague while exercising, screen shot

required. Quickly, 407 teachers and faculty members signed on and were walking, biking, doing yoga with screen sharing, riding the Peleton, carrying a rucksack, you name it to earn points for their school.

To keep the competition fair with differing numbers of participants at each school, points were based on an average of all the points of each participant, and a winner was named at the end of three weeks. “It was a way to get everyone connected even if we don’t see each other,” Stacy says. “We can virtually take a walk together. We can exercise and chat

Quarantine Challenge Leaderboard

School

Points

1st

Pizitz Middle School

37.53

2nd VHHS 35.21

and catch up.”

And just like at VHHS in pre-quarantine life, it bonded colleagues together. “We heard from a lot elementary schools thanking us for the team building,” Laura says. “They said they had talked to colleagues they had never had before. It’s also been so beautiful, and so it’s a great excuse to get outside.”

3rd

VHE West

26.35

4th

Central Office

20.14

5th

VHE Dolly Ridge

17.81

6th

VHE East

17.13

7th

VHE Liberty Park

16.25

8th

Liberty Park Middle

16.12

9th

VHE Cahaba Heights

15.97

With the busyness of life as usual, the three organizers doubt participation in the Rebel Challenge would have been as high as it was in quarantine—or that it would have created as strong of bonds or as much laughter. “We have always said we are family, but we really got to see that and see people excited to be a part of it,” Laura says.

VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 49

VESTAVIA HILLS’ BEST WINNERS 2020 You voted. We tallied. See just who Vestavia Hills’ favorites are.

Photos by Keith McCoy & Contributed

50 June/July 2020

FOOD & DRINK MOST FRIENDLY SERVICE Mudtown 3144 Green Valley Road (205)967-3300 mudtownalabama.com Runner Up: The Ridge MOST KID FRIENDLY DINING Mudtown 3144 Green Valley Road (205)967-3300 mudtownalabama.com Runners Up: Doodles Sorbets and Ices, Martin’s Bar-B-Que BEST CASUAL DINING Mudtown 3144 Green Valley Road (205)967-3300 mudtownalabama.com Runners Up: Snapper Grabbers Land & Sea, Diplomat Delicatessen & Spirits BEST ETHNIC DINING The Pita Stop 3908 Crosshaven Road (205)969-7482 thepitastop.com Runners Up: Pappas’ Grill, Sol Azteca Mexican Restaurant, The Olive Branch

Bendy’s Cookies & Cream 3029 Pump House Road, Suite 109 eatbendys.com

BEST ETHNIC DINING The Pita Stop

Runners Up: Bruster’s Real Ice Cream, Heavenly Doughnuts BEST DRINKS/COCKTAILs The Ridge 3325 Rocky Ridge Plaza (205)917-5080 theridgealabama.com Runner Up: Bistro V BEST CHEF George McMillan III/ FoodBar 3156 Heights Village (205)876-8100 foodbarbham.com Runners Up: JP Holland/Fig Tree Cafe

COMMUNITY BEST COMMUNITY EVENT RISE at VHHS uab.edu/vhhsrise Runners Up: Deck the Heights, Christmas Tree Lighting Festival BEST NEIGHBORHOOD Cahaba Heights Runners Up: Countrywood, Tanglewood

BEST DATE NIGHT Bistro V 521 Montgomery Highway (205)823-1505 bistro-v.com

BEST LOCAL CAUSE Vestavia Hills City Schools Foundation vestaviafoundation.org

Runners Up: Satterfield’s, Slice Pizza

Runners Up: Help the Hills, Vestavia Library PALS

BEST SWEET TREATS

BEST OUTDOOR SPOT McCallum Park

MOST FRIENDLY SERVICE Mudtown VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 51

BEST CHURCH CHOIR Shades Mountain Baptist Church

Rosemary Lane vhal.org Runners Up: Wald Park, Library in the Forest BEST CHURCH CHOIR Shades Mountain Baptist Church 2107 Columbiana Road (205)822-1670 shades.org Runner Up: Vestavia Hills United Methodist Church

BEST SWEET TREATS + BEST NEW BUSINESS Bendy’s Cookies & Cream

BEST LOCAL PERSONALITY Rick & Bubba rickandbubba.com Runners Up: Scott Register, Tiffany DeLuca

SHOPPING & SERVICES BEST NEW BUSINESS Bendy’s Cookies & Cream 3029 Pump House Road, Suite 109 eatbendys.com

52 June/July 2020

Runners Up: Board & Brush BEST CUSTOMER SERVICE Dirty Hippie 3531 Rocky Ridge Road, Suite 120 (205)874-6164

BEST FLORIST/NURSERY Andy’s Creekside Nursery

Runners Up: La Bella Skin & Wellness BEST BOUTIQUE/CLOTHING Monograms Plus 1360 Montgomery Highway, Suite 122 (205) 822-3353 shopmonogramsplus.com Runners Up: The Clotheshorse, Mia Moda Boutique BEST STORE FOR GIFTS Monograms Plus 1360 Montgomery Highway, Suite 122 (205) 822-3353 shopmonogramsplus.com Runners Up: Darnell’s Fun Stuff, The Blue Willow

VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 53

BEST JEWELRY Steed’s Jewelers

BEST STORE FOR HOME FURNISHINGS/DÉCOR The Blue Willow 3920 Crosshaven Drive (205)968-0909 thebluewillow.com Runners Up: Chickadee, Issis Furniture Gallery BEST JEWELRY Steed’s Jewelers 1425 Montgomery Highway, Suite 111 (205)822-9173 steedsjewelers.com Runner Up: Cummings Jewelry Design BEST STORE FOR KIDS/TEENS Gigi’s Teen 3138 Heights Village (205)298-1811 Runners Up: The Lili Pad, Learning Express Toys

BEST STORE FOR HOME FURNISHINGS/DÉCOR The Blue Willow

VOTED

BEST BANK VESTAVIA HILLS 2020

BEST FLORIST/NURSERY Andy’s Creekside Nursery 2489 Rocky Ridge Road

WE WORK HARD TO HELP CUSTOMERS MOVE THEIR LIVES FORWARD. Thanks to the readers of Vestavia Hills Magazine for naming Regions the Best Bank. We’ll continue to work hard to give you the best banking experience possible.

Vestavia Montgomery Highway Branch 529 Montgomery Highway Vestavia Hills, AL 35216

regions.com Follow us for helpful tips and information. © 2020 Regions Bank. Regions and the Regions logo are registered trademarks of Regions Bank. The LifeGreen color is a trademark of Regions Bank.

54 June/July 2020

BEST DRINKS/ COCKTAILS The Ridge

(205)824-0300 andysgardencenter.com Runner Up: Leaf N Petal BEST PLACE FOR A FUN NIGHT OUT AMC Dine-In Vestavia Hills 10 1911 Kentucky Avenue (205)978-3720 amctheatres.com Runners Up: Vestavia Bowl, Makers: A DIY Experience

HEALTH & BEAUTY BEST MEDICAL PRACTICE Vestavia Pediatrics 1936 Old Orchard Road (205)978-3200 childrensal.org Runners Up: Vestavia Eye Care BEST DENTAL OR ORTHODONTICS PRACTICE Fulton Dental 1000 Chestnut Street, Suite 100 (205)822-3838 vestaviadentist.com VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 55

Runner Up: Sarver Orthodontics BEST ANIMAL CLINIC Vestavia Animal Clinic 1471 Montgomery Highway (205)823-7485 vestaviaanimalclinic.com Runners Up: Britt Animal Hospital, Advanced Veterinary Care of Vestavia, Inc. BEST SALON OR SPA Tangles Vestavia 3386 Morgan Road (205)823-7376 Runner Up: Vestavia Nails

BEST ANIMAL CLINIC Vestavia Animal Clinic

BEST FITNESS CENTER Lifetime Fitness 3051 Healthy Way (205)547-3100 lifetime.life Runners Up: Planet Fitness

MAGAZINE

VESTAVIA HILLS’

BEST VE

56 June/July 2020

ST

AV

2020 WINNER

IAH

ILLSMAGAZINE

.CO

M

Andy's Creekside Nursery

Andy's Creekside Nursery

Andy's Creekside Nursery

BEST STORE FOR GIFTS Monograms Plus

HOME, FINANCE, & AUTO BEST REAL ESTATE AGENT Manda Luccasen/Re/Max (205) 283-0380 mandasold.com

Birmingham's Premier Garden Center, Landscaping Service, and Farmer's Market

3351 Morgan Dr, Vestavia Hills, AL 35216

Birmingham's Premier Garden Center, (205) 824-0233 Landscaping Service, and Farmer's Market

Birmingham's Premier 3351 Morgan Dr, Garden VestaviaCenter, Hills, AL 35216 Landscaping Service, and Farmer's Market

(205) 824-0233

3351 Morgan Dr, Vestavia Hills, AL 35216

(205) 824-0233

Runner Up: Nicole Hardekopf/ARC Realty BEST INSURANCE AGENT John Henley/State Farm 2118 Columbiana Road (205)823-1343 statefarm.com Runners Up: Jack Traffanstedt/State Farm, Tyler Watts/ Nationwide BEST BANK Regions Bank-Montgomery Highway 529 Montgomery Highway regions.com (800)734-4667 Runner Up: Regions Bank-Heights Village BEST AUTO SERVICE Anthony’s Car Wash & Detail 1009 Vestavia Parkway (205)822-9274 anthonyscarwash.com Runners Up: Express Oil Change-Rocky Ridge Road VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 57

OUT & ABOUT

1

EASTER PHOTOS

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

PHOTOS CONTRIBUTED

Easter Sunday on April 12 looked different this year with social distancing, but that didn’t stop families from taking photos. Here are some that were shared with us.

1. Olivia and Virginia Macoy 2. Brad, Leah, David and Nicole Hardekopf 3. Pierce, Lauren, Madison, Michael and Trey Thomason 4. Frances and Abby Fowler 5. Price Geiger 6. Kyle, Autumn, Leah and Grayson Conrad 7. Brian, Lisa, Bridges, Jobe and Libby Lee 8. Lyndsay and Rosie Gunn 9. James and Andrew Bentley 10. Kira, Oliver, Lolly, Charlie and Elizabeth Aaron 11. Brooks, Kelli, William and Katherine Ann Gant 12. Drew, Betsy, Sarah and Tandy Stevens 13. Ellie Graham and Prater Kennedy

58 June/July 2020

OUT & ABOUT

10

11

12

13

VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 59

OUT & ABOUT

1

VHHS PROM NIGHT

2

3

4

5

6

7

PHOTOS CONTRIBUTED

Vestavia Hills High School’s prom was originally scheduled for April 18. Even though it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 quarantine, some students dressed up and took photos that night anyway.

1. Marie Harris 2. Anna and Mary Prickett 3. Emma Leggett 4. Audrey Bayne 5. Emily Teel 6. Kate Richardson 7. Ramey Medders

The Heart Knows There Is Only One Right Choice

Compassionate veterinary care, boarding & grooming

1471 Montgomery Hwy VestaviaAnimalClinic.com

(205) 823-7485

60 June/July 2020

Paid for by John & Melody Greene

OUT & ABOUT

1

2

E-LEARNING AT HOME PHOTOS CONTRIBUTED

Homes became classrooms for Vestavia Hills students after schools were unable to open during the COVID-19 quarantine. Here are some photos of e-learning and fun in the sun parents sent us.

1. Carlin Gregory 2. Alice Hicks 3. Tucker Hicks

3

4

4. Mary Hayden Goldman

VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 61

MARKETPLACE

Marketplace Vestavia Hills Magazine • 205.669.3131

Need appliance or air conditioner parts? How about a water filter for your refrigerator? We have it all at A-1 Appliance Parts! Call 1-800841-0312 www.A1Appliance.com

Mechanic needed.

Must have own tools and five years experience. Apply in person: 1105 7th St N, Clanton. Or call for appointment 205-7554570 HIRING EXPERIENCED FULL CASE ORDER SELECTORS $18.58 per hour plus production $$$ incentives. Grocery order selection using electric pallet jacks & voice activated headsets. Great benefits including Blue Cross health & dental insurance & matching 401k. Pre-employment drug test required.

Apply Online: WWW. AGSOUTH.COM Automation Personnel Services Hiring IMMEDIATELY For: Automotive Assembly, General Labor, Production, Clerical, Machine Operator, Quality, Carpentry, Welder, Foundry. Positions In: Calera, Clanton, Pelham, Bessemer, 62 June/July 2020

McCalla. Walk-in applications accepted.

Clanton (205)2800002. Pelham (205)444-9774.

Avanti Polar Lipids is looking for full and part time employees.

Submit resume to jobs@avantilipids. com •Highly proficient math skills required.

•High school diploma required.

Bama Concrete Now Hiring: Diesel Mechanic 4 Years Minimum Experience.

CDL Preferred.

Competitive Pay. Great Benefits. Apply in person: 2180 Hwy 87 Alabaster, 35007 Bent Creek Apartments.

Affordable 1 and 2 Bedroom. On-site Manager. On-site Maintenance. 3001 7th Street. North Clanton, AL 35045.

TDD#s: 800-5482547(V) 800-5482546(T/A) bentcreek@ morrowapts.com Office Hours: MonFri, 8am-4pm. Equal Opportunity Provider/ Employer Immediate need for LPN’s. Full time LPN Position with sign on bonus. BMC Nursing Home. Responsible for patient care and supervision of

VestaviaHillsMagazine.com

CNA staff. Will also provide treatment and meds for residents.

Apply online or call Human Resources at 205-926-3363 bibbmedicalcenter. com

or call for info 205668-3316.

Are you a motivated professional? Are you looking for a Industrial Coatings dynamic career? Are Group, Inc. is you ready to control hiring experienced your own level of -Sandblasters success? See why -Industrial Painters Helpers. Must be able McKinnons’ is an exciting place to to pass drug test and Boise Cascade Now work and grow. Now e-verify check. Must Hiring for Utility accepting applications be willing to travel.

Positions. Starting Professional references for Sales, Service, and pay $13.66/hour.

Detail Shop. Apply required. Please Must be able to pass with the receptionist. send resume to: background screen.

Please apply at www. icgsecretary@hotmail. 205-755-3430 com or call (205)688bc.com Shake up your 9004 career!!! Are you Core Focus Personnel looking for something Owner Operators 205-826-3088 • Now new and FUN? Milo’s Wanting Hiring Production Dedicated Year Round is always looking Mill Worker, Jemison. for great managers Anniston, AL 12hrs (days/nights), to come join our www.pull4klb.com ability to pass drug growing and dynamic test, background team. Apply online at Lancaster Place check, physical. miloshamburgers.com Apartments.

Positions working in Location, community outside temperature Oxford Healthcare & quality living in conditions. Previous in Montgomery Calera, AL. 1, 2, & 3 manufacturing currently hiring bedroom apartments experience required. certified CNA’s and/or available. Call today $11.75/hr to start.

Home Health aides in for specials!! 205the Clanton, Marbury 668-6871. Or visit $2000 SIGN ON hpilancasterplace.com and Maplesville areas.

BONUS NEW Must be able to pass PAY SCALE TO Marble Valley Manor. complete background QUALIFYING check, have reliable DRIVERS EVERGREEN Affordable 1 and 2 transportation Bedroom Apartments TRANSPORT, is accepting applications for Elderly & Disabled. and have a strong Many on-site services! work ethic. Serious for local drivers in the inquiries only. Call 2115 Motes Rd, Calera and Leeds, 334-409-0035 or Sylacauga. 256AL, area. Must have apply on-line at www.

245-6500 •TDD#s: Class A CDL, good Oxfordhealthcare.com 800-548-2547(V) driving record, 1 yr verifiable tractor trailer •800-548-2546(T/A).

Specializing in all experience. Good pay Office Hours: Monyour hair care needs and benefits. Apply in Fri, 8am-4pm. Equal Opportunity Provider/ SERENITY SALON person at 8278 Hwy Barber/Stylist Chairs Employer 25 South, Calera, AL,

MARKETPLACE Available for Rent 2 Convenient Locations •2005 Valleydale Rd. •Pelham •3000 Meadow Lake Dr. Suite 107 Call Nichole 205-240-5428

Popeyes Seeking friendly, motivated, dependable Crew Members. OPEN INTERVIEWS DAILY 2:00pm-5:00pm 3300 Pelham Parkway.

Immediate Openings!

Start work this week! Apply online: work4popeyeskitchen. com

Acceptance Loan Company, Inc. Personal loans! Let us pay off your title loans!

224 Cahaba Valley Rd, Pelham 205-663-5821

Pharmaceutical Grade Pharmaceutical Grade CBD Oil, a unique concept for sublingual absorption.

Helps pain, anxiety, energy & more.

GENERAL LAWN Order from home CARE Specialist in 205-276-7778. www. large yards 2+ acres.

Serving Chilton, Coosa CiliByDesign.com/ BrendaGlaze & many more areas.

Bi-weekly, weekly or Nursing assistant $Cash Paid For Used one-time services to care for high RV’s!$ Motor Homes, available. SPRING functioning Travel/Enclosed CLEANUP SPECIALS! quadriplegic home trailers, consignment Call Alex today for health patient in details: 205-955-3439 welcome, Cars and Jemison. Must have Trucks, Pick up ~Military & Senior valid drivers license. available, Mccluskey Discounts~ Part-time. Call Mr. Auto and RV Sales, Wilbanks 205-908LLC 205-833-4575 Alabama Air Power 3333 Inc Construction CLOCK REPAIR SVS. Now Hiring Workers Needed for Industrial Air * Setup * Repair * Local Construction Compressor Maintenance. I can fix Company. Must be Technician your Mother’s clock.

Alabaster/Pelham. Call Will cross train person experienced and Stephen (205)663-2822 with mechanical skills, dependable. Job is five days a week.

Electrical and/or Salary based on skills.

HVAC knowledge Electrician - FT Blue Cross Health and Must have remodeling Supreme Electric, experience. Call Adam Dental local-based company 205-863-9059 Paid Vacation in Pelham. Must be Paid Holidays willing to learn & Pop & Sons Apply In Person work hard. Go to: Demolition & Junk 1293 Hwy 87, supremeelectric-al.

Removal (205)948com Print employment Alabaster 8494 junkguys2014@ application under gmail.com •Junk Thrift Store Hiring: Contact Us. Mail to: Removal Services Cashier/Stocker Supreme Electric •Demolition•More!!

35+hours/week $10/ 231 Commerce Pkwy FREE QUOTES!! ALSO hour Part-Time Driver Pelham, AL 35124 or WITH THE MENTION $8/hour Must have call 205-453-9327.

OF THIS AD GET $20 good driving record START IMMEDIATELY! OFF!!!

Become a Dental Experience/knowledge Assistant in ONLY Service Tech, of foster care & 8 WEEKS! Please adoption a plus! Email: Inc. Heating & Air visit our website Conditioning AL Cert# raleighsplace@gmail. capstonedental 89282 Now Hiring com (205)217-1366 assisting.com or call Full-Time Certified (205)561-8118 and get Technician •Minimum your career started!

South Haven Health & Rehab NOW HIRING!!! •LPN’s & RN’s -$5,000 Sign-on Bonus for Full-Time shift •CNA’s Apply in person: 3141 Old Columbiana Rd Birmingham,AL-35266

5 years experience •Residential, Commercial and Refrigeration •Ipad Experience •On-Call Rotation Apply at: www.servicetechhvac. com Sitting Angels Home Care, LLC NOW ACCEPTING NEW PATIENTS Doctor Appointments, Bathing/Dressing Meal Preparation, Errands, Laundry,Light House Keeping and More.

Lenette Walls, Owner 205-405-6991

vehicle/equipment provided. Must drive straight-shift, have clean driving record/be 21/pass background/drug test.

Training provided.

Insurance/401K offered. M-F 7:00-4:30 + 1 Saturday/month.

Pay $13hr. Send resume to facsmith@ charter.net

Tru Acupressure Clinic LLC - You’re one massage away from a good mood!

Massage therapy is not a luxury, it is a necessity! Licensed Therapist SERVICES The Harvest Place Christian Church Join AVAILABLE: •Deep Tissue •Swedish us for worship every •Acupressure SUNDAY The Harvest Place Christian Church •Hot Stone •Foot Massage Same-Day 14 Westside Ln, Columbiana, AL 35051 Appointments • Bishop Wales Williams, Weekend & Evening Hours • Walk-Ins Jr Chief Apostle Available • 844 US •Morning Worship Highway 31 South, Sunday 11am •Life Alabaster AL. OPEN Enrichment Classes Sunday 10:15am •Join 7 DAYS A WEEK! 9:30am-9:30pm Us Every Tuesday 205-624-2211 AL Night at JOYFEST License#E-3013 •Midweek WorshipBegins at 6:30pm www.

DONAVAN LAKES getyourharvest.org FISHING CLUB & INN Marion, Perry Western Co. AL •8 Lakes •17 International Gas & Piers •Camping -Bass, Cylinders, Inc SignBream, Crappie, On-Bonus! Hiring Catfish- Memberships SOLO & TEAM CDL Drivers •2yrs Exp•Pass $1000 for 2020.

Contact Thomas D.O.T Physical/ Wilson 334-247Background Check •Hazmat Endorsement 2101 wils5789@ bellsouth.net www.

Apply Online: www. donavanlakes.org drive4western.com EOE MACHINIST Experienced Termite WANTED Need to have experience Technician or someone experienced running manual lathe and milling machines. in route-service work Please call 205-337and wants to learn new profession. Work- 2140.

VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 63

MY VESAVIA HILLS KRISTIN TUNNELL

Mom of Three + Vestavia Hills PTO Council President

Throwback Memories

Jack’s Thirty plus years ago, there was a Jack’s located where Moe’s Original BBQ is now. I remember meeting my friends there in the morning prior to school to get a sausage biscuit and a Diet Coke. I love me some Moe’s, and the memories of Jack’s!

Where Shopping is a Pleasure

Vestavia City Center Publix I appreciate the store’s selection, organization and cleanliness, but most of all I love their employees! Specifically, Amir in the seafood department will chat in Spanish to my Spanishspeaking daughter, and Kenny in customer service will always help me find the things I am looking for. Both gentlemen are quick with a smile and a bit of conversation.

Giving Back

School PTOs+VHCSF I cannot say enough about all the Parent Teacher Organizations in our schools and the Vestavia Hills City Schools Foundation do for our students, teachers, staff and administrators. The volunteers sell gift wrap, organize carnivals and fun runs, celebrate teachers, host Dinner and Diamonds, build playgrounds, purchase science kits and so on. I am proud to have been involved with each of these organizations!

Memory Central

The Lutheran Church of Vestavia Hills I have been a member of the LCVH for 35 years! Retired Pastor Clifford Hellmers married my husband, Andy, and me as well as baptized all three of our children. We attend church there along with my parents and enjoy learning from our current pastor, Pastor Alhmeyer. I especially love the tradition on Easter Sunday when we adorn the cross with flowers from our yard.

A New Home Sweet Home

Vestavia Hills High School I moved to Vestavia Hills from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania my junior year of high school. Needless to say, it was a tough transition that was made easier by all the kind people, many whom I still call friends. Even though I “talked funny,” I was welcomed!

64 June/July 2020

Thomas Jefferson said, The preservation of our democracy will require

LEADERS OF ABILITY INTEGRITY AND VISION. ” ,

Universities must lead as well!

Please join me for a free, online leadership course this summer.

I’ll be teaching alongside TROY’s outstanding faculty to introduce you to online education and prepare you for the opportunities ahead.

Jack Hawkins, Jr., Ph.D. Chancellor

Earn academic credit without paying tuition.

Classes begin June 1 and July 1. troy.edu/leadership • 800–586–9771 VestaviaHillsMagazine.com 65

66 June/July 2020