Shelby Living, March/April 2021

PAINTINGS BY MELISSA MCMURRAY • THE ANVIL PUB & GRILL • TIPS FOR BRINGING ORDER TO CHAOS

THE PATH OF HEALING

ALSANA’S APPROACH TO EATING DISORDERS

THE ENCOURAGER JULIE YEAGER’S LEGACY AT CHELSEA MIDDLE SCHOOL

MARCH/APRIL 2021 ShelbyLiving.com Volume 13 | Issue 2 $4.95

running FREE CAPTURING THE SUNRISE MAGIC OF HORSES IN MONTEVALLO ShelbyLiving.com

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2 March/April 2021

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FEATURES

46

RUNNING FREE Denise George captures the magic of horses and scenery that surround her in Montevallo.

54

THE PATH OF HEALING How a holistic approach is working to help people with eating disorders let go of shame and reclaim their health.

61

BUILDERS & BUYERS With spring comes the time for cleaning and home projects.

Here’s your guide to renovations, landscaping and other resources.

2 March/April 2021

PHOTO BY MARY TWEEDY

SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

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29

PHOTO BY KATHRYN BELL

arts & culture

11 Beauty in the Mess: Paintings by Melissa McMurray 19 Read This Book: Books that Hook 20 Arts Council Corner: The Blues Are Back

schools & sports

21 The Encourager: Julie Yeager’s Legacy at Chelsea Middle School 28 Five Questions For: Shelby County Schools Foundation’s Director

food

& drink

in every issue 4 Contributors 5 From the Editor 6 The Question 7 The Guide 66 Business Connections 72 Out & About 78 Marketplace 80 My Shelby County

29 British Twist: Southern Flair at The Anvil Pub & Grill 36 Five Questions For: The Owners of Shugah’s

home

& style

37 Organized Peace: Tips for Bringing Order to Chaos

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contributors EDITORIAL

Alec Etheredge Madoline Markham Keith McCoy Scott Mims Emily Sparacino

CONTRIBUTORS

Kathryn Bell Carmen Brown Lauren Dowdle Denise George Sarah Cook McBride Mary Tweedy

DESIGN

Jamie Dawkins Connor Martin-Lively Brittani Myers Kimberly Myers Briana Sansom

Kathryn Bell, Photographer

Kathryn is a freelance photographer with a recent degree in art from the University of Montevallo. Her photography has led her to photograph presidential candidates and create fine arts work inspired by the classics.

She fancies herself a plant lady and enjoys the challenge of keeping rare and difficult plants alive as well as exploring Birmingham!

Carmen Brown, Writer

Carmen is a feature writer and editor with an M.A. in communication and information sciences from the University of Alabama. She has written for several local and national publications including The Executive, Home Care, Tuscaloosa Magazine and, of course, Shelby Living. In addition to chasing a good story, she loves writing about music, health and fitness, and stories of resilience.

MARKETING

Darniqua Bowen Kristy Brown Evann Campbell Jessica Caudill Kari George Caroline Hairston Rachel Henderson Kinley Johnson Rhett McCreight Viridiana Romero Brittany Schofield Lisa Shapiro Savana Tarwater Kerrie Thompson

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

Lauren Dowdle, Writer

An award-winning writer, Lauren lives in Hoover with her husband, daughter and four fur-babies. She writes for a variety of local, national and international publications. A graduate from the University of Alabama, Lauren played the tuba in the Million Dollar Band, which is how she met her husband. When she isn’t writing or chasing around a toddler, she loves to bake for friends and family.

Mary Tweedy, Photographer

Mary started her photography journey with a film camera in high school.

Today, she runs Mary Tweedy Photography, a full-service photography studio, located in the heart of the beautiful town of Helena. The studio specializes in all things portrait: maternity, newborn, baby’s first year plan, family and high school senior portraits, and professional headshots.

When she is not taking portraits, Mary helps startups, small businesses and non-profits build beautiful, responsive websites, stress free and fast.

She lives in Pelham with her amazing husband and two boys.

Shelby Living Magazine is published bi-monthly by Shelby County Newspapers Inc., P.O. Box 947, Columbiana, AL 35051. Shelby Living 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, Shelby Living Magazine, P.O. Box 947, Columbiana, AL 35051.

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

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

4 March/April 2021

from the editor

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ON THE COVER

Around the time this issue arrives in your hands, we’ll be hitting the one-year mark since our world was forever changed by a virus. None of us had any clue then just how long this strange season would last, and even as more and more of us get vaccinated today, we now know there won’t be one magical day where suddenly everything snaps back to a pre-pandemic normal.

What we do know is decades from now we’ll be telling stories from the pandemic of 2020 (in my book we are still in 2020 even as the calendar has technically moved on) to kids and grandkids, so I am starting to think of just what a time capsule our photos and magazines from this time will be.

At first glance, this issue might not scream “pandemic magazine,” so I thought I’d share how it is, in many ways, very much one. Our Out & About event photos take up very few pages and come with masks, and any events we preview in The Guide come with fine print to check for updates online before attending. Most of the writing in the pages that follow started not with our usual in-person interviews but with emails, old-school phone calls and Zoom calls. Our photography all took place with social distance, masked photographers and often outdoor settings, or we used photos that were taken before the pandemic began, like most of the ones of Julie Yeager, a Chelsea Middle School teacher whose legacy we remember in the pages ahead, and of Alsana, an eating disorder treatment center we feature in this issue.

In some ways this all feels like the pandemic that never ends, but a couple of days before I sat down to write this letter, we had one of those glorious Alabama winter days where the sun hangs out all day and the temperature climbs to 70 degrees. I moved my “office” to my front porch, felt like I could run 10 miles as I laced up my running shoes and, as the ice on the cake of a day, picnicked with sushi, laughter and social distance in a friend’s backyard as the temperatures hovered above 50 degrees for a few hours after sunset. There’s a lot we still don’t know about the future, but that day left me confident in saying this: Spring is coming. More vaccines are coming. And good things are in store.

Wishing you well as days grow longer and trees grow brighter,

Running Free

Photographer Denise George captures the beauty of her horses at sunrise on her property in Montevallo.

Photo by Denise George Design by Kimberly Myers

madoline.markham@shelbyliving.com

ShelbyLiving.com

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“ ” THE QUESTION

What’s your favorite “hidden gem” in Shelby County?

Orr Park in Montevallo!

-Tiffany R. Bunt

-Jesse Owen

The new park in Helena, Lee Springs! Fabulous. My grandchildren love the big treehouse slide!

Beeswax Park hiking trail in Columbiana

Seven-den taco truck in Calera!

Shoal Creek Park in Montevallo has tons of trails where I walk my dogs and a lot of great photo opportunity spots. It is newer and easy to miss when passing.

-Cathy Townsend Smith

-Ryan Tallie

George Washington Museum in Columbiana.

The curator is fantastic!

-Melissa Rosetta

6 March/April 2021

The apple fritter from the Piggly Wiggly deli in Columbiana. Even though its already been said ...

Tony’s in Pelham has the best Hamburger I have ever had in my life.

-Angelia Sellers Taylor

-Amanda Dodson Gremillion

Cedar Creek Nursery in Montevallo! I love the selection of plants and unique finds.

-Jessica Pounders Henry

THE GUIDE

BIRMINGHAM BULLS GAMES PELHAM CIVIC CENTER The Bulls are playing on, and fans are welcome to the games with masks and social distancing in the ice rink. Read more about their COVID-19 safety procedures at bullshockey.net/ covid. Here’s their schedule for the remainder of the season:

MARCH 4: Vs. Huntsville Havoc, 7:30 p.m.

MARCH 6: Vs. Pensacola Ice Flyers, 7 p.m.

MARCH 12: Vs. Macon Mayhem, 7:30 p.m.

MARCH 13: Vs. Macon Mayhem, 7 p.m.

MARCH 18: Vs. Knoxville Ice Bears, 7:30 p.m.

APRIL 8: Vs. Pensacola Ice Flyers, 7:30 p.m.

APRIL 10: Vs. Knoxville Ice Bears, 7 p.m.

APRIL 23: Vs. Knoxville Ice Bears, 7:30 p.m.

APRIL 24: Vs. Macon Mayhem, 7 p.m.

APRIL 30: Vs. Huntsville Havoc, 7:30 p.m.

Photo by Keith McCoy ShelbyLiving.com

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THE GUIDE AROUND TOWN Check for event updates closer to dates based on COVID-19.

THROUGH MARCH 2021 All Things Bright and Beautiful Exhibit Birmingham Museum of Art, Pizitz Gallery

FIRST FRIDAY NIGHTS

First Friday Festival Series 5-8 P.M. Historic Downtown Calera Family fun on Fridays—how’s that for a tongue twister? This new downtown Calera festival will run February to November and feature food trucks,

artists, vendors and entertainment. Plus merchants will be open late. A farmer’s market will be a part of the festivities April to October too. Parking is available at Calera Courtyard, 1120 17th Avenue.

Find more information at caleramainstreet.org.

MARCH 5 Alabama Wish Night Benefitting Make-A-Wish Alabama Ross Bridge Welcome Center MARCH 5 Red Hot Rodeo Shelby County Arts Council, Columbiana 7 p.m. Doors, 7:30 p.m. Show

MARCH 7

MARCH 11-14 James and the Giant Peach Jr. Virginia Samford Theatre

2-4 P.M. Oak Mountain State Park

MARCH 12 16th Annual Schoolhouse Rock A Meal Pick-Up Event Benefitting Cornerstone Schools of Alabama

Animal Encounter Time to meet some animals up close at the Oak Mountain Interpretive Center Porch! This event is wheelchair and stroller friendly, and current COVID guidelines will apply for attendees. Find more information at alapark.com.

MARCH 19

Alabama Blues Project Band Shelby County Arts Council, Columbiana Come out for this special performance in the Black Box Theater! The project was founded in 1995 to bring blues music 8 March/April 2021

THROUGH MAY 2021 An Epic of Earth and Water: Clare Leighton and the New England Industries Series Birmingham Museum of Art, Arrington Gallery

programing to children and adults across the state, and the band is made up of students in the ABP programing. For more information, visit shelbycountyartscouncil.com.

MARCH 13 GreenWise Market Village 2 Village 10K and 7.5K Virtual MARCH 22-26 Spring Break Shelby County Schools MARCH 27 Rumpshaker 5K In Person or Virtual Options Homewood Central Park MARCH 28 Darci Lynne & Friends BJCC Concert Hall

THE GUIDE APRIL 1 The Spring Edit Lane Parke, Mountain Brook APRIL 3 Ellis Porch Statue to Statue 15K Starts at Vulcan Park & Museum APRIL 10 Highlands College Half Marathon + 10K Virtual APRIL 10 Gumbo Gala Presented by Episcopal Place Sloss Furnaces

RETAIL

CAMPUS 124 IN 3, 2, 1…

New restaurants and a brewery are coming soon to the Campus 124 development in the old Valley Elementary building in Pelham. Its first tenant Corefit, a gym that offers boot campus, HIIT, boxing and more, is open as of January. The Guys’ Place, an upscale barbershop, was scheduled to open in February. Stay tuned for more openings coming soon.

APRIL 11 Workout for Water Ignite Cycle

MARCH 15-APRIL 18

2021 Statewide High School Juried Art Exhibit

APRIL 13 Trey Kennedy: The Are You For Real? Tour Alabama Theatre APRIL 15-25 Neil Simon’s Plaza Suite Virginia Samford Theatre APRIL 16-18 Spring Plant Sale Birmingham Botanical Gardens

Shelby County Arts Council, Columbiana

Come out to see work from the most talented high school artists from around the state. Artwork will be on display until the closing reception and awards ceremony on Sunday, April 18 at 2 p.m. that is open to the public. This show is made possible by the UAB Department of Art and Art History and The University of Montevallo Department of Art.

APRIL 17 11th Annual Mutt Strut: DogFriendly 5k and 1 Mile Fun Run Benefitting Hand in Paw Virtual APRIL 19 Leadership Shelby County Alumni Golf Tournament Riverchase Country Club APRIL 23-25 Magic City Art Connection Linn Park APRIL 24 Ronald McDonald House Charities of Alabama Red Shoe Run: Rockin’ 5K 2021 Downtown Homewood

MARCH 6

Arts in the Park: Painting with Nature 2-3:30 P.M. Oak Mountain State Park Use natural elements as paint brushes to create a fun piece of art to take home

in the Outdoor Classroom in the South Trailhead Field in our favorite state park.

No registration is required, and the event is stroller and wheelchair friendly. Find more information at alapark.com.

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VOTE TODAY! SHELBY LIVING’S

BEST OF THE

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ONLINE VOTING RUNS FEB. 25 -MARCH 19

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&CULTURE

ARTS

BEAUTY IN THE MESS Melissa McMurray picked up the paint brush again after life took a surprising turn five years ago.

BY LAUREN DOWDLE PHOTOS BY MARY TWEEDY ShelbyLiving.com

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E

Every child gets asked what he or she wants to be when they grow up. It’s become almost a rite of passage. Some eager youngsters say they hope to become astronauts, teachers, doctors, fire fighters, athletes or veterinarians. All good choices.

Of course, it’s hard to say how many of those students eventually achieve those early dreams.

But to find a child who did—after a slight detour— look no further than Calera.

When Melissa McMurray was asked as a 7-yearold what she wanted to be, she tried to come up with what she thought would be an exciting job.

The answer to that seemed simple. She wanted to be an artist.

“I loved art class when I was in school because it was the most fun part of my day,” says Melissa, who grew up in Decatur.

And she stuck with that idea well beyond the

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Melissa McMurray creates happy, light-hearted paintings from her home studio in Calera.

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• Lose up to a pant size in 2 weeks • Free Consultation • Experienced Staff second grade, taking art classes throughout high school and majoring in fine arts at the University of Alabama. However, the realities of adulthood and finding a job began to discolor her artistic plans during college, so Melissa decided to turn to another profession she was passionate about. “I love kids, so I thought teaching would be a good career,” she says.

It’s proven to be such a good choice that Melissa has spent the past 18 years teaching. She now calls Calera home with her husband and two children, Isla, 7, and Max, 5, and she spends her weekdays in a classroom at Meadow View Elementary School in Alabaster.

Most of her teaching career has been spent in the first grade.

However, five years ago, her perspective, life and job changed.

Her son was born two months early with a surprise Down syndrome diagnosis.

Each time Melissa would go to visit him at Shelby Baptist Medical Center in Alabaster during his six-week NICU stay, she noticed the various stores along her drive. While there were plenty that caught her eye, she kept thinking there was something missing: an art studio.

“When he was born, that was all I thought about. Art just popped into my head,” she says, thinking of her son and the challenges he faced ahead. “Anybody can do art and work with it.”

Knowing art could one day be an outlet for her son, her love for the craft became as strong as ever. Six months later, the

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16 March/April 2021

art position at her school opened up, and Melissa says she couldn’t be happier with her current role as art teacher.

“Everything just fell into place, like a gift from God,” she says. “I have the most fun job in the whole elementary school.”

Accepting that position also pushed her one step closer to achieving her childhood goal of becoming an artist. After she moved into the role of elementary art teacher, Melissa began creating artwork of her own again too.

Her pieces feature bright colors painted in messy brush strokes, forming happy, lighthearted imagery. From flowers and landscapes to vibrant birds and bunnies, her paintings can liven up any room.

“My artwork starts off messy and chaotic. I like the messiness because I’m not trying to be perfect.

You cover up parts as you’re painting and let others show through,” she says. “Finding beauty in the mess is a great analogy in life.”

Her son has helped her discover, even more so, how wonderful life can be and what’s really important. “He is a bright spot in our lives. He’s brought a lot of joy to our family,” she says. “I think he’s helped me realize the true meaning of life: to spread joy and happiness to others.”

Melissa’s work has been displayed at the Kessler Lofts on 3rd Ave. N. in Birmingham in February and March. To view or purchase her artwork, follow her on Instagram @MelissaMcMurrayArt. ShelbyLiving.com

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Ask a child what he dreams of doing in the future. His answer brings everything into focus for us.

WE DO WHAT WE DO BECAUSE CHILDREN HAVE DREAMS.

Max McMurray

ART BRIDGES THE GAP Putting both her mother and teacher hats on, Melissa McMurray knew her son Max—who was born with a surprise Down syndrome diagnosis—would be below grade level in every subject when he got to school. Well, except for one.

“If you’re a struggling reader, I don’t know about that in the art room. That’s where all of the kids are on a very level playing field,” Melissa says. “It’s not about the final product but about the process. I feel like art is a place where everyone can be successful in their own way. There’s no right or wrong in art.

You can make whatever makes you happy.”

Taking that concept beyond the classroom, Melissa says she would love to open an art gallery and studio when she retires from teaching. That would give Max a place to work when he got older, if he wanted, as well as bring something special to the city.

“I see so many other kids who have a hard time 1 6 0 0 7 T H AV E N U E S O U T H

finding employment, so this could help them too,”

BIRMINGHAM, AL 35233

she says. “It would also be great for our community

(205) 638-9100 | ChildrensAL.org

and be a place for everyone to come and be creative.”

18 March/April 2021

ARTS & CULTURE

READ THIS BOOK

Books that Hook Recommendations from

David Porter Local Author

Growing up, I was never accused of being a book lover. It wasn’t until after my college graduation when my father asked me to read a book by Michael Crichton that I realized what I had been missing. I began devouring books, and now more than just a few years later, I am a published author. These are the books that hooked me and opened my eyes to a whole new thrilling world of suspense, mystery and action. I hope they will do the same for you!

Timeline

by Michael Crichton A group of American archaeologists working in France make an amazing discovery: a 600-year-old note, begging for their help. Their team leader has been transported back in time and is trapped in the past. The team follows clues to the corporation that has developed groundbreaking, time travel technology. Can they rescue their friend, or will the team also be trapped in history? This was truly the first book that I couldn’t put down, and it made me late for work on more than one occasion.

The Affair

by Lee Child Don’t let the name put you off. A murder has occurred, and signs point to a soldier from the nearby military base. A military cop, Jack Reacher, has been sent undercover to find out what happened. Teaming up with the local sheriff, the two unravel multiple layers to the crime while fighting those trying to bury the truth. This is the sixteenth Reacher book, but a prequel and great entry point into the series.

Corsair

by Clive Cussler with Jack Du Brul The US Secretary of State’s airplane has crashed on the way to a Middle East peace conference being held in Libya. The secretary has vanished. Juan Cabrillo is the man charged with her safe return. The action is nonstop as the heroes dodge bullets, fight governments and solve ancient mysteries. The plot also ties in an early American historical event dealing with the Barbary pirates. Great fun and action packed!

Angels and Demons

by Dan Brown I liked this book much more than Brown’s more famous, The Da Vinci Code. Angels and Demons introduces Robert Langdon, a Harvard University professor of symbology, as he is charged to solve a mystery involving the Illuminati, a secret and anti-religion society thought to have gone extinct. A cannister of anti-matter has been stolen, and its contents are set to destroy Vatican City at midnight. Will the Catholic faith be destroyed before a new Pope can be selected?

Five Minutes to Live

by David Porter Inspired by political and scientific news ripped from the headlines, my book’s storyline follows everyday good guy Matt Davenport as he races to protect his friend and secret crush, Dr. Jessica Adams, and her new scientific discovery from kidnappers who will stop at nothing to achieve their terrorist plans. From the U.S. to Tel Aviv, Israel, Matt struggles to know who to trust as he tries to save Jessica before it’s too late. Faith, science, politics and everyday courage clash as the novel reaches its dramatic finale.

ShelbyLiving.com

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ARTS COUNCIL CORNER

THE BLUES ARE BACK

The Shelby County Arts Council will welcome a blues band and juried art exhibit plus host classes and more this spring.

BY LINDSAY DYESS PHOTOS CONTRIBUTED With the weather changing and spring approaching, the Shelby County Arts Council has a full schedule of classes and events for all ages and interests!

Best in 3D winner “Medieval City” by Joseph Lunsford from the 2020 Statewide High School Juried Art Exhibit

20 March/April 2021

On Friday, March 19, the SCAC welcomes the students in the Alabama Blues Project Band for a special performance in the Black Box Theater!

The Alabama Blues Project was founded in 1995 to bring blues music programing to children and adults across the state. The band consists of students in the ABP programing and teaches them how to work together as a traditional band.

They learn to play different styles of blues music and even have the opportunity to create their own songs. For more information on this event visit shelbycountyartscouncil.com.

The SCAC has a full roster of talented instructors who are eager to share their love of art with everyone! Just added for March, fiber artist Michelle McGraw joins us for new fiber arts classes. Michelle will be teaching workshops in needle felting, rigid heddle weaving and more! If you have ever been interested in fiber art creations, join Michelle for a class. All supplies are provided. If painting and working in mixed media are your interest, why not check out a workshop with Chris Cruz? Chris’s goal is to share her love and passion for art with everyone, no matter their ability or skill level. Chris teaches everything from batik, to painting, to drawing and so much more. To view all upcoming workshops and for more information, visit shelbycountyartscouncil.com under the SCAC Classes tab.

Opening March 15, is the 2021 Statewide High School Juried Art Exhibit! This yearly exhibit features some of the most talented high school artists from around the state. Artwork will be on display until the closing reception and awards ceremony on Sunday, April 18, at 2 p.m. Everyone is invited to attend this closing reception. Join us in celebrating the hard work of these students!

This show is made possible by the UAB Department of Art and Art History and The University of Montevallo Department of Art. Visit shelbycountyartscouncil.com for information and to purchase tickets.

SCHOOL

&SPORTS

THE ENCOURAGER

Julie Yeager inspired Chelsea Middle School students and teachers alike for two decades.

BY MADOLINE MARKHAM PHOTOS CONTRIBUTED ShelbyLiving.com

21

T

The last time Madison Howard saw Julie Yeager was not in math class, where Julie taught her Algebra I each weekday. It was in the Chelsea High School gym as she performed her majorette routine during a school basketball game last fall.

“That’s just who Julie was,” says Elizabeth Howard, Madison’s mom who also taught with Julie. “She was a huge supporter of all things Chelsea.”

Julie’s students will tell you she treated them like they were people, not just her students, and that them simply being in her classroom meant a lot to her. “She really made you feel like you could do it, and she treated it like she was learning along with you,” Madison says.

But what Madison and her classmates have missed the most since Julie passed away in December is her big smile that in turn made them

22 March/April 2021

smile just as big.

For many, Julie was the most caring cheerleader of a person they knew. Her personality was friendly and warm, and her wit quick. There’s no telling how many times her contagious laughter filled the halls at Chelsea Middle in her more than 20 years teaching at the school, how many people sought out the board outside her classroom that she wrote a new joke on each day, or how many times she did something uniquely thoughtful a colleague or student will never forget.

CHMS Principal Caroline Obert recalls how when she broke her elbow at the first school football game of the season last year, it was Julie who took her to the emergency room. “She was the person who was always there for anyone in the building and me in particular,” Caroline says.

Whenever a new teacher arrived at the school,

Julie Yeager was active outside the classroom at Chelsea Middle School in many ways, including sponsoring the school’s math team and serving as scorekeeper for the volleyball team.

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Julie was likely the first to reach out to them to help make Chelsea Middle their new home.

Michelle Nivens was only 21 when she first started teaching at CHMS back in 2000, and Julie quickly took her under her wing as a young teacher. “I would send her my angry emails for approval, and she would help me change my tone,” Michelle says.

“She was very motherly and nurturing and the momma hen.”

Over the years, Michelle says Julie helped her stay true to herself. “I am a rule follower, and she was that way too,” she says. “There are so many regulations on teachers that it’s easy to want to relax on them. She helped me not feel bad about the fact that I was so fond of rules.”

Over the past five years, though, Michelle says she became even closer with Julie when Julie became the scorekeeper for the school’s volleyball games since Michelle is a coach for the teams. “It’s like when you are a kid and your mother is your mother, and then you become an adult and your mother is your friend,” Michelle says.

But Julie, of course, wasn’t just a scorekeeper for the team. She loved to praise the players and see them play their best, and she wasn’t afraid to remind them what they were capable of when they needed it. She was the same person in her 24 March/April 2021

classroom too.

Sam Haney taught with Julie for 20 years, 12 of them in the classroom next door to hers, and considers her like a sister. Over those years, he watched how come rain or shine, Julie was there to make sure her Pre-Algebra and Algebra I students learned what they needed to no matter their circumstances. “One of the kids was out sick for a long time, and she stayed and worked after hours or would go to their house so they would be able to make it to ninth grade with the rest of her classmates,” Sam says. “She would do that for anyone. Anytime someone had a special need, she was the first one to volunteer.”

Sam admits that math is not the easiest subject to teach but says Julie was good at being able to explain the subject more than one way and making sure the kids understood it. When it came to teaching new skills like factoring polynomials, she looked at them like a puzzle and taught her students how to break them down using different strategies.

Seventh-grade math teacher Melanie Elliott, who coached math teams with Julie, knew she had to prepare her students for Julie’s class, but that Julie would do the same before sending her students to high school. “She had high expectations

Julie dated CHMS coach Lee Hibbs for the past eight years.

Together they enjoyed traveling and going on cruises in particular.

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for the kids to prepare those kids for high school geometry,” she says. “She would pay attention to what the kids didn’t know and made sure they understood things.”

But life wasn’t just about the classroom for Julie. For the past eight years she dated CHMS coach Lee Hibbs.

Together they went on cruises and travelled to Miami and New Orleans to watch the University of Alabama play since Lee is a fan. Julie, however, went to Auburn and cheered for the Tigers. But Lee said that didn’t cause problems for them. “We only had one argument in seven or eight years, and that’s hard to do,” Lee says.

Julie was also a big fan of fireworks, especially the annual Big Kaboom show in Chelsea, and the Birmingham country band Deputy Five. “I came in

second behind the fiddle player,” Lee jokes.

More than anything though Julie loved her family. Her son Paul, who went through CHMS himself, is now 28, and her daughter Hannah was tragically killed in a car accident in 2006 when she was 15.

On Saturdays and during summers in years past you could find Julie helping her mom Seiko, who was Japanese, at her clothing alterations business in Hoover, and Julie remained close with her dad Ed, who lives in Pelham, after her mom passed away last summer. (Fun fact: Julie’s parents met in Japan, and she was born there.)

Whether they were with family or travelling, Lee says Julie would light up talking about a particular student learning something new.

Gary Black, who taught eighth grade with Julie

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for 13 years, remembers speaking to Julie last fall in the midst of the strange new normal of pandemic teaching. It had been a difficult year, and Julie felt it deeply. “She started to tear up because she didn’t think her students were getting from her what they needed,” he says. “I know she was doing a great job and that they were getting that they needed, but it wasn’t the same because she couldn’t develop those relationships with them. We talked for about 15 minutes, but by the time I left there was a smile on her face.”

Not long after that conversation, Julie called in sick after Veterans Day in November and would never return to her classroom. She passed away Dec. 9, 2020, at 56 years old.

After her passing Gary went by her classroom one morning. After walking past the empty message board—gone were Julie’s jokes of the day—he sat there for about 15 minutes to say goodbye, looking around at her photos, awards and keepsakes students had given her.

Somewhere in her classroom sat sets of letters she had her students write to themselves each school year that she’d send to them when they were seniors in high school—something her students always looked forward to and that signified that Ms. Yeager was still a part of their lives for years to come.

Of all the things in her classroom, though, the thing most people will perhaps remember is the James Spann bobble head she loved almost as much as the meteorologist himself.

“When I got up and left,” Gary recounts, “I tapped him on his head, and he was bobbling up and down nodding his approval of Julie Yeager.”

Julie with her son Paul in Selma

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SCHOOL&SPORTS

5

FIVE QUESTIONS FOR

Kendall Williams Shelby County Schools Foundation Director PHOTO CONTRIBUTED

Shelby County Schools serves roughly 21,000 students and 3,000 employees across 31 schools and seven different communities, but it’s not the only one doing so. Its separate 501c3 nonprofit arm, Shelby County Schools Foundation, has the same purpose, with a focus on supporting students and teachers with grants, professional development, National Board Certification for teachers and more. To learn more about it, we talked with the foundation’s director, who is now in her eighth year serving in her role.

What brought you to this line of work?

Growing up I thought I wanted to be a teacher, but my path took me a different direction. With this role, I can still make an impact in education but not be a teacher on the front lines. This is a way that helps connect me to the great educators in the county and the impact they make and the way we can help be a part of that journey.

What is one of the highlights of your school year usually?

Every school nominates their local Teacher of the Year, and I facilitate the process to read applications and award the title. Pre-COVID we had a celebration where each teacher invites their family, coworkers and friends, and we have a photo booth, flowers and more to make them feel appreciated for the hard work they put in. We have also gone out and interviewed former students and coworkers and administrators, and every teacher receives a video about why they 28 March/April 2021

interesting to see how even art and reading and writing are built into science curriculum, and the teachers are very skilled in making sure all of the standards What has this past year looked like in are met in all their curriculum. Montevallo High School uses Breakout EDU kits with pandemic times?

This past year we had our funds set aside clues to lead you to open the box. It’s a fun for teacher grants, and as schools were way for students to learn. Even the starting back with COVID-19, we had kindergartners are using coding and conversations about if there was a better robotics now with Bee-Bots—it’s like a way to use these funds instead of our little bumble bee they program put on a traditional use. The answer that came up map and send it home. was our water fountains had to be closed.

We were able to purchase a water filling What’s the best way for people in the station for all 31 schools with that money, community to support the foundation?

We have always been open for general and we are now able to help every student and every teacher in every school to have donations on shelbyedfoundation.org.

Hopefully soon we will be back to business access to fresh clean water. as usual, and this fall we will have our What trends are you seeing in grant annual Taste of Shelby County event. It is usually in September and is our biggest request?

STEAM (science, technology, fundraiser with 25 different restaurants engineering and mathematics) is always and wineries and breweries coming big because it spans so many subjects. It’s together and a silent auction too. are deserving of Teacher of the Year. It is one of the things we have been thanked for the most.

&DRINK

FOOD

BRITISH TWIST

The Anvil Pub & Grill blends a bit of British cuisine with Southern flair to create a restaurant category of its own.

BY SARAH COOK MCBRIDE PHOTOS BY KATHRYN BELL ShelbyLiving.com

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Sadesh Boodram (pictured on the right), chef and owner of The Anvil Pub & Grill in the Village at Lee Branch, prepares sandwiches for a high tea event at the restaurant.

30 March/April 2021

W

Where Southern comfort food meets British cuisine, you’ll find The Anvil Pub & Grill. It’s a place where both shrimp and grits and fish and chips live happily on the same menu, along with a roundup of other dishes that are impressively highbrow and down-home at the same time.

Opening on the precipice of the historic COVID-19 shutdown of 2020, The Anvil managed to weather the curbside and take-out storm with grace from their location off Highway 280. Head Chef Sedesh Boodram, who grew up in Trinidad and Tobago and honors his roots through his culinary talents, says the goal of the restaurant is to offer fine-dining food in a casual atmosphere.

The Anvil, he says, is meant to be a place for both romantic dates or a spot to take the edge off after a long day at work. Whatever kind of “vibe” patrons

wish to channel, they can find it at The Anvil.

“I come from a fine dining background, but I want to keep it casual,” Sedesh says of his approach to the restaurant’s overall atmosphere and culinary style. Trenton Tisdale, the restaurant’s chef de cuisine, and Preston Hooten, beverage director, also bring their own set of skills to the table. Both from Alabama, Trenton and Preston bring diverse and thoughtful approaches to their craft.

And although he may not have a southern accent, Sedesh is no stranger to the Birmingham food scene. Gaining experience under the tutelage of Chef Chris Hastings at Ovenbird and Hot and Hot, Sedesh more than knows his way around the kitchen. Before arriving in Birmingham (his spouse, a Birmingham native, brought him to the Magic City), Sedesh graduated valedictorian of the ShelbyLiving.com

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The Anvil takes reservations for its high tea events.

32 March/April 2021

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French Culinary Institute and also studied under an impressive lineup of New York City chefs.

“I see the new wave of the food culture happening here,” Sedesh says of Birmingham. “Everyone is doing something different, and that’s what I initially missed when I moved here from New York.”

After watching Birmingham’s food scene grow with ferocity for some time, Sedesh knew it was time to open a restaurant of his own. Instead of taking to the city’s urban center, however, the chef decided to grace the ‘burbs with his culinary acumen.

Located inside The Village at Lee Branch, The Anvil proves you don’t have to make the downtown trek to find exceptional dining.

Offering entrees that spotlight a myriad of cultures, this pub and grill is for the restaurant goer who appreciates diversity.

Plenty of dishes, of course, pay respect to Sedesh’s upbringing— like the steak and Guinness pie and fish and chips. But Sedesh is quick to point out that British culture is a melting pot of cultures, so there really are no “rules” to the menu. That’s why you’ll also find smoked panang curry chicken wings, pork tikka masala and every southerner’s favorite, shrimp and grits.

“British cuisine can get a bad rap sometimes,” Sedesh says.

But, because of its colonial history, British food has the benefit of collecting influences from many other native cooking

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traditions. This melting pot of cultures, Sedesh says, gives every chef what they desire most in the kitchen—freedom.

Sourcing locally whenever possible, the menu is a celebration of flavor. Serving brunch, lunch, dinner and the occasional high tea (which always sells out, so lock in a reservation), The Anvil is a place that celebrates all flavors and people.

“People think pub and think dark and dreary, but it can be fun and stylish,” he says. “It’s not smoky and dark—more light and airy. I wanted it to attract a diverse crowd as much as possible. It’s perfect for dates (and) for families, and you can dress it up or be casual. It’s approachable.”

34 March/April 2021

Judging by the local response, it’s safe to say that the restaurant’s vision has become reality.

Looking to the future, Sedesh says his plan is to continue keeping a pulse on what the locals want— but always offer a few dishes that might encourage newcomers to get adventurous with their order.

“When people ask me what to order, I say that’s like choosing a favorite child,” Sedesh says with a laugh. “It’s all good. They all have a special meaning.”

The Anvil Pub & Grill is located in The Village at Lee Branch off Highway 280 at 611 Doug Baker Blvd., Suite 103. Learn more at theanvilpub. com.

A TASTE OF THE ANVIL Here are a few dishes you’ll find on the menu.

Steak and Guinness Pie

Mushrooms, spring onions and carrots Fish and Chips

Beer battered cod, chips, mint peas and tartare sauce Smoked Panang Curry Chicken Wings Served with cilantro lime aioli Pork Tikka Masala

Creamy curry sauce, pear raita and Basmati rice Shrimp and Grits

Country Captain sauce, Alabama gulf shrimp, toasted almonds and McEwen & Sons grits

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FOOD&DRINK

5

FIVE QUESTIONS FOR

Judy and Bob Gross Shugah’s Owners PHOTO BY KEITH MCCOY

There’s a new lunch and dessert spot in Pelham, and it’s nestled in a 100-year-old home that many guests have found so quaint that they’ve retuned with décor gifts afterward. The owners, Midwesterners Bob and Judy (pictured) Gross, were more than welcome to receive them too. To learn more about what you’ll find inside the restaurant, we chatted with the Grosses.

The restaurant is open Wednesday through Friday 11 a.m.-2 p.m., and you can follow their updates @shugahs.pelham on Facebook and Instagram.

How did Shugah’s come to be?

Judy: We use to live in St. Louis and had a restaurant and a wholesale pie business there. We moved down here for our kids and decided to do it again.

Bob: We were trying to come up with a good name, and we knew “shugah” was southern slang for “sugar.”

What’s the story on the house where you are located?

Judy: The location picked us. We were looking in Cahaba Heights and realized it wouldn’t work and started looking for properties online. I saw this house online, and I liked it better than Highway 31. It’s in between two sets of railroad tracks, so it has character and is a few houses from Donut Joe’s. The first mayor of Pelham, Paul Yeager Sr., who was mayor 19641976, lived in the house, and we have had a couple of people come in for lunch who have previously lived in the house. We took their photos and hope to share their 36 March/April 2021

stories. We found an original wall color, a green with a touch of blue, in one bedroom and carried that theme through the house, and we added some coral. All the ceilings and wood are original. The house has four fireplaces, and three are visible in the restaurant.

What’s on your lunch menu?

Judy: We always have our chicken salad and quiche on the menu daily, and then the menu changes every week. We have different sliders with crab cakes or pork tenderloin or meatballs or short ribs, and some soups. Right now we are doing a savory bacon and chive cheesecake on a breadcrumb-Parmesan crust, and that might stay on the menu.

What desserts should we try?

Judy: Our desserts move around but we always have Becky’s Pie. It’s a chocolate pie with caramel and pecans. We do cherry, apple, blueberry and peach pie,

and we have done a Best Ever Southern Pie, pecan pie, Dreamsicle pie and lime Dreamsicle pie. At Thanksgiving we made a Pie-Caken with two pies baked inside a cake. It had a pumpkin and spice cake, and the bottom layer was pecan and chocolate cake—then it’s all iced in buttercream. We are always trying to find something new that people haven’t seen before. I get bored if I cook the same thing all the time.

Is there anything else we should know about what y’all offer and where you source your food?

Judy: You can buy chicken salad and pimento cheese to-go in the case, and we just started carrying bacon jam. Our coffee comes from Seeds, and our tea comes from Piper & Leaf. We get a lot of our meat from Cajun Cleaver in Hoover, and our crab is from Bayou La Batre, Alabama. We take orders for cakes and pies, and we can host bridal showers, tea parties, birthday parties and other events.

&STYLE

HOME

ORGANIZED PEACE

An organizing consultant shares her tips for bringing order to chaos with a tour of her Helena home.

BY MADOLINE MARKHAM PHOTOS BY KATHRYN BELL ShelbyLiving.com

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About the Organizer Tara Bremer, pictured in the middle with her team members Ashley Bryant and Penny Thomas, holds degrees in psychology and counseling, so she brings knowledge of the human condition, behavioral psychologies and habit formations to her home organization business, House Peace. She also puts her experience to the test every day with her three kids. Learn more about her team’s in-person and online offerings at housepeace.net.

How do you keep your home organized in the midst of the chaos of life? Tara Bremer’s mantra is to focus on keeping the things you are using and loving. To find out what exactly she means by that, she walked us around her own home in Helena, which she shares with her husband and three kids, and showed us practical tips she uses with simple supplies. Tara notes that these concepts can be applied to anyone—and that she styled these spaces for photos with real life in mind too.

38 March/April 2021

Master Closet For any closet, I use three “ingredients” to organize it: 1. Matching hangers 2. Containers for the shelves, like a basket or bin, with labels 3. Something to put shoes on or in You can also see I use a drawer to keep my glasses and jewelry organized so you can find them easily.

Girl’s Room Drawer I like to label categories of clothes for children so that it’s very clear we don’t just dump things in. Everything has a place so we know what we have and can easily find it.

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Craft Room Because this is such a creative space, we need a lot of storage. The tools we use all the time go on the pegboard, including my scissor collection, vintage ribbon and quilting templates. Underneath we have plastic containers in cabinets for more supplies, all with labels to remind us what goes where.

40 March/April 2021

Laundry Room I recently added a wall of shelves and drawers to my laundry room to hold shoes, towels, sunscreen, bug spray, masks and other items that had been scattered in our garage before.

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Kitchen Pantry Elements

Kitchen Cabinet

uClear Containers: Not every item needs to be in one, but it’s helpful for things that will fall over like chips or oatmeal packets. Since they are clear, you know what the inventory is inside of them. If you keep food items in the box they came in, you might not realize you only have one left and then all of a sudden you are out. I want people to have a visual sense of their own inventory. uCanisters: I love canisters for baking items to keep things clean.

A brown sugar bag is just a blob on a shelf, but here you can see how much there is. I am trying to avoid a chaos of food. uStadium Seating: Use canned good risers so you can see what you have. I sometimes call them stadium seating for cans.

I like to keep my plates and bowls in lower cabinets so kids have can access to them when they unload the dishwasher.

Kitchen Utensil Drawer Most people put too many utensils in a drawer, so these are the ones that are constantly in rotation. I have a bin of ones I use once a week or once a month or once a year in a cabinet.

42 March/April 2021

Kids Bathroom My three kids share a bathroom, so to keep their toothbrushes and towels straight, each of them has their own color. I also like to use inexpensive white plastic containers in their drawers to keep items separated. It makes it easy for your kids to clean up and know where their hair ties and toothpaste go, and it’s wipeable.

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Stair Basket Items my kids leave downstairs that need to go upstairs get put in the stair basket. Once a week we do something I call the “stair blessing,“ and they have to go through and find their things and take them upstairs—and that blesses the stairs.

Tips for Longevity After you organize, how do you sustain it? uGive Things Away Regularly: Stuff will always keep coming into the house whether it’s kids’ art or a freebie from a conference. It’s important to keep things coming out. I keep a bag in my pantry for items to take to the thrift store to remind me. uLabel: Labeling is huge. It might feel silly, but it can provide clarity to the whole family—the spouse, kids, sitters, grandparents, or you might forget too. uChannel Your Frustration: Use your frustration at your chaos to be the energy to propel you to organize and keep things organized.

Cord Keepers I like to use silicone magnet ties to keep cords tidy.

44 March/April 2021

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46 March/April 2021

Denise George captures the magic of horses and scenery that surround her in Montevallo.

PHOTOS BY DENISE GEORGE TEXT BY MADOLINE MARKHAM ShelbyLiving.com

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Usually Denise is behind the camera, but here she poses with one her horses.

A

A blanket of hazy fog covers the fields around Denise George’s Montevallo property as the sun starts to rise over the horizon. “I love the light as it comes up over the trees,” she says. “It’s sometimes mysterious, and sometimes it’s magical.”

And when it does, she’s often there to capture both the scenery and the horses who call it home.

The photos from those moments look like a serene painting capturing the natural beauty of it all.

“I try to keep my camera with me at all times,” Denise says of her process. “It’s always spontaneous.

I don’t force things to happen. Because I am in a relationship with my horses, I like to catch them in whatever they are doing naturally.”

For the past 21 years her horses have lived on the Southwestern corner of the American Village campus adjacent to her family’s land, and in many of her photos you can see the village’s chapel steeple in the background. For 15 years Denise and a group of her female friends would dress in character for the Revolutionary War time period like men, Patrick Henry style, and greet visitors on horseback for Fourth of July at the village.

Denise might have grown up in the west side of Birmingham, but her heart has always yearned for

48 March/April 2021

pastoral views and life on horseback. She learned to ride English style as a kid at Patchwork Farm on Highway 280 and moved out to Montevallo with her husband 42 years ago when she was 26. They have since raised four children on that land and now welcome seven grandchildren for visits.

Right now there are six horses and one pony on her property. Denise owns a Rocky Mountain Cross Spotted Saddle Horse named Sirbe, a Quarter Horse named Sundance and an American Paint Horse named Breeze—plus a Shetland Welch Cross Pony named Midnight. Three of her friends’ horses—a Quarter Horse named Freedom and Tennessee Walkers named Trickery (for his Halloween birthday) and Sterling—call the land home alongside them too. “They all have different personalities and gifts like people,” Denise says.

When she’s not teaching piano lessons—another artistic pursuit—or riding horses, Denise loves to capture each of the horses moving around as they wish on the land. “They just seem so happy and often they gallop for no reason,” she says. “So often they look like wild horses.”

Follow Denise’s photography on Instagram @denise6217.

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You can see the American Village steeple in the background of this early morning photo.

This image of a horse in the snow was featured on Instagram’s Instagram account in December 2017 with the caption, “Dashing Through The Snow.” It received more than 1.2 million likes.

50 March/April 2021

5th Annual

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Only the tulip field will be open. Buildings will remain closed due to COVID-19 precautions. Masks are required and social distancing will be maintained.

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Fog sets in on a winter morning in Montevallo.

Denise captured these wildflower blooms on Highway 22 in April one year.

Denise captured this green canopy on Alex Mill Road in Montevallo.

52 March/April 2021

Denise often finds wild swans on Ballard Lake around the corner from her home in Montevallo.

Denise’s dog Lizzy waits for her in her farm truck on a friend’s property in Montevallo.

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54 March/April 2021

A Place of

Healing How a holistic approach is working to help people with eating disorders let go of shame and reclaim their health.

BY CARMEN BROWN PHOTOS CONTRIBUTED

ShelbyLiving.com

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F

For the first time in her life, Lindsey Carbo feels free. Over a snack of Goldfish crackers and a few tears, she shared her story.

Both her parents were CEOs of major companies, and she grew up helping look out for her two younger twin brothers. Through it all, living in a high-stress environment contributed to her need to control her eating for the 27-year-old Atlanta native. “It started casually at 16 and progressed over the last five years until it turned into a full-blown eating disorder,” Lindsey says. “I was going through a lot of stress in college at Appalachian State, and my parents were also going through a horrendous divorce. I was struggling to

56 March/April 2021

find my place.”

Lindsey eventually went to a hospital after experiencing heart palpitations. Doctors told her she was having an anxiety attack, but they also discovered a pre-cancerous tumor in her colon.

“I became scared of food and started avoiding it.

After COVID happened, I started losing weight at a very dangerous pace.”

Lindsey had been under-weight for most of her life, but with that diagnosis she then reached a turning point. At 5-foot-8-inches and 94 pounds, Lindsey had reached her lowest weight ever, and she knew she needed to get help.

Her boyfriend found a therapist who specialized

Alsana’s therapists and other staff members engage clients in a variety of activities as part of their adaptive care model.

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in eating disorders and referred her to different programs in the country. Of all of them, she chose Alsana to begin her path to healing and found herself in North Shelby County, Alabama.

Taken from the Latin term meaning “all” or “total health,” Alsana is a holistic eating disorder treatment center that currently has six locations: three in California, one in St. Louis and one in Alabama she came to.

Alsana uses what’s called the Adaptive Care Model to treat anorexia Lindsey Carbo nervosa, bulimia, ARFID (avoidant restrictive food intake disorder), trauma, cooccuring chemical dependency, diabulimia and OSFED (other specified eating disorders).

What makes Alsana different is that this model of treatment considers the whole person, according to Chris Gorciak, vice president of marketing for Alsana. “The CEO got the best people in the industry together to figure out what is the best way to treat an eating disorder.

They developed the adaptive care model that includes five dimensions: medicine, movement, nutrition, therapeutic and relational.”

As Chris explains, their clients go through an assessment where they’re placed in the appropriate level: residential, partial hospitalization or the intensive outpatient program. The Alabama location opened in August 2013 with its partial hospitalization program and intensive outpatient program and added its RTC residential program in 58 March/April 2021

February 2019.

Ronda Cannon, executive director of the Alabama location, says the area was chosen due not only to its location and size but also its safe, friendly and diverse community they knew to be tightly knit and welcoming.

As for Lindsey, she had never been to Birmingham prior to coming to Alsana, but she says her roommates and everyone there made her feel at home.

“The locals showed me all the cool restaurants,” she says.

“One night we got together at one of their homes and made a bonfire and had roasted popcorn.”

One of her favorite aspects of the program was Client Creations, where clients get together with one of Alsana’s chefs and make their own special recipe.

“One of the chefs, Ashika, and I did a potato bar with pumpkin bread for dessert,” she says. “What made it so special is that we did this on the anniversary of the day my grandmother died.”

As a part of the treatment program, clients are monitored 24 hours a day by direct care staff who also spend time with the clients in the living room where they watch TV together and sometimes sing karaoke.

“A lot of the staff is in recovery as well, so it made it easier to relate to them,” Lindsey says.

Based on the latest research, the adaptive care

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model Alsana uses appears to have a higher success rate than other forms of treatment used at other centers.

“Overall, for all locations, last year we saw a 44 percent reduction in eating disorder symptoms,” Ronda says. “At the Birmingham location, that reduction was 41 percent. Our old data showed an average of 34 percent reduction in symptoms. We also see significant improvement in quality of life and self-compassion, and significant reductions in depression, compulsive exercise, trauma, and depression.”

Add to the scenario that mental health relational disorders have increased since COVID-19 began, and expansion plans are already set for 2021.

“The waitlist has increased significantly,” Chris says. “Just the awareness of eating disorders has increased.”

Alsana’s current residential capacity is 18, and 60 March/April 2021

the partial hospitalization and intensive outpatient capacity is 24. Next year, though, the program will expand so that residential will have a capacity of 26 and partial hospitalization and intensive outpatient will have a capacity of 40. Alsana will also be opening another center in Huntsville with a 16-bed residential program and a 32-person capacity partial hospitalization and intensive outpatient.

Meanwhile, Lindsey is back in Atlanta, currently working at TJ Maxx and working on her English as a second language teacher certification with plans to attend graduate school.

“I had a lot of shame when I first began the program,” she says. “Letting go of shame has been freeing for me. I haven’t weighed myself since May. I really love my body now.”

Learn more about Alsana’s programs at alsana. com.

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BUILDERS AND BUYERS

Desjoyaux Pools by DSLD Land Management 1178 Dunnavant Valley Road • Birmingham, AL 35242 205-437-1012 • dsldland.com • dsldsocialmedia@gmail.com DSLD Land Management is a family-owned and -operated full-service design/build landscape contractor that has served the Birmingham area for over 35 years. DSLD welcome projects of any scope and size and stands ready to serve our clients with one of Alabama’s most credentialed professional staffs.

DSLD’s new venture with Desjoyaux Pools, the world’s largest swimming pool company, gives customers the option to choose the size, shape and design of their pool. Desjoyaux Pools are built using recycled materials and pipeless filtration systems that use less energy than traditional pools. DSLD Land Management provides turnkey installation of your swimming pool, requisite construction and all landscape elements.

C&D Home Solutions 3403 Lorna Lane • Hoover, AL 35216 205-749-6120 • cdhomesolutions.com C&D Home Solutions utilizes the best of modern technology to keep in touch with you and streamline your experience. C&D Home Solutions is your one-stop-shop solution for professional window and door, siding, and gutter installation.

You can trust your home will be in good hands with our highlytrained team. We pride ourselves in top-quality products and services for our customers. We do business with some of the best manufacturers in the country. C&D Home Solutions is a fully-independent, licensed and insured business operating in the state of Alabama.

Equally important is that we’ve scoured the market to find the best quality products at the lowest prices so that you can always purchase with confidence.

We partner with the best window and door manufacturers on the planet, like Pella and ProVia. Contact us today for a free quote on your next project.

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Pantone 294 Pantone 109 Pantone Process Blue

BUILDERS AND BUYERS

Vulcan Pest Control 115 Commerce Drive • Pelham, AL 35124 205-598-2581 • Toll Free: 1-855-663-4208 • vulcantermite.com Protect your most valuable assets!

Don’t let termites cause destruction on your property—get them gone quickly with professional termite pest control.

If you’re looking for the best termite company in Central Alabama, you’ve found it. Vulcan’s Termite Division has over 120 years of combined experience providing commercial and home termite treatment.

Our staff works diligently to provide inspections and necessary reports in a timely manner so the stress of buying or selling your home is minimized.

Schedule your FREE termite inspection today! One of our termite exterminators can evaluate the situation and suggest the best treatment method.

Down South Joiner Flooring 202 Pitts Drive • Columbiana, AL 35051 205-223-8190 At Down South Joiner Flooring we install tile, laminate, hardwood and ceramic and offer all flooring remodeling services. Whether you require sections of your floor covering changed or you have an interest in redesigning the floorings throughout your home or company, an experienced floor installation specialist can guarantee that you obtain the outcomes that you’re seeking. Down South Joiner Flooring is your local flooring contractor serving the Columbiana area for years! We install new hardwood flooring, re-sand existing wood, install laminate flooring, install floating floor, screen and coat. We have been offering a full range of flooring services to the local community for years. We work hard to ensure that our clients are fully satisfied with the end result. In addition to being able to provide a wide selection of flooring options for every room, we also have professional staff who can assist with every phase of installation, from selecting the materials to designing the layout. Give us a call today for more information!

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BUILDERS AND BUYERS

Ray & Poynor 2629 Cahaba Road • Birmingham, AL 35223 205-879-3036 • raypoynor.com Ray & Poynor is a trusted real estate firm serving the Birmingham metro area since 2010. With an average of 17 years in the industry, our residential real estate experts guide our clients through the buying, selling and relocation process. As a locally owned and operated company, we know the market and are invested in our clients and in our community.

Our goal isn’t to achieve a certain number of homes listed or sold—it’s to serve our clients as a resource beyond a single transaction. Our success is measured by the relationships we build.

If you’re looking for a new place to call home, contact our office—we would be glad to assist you.

A Better Closet 1031 14th Street • Calera, AL 35040 205-621-1638 • abettercloset.net • sales@abettercloset.net A professional design and installation service, A Better Closet delivers custom storage solutions to help organize every room of your home.

A Better Closet is a locally owned, family-operated business, and we have been building custom storage for over 30 years. Our designers and craftsmen will transform every area of your home (floor to ceiling) to the custom storage of your dreams—with beautiful, lasting results that are guaranteed over the life of your home. At A Better Closet, exceptional service is built in to the equation. When you schedule a free in-home consultation, we focus on finding the plan that is best for you because we know your home, family, preferences and needs are unique. A Better Closet wants to maximize every inch of space to increase your home’s storage potential and value. Whether you want to make the most of a walk-in closet, custom storage, kitchen pantry or home office, A Better Closet can help.

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BUILDERS AND BUYERS

Cahaba Glass Company 160 Chandalar Place Drive • Pelham, AL 35124 205-621-7355 • cahabaglassco.com Cahaba Glass is your ultimate resource for any automotive, residential and small commercial glass needs.

For the home, we specialize in the installation of custom shower enclosures, mirrors, glass shelving, furniture top glass, cabinet door glass and specialty glass. Our glazier will replace unsightly window units and patio door glass to give your home that “like new” look. If your small commercial building needs updating, we offer a full range of glass and architectural products to meet your needs.

Our experienced staff will assist you with your automobile insurance claims to make the necessary repairs or replacements due to breakage as well.

When you choose Cahaba Glass Company, you are choosing a proven leader in the glass business. Let us help you make your project shine!

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Newsletter

The Shelby County Chamber BUSINESS CONNECTIONS

March 31: An Economic Update from Shelby County’s 58INC. Mark your calendars for an informative presentation on March 31 by 58 INC. and an in-depth view of how Shelby County’s economic entity is serving all of Shelby County, Alabama.

58 INC.’s purpose is to advance economic prosperity and business health through a collaborative partnership among stakeholders focused on targeted initiatives and business recruitment to assure a robust economy in Shelby County, Alabama. The primary focus is balanced job growth in the commercial, retail, and industrial sectors.

The organization serves as the lead

for industrial, commercial, and retail recruitment and retention, in addition, they are engaged in workforce readiness initiatives throughout Shelby County, Alabama and its municipalities.

The program will be from 10:00AM to 11:00AM on Wednesday, March 31 via ZOOM. There is no cost to attend, however registration is requested by no later than 2:00PM on Tuesday, March 30. Please contact the Chamber at info@shelbychamber.org, by telephone at 205-663-4542 or register online at www.shelbychamber .org.

Celebrating Growth

Jones and Associates, LLC Helena, AL

Mama Coco Cantina & Grill Calera, AL

Smith Douglas Homes The Glades - Calera, AL Sponsored by

Miami Fusion Cafe 280 Birmingham, AL - Hwy 280

1301 COUNTY SERVICES DR. 66 March/April 2021

PELHAM, AL, 35124

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (U.S. EEOC, 2009) defines sexual harassment as: Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature … when this conduct explicitly or implicitly affects an individual’s employment, unreasonably interferes with an individual’s work performance, or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work environment.

In 2019, the EEOC estimated that 20,000 sexual harassment charges were made by employees who were employed with private employers, or state or local governments1. Keep in mind sexual harassment does not stem from sexual gratification but instead is the intent to prevent an individual from having the same opportunity or participation in the workforce. It is an abuse of power and control, as seen with domestic and sexual violence. Severe harassment is more prevalent in male-dominated work environments (i.e. health care settings) due to cultural beliefs in regards to male social standing and the further deflection of this hierarchy on others (female gender) to maintain their professional

status. However, sexual harassment can occur in any workplace or setting thus making sexual harassment and sexual violence a pervasive, public issue.

Victims of sexual harassment may suffer from psychological issues that negatively impact their well-being including depression, anxiety, post-traumatic disorder, substance abuse, and high job turn-over rates. Sexual harassment is not always a physical violation on an individual’s body, but more often an emotional/psychological event that registers as a trauma. Emotional psychological responses can occur which include- but not limited too -adverse physical symptoms such as sweating, nervousness, increased heart rate, palpitations, dizziness, headaches, chest pains, muscle or body aches, sleep disturbances, nausea and/or vomiting and high blood pressure.

Keeping silent about sexual harassment is not only harmful to the individual who is the target of harassment but also creates toxic and unhealthy work environments. Victims’ may choose to

205 - 663 - 4542

not report sexual harassment, but speaking up can help prevent future abuse in the workplace.

Employers across the U.S. have integrated the above definition into policies and procedures and most are required to hold annual training for employees. The best way to combat sexual harassment is by changing the cultural attitude and beliefs about sexual harassment. As a community, we all have a shared sense of responsibility and accountability to stop violence in any form and to bring awareness to the prevalence of sexual harassment within our communities.

The month of April serves as Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM) and this year, 2021, marks twenty years of the annual campaign.

During SAAM, efforts are focused on bringing awareness to communities through education and training on topics including sexual harassment, sexual assault, rape, consent, and more.

SafeHouse of Shelby County, Inc. provides community education and training on these topics free of charge for businesses, corporations, schools, and other organizations. For more information or to schedule a training please email your request to safehouse@safehouse.org.

1 Data retrieved from: https://www.eeoc.gov/ statistics/charges-alleging-sex-based-harassment-charges-filed-eeoc-fy-2010-fy-2019

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Newsletter

Hidden Truths of Sexual Harassment

2020 Ambassador of the Year Congratulations to Mark Teachman for earning Shelby County Chamber Ambassador of the Year.

Mark retired from his life and business coaching practice in 2020. Prior to coaching he spent 42 years working for AT&T in a variety of positions including support of internet call centers around the world.

He is a Deacon at his local church and enjoys college and professional football, live theatre and reading

Presenting Sponsors

non-fiction. Mark is married to Laurita Miller, a Mental Health Therapist, and lives in Maylene.

Thank you, Mark for your continued support and time volunteering throughout Shelby County!

Washington Update with Congressman Gary Palmer On Tuesday April 6, U.S. Congressman Gary Palmer will join us for an Washington Update event from 9:30AM to 10:00AM via ZOOM.

68 March/April 2021

Time permitting we will open for questions from those participating.

This event is co-hosted by the Homewood, Hoover Area, Greater

Irondale, Mountain Brook, Shelby County and Vestavia Hills chambers of commerce.

Registration is required, so please

contact the Chamber via e-mail at info@shelbychamber.org, by phone at 205-663-4542 or register online at www.shelbychamber.org.

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Newsletter

Chamber Holding “Ready to Shred” Recycling Day on April 8 The Shelby County Chamber’s Existing Business & Industry Work Group is holding its 6th Annual “Ready to Shred” Recycling Day from 9:00AM until 2:00PM on Thursday, April 8. The event, presented by Gone For Good Document & E-Waste Solutions, encourages safe and secure recycling of items, is being co-hosted by the City of Chelsea and will take place at the Chelsea City Hall.

The Work Group is planning to have an on-site mobile truck for document destruction, E-Waste recycling drop off area. Below

70 March/April 2021

Presenting Sponsor

uComputers/Laptops uCell Phones/PDAs uDVD Players/VCRs uLaptops uCommunications Equipment uOffice Machines uPrinters uStereos uServers/Routers uTVs and Monitors (FLAT SCREEN ONLY) We are unable to accept:

are items that are acceptable E-Waste items:

uTubed TVs uTubed Computer Monitors uBatteries

uRefrigerators uLimit of 3-4 “Banker Boxes” of paper items uLimit 3-4 lawn/leaf bags of acceptable recyclables uLimit 3-4 medium plastic storage bins of acceptable recyclables Due to precautions related to COVID-19 we ask that all participants handle their own recyclables. For more information on this event contact Pari Barzegari at 205-663-4542, ext. 106 or pari@shelbychamber.org.

F i n d U s O n l i ne |

2021 TSCC Officers and Board of Directors (as of 12/09/2020) OFFICERS Chamber Chair Mr. Chris Grace Barge Design Solutions, Inc. Chair-Elect Mr. Brian Massey Ascension St. Vincent’s Vice Chair, Business Development & Support Mr. Lee Dorrill Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alabama Vice Chair, Communications & Marketing Ms. Kelly Thrasher Fox Hand Arendall, Harrison, Sale LLC Vice Chair, Community & Career Development Mr. Daniel Listi BBH / Shelby Baptist Medical Center Vice Chair, Finance & Administration Ms. April Harry Warren, Averett, LLC Vice Chair, Governmental Affairs Mr. Mike Swinson Spire Alabama, Inc. Vice Chair, Investor Relations Dr. Jay Crisman 280 Animal Medical Center Vice Chair, Tourism & Recreation Mr. Kevin Morris America’s First Federal Credit Union

Immediate Past Chair Ms. Kathy Copeland White Rock Quarries– Vincent Hills DIRECTORS Mr. Paul Barber Valent Group Mr. John Collier Regions Bank Ms. Brittani Morris State Farm Insurance Brittani Morris Agency Mr. Casey Morris McLeod Software Mr. Matthew Hogan Bama Budweiser of Shelby County Mr. Fred Smith Vulcan Termite & Pest Control Ms. Mechelle Wilder ARC Realty Mr. Rux Bentley Rux Carter Insurance Mr. Keith Brown Jefferson State Community College Ms. Laura Clarke SYNOVUS Mr. Jeff Purvis A. C. Legg, Inc. Mr. Guy Locker SouthWest Water Company

205 - 663 - 4542

Ms. Alison Howell Steineker Alabama Power Company Ms. Melissa Dixon Charles Dixon Industries Mr. Daniel Holmes Shelby County Newspapers, Inc. Ms. Khiari McAlpin Vinehouse Nursery Mr. Maurice Mercer KATs Delivery Mr. Kyle Mims Edward Jones Investments – Kyle Mims Agency Mr. Steven Smith Specification Rubber Products Dr. Hollie Cost University of Montevallo Mr. David Dunagan Thompson Tractor Company Mr. Will Norwood Valley Bank Mr. Chad Scroggins Shelby County Mr. Keith Sides The UPS Store, Caldwell Mill / Valleydale at Hoover The Hon. Brian Puckett (Ex-Officio, SCMA) City of Helena

Access our member directory

New Investors

(December 22, 2020 - January 20, 2021) Papa John’s Calera Calera Over The Mountain Glass, Inc. Pelham Grand Escapes Travel Maylene Bug Out Training Pelham Pelham Eye Center Pelham

Newsletter

Sign up for our weekly newsletter

Helena Drugs Chelsea Rivalry Sports Chelsea

Your Chamber at work

December 12, 2020 – January 15, 2021 - Responded to 64 requests for business & community information.

- Promoting Chamber investors as well as Chamber & Community events through the following Social Media outlets: - Facebook: 24 “new likes”, 426 “views”, 16, 741 “post reaches” and 4,346 “total likes”.

- Twitter: 10 “tweets”, 1,944 “tweet impressions”, 95 “profile visits”, 3,054 “followers”.

- Instagram: 1,364 “posts and stories”, 1,345 “followers”.

- LinkedIn: 485 “followers”

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OUT & ABOUT

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JURIED ART EXHIBIT OPENING

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PHOTOS BY SCOTT MIMS

The Shelby County Arts Council hosted its 2021 Adult Juried Art Exhibit gallery opening reception on Jan. 21. The work will remain on display through March 4 at the EBSCO Fine Art Gallery inside the Shelby County Arts Center in Columbiana.

1. Katie Geiger and Lisa Taylor 2. Leigh Ann and Gary Edmunds 3. Sandra, Laura and Emma Dudley 4. Mickey Greer, Donna Shaw, Lindsey Greer and Jennifer Greer 5. Carrie Nesbitt and Carter McKee 6. Steve Terry and Melissa McMurray 7. Garrick Hoffman and Rachel Strain 8. Nancy Harper, Jamison Harper, Tamara Harper, Bob Bergson and Marj Bergson

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NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP WATCH PARTY PHOTOS BY SCOTT MIMS

Football fans gathered at Siluria Brewing Co. in Alabaster to watch the College Football Playoffs National Championship game between the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Ohio State Buckeyes on Jan. 11.

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1. Tim and Kandy Cockerill 2. Gregg Braun, Javier Garcia and Charles Harwell 3. Danny Sample, Daniel, and Katelyn Stansberry of Siluria Brewing Co. 4. Frank Giardina and Scott King 5. Amanda Hall and Derek Perkins 6. Gregg Braun and Kevin Pinneo 7. Landon Sample and Bart Hall 8. Tammy Sample

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PHOTOS BY EMILY SPARACINO

Numerous people lined the road near Winn-Dixie in Chelsea to watch the 2020 Chelsea Christmas Parade on the morning of Dec. 19.

1. Amira Rooks, Madison London, Susie Rooks and Breanna London 2. Mason King, Mila Dabbs, Kinsley King and Khloe King 3. Hayes, Kristina and Kayleigh Greenwood 4. Lindsey Schoeneck, Landyn Schoeneck, Emalee Warren and Charlie Warren 5. Katelynn, Emerson, Aiden and Jaxon Britt 6. Weston Colvin, Elle Howell and Ella Howell 7. Sherry Emmerke, Chris Emmerke and Khloe Fisher 8. Patrick, Monica, Devyn and Jameson Ray 9. Isabella, Kenneth and Mayra Pope 10. The Redemption Church family 11. Steven Mezrano, Joseph Mezrano, Anthony Mezrano, Jessica Mezrano, Harper Eddins and John Eddins 12. Kaylah Carpenter with Harper, Heather and Dale Moore 13. Mark, Cat, Matthew and Avery Stachelski

74 March/April 2021

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SEMINAR EDITION

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TASTE. SIP. SAVOR. N E W !

Seminar Edition

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Seated Seminars, Demos, and Tastings featuring local Birmingham tastemakers 24th annual April 24 & 25 full day lineup @ the 38th Magic City Art Connection TICKETS ON SALE IN APRIL www.CorksandChefs.com

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OUT & ABOUT

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PHOTOS BY SCOTT MIMS

The Heart of Dixie Railroad Museum in Calera hosted its Christmas at the Station event in 2020 in lieu of the usual tradition, North Pole Express.

The holiday-themed entertainment included rides on two different trains, a multitude of Christmas lights and a socially distanced visit with Santa.

1. Kelly and Heather McGugan with Kyler, Declan and Brady 2. Brad Chaney with Teresa, Anne Margaret and Whit 3. Jonathan and Jessica Bedwell with Andrew and Katherine 4. Jared and Allison Holt with Molly and Emmett 5. Jonathan and Ashley Bolyn with Allison, Addison and Joshua 6. Felicity Goebel, Madison Denney, Emmalynne Tolliver and Mackenzie Toller 7. Aaron and Shaina Staab with Sophia and Jack 8. Alex and Christina Turner with Parker 9. Katie and Kinzie McDonald

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OUT & ABOUT

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HOLIDAY ARTISTS MARKET PHOTOS BY SCOTT MIMS

The Shelby County Arts Council’s Holiday Artists Market was held Dec. 5 in the Grande Hall at Old Mill Square.

The annual event features fine arts and crafts from local artists and makers and has been held for a decade.

1. Candye Lundy, Karen Ingram and Amy Pickens

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2. Marsha Burnham and Sandra Annonio 3. Neil and Cassandra Montgomery 4. Georgeann and Elizabeth Hester

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MARKETPLACE

Marketplace Shelby Living Magazine • 205.669.3131

Owner Operators Wanting Dedicated Year Round Anniston, AL www.pull4klb.com

in applications accepted. Clanton (205)280-0002.

Pelham (205)444-9774.

ShelbyLiving.com

for Elderly & Disabled. Many on-site services!

2115 Motes Rd, Sylacauga.

256-245-6500 Mechanic needed. •TDD#s: Now hiring Must have own 800-548-2547(V) RN’s and LPN’s tools and five •800-548-2546(T/ throughout years experience.

A). Office Hours: Alabama! $250 Apply in person: Mon-Fri, 8am-4pm. community 1105 7th St N, Equal Opportunity referral bonus for Clanton. Or call for Provider/Employer RN’s and LPN’s. appointment Sign-on Bonuses 205-755-4570 Nursing assistant available at select to care for high locations! For more Automation functioning information please Personnel Bama quadriplegic home contact: Paige Concrete Now health patient in Gandolfi Hiring: Diesel Jemison. Must Call/text: Mechanic 4 have valid drivers 724-691-7474 Years Minimum license. Part-time. pgandolfi@ Experience.

Call Mr. Wilbanks wexfordhealth.com CDL Preferred.

205-908-3333 Competitive Pay. Need appliance Great Benefits.

NEED A JOB??? or air conditioner Apply in person: COME JOIN OUR parts? How about 2180 Hwy 87 TEAM OF GREAT a water filter for Alabaster, 35007 PEOPLE!! Starting your refrigerator? pay:$12hr-$14hr We have it all at Lancaster Place •General Labor A-1 Appliance Apartments.

•Heavy Equipment Parts! Call Location, Operator 1-800-841-0312 community & •Shipping www.A-1Appliance. quality living in •Washer/Greaser com Calera, AL. 1, •Calera •Alabaster 2, & 3 bedroom Online: www.

Services Hiring apartments stellarstaffingllc.

IMMEDIATELY available. Call com Call: For: Automotive today for specials!! 205-916-2860 Assembly, General 205-668-6871.

Labor, Production, Or visit FT 2nd Shift Clerical, Machine hpilancasterplace. Security Guard Operator, Quality, com needed for Carpentry, Welder, beautiful, gated Foundry. Positions Marble Valley community in No In: Calera, Clanton, Manor. Affordable Shelby Co. Paid Pelham, Bessemer, 1 and 2 Bedroom health insurance, McCalla. WalkApartments $12hr, 3-11pm 78 March/April 2021

weekdays. Must have previous experience, gun permit & pistol. Qualified candidates should call Kim 991-4654 CLOCK REPAIR SVS. * Setup * Repair * Maintenance. I can fix your Mother’s clock. Alabaster/ Pelham.

Call Stephen (205)663-2822 HIRING EXPERIENCED FULL CASE ORDER SELECTORS $19.03 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 $2000 SIGN ON BONUS NEW PAY SCALE TO QUALIFYING DRIVERS EVERGREEN TRANSPORT,

is accepting applications for local drivers in the Calera and Leeds, AL, area.

Must have Class A CDL, good driving record, 1 yr verifiable tractor trailer experience.

Good pay and benefits. Apply in person at 8278 Hwy 25 South, Calera, AL, or call for info 205-668-3316.

Electrician - FT Supreme Electric, local-based company in Pelham. Must be willing to learn & work hard. Go to: supremeelectrical.com Print employment application under Contact Us. Mail to: Supreme Electric 231 Commerce Pkwy Pelham, AL 35124 or call 205-453-9327.

Popeyes Seeking friendly, motivated, dependable Crew Members. OPEN INTERVIEWS DAILY 2:00pm5:00pm 3300 Pelham Parkway.

Immediate Openings! Start work this week!

MARKETPLACE Marbury and Maplesville areas.

Must be able to pass complete Become a Dental background check, Assistant in ONLY have reliable 8 WEEKS! Please transportation visit our website and have a strong capstonedental work ethic. Serious assisting.com or inquiries only. Call call (205)561-8118 334-409-0035 or and get your career apply on-line at started! wwwOxford healthcare.com Boise Cascade Now Hiring for South Haven Utility Positions.

Health & Rehab Starting pay NOW HIRING!!! $14/hour. Must •LPN’s & RN’s be able to pass -$5,000 Sign-on background Bonus for Full-Time screen. Please shift •CNA’s Apply apply at in person: 3141 www.bc.com Old Columbiana Rd Birmingham,AL WELDER NEEDED -35266 MIG & TIG •Light gauge stainless, aluminized, Servpro of galvanized Birmingham.

Manufacturing and We’re looking for Assembly Helpers quality people Needed •Paid who want to work Holidays •Typical hard and make a Shifts 6:00amdifference. For this 2:30pm Call RICK: excellent career 205-761-3975 opportunity, email now!

MacLean Power bmcrea@servproof Systems NOW birmingham.com HIRING 3098 Pelham Pkwy, Acceptance Loan Pelham, AL Company, Inc. 35124 We are Personal loans! actively hiring Let us pay off your for production title loans! 224 operations Cahaba Valley Rd, Apply at: www.

Pelham macleanfogg.com/ 205-663-5821 careers Come out of Oxford Healthcare your comfort in Montgomery zone. Come currently hiring join our Crossfit certified CNA’s Family. Crossfit and/or Home Inferis. Individual Health aides Unlimited Monthly in the Clanton, Memeberships Apply online: work4popeyes kitchen.com

Bud’s Best Cookies Accepting applications for the following positions: •Packers •Mixers •Machine Operators •Sanitation Positions •Maintenance Positions Bud’s Best Cookies has been in business since 1991.We are locally owned & Burger King is DONAVAN operated family now hiring. Please LAKES FISHING business. We offer apply online @ CLUB & INN our employees joinbkalabama.com Marion, Perry Co. a great work AL •8 Lakes •17 environment and Experienced Piers •Bass, Bream, benefits.Benefits Termite Technician Crappie, Catfish. for full-time or someone •Camping, Nature employment: experienced in Trails, Birding.

•5 vacation days route-service Membership $1000 after 1yr •10 work and wants for 2021 Contact vacation days after to learn new Thomas Wilson 3yrs •15 vacation profession. Work- 334-247-2101 days after 10yrs vehicle/equipment wils5789@ •7 paid holidays provided. Must bellsouth.net •Health & Life drive straight-shift, www.donavanlakes Insurance paid by have clean driving .org the company for record/be 21/ each employee pass background/ HELP WANTED after 90 days of drug test.

PLUMBERS & GAS employment •Off Training provided. FITTERS Great every Saturday Insurance/401K pay. Must have •$100 Check for offered. M-F 7:00- drivers license. your birthday 4:30 + 1 Saturday/ Journeyman is a •FMLA after 1yr month. Pay $13hr. plus. Please call or 1250/hrs If Send resume to Tommy: Interested Call facsmith@charter.

205-296-0294 205-987-4840 net or office: or send work 205-624-2418 history/contact Home Instead information: Senior Care • Eastern Tree generalmail@buds CAREGiver / CNA Service • 24-Hour bestcookies.com Weekend Shifts Storm Service • fayegoudy@buds Needed. Have www.ETSTree. bestcookies.com you previously org • Experienced been a family Professionals • We Pay Cash caregiver? Do you Quick Response • For Used RV’s!!! want to make a Free Estimates • McCluskey Auto & difference in the Call Us Today: RV Sales, LLC life of a senior?

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MY SHELBY COUNTY CAROL BRUSER

Leadership Shelby County Program Director

Party Perfect

Margarita Grill Margarita Grill in Pelham is a great place to join friends for dinner and live entertainment.

I particularly love their chicken fajitas and the Cuban sandwich. They also have a great outdoor dining area that’s perfect for large crowds to gather. The Leadership Shelby County Alumni Association hosts their annual winter social here, and there is always great attendance.

Cheers!

Live Music & More

Shelby County Arts Center Since openings its doors, SCAC has served thousands of youth and adults in a variety of arts education. The center offers amazing art exhibits and is free to the public to view. If you are looking for an evening of great music, check their calendar for upcoming concerts. The Center is located in Old Mill Square in Columbiana and offers a beautiful park for you to enjoy.

The Great Outdoors

Alabama 4-H Center The Alabama 4-H Center is the perfect location for conferences, weddings, meetings, a ropes course—the list could go on forever.

Each year in September, Leadership Shelby County uses the center for their Opening Retreat. Room accommodations are great, and the dining hall serves wonderful food.

Tee Time

Leadership Shelby County Alumni Golf Tournament Leadership Shelby County hosts an annual golf tournament to raise funds to support the Youth Leadership Shelby County program. The tentative date for this year’s event is April 19 at Riverchase Country Club. The tournament is open to anyone who would like to play. We hope you will join us for a great day of golf!

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Corbin Farms Winery Located in Calera, Corbin Farms Winery partners with top-notch American vineyards to bring the highest quality grapes to Alabama. In addition to the Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir and other varieties, they offer wines from local Alabama grown grapes including muscadine, peach and pear as well as a delicious menu selection. Leadership Shelby County enjoyed visiting the winery and enjoying the delicious lunch they prepared for us too!

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