TAKE A LOOK INSIDEProgress 2011 | The Clanton Advertiser

Table of conTenTsTom Brown honored for work with Peach Festival

Citizen of the year 4

One-handed basketball player defies odds

taking a shot 6

Prison ministry offers spiritual deliverance

free on the inside 10

World of Freeemasons shrouded in mystery

seCret Club 14

Gussie Saxon dedicated life to West End students

Pillar of our Community 18

Bargains are out there if you look

treasure hunting 22

Volunteer firefighters prepare for anything

always on Call 26

Clanton First United Methodist Church has storied history

window to the soul 28

Restaurant staff takes a lot of heat

under fire 34

Jacksons have represented county for three decades

family PraCtiCe 37

Verbena founded by those fleeing yellow fever

small town, big Past 38

Late season cold snap can destroy crop

the big freeze 44

More families deal with effects of Autism

loCked inside 54

Citizen of the yearT

om Brown had some big shoes to fill.For many years, Lions Club member Richard Davis

had organized the Peach Festival — including the pag-eants, parade, auction and everything else that comes

along with the event.However, in 2010, Davis was sidelined due to health concerns,

and the Lions Club looked to another member to fill that role.The club found the right man in Tom Brown. For his work

with the Peach Festival, among other community endeavors, R.T. “Tom” Brown was chosen as the 2011 Clanton Advertiser Citizen of the Year.

The honor is chosen by a committee of past Citizen of the Year honorees.

“We had a very difficult situation with Richard and his illness. We totally regret he was ill and were hoping and praying all along that he would get better, but that didn’t happen,” said Tony Hughes, Lions Club president. “For the first time in many, many years, someone else had to step up to the plate — and Tom did just an incredible job.”

Hughes said Brown did a great job organizing club members so everyone knew what needed to be done for a successful Peach Festival.

“There’s just a thousand details. It’s impossible to enumerate all the different aspects that go into the Peach Festival,” said Hughes. “Tom was the one that had the overall organization and brought everything together in just a wonderful way.”

Tom Brown chosen for work with Peach Fest

WriTTen By Justin averette | PhoTograPh By amy easterling

In addition to his work with the Lions Club, Brown also serves on the United Way Board and works with Habitat for Humanity.

Brown and his wife, Shirley, are also longtime supporters of the 4-H/FFA County Steer and Heifer Show and have sponsored an award every year.

Last summer, he was also named Lion of the Year by the Clanton Lions Club.

At the time, fellow mem-ber Hollis Jackson had this to say of Brown’s work: “His service this year was remarkable.”

Brown, along with fel-low Lions Club members have already begun orga-nizing this year’s Peach Festival. n Tom Brown and the Peach Queens attend January’s inauguration of Gov. Robert Bentley.

Fred Wright shoots a

three-pointer earlier this

season against

Jemison, in a game the Red

Devils lost. Wright was

born with an underdevel-

oped right hand.

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Verbena gets the ball and rushes down the court. A few quick dribbles and the ball is passed to

No. 23 Fred Wright. The junior guard stands behind

the three-point arc, shoots and scores — nothing but net.

A minute later, the ball is passed back to Wright. With adrenaline pumping and in the exact spot as before, he releases the ball and scores again, making two three-point baskets in the last 120 sec-onds of the game.

It’s clutch play, with pressure that would get to any athlete. But Fred Wright isn’t any athlete.

Standing 6 feet tall with brown hair and a lanky frame, Wright de-fies the odds. He was born with an underdeveloped right hand, but he has never let it slow him down.

“He’s a great kid, his person-ality is awesome and he never complains about anything,” said Coach Jonathan Shedd, who’s been basketball coach at Verbena for three years. “Fred hustles all the time, and anything I need done

he does it and gives everything he’s got when he is on the court.”

Wright became part of the Red Devils’ basketball team his sophomore year. The biggest challenge on the court for him was learning how to play and how to keep from foul-ing.

“When I first started last year (2009), I really didn’t know how to play,” said Wright. “Another play-er’s dad asked me to try out, so I did. I believe in not letting things get in my way and doing things the best I can.”

Wright not only applies this be-lief on the court, but off the court as well.

He is a straight ‘A’ student who works just as hard academically as he does outside of the class-room.

“If he makes a ‘B’, he gets upset,” said his mother, Carrie Stroud. “He likes his A’s.”

Another hurdle Wright con-

quers on the court is facing his opponents after they’ve learned he plays with one hand.

“After finding out, the team will go at him on his right side,” said Shedd. “But when he sees that, he’s quick enough to get away from them or he gives up the ball. He is very smart about knowing what he can and cannot do.”

He wouldn’t call himself an ath-lete, but Wright, who has had a passion for sports all of his life, also played wide receiver and cornerback for Verbena High School’s football team his fresh-man year. He is a sprinter on the track team, runs cross-country and also enjoys golf and bowling.

“He has loved sports ever since he was in diapers,” said Stroud. “I have a picture of him when he was a little boy standing up in

Taking a shotOne-handed basketball player defies odds Written by theadoris Morris PhOtOgraPhs by Jon GoerinG

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Wright talks to a teammate dur-ing a Verbena girls game ear-lier this season, prior to the boys match. Team-mate Marquez Deramus said Wright is a “good dude” who never complains. At right, Wright drives down the court.

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front of the TV with his hands in the air in field goal position.”

Because it was something he was born with, Wright said having one hand doesn’t bother him or isn’t even something he thinks about.

“I don’t find it too hard to do things because I was born this way and have been this way all my life,” said Wright. “I’m used to it.”

It’s normal to his teammates as well.

“Fred is just a good person,” said Marquez Deramus, Wright’s team-mate. “He’s fun, has a good personal-ity and like coach said, he never com-plains, he’s a good dude. Nobody ever talks bad about him or anything.”

Off the court, Wright is described as a friendly, easily likeable person and “goofy” at times.

Still, people know Wright as an am-bitious person who does not let any-thing or anyone discourage him.

During the first game of the season this season against Isabella, he went

up to get a rebound and fell back and injured his head and had to receive five stitches.

“As he was leaving the game, he turned around and looked at the coach and said, ‘I’ll see you tomor-row coach,’” Shedd said.

He also split open his chin during the second game this season against Billingsley.

“While he was sitting down, I asked him, ‘Fred, are you OK?’ He respond-ed, ‘yes, I’m waiting on you to put me back in,’” said Shedd. “He doesn’t care, whatever happens, he takes it in stride.”

In spite of his situation and the adversities he has come across, he holds his head up high and doesn’t let the way he was born hinder him – what you see isn’t what you get when referring to Fredrick Wright.

“I believe you should always do your best,” Wright said. “My motto is if you do good, good things will hap-pen to you.” n

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FREE ON THE

INSIDE Prison ministry offers spiritual deliverance

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Much of the sunlight that es-capes into the Chilton Coun-ty Jail seeps through nar-row, tinted windows just big

enough to provide a glimpse at the weath-er. But the kind of light Truett Maddox is trying to shine doesn’t come from an out-side source.

Since 2004, Maddox has volunteered in the Chilton Baptist Association’s men’s jail ministry, going to the jail most Sunday mornings to deliver a scripturally-based message and words of hope to inmates. At age 75, Maddox describes himself not as a minister but as a layperson who felt the call to become involved in a specific min-istry.

As Maddox enters a pod (the jail is divid-ed into several sections called pods), he be-gins to speak with only a Bible and a pair of glasses to aid him.

There is no pulpit to stand behind or platform from which to speak. Some of the men sit attentively at tables, while others on the upper level lean over the railing with their Bibles open, and still others lis-ten from their bunks. Some carry on as if no one were there.

“There may be a time when you’re out there facing something and you don’t have a Bible with you, but if you memorize it, you’ll have it with you,” Maddox tells the men, encouraging them to memorize one verse a month.

“I carry it with me when I’m out in the cold feeding the cows,” he continues.

On this particular Sunday morning, the message comes from Acts chapters 16 and 17, in which Paul and Silas are praying and singing hymns in their prison cell. As told in the passage, an earthquake causes the prison’s doors to fly open and the prison-ers’ chains to come loose.

Maddox reminds the men that despite their isolation from society, God is always near and concerned about their hearts and souls.

“What is our main goal or main pur-pose?” he asks.

After the sermon, Maddox invites any-one to share a testimony, or story relating some personal experience, with the rest of the group. No one answers at first. After a

few seconds, a man walks up and says, “I have a testimony.”

Forlando Floyd shares that he has been separated from his teenage daughter for a long time. His mother, however, recent-ly gave him hope that she (his daughter) would be returning home soon.

“That’s a blessing,” Floyd says. “In the midst of all my mess, that God is working for me.”

Floyd goes on to say that Maddox has been “an inspiration” to him.

“He was always a good leader and a good teacher, someone you could count on,” he says. “He has always had an uplifting spir-it.”

“I love you guys,” Maddox says after his sermon, and several echo his words.

SEEING THE NEED

Perhaps the reason Maddox has re-mained in prison ministry for so long is because he looks past the label of “inmate” and sees a real person with a real need. He

takes what he believes to be a message of hope into one of the last places someone would ever want to go, and he does it vol-untarily.

“I don’t try to pry into their personal lives or their past,” Maddox said.

Maddox has been astonished at the works of art he has seen in jail. Some in-mates use ink fillers to draw because they are not allowed to have pens, which can be used as weapons.

“Some of them are artists. They have a talent that’s unreal,” he said, recalling when one inmate drew him a rose. “Some-times they make their own decks of cards.”

Inmates also write to Maddox. While some ask for money, others write about how the ministry has encouraged them.

In turn, Maddox has been encouraged by inmates who have turned their lives around.

“They were a big encouragement to me because of the life they were living then, and, of course, I felt the Lord calling me to

Above, inmates at the Chilton County Jail bow their heads as Truett Maddox leads them in a prayer. Left, Maddox delivers a sermon one Sunday morning at the jail.

Written by ScoTT mImS | PhotograPhs by JoN GoErING

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Above left, a pod at the Chilton County Jail is divided into two levels, both with bunks where inmates sleep. Above right, Maddox enters a pod, Bible in hand, from the central corridor. Despite some inmates who don’t want to hear his message, Maddox said he has never felt threatened by an inmate.

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this ministry and saw the need. They needed someone to show concern and compassion for them,” he said.

Maddox, who is also a Gideon, gives inmates copies of Gideon Bibles and copies of a special Bible called “Free on the Inside.” He also pass-es out “commitment cards” that ask for basic information, church preference and type of commitment (such as the decision to become a Christian).

One might think that a person would be un-easy preaching to a congregation of men in orange and white jumpsuits, especially when there are those who don’t wish to hear the mes-sage. But it doesn’t seem to bother Maddox.

“At no time have I ever felt threatened by an inmate,” he said.

What seems to trouble him the most is the fact that, often, there is no way to follow up with inmates when they get out of jail.

“A lot of them don’t have families,” he said. “I’ve had instances when they’ve said, ‘I could get out, but I don’t have any place to go.’”

But there is one thing that keeps Maddox mo-tivated: his own faith.

“I think back of what Christ did for me. That’s my motivation,” he said. n

Maddox (right, background) sits down at a table to talk to inmates following one of his Sunday morning messages. He invites them to share testimonies.

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SECRET CLUB

World of Freemasons shrouded in mystery

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WRITTEN BY STEPHEN DAWKINSPHOTOGRAPHS BY JON GOERING

There are many things Freemasons won’t tell non-members about their fraternity.

The meaning behind the abundance of symbols in a lodge, for example, is a secret revealed only to Masons. But aspects of the group’s activities are also rarely revealed to the public, though one might wonder why.

Chilton County’s two Masonic lodges, in Clanton and Jemison, are active in the commu-nity, giving to charity and helping families in need.

The Clanton lodge donates to Operation: San-ta Claus, Maplesville’s Toys for Kids program, CareNet Pregnancy Resource Center, Child Protect Children’s Advocacy Center, Raleigh’s Place, the Emergency Assistance Center and

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the Department of Human Resources’ ef-forts to help foster children at Christmas.

Masons also help individual families, Clanton lodge treasurer Danny Carter said, but those families usually have no idea where the assistance is coming from.

Masons might also pool their talents and resources to build wheelchair ramps for the elderly in the community.

“That’s why most people get in,” Carter said of Masons’ willingness to help others, even if without recognition. “Masonry is about taking a good man and making him better.”

To raise money, Clanton Masons hold four cookouts a year: at Thanksgiving, Christmas, the Fourth of July and Labor Day.

The Jemison Lodge raises money through cookouts and also through a pan-cake breakfast every January, said Wor-shipful Master Zachary Ashley.

Jemison Masons combined with two Shel-by County lodges in 2010 to raise more than $2,000 to buy toys and games for Christmas to take to patients at Children’s Hospital in

Birmingham. Ashley said this was the first time members of the Stanley Cost Lodge had participated in such an effort.

“We typically pick a family in the com-munity that needs some help,” Ashley said. “They get referred by a member or by someone else. Maybe someone’s house burns, and there’s a church group raising money to donate and we’ll help with that.

“In most cases, the person receiving help doesn’t even know. Most of our charitable work is done anonymously.”

In fact, Ashley said the Masons are prob-ably most visible in the community when they are performing funeral rites for a member that has passed. Ashley said the person’s family must request the rites be performed.

“That’s probably where people see us the most,” he said. “We’ve actually earned members that way.”

Gaining membership is another example of how Masons don’t market themselves.

“The whole way to become a Mason is to ask,” Ashley said. “We do not recruit. We’re always looking for new members, but we do

not recruit.”The Jemison lodge has about 75 mem-

bers, and about 90 people belong to the Clanton lodge.

Ashley said anyone interested in the group should visit the lodge 30 minutes or so before regularly scheduled meetings, which take place on the second and fourth Thursdays of every month at 7:30 p.m.

Anyone who decides to join would have an avenue opened for donating to the com-munity—and may learn more about the Masons’ many other secrets.

“You meet very few people that don’t know a Mason,” Ashley said. “They may not know what we do, but they know that grandpa was a Mason and they have an idea that we do charitable work in the com-munity.

“But it’s behind the scenes; it’s not done for any kind of recognition.” n

Masons won’t talk about the meaning of the many and curious symbols in their lodges. Shown on the two previous pages and at right is Jemison’s Masonic Lodge.

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A pair of dusty chalkboards, do-nated by the Chilton County Board of Education years ago, are still cemented to the walls

of Gussie Saxon’s garage.Though she has been retired from teach-

ing for 24 years, there was a time Saxon put those chalkboards to good use — tu-toring and mentoring students from West End during the summer and after school.

For most of her life, Saxon has dedicat-ed her time and made it her personal duty to make sure the children of her commu-nity received a good education.

“I made a vow with God that if I could get my degree, then I would give it back,” said Saxon. “And teaching was the only way I could think of returning it to him.”

Before integration, Saxon began her career substituting at the City School, which became West End Elementary School. After integration, she was sent to Thorsby High School, where she taught for 22 years.

“I truly love teaching, especially first grade because back then they didn’t have technology,” said Saxon. “The first grade teacher was the television. It was some-thing about when they came into class with blank minds … and they learned to write, read and do math — that was most

gratifying.”Common during that time period, Sax-

on dealt with discrimination and adversi-ty. Being black and being an educator did not alleviate the situation, but she did not let anything stop her from doing her job.

“I had to swallow a lot, but when I stood up and told them, they knew I wasn’t a toy,” said Saxon. “I had to be a role model for the black kids, and it’s about equality and being respectful.”

Saxon is viewed as a pillar in her com-munity and is known for her numerous acts of kindness, but perhaps her biggest impact on children’s lives was her free six-week summer school program.

For nine years, Saxon taught preschool through eighth grade in her garage for absolutely no charge.

“She would open her home in the sum-mer and teach students for free,” said Greg DeJarnett, principal at Chilton County High School and a Clanton city councilman. “She’s been a resourceful woman to the people of West End and has been a good example to young people through the years of what one person can do in their community.”

Her summer school made such a big difference that the Chilton County BOE allowed her to get books from schools for

different grade levels and donated chalk-boards, tables and chairs.

“The superintendent during that time period was most helpful in this effort,” said Saxon. “I just wanted to give the chil-dren who were having problems that I could help a chance, and I enjoyed it – I truly enjoyed it.”

One of many examples of her success-ful teaching occurred after she retired. Saxon was asked to tutor two boys from Clanton Elementary that were not achiev-ing, she said.

An administrator called her and asked her if she would work with the two stu-dents, and she said yes. At the end of the six weeks, the boys had progressed from ‘F’ students to ‘B’ students.

Some of Saxon’s former students or their parents stop by her home and visit her at various times, she said.

“Somebody is here every day to check on me and bring me stuff,” said Saxon. “Even Clara’s Café brings me dinner ev-ery week. Blacks and whites come to see me and check on me, and I appreciate that.”

Saxon, who is 90, retired from education in 1986. She is the founder of the West End Neighborhood Watch group, is active in her church and has received numerous

A PILLAR OF OURCommunitySaxon dedicated life to West End students

WrittEn by theadoris morris | PhotograPhS by Jon GoerinG

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honors, awards and recognition for her accomplishments. Saxon founded the neighborhood watch in 1991 because young

people kept breaking into older people’s homes, so she went to the City Council about it, she said.

Now, Clanton Police Chief Brian Stilwell, Clanton Fire Chief David Driver and other group members assemble once a month in Saxon’s living room for the neighborhood watch meetings.

“I would describe Saxon as an even-tempered, very likeable person who is easy to get along with,” said Jessie Binion, Neigh-borhood Watch secretary. “She is just a good stable person in the community and in the church.”

Saxon holds numerous positions in the church. She serves as a Sunday School teacher, steward and trustee. She has held nu-merous programs in the church to help raise money for the com-munity.

“Saxon’s personality is one of assertiveness, a take-charge type of person and a compassionate individual,” said DeJarnett. “As a representative and a city councilman, I would like to thank her for all that she has accomplished and for all the things she has done to help me as a councilman.” n

Numerous plaques and awards for her work in the community cover a wall in Gussie Saxon’s home.

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TREASUREHUNTING

WRITTEN BY STEPHEN DAWKINSPHOTOGRAPHS BY JON GOERING

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Touch of the Past antique store (above) and the Jemison Trade Center (left) o� er items of interest both for the collector and the bargain hunter.

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Bargains are out there if you look

Many Chilton County residents may think they have to drive to Alabaster or Prattville to shop, but Janet Anderson

knows better.While some may prefer large department

stores and chain restaurants, Anderson likes her shopping trips to include a flea market and a local eatery.

Anderson and her friend, Deegee Schro-eder, are regulars at the Jemison Trade Center, a flea market in Jemison that pro-vides a sort of alternate shopping experi-ence for those not interested in a long drive and fighting a crowd.

“Why do you want to drive around the world and give money to someone you don’t know?” Anderson asks, and she defi-nitely knows the staff at the trade center because she and Schroeder visit about twice a month.

“We drive up, walk through and say, ‘There’s just nothing here today,’” Ander-son laughs. “Then we come out, and we can’t even get the doors closed on the ve-hicle.”

Anderson’s and Schroeder’s trips usu-ally include eating lunch at a local restau-rant, such as Smoky Hollow restaurant in Jemison.

“She just motors on down here (from Cal-era) and we have a big ol’ tour of Jemison,” Anderson said.

Anyone interested could probably make a full day or more out of visiting all the flea markets and antique stores in Chilton County.

Anderson said she and Schroeder will occasionally visit KayeCee’s Flea and An-tique Mall in Clanton, and there are also a variety of antique stores.

Possibly the oldest such store is Touch of the Past Antiques in old downtown Jemi-son. Store owner Bobbie Giles bought the location in 1982. The space was formerly used as a dress shop, and it has also served as a grocery store and bank among other occupants.

Giles specializes in Depression-era glass-ware, the kind of merchandise sought out more by collectors than bargain hunters.

For example, a 9 1/2-inch dinner plate that may have cost a quarter when new Giles now sells for $65 because of the rar-ity of such an item. A coupon for the plate

would have been included in bags of flour during the Depression. Giles said the plate would have cost about $25 when she first opened her store, nearly 30 years ago.

Giles accumulated a large collection of the plates—which can be found in pink,

green, blue, crystal or amber hues—before opening her store.

“I used to do mall shows and flea mar-kets, and I just run out of any room to put my inventory,” she said. “I said if I didn’t make it with the store, I’d at least have a

Vendors pay $130 a month for the right to display their wares in a 10-feet by 12-feet space at the Jemison Trade Center, while everything at Touch of the Past belongs to Bobbie Giles (opposite).

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storage space.”Giles said she used to be

able to purchase large quan-tities of the plates from some-one who would bring them down from Ohio, but now she has to look for caches for sell on eBay.

That’s OK because the de-mand for her wares has de-creased also, probably due to the downturn in the na-tional economy. Giles’ store is open only the fi rst Satur-day of every month and by appointment, but not more than 10 years ago it was one of Chilton County’s busiest businesses.

“I would have open houses, and half the county would come in,” Giles said. “I had a lady from Tennessee that would play the piano, and I had good refreshments. I haven’t done that in a long time.”

The Jemison Trade Center has suffered some also. Lisa Cofer, who works at the cen-ter, said about 40 vendors pay the rate of $130 a month for a 10-feet by 12-feet space to dis-play their wares.

Five to 10 years ago, that number was about 100, with more on a waiting list. Two of the mall’s fi ve wings are

not used. A restaurant inside the Trade Center sits with chairs permanently stacked on tables.

“Right now, with the econo-my the way it is, things have slowed down,” Cofer said.

But the fl ea market still has its loyal customers, such as Anderson.

The Jemison resident said she will spend anywhere from $5 to $200 each trip to the Trade Center. Mostly, she has found tables, baskets and quilts (“My house is full of it,” she said). She said she en-joys the challenge of fi nding something new, or thinking about something she saw but didn’t buy the last trip and whether it will still be there in two weeks.

“That’s the fun of it,” she said. “You might get to think-ing about that little some-thing you saw and didn’t get it, and you might go back and fi nd it—or somebody else might have already got it.”

But it’s also important to Anderson to save money and keep her tax dollars in the county.

“Especially the way the economy is,” she said. “I’d much rather help myself and those vendors.”

ALWAYS on CALL

Sitting in his office at Clanton Fire Station No. 1, Fire Chief David Driver hears a sharp ring, letting him know a dispatch call is about

to be relayed.A few seconds later, a voice comes over

the loudspeakers, letting him know about the call.

It’s always a tense moment, because fire-fighters never know what to expect.

“You never know — when that tone goes off, we never know what we’re going to be doing,” said Driver. “You never know what you are going to drive up on.”

In worst cases, fire-fighters are responding to house fires and bad car accidents. In light-er moments, it’s small grass fires or, even as clichéd as it sounds, a cat stuck in a tree.

Most of the time, however, Clanton Fire and Rescue responds to medical calls. That too varies greatly, from heart attacks, strokes and drug overdoses to less serious problems.

Medical calls account-ed for about 80 percent of the department’s 1,430 calls in 2010.

Today’s call is about a woman experiencing neck pains follow-ing a recent surgery. Earlier in the day, the department responded to a call about a woman found unresponsive in her yard following a seizure.

It’s just impossible to know what to an-ticipate, Driver said. Sometimes even with information from dispatch, calls can prove to be a big surprise.

A wreck in October seemed normal until

firefighters arrived on the scene.“We get dispatched ‘for a wreck,’ (which

turns out to be) a propane truck on its side in front of Chilton County High School,” Driver said. “That’s a big difference.”

It takes a special person to be able to han-dle chaos and unpredictability and keep his or her composure and remain level-headed. It’s especially hard when someone has died.

“We sometimes go on calls when there’s

a loss of life,” Driver said. “It’s hard, espe-cially children. I’ve got two children of my own.”

Firefighters have to find a way to deal with these tense situations, Driver said.

“You can’t dwell on it; if you did, you’ll never answer another call again,” he said.

Driver is Clanton’s only full-time fire-fighter. The department has a few people who help on a part-time basis during week-

days, but it is otherwise a volunteer crew.When not responding to calls, Driver and

the part-time squad work around the sta-tion or town. They must test hydrants and keep the department’s trucks and other equipment in tiptop condition. They check inventory, do business inspections and prefire plans and teach fire prevention in the community. They also try to do some type of training daily.

During rescue calls, the department de-pends on its dedicated volunteers, which num-ber about 20. Volun-teers carry a pager at all times and take turns handling medical calls overnight.

Clanton’s firefighters vary in age from their early 20s to mid-60s, with a good number in their 30s and 40s. Four of them are career fire-fighters with full-time departments outside Chilton County.

Many of them are self-employed; others work jobs with under-standing employers who allow them to an-swer calls as needed.

Anyone above the age of 19 can be a fire-fighter in Clanton. An EMT basic license and volunteer firefighter

certification are also required; firefighters must also live within two miles or work within the city limits and pass a physical and medical test.

Driver comes from a family of firefight-ers and started as a volunteer at age 19 and says he can’t imagine doing anything else.

“I don’t want to do anything else,” he said. “It’s all I’ve ever known. I want to re-tire here.” n

Volunteer firefighters prepare for anything

Written by Justin averette | PhotograPhs by Jon GoerinG

Clanton Fire Chief David Driver (shown with duffel bag in the bottom left photo) and his volunteer department crew responded to 1,430 calls in 2010, ranging from fires and car accidents to medical calls.

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WINDOWSOULtO

theF

rom the outside, Clanton’s First United Methodist Church is visu-ally appealing, built in a classi-cal revival style with handsome

white columns and intricately designed stained-glass windows.

But to truly appreciate the resplen-dence of its sanctuary, one must view it from the inside.

According to church records, a Method-ist society has existed in Clanton since the early 1870s, originally meeting in a local schoolhouse on Second Avenue. In 1873, the church paid $1 to purchase the land on which the current building now stands, temporarily meeting in a tent on the property until a permanent structure could be built.

The small, white, one-story frame build-ing was used until 1887, when growth prompted the building of a second struc-ture. The simple church in which the Methodists had worshipped for four years was purchased and moved to a dif-ferent location, clearing the property for the building of a larger church.

Dedicated in May 1888, this larger build-ing, still one story, boasted a steeple and bell tower. According to a compilation of

the church’s history written by the late Helen Parrish, who served as church sec-retary for many years, the bell housed in the tower produced “the clearest, sweet-est sound ever heard in Clanton,” and the children of the church took great delight in helping the pastor ring the bell each Sunday morning.

Two pot-bellied stoves provided heat during the winter months, and a pedal organ gave music for the services. In her compilation, Parrish writes about the ladies of the church who “vied with one another to see who could wear the fanci-est hats to the choir” and the commotion that ensued when a bat flew in through an open window during the evening ser-vice, landing in the “large be-ribboned hat” of the preacher’s wife.

She notes that summer revival services with singing and dinner on the grounds were held on property belonging to the church located several miles outside of town on Enterprise Road. “Hell-fire and brimstone” sermons lasting two or more hours were delivered by visiting preach-ers, and services often lasted an entire weekend.

It was in the early 1920s that the church,

led by the Rev. C.C. Wilkerson, decided to demolish its building and erect the ornate church that now stands on the property. Going from a simple one-room church to a large brick structure built in the classi-cal revival style was no small undertak-ing, and it was expensive.

Architect W.S. Smith was hired to de-sign the impressive new church envi-sioned by the congregation and its pastor. In her notes, Parrish writes enthusiasti-cally about the fundraising efforts, which were not without controversy, “Pledges for the financing of the new church were raised in the one the most thrilling cam-paigns ever seen by the people of Clan-ton! “

The well-known Evangelist Bob Jones was brought to town for a three-day se-ries of sermons designed to raise pledges. For these three days he was paid $300, an amount thought by many to be extremely large for such a short series of preaching.

However, the fiery messages of Bob Jones paid off. At the end of the three days, the people had pledged $50,000 to-ward the building of the new church. An additional $13,500 was borrowed from the bank, and the work was underway. Addi-

Written by Catherine COUSinS | PhotograPhs by JOn gOering

Clanton First Methodist has storied history

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tional funding was provided through bake sales, ice cream socials and barbecues.

When the old church was torn down, its cherished bell was donated to the A.M.E. church of West End. Church members, now without a building in which to meet, gath-ered for services in the courthouse during the construction of their new church.

Neighborhood children provided a senti-mental gesture, each bringing a jar of me-mentos, the contents of which were spread on the ground of the basement floor just before the concrete was poured.

The Methodists saw their new church completed in 1923. It housed 11 Sunday School rooms, a study for the pastor, and a large fellowship hall complete with a kitchen and sanctuary that could seat 500 people.

The congregation must have stood in awe when first viewing the interior of their new church, a site to behold given the simplicity of their previous building. The dark-stained wooden prayer rail and its richly detailed white plaster ceiling, more prevalent in European architectural

designs, serve to enhance the impressive leaded stained-glass windows adorning the sanctuary.

Each window is designed to reflect a dif-ferent biblical scene. Little information about the windows exists, but it is believed they were made locally. Each window holds a plaque engraved with the name or names of those who donated the funding for each one. A recent insurance estimate for re-placing the windows, should one or more become damaged, determined the win-dows to be irreplaceable.

The origin of stained-glass windows is unknown, but they were seen in the 10th century churches of France, Germany and England. While beautiful, the windows also served another purpose. Centuries ago, when the majority of the population was illiterate and the Bible had not yet been translated into English or put into mass production by the Gutenberg press, these intricately designed works of art il-lustrated the story of Christ for those who could not read. As Europe came out of the Dark Ages and the Bible was made avail-

able to the common population, stained-glass windows, because of their beauty, remained popular aids to worship.

The windows in Clanton’s First United Methodist Church contain various depic-tions of the life of Christ. Among them, the 12 year-old Jesus in the temple courts; The Good Shepherd; Jesus knocking on a door, symbolic of Christ knocking at the door of our heart; and Jesus praying in the Garden of Gethsemane. The small, half-round win-dows at each corner of the sanctuary are likened to the All-Seeing Eye of God.

Belle Malmede, a church member and wife of an accomplished artist, envisioned something more for the sanctuary — some-thing beautiful, remarkable and impres-sive — additional works of art that would also lend themselves as aids of worship in the new church. It took her husband, artist C.V. Malmede, three months to complete the two trompe l’oeil murals, which grace either side of the altar.

Trompe L’oeil in French means “to fool the eye.” It is an illusionary style of paint-ing, dating to around 50 B.C., that depicts

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objects as three-dimensional. The painting to the right of the altar is of

Jesus with Mary Magdalene after his res-urrection. On the left, he is talking with the woman at the well. Each scene appears to be surrounded by an ornately gilded frame, an illusion attributed to the trompe l’oeil style.

The only expense incurred by the church for this detailed work was Malmede’s room

and board at a local hotel. Eighty-eight years have passed since the

church was completed, and it remains one of the most beautiful in Chilton County, but a building, no matter how beautiful, does not constitute a church. People make up the church, and there is still life in this one.

According to Pastor Larry Anderson, the reason for the church’s growth is, “because

we offer ministries that meet the needs of the 21st century – practical needs for the lives of people today.” In addition to the “vital traditional service (which is) held in a beautiful building,” the church also offers a contemporary service, called Hy-drate; a Hispanic service; AWANAS; and Upward Basketball. Divorce care and the Dave Ramsey course on financial freedom have also been offered at the church. n

The stained glass windows at Clan-ton First United Methodist Church were recently determined to be “irreplaceable” by one insurance estimate. The win-dows depict vari-ous scenes from the life of Christ, including 12-year-old Jesus visiting the temple courts and Jesus praying in the garden of Gethsemane.

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The restaurant business is not for ev-eryone. Actually, the restaurant busi-ness is not for most people.

Gunay Clay, owner of Cattleman’s Steak House in Clanton, estimates 90 out of 100 people that show interest in serving food can’t handle the rigors associated with the job: remembering the requests of several tables worth of customers, working with the kitchen staff to get orders out as quickly as possible, and handling complaints as they arise.

“Anybody can handle a table or two,” Clay said. “But you can’t make money or make a ca-reer waiting on two tables at a time. The stress

underfire

Restaurant staff takes a lot of heat

WRitten by Stephen dawkinSPhotogRaPhs by Jon GoerinG

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level gets real high if you want to make money, and it takes handling 30-40 tables in a short time to make some money.”

As is common practice in the in-dustry, rookie servers spend their first few days following around a seasoned co-worker. That’s enough for some to decide they should look elsewhere for employment; others at least make it long enough to be-gin working on their own.

But it’s clear that most servers don’t last long; Clay said he’s read the average expectancy for a server to remain at a restaurant is 42 days.

And serving is just one aspect of running a restaurant. There’s also cooking the food, ordering the in-gredients and marketing.

“It’s the hardest business in the world,” said Clay, who has run Cattleman’s for 13 years now, after managing many other restaurants. “People don’t have a clue about res-taurants. They think you walk in and order a hamburger and that’s it. But you’ve got to buy the meat, you’ve got to cook the meat, you’ve got to buy the bun, the lettuce, the tomato. Then you’ve got to hire someone to take the hamburger to the customer. You’ve got to buy the napkin.

“It’s a totally different breed of business, the hardest in the world. I don’t wish anybody to get in the restaurant business—for the simple reason of all the items you have to buy, all the ingredients you have to put together to make a hamburger.”

Clay’s experienced opinion of restaurant management makes the success of Nickki Gore even more impressive.

Gore and her father, Larry, bought the restaurant that is now Main Street Café seven years ago with the plan of running the establishment together.

Larry found out the business wasn’t for him and went back to his former job outside the food indus-try. Nickki, though she had never worked in a restaurant before, loved the experience and has no plans to

Recipes used at Main Street Cafe are either dishes traditionally cooked at the location or were brought by owner Nickki Gore when she bought the restaurant in 2004.

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give up her restaurant anytime soon.“I loved cooking at home; I grew up cook-

ing,” Gore said, “but I never knew what hard work it was running a restaurant. When you go in and eat in a restaurant, you don’t realize what work is behind it.”

Gore is the manager, but she performs ev-ery duty required to run such an establish-ment, right down to washing the dishes.

Gore brought some recipes to Main Street Café, but others are courtesy of a longtime

employee, Louise White, who worked in the location for more than 40 years when it was Strength’s Country Café and even before then. That’s her tomato and okra gumbo on the menu, as is the chicken and dressing.

“I couldn’t have done it without her,” Gore said about White, who is retired now and living in Verbena. “I’m blessed. Al-most everybody that works here worked for the previous owner.

“They feel like part of the family. I try to treat them as I would want to be treated.”

Holding onto longtime employees, at least for two local eateries, is the only way to avoid the resources wasted in training new servers who usually don’t last.

“The way I see it, you spend a lot of time and money training somebody,” Clay said. “If you don’t keep them, you wasted your money and you trained them for your com-petitors.” n

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FAMILy PRACTICEJ

ohn Hollis Jackson didn’t grow up necessarily planning to be a lawyer.

“I think it was one of the interests I had at the time,” said Jackson. “I

decided to apply and was admitted.”For his son, Hollis Jackson, the legal pro-

fession is something he has been around since birth.

“This is a family business, which I was always around growing up,” said Hollis. “I would come here in the afternoon after school and do odd jobs.”

Together, Jackson and Jackson, LLP, rep-resents the government of Chilton County and all four municipalities in it: Clanton, Jemison, Thorsby and Maplesville.

The elder Jackson decided to return to his hometown in the early 1970s, after com-pleting an undergraduate degree from the University of Alabama, a two-year stint in the Army and UA’s School of Law.

Jackson has represented the county for more than 30 years and moved into his cur-rent office on Second Avenue South in 1975.

Hollis said his father inspired him to be-come a lawyer.

“He truly enjoys the legal profession,” Hollis said.

After completing degrees at Southern Methodist University near Dallas and Faulkner University’s Jones School of Law, the younger Jackson said there was never any question about where he would practice law.

“I’m not sure I would be interested (in practicing law) if I could not practice with my dad,” said Hollis. “If I couldn’t have done it on those terms, I’m not sure I would have.”

In addition to representing local gov-ernments and the Chilton County Board of Education, the Jacksons also do a fair amount of probate and real estate law.

However, their work with municipalities takes a good portion of their time — and requires them to be on call 24/7. They help with day-to-day problems, paperwork and all sorts of other things that pop up.

“All these people have to deal with an incredible amount of red tape,” said John Hollis Jackson.

Over the years, the law firm has worked with many, many different leaders, but the elder Jackson said they all had one thing in common.

“I don’t think I’ve ever worked with a public official who wasn’t dedicated to the task,” said Jackson.

Hollis said technology has changed sig-nificantly, too. He contrasts having to go to the probate office and check hand-written deeds done in days past to how everything is done on computers today.

“The county has grown so much,” said John Hollis Jackson. “The technology has helped us tremendously.”

Despite being on call around the clock, the Jacksons say they try to keep work and family separate — they’re not talking about cases and files around the Thanks-giving table.

“That’s usually not in our discussion (at home),” said Hollis. “We like to leave it at the door when we leave.”

John Hollis Jackson said his firm’s work with local governments sometimes makes it more visible in the community, but that Chilton County has a great legal commu-nity, which deserves credit for the work it does.

“I think we have a good bar here and do things to help people every day,” said John Hollis Jackson. n

Jacksons have represented county for three decades

Written by & PhotograPh by JusTIn AvERETTE

John Hollis Jackson and Hollis Jackson in front of their law office in Clanton.

SMALL TOWN, big past

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Verbena founded by those fleeing yellow feverF

or a small community, Verbena is packed with history.

The village was founded in the 1870s by affluent Montgomery

residents escaping the ravages of yellow fever in what was then the largest city in Alabama.

People that intended to stay only a sum-mer in the area decided to make it their permanent residence, and the community was named after a purple, fragrant flower that grew in abundance in the area.

Verbena was once home to hotels, a train depot, stores, doctor’s offices and a bank.

Even before the Montgomery trans-plants, Verbena was the site of history. Poet Sidney Lanier, suffering from tuber-culosis, lived in the area for a year trying to regain his health, according to an ar-ticle published in the Independent Adver-tiser in 1988. Two of Lanier’s poems, “A

Ballad of Trees” and “The Master,” were said to have been based on Lanier’s time in what would become Verbena.

There are many such stories of the small, unincorporated community in Chil-ton County, and the Verbena Historical So-ciety is working to keep today’s residents aware of this rich history.

“We started out as just trying to let peo-ple have a touchstone with their home-town,” said Mary Kate Weir, a member of the Verbena Historical Society. “A big part of the club is wanting children to know what the history of Verbena has been. Kids now have so little connection to their hometown.”

The club has developed two websites, verbenahistoricalsociety.org and a Face-book page. The sites allow current and former residents to connect and become involved with the club.

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The town of Verbena has a long and rich history. The community was founded by affluent Montgomery citizens fleeing yellow fever in the 1870s. The Verbena Historical Society works to keep today’s residents aware of the town’s unique heritage.

43ProgressThe society itself was founded in the

1970s around the time of the country’s bi-centennial celebration.

Verbena has since been designated as a historic site. In 2010, the club held four Music in the Park events at the historic ga-zebo in the center of town. At the last of those events, a sign was erected that tells some of the history of the village.

“We have found that music is the com-mon language (of all the community mem-

bers),” Weir said. “Our core project is to get people to talk to one another. Music in the Park has come a long way for that.”

Weir and her husband, Bob, moved to Verbena from Birmingham and live in one of the oldest standing structures in Ver-bena. Their house was built circa 1876, and a cabin on their property goes back about 45 years earlier. Perhaps the most recog-nizable structure is Verbena Methodist Church, which was built in 1873.

There’s likely more Verbena history than even the historical society can con-fi rm. For example, the article in the Inde-pendent Advertiser mentions a mine in the community that was the largest producer of gold in the state. The mine was suppos-edly named Repito and was worked by Wil-liam Lanier, uncle of the poet Sidney, from 1835 to 1849.

It’s one more chapter in Verbena’s long, and perhaps surprising, history.

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Much work goes into the produc-tion of peaches, Chilton Coun-ty’s most famous crop.

But factors beyond the con-trol of peach growers play just as impor-tant a part.

“You do the best you can,” said Jim Pitts with the Chilton Research and Extension Center, which aids local growers in their efforts to produce the best harvests pos-sible.

During winter, peach trees need a cer-tain amount of time—at least 1,000 hours, depending on the variety—with tempera-tures near freezing. Chill or dormant hours are calculated from Oct. 1 through Feb. 15. Temperatures need to be below 45 degrees to count toward the total.

If trees don’t receive enough cold tem-peratures, they will display an extended bloom period, and the peaches will be long and pointed. An ideal amount of dormant hours produces a “popcorn bloom,” where trees bloom suddenly and all at once, and fruit that is desirable in appearance.

If the middle of February is approach-ing and growers know their trees haven’t had enough dormant hours, they may con-sider a product that is applied to trees that makes them behave as though they’ve had more dormant hours.

“They’re all the time looking at what va-riety they’ve got and when they’re coming off, and they’re all the time juggling to see what is going to be the best thing to do,” Pitts said.

If trees receive too many dormant hours,

they may bloom too early and be subjected to the growers’ worst fear: the late freeze, occurring in late March or early April.

Two to three weeks after the bloom, the fruit has begun to grow, shedding petals and the shuck that protects the bud. That’s when the peaches are most vulnerable.

They can withstand some cold, but tem-peratures at 28 degrees or below for as long as two hours will begin killing the fruit.

“You may have some trees that are up against a tree line or close to a barn, and you may have some that are in a low lying

area. That can affect the temperature,” Pitts said. “But you don’t want to get close. That’s why you’ll bring in a helicopter and use wind machines.”

Pitts said two years out of every five will see a late freeze that damages a year’s crop. Some late freezes are worse than others. Pitts said there have been about four re-markably damaging freezes since he came to the Extension Center in the 1980s.

2007 was one such freeze.Peach grower Henry Williams has seen

plenty of freezes. His father purchased an

The big freezeLate season cold snap can destroy crop

Written by Stephen dawkinS | PhotograPhs by advertiSer Staff

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Chilton County peach grower Henry Williams and other growers use several techniques to protect their crops, including burning coal piled up throughout orchards. Frost presents a threat in late spring after peach trees have already started producing fruit, which would be available for harvest in late May or June. Above, a basket of June peaches from last summer.

orchard in 1955, and Williams was born in 1956. Other than seven years Williams spent in school, he’s spent his whole life in an orchard.

“I got out [of college at Auburn Universi-ty] on Valentine’s Day in 1982, and I started working in a peach orchard the next day,” he said.

Williams, who works orchards in the Col-lins Chapel community and at the south-ern edge of Thorsby just off Highway 31, said hail is also a concern during the for-mative stages of the peach crop. Williams remembers a year in the early 2000s when a late freeze was forecasted and he used his wind machines and borrowed helicopters to save his crop.

“Maybe three-fourths of the county lost their crop that year, but I actually made a full crop. I was very, very fortunate,” Wil-liams said but then remembers how there is no room for complacency in the peach growing business. “Everything I saved that year, I lost the next year to hail.”

Even if a freeze kills some buds, grow-ers will go through and thin the trees of excess fruit so what is left can grow big-

ger and so the tree can be picked more efficiently. This step requires more hired labor than actually harvesting the fruit,

Williams said. Pitts said an average tree produces about

4,000 flower buds, but growers keep only

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47Progressabout 5 percent, knocking the rest off within a six-week time period with a plastic wiffle ball bat or a piece of piping.

“If you don’t go through there and do that, you’ll get those ‘ping-pong’ peaches,” Pitts said, referring to the peaches’ small size. “Folks want them big, and the bigger they are, the better they are.”

There are 30-40 commercial peach growers in Chilton Coun-ty, claiming between 2,500-3,000 acres of land. Pitts said there was a time, as recent as the 1960s, when that number was more than 30,000 acres.

An average acre contains 100-150 peach trees, and the aver-age tree produces about eight baskets of peaches per season. So, Chilton County land yields about 2.75 million baskets of peaches every year.

Pitts is a friend to the grow-

ers, and his advice is usually treasured, but one of his points probably falls on deaf ears.

“The growers would all do bet-ter if we all ended up with half a crop,” he said. “Then, your sup-ply doesn’t exceed your demand, you can set the price where you want it. You don’t have to thin them as much.

“It can be a blessing (for a late freeze to kill a portion of the crop). Of course, you hope that you have all of yours and your neighbor doesn’t have any, and that averages up to a half.”

In addition to growing and picking the peaches, Chilton County’s growers must develop relationships with grocers that will sell the fruit to the public, work out a way to deliver the fruit in a timely manner and market their product.

“It ain’t for the faint of heart,” Pitts said. n

Peach trees typically bloom in early spring, turning fields a pretty shade or reds, purples and pinks. Trees have bloomed as early as February during mild winters.

On page left, Chilton County peach grower Henry Williams demonstrates how to tell if young peaches have been dam-aged by freez-ing tempera-tures.

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SEEING IS BELIEVINGLions Club works to help people see

Looking into Clanton’s 40-member Lions Club, you will find a group of men who are passionate and dedicated to their organization

and to helping others see the world more clearly.

“The Lions Club International is all about sight,” said Bob Stone, Clanton Li-ons Club member. “The tentacles of eye care are far reaching in serving the com-munity.”

The Lions assist needy individuals in

the community who are at risk of losing their sight with obtaining glasses, eye treatment, exams, surgeries and other vi-sion correcting solutions.

“The motto of the Lions Club is ‘We Serve,’” said Stone.

The Alabama Lions Sight Conservation Association, a non-profit state project of the Lions Club of Alabama, is the No. 1 service project for the club and has fund-ed the necessary eye care for low-income adults and children for more than 60 years.

The Lions work close in partnership with Clanton’s local optometrists to pro-vide patients age 18 and under with the proper eye care.

“This service is important, especially today more than back then because of the economic times,” said Jim Driggars, O.D., who has been practicing since 1976 and was the first local doctor the Lions Club partnered with.

“It is important for children, especially because first through 12th grade is the

Clanton Lions Club members gather for a photo following a recent meeting.

Written by thEadorIs morrIs | PhotograPh by stEphEN dawkINs

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LEE HELMS ASSOCIATES

49Progresstime the child is getting prepared for the next 50-60 years of their lives, and if the child cannot see, then it will put them in a deficit in the classroom — then they are crippled for life,” said Driggars. “There is a time frame, and if you lose that time frame, you cannot get it back.”

“Children can’t afford their own destiny, and some parents can’t afford it, so the Lions Club steps in and provides the chil-dren with the examinations and consulta-tions they need,” he said.

Local Clanton resident Debbie Lockhart knows exactly how big of a help the Lions Club and Sight Savers can be.

When Lockhart’s son, Geoffery, was in the fifth grade, he became legally blind with 24/100 vision. He was born with oc-ular albinism, an inherited condition in which the eyes lack melanin pigment. The Lions Club and Sight Savers were able to assist Geoffery in getting a Closed Circuit Television System (CCTV), a magnifying tool for individuals with low vision.

The CCTV is a video camera connected to a monitor, such as a computer.

The reading material is placed under the

camera, and an enlarged image is shown on the screen. The images and other fea-tures, such as color, text and auto-focusing, can be adjusted.

“The CCTV kept my son from having to go to the Alabama School for the Blind in Talladega,” said Lockhart. “The CCTV al-lows him to put the book under the light so he can see it on the screen. It made a world of difference and was a lifesaver.”

Bobby Martin, Chilton County Probate Judge and Lions Club member, referred the family to Sight Savers and was eventu-ally helped by Sarah Hayes, OD, who works at UAB and Clanton Optical.

The Lions Club provided a quick turn-around for the fifth grader. Within approx-imately a month, he had the $5,000 - $7,000 CCTV, Lockhart said.

“We had no idea where to go or who to talk to about something like this,” said Lockhart. “The Lions Club helped us twice, and Sight Savers helped put it to-gether. They didn’t hesitate; they started that night and worked with us in every way they could. We will never be able to thank them enough.”

Before, Geoffery could not take notes for school and depended on his mother to read, and now he can do those things on his own, said Lockhart.

The CCTV helped the fifth grader gain back his independence.

Since then, Geoffery vision has pro-gressed to 20/100, and he is a college grad-uate from Jacksonville State University.

The Clanton Lions Club has helped more than 1,000 patients over the years and about 70 to 80 patients a year, said Martin, who is also involved in the club’s Eye and Tissue Bank.

The eye and tissue bank provides tis-sue and eyes from donors for research and transplantation to those in need.

Clanton Lions Club participates in nu-merous drives and fundraisers to help and support better eye sight. A recent drive was the “Mission for Vision,” where the Lions collected more than 100 pairs of eye-glasses at Martin Funeral Home and the Chilton County Probate Office in support of the Alabama Sight program. The glass-es were given away during mission trips to people who needed them. n

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Owner Danny Edwards makes nu-merous phone calls to customers regarding their merchandise, while salesman Brian Wyatt

places jewelry in its proper casings. After the daily cleaning rituals, repair-

ing jewelry, checking emails, calculating totals and daily book readings, Edwards Jewelers illuminates its neon “Open” sign and starts the day.

“It takes a lot of prep time to get the store ready for business,” said Wyatt. “Presenta-tion is key.”

Edwards Jewelers is a multigenerational family business located in downtown Clan-ton established by Eddie Edwards and his brother-in-law, Buck Daniel, 60 years ago.

Customers can find the latest jewelry trends and order custom made pieces at Edwards Jewelers, whose showroom is blanketed with some of the finest name brand jewelry and timeless pieces.

Well-known companies such as Sara Blaine, Pandora, Natalie K. and five state-of-the-art watch brands can be found in its showroom.

In 1950, what used to be Edward and Daniel Credit Jewelers began with two showcases located in Chilton Home Fur-nishings. Between 1951 and 1952, the duo rented the store next door on Sixth Street, but in 1953, Eddie Edwards bought out his partner and changed the store’s name to Edwards Credit Jewelers.

In 1968, the store moved again to its pres-ent location, the old Wright Drug Store.

“The first four years of business I can imagine were pretty hard,” said Stacey Watson, Eddie’s grandson, who took over the store in 1991 with his uncle, Danny. “But for the past 20 years we’ve had it made. We’re lucky to have the citizens of

this community and the pull in surround-ing areas because we have been here for so long.”

The store hasn’t seen too many struggles throughout the years and prides itself on being strong and successful, said Watson.

“We’ve always done pretty well,” he said. “Even when the market crashed three years ago, we were only down for a couple months.”

The store was remodeled in 2010, and the

latest diamonds, watches and silver trends have been added. The store has a full-scale jewelry repair trade shop with the latest laser repair technology in place. The store buys, sells, appraises and repairs jewelry.

“We were here yesterday, today and we will be here tomorrow and for the next 60 years and beyond,” said Watson. “We want to serve the community and meet their needs. We’re dedicated to staying here.”

In contrast to the multigenerational

What makes small town downtown work?window shopping

Stacey Watson repairs jewelry in Edwards’ repair trade shop located in the back of their multi-generational jewelry store located in downtown Clanton.

Written by theadoris morris | PhotograPhs by Jon goering

52 Progressbusiness located in downtown Clanton, The Nerd Guy is quickly finding its place in the community.

“We do not sell computers,” said Rebec-ca Montalbano, co-owner, as she laughed. “Other than that, we do everything for com-puters from repairs, upgrades and virus cleaning to virus protection upgrades.”

Customers who have damaged their lap-tops and have data they want retrieved off the laptop’s hard drive can take it to The Nerd Guy, located on Second Avenue, and have it retrieved.

“A lot of times when people bring us a machine, it’s an older machine and we only charge $25 for a diagnostic,” said Montal-bano. “We do not charge by the hour and that has helped our business out a lot here in Clanton.”

Chris and Rebecca Montalbano started The Nerd Guy in Vestavia and operated there from 2001 to 2006. They established their niche early on because of Chris’s work with Southern Networking Services, a large networking firm that solely worked with large corporations. The couple noticed the lack of companies addressing the home market, so they chose to specialize in home network, single office and home office. They provide service to doctors’ offices and indi-viduals, and have had a couple of large ac-counts.

“We came to Clanton because I’m from here; I graduated from Verbena,” said Mon-talbano. “This is a great solution for us without having to move all the way to Mont-gomery for his job.”

Shortly after, Chris, “The Nerd Guy,” who has been in networking for 20 years, landed a contract with Colonial Bank, so the couple shut down their operation as a business but kept their corporate identity.

After the collapse of Colonial Bank a year ago, Chris’ contract ended, so the couple de-cided to get The Nerd Guy back up and run-ning.

“There has been an amazing number of clients that have done business with us right here in Chilton County,” said Montal-bano. “It’s deceptive because we have such a large area and it’s far in between businesses so you don’t think there are that many busi-nesses, but our client list here is a complete-ly separate group of people from our Bir-mingham client list and it’s almost as big. We are really thrilled with that and thrilled to be able to be here and be a service for the community.”

What The Nerd Guy lacks, unlike an old-er business, is word of mouth advertising, which is vital in a town like this, said Mon-talbano.

“But what we lack there we have in exper-tise and experience with technology,” she said.

Chris has numerous advance certifica-tions. For example, he is a Microsoft cer-tified engineer. The company’s lead tech, Tammy Carden, has worked as a tech for Staples for four years and while working for them performed internal training and gained expertise.

“It’s one thing to know something; it’s an-other to have a plaque on the wall that says

you know something, so that’s a really big deal for us, establishing this business as we do know what we’re doing here and we’re here to stay.”

The business has two full-time techs, Carden and Patrick Banks. Stacy Owens is the manager, and they all have their areas of expertise.

Since moving to Clanton, the business has had its struggles trying to stay afloat in the economy.

“When we started, we had some really slow months, so slow that we had to tell our landlord when we moved here to please start us out on a six-month lease,” said Mon-talbano. “The slow months are a part of any business. We’ve had so many people in the community come and say, ‘We’re so glad you’re here; we need you here,’ and that’s a huge encouragement when everything else is not looking well,” she said.

One of the business’ short-term goals is to expand its hours so students can use its free unlimited Wi-Fi connection, and a long-term goal is to add more services for busi-nesses, such as a place to make copies be-cause that is a complete void for the Chilton County area, said Montalbano. n

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It’s a condition that some parents are embarrassed to discuss, but fam-ilies and teachers are facing the challenges of Autism every day.

Ginger Welch, a local Clanton mother who has been dealing with Autism for four years with her son, opens the doors to their home and

allows the world to take a look inside.Welch’s son, Casen, will get over-stimulated in an active environment

and withdraw, and when he is feeling a lack of stimulation he will start “stimming,” doing little things to stimulate himself, such as tapping on things, jumping up and down or making noises.

“He needs a lot of physical activity so we try to keep him occupied,” said Welch. “When he needs deep pressure, he hits and jumps. We do the wheelbarrow, where I hold his feet and he walks on his hands. This puts pressure on his shoulders and is playtime for him because he does not have ‘pretend play.’”

Autism does not stop once a child leaves the home; teachers who teach special classes also face unique challenges in the classroom.

“Each child is unique; no child is the same,” said Amanda Anderson, resource at Jemison High School. “There are behavioral and communica-tion differences, and it’s a trial and error process on how to communicate with each child individually.”

The biggest test is to challenge students without making them feel chal-lenged, because if it stresses the student, he or she will throw tantrums, get frustrated and quit working with you, said Anderson.

“With their perception, we don’t always understand how they will per-ceive something,” Anderson said. “They may perceive something totally

LOCKEDINSIDEMore families battle e� ects of AutismWRITTEN BY THEADORIS MORRIS PHOTOGRAPHS BY JON GOERING

56 Progress

Willie and Ginger Welch prepare activities for Casen as he waits patiently. On the previous page, Welch consoles her 5-year-old son, who has been diagnosed with Autism. Right, Casen cleans up after enjoying playtime with his parents after school.

57Progress

58 Progressdifferent. It’s a lifelong commitment with the child and parents because everything they do has to revolve around the child and the behavioral challenge they face. Every-thing has to be planned on how the child will respond.”

Other challenges in the classroom in-clude fire alarms, running out of some-thing on the menu, liking or not liking something someone else likes, interaction with other children and having to eat cer-tain textures of foods.

“Each child that I have worked with had certain foods they wouldn’t eat. It is known that autistic children like breaded foods, such as chicken nuggets and French fries. It deals with the sensory receptors and how the texture of the food feels in your mouth.”

Each child is an act of patience for every-one involved in the child’s life, said Ander-son.

One in every 150 children has autism in

the United States, said State Senator Cam Ward, who formed the Alabama Autism Task Force and is also involved with the ASA and Autism Council.

“A lot of people rely on teachers, and the teachers wish they had more knowledge,” said Ward. “I have a child with autism, and it has allowed me to get involved with oth-er groups and involved with the Autistic Society of Alabama, statewide advocacy for relations.

“It tugged at my heart for me to get in-volved with the legislative process. It is very important to me and is the highest on my agenda. There are a lot of shortfalls with the government with how we help them, and there are not enough programs or assistance to help those on the autism spectrum.”

With the Welch family, days early in Casen’s childhood were spent trying to regulate his body sensations so he could make it through the day. Their days started

at 2 a.m. because his body no longer knew if it was night or day.

“During the day, I would laugh and make jokes of the obstacles we were facing, and then at night I would cry myself to sleep,” she said. “We did sensory integration ther-apy and floortime until he could function well enough to try other options.”

At the age of 4, Casen was able to attend PALS preschool class at Clanton Elemen-tary and has had breakthroughs between the ages of 4 and 6.

Casen is now in Kindergarten and loves school, Welch said, with a smile on her face.

“If nothing else, this is the message that I would like every parent to remember,” said Welch. “Try everything, and don’t get discouraged when it fails because 99 times out of 100 it will. But when that 100th thing works, the other 99 things will be forgot-ten. My goal will always be complete re-covery.” n

Read Progress online at www.clantonadvertiser.com

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