It’s hard to miss the excitement building all around Leeds these days. From a flurry of business activity around the Interstate 20 interchanges to the commercial district on Ashville Road to the resurrection of downtown as a thriving center, the enthusiasm surrounding the growth is evident.
One of the best examples is found in historic downtown, where specialty shops, popular eateries, old favorites and professional services have found a home.
Leeds is a quaint, little city nestled just minutes from Birmingham and Anniston. Its historic downtown lends much charm with local shops, boutiques and architecture reminiscent of days gone by.
Visit the iconic Pants Store for clothing and shoe brands you know and love, a store that has been in business since 1950. For the past seven decades, shoppers from miles around have made it their destination point because of the selection, customer service and pricing.
Neva Reardon shows off handbag collection at Mum & Me
This family-owned endeavor – still in the same family today – has expanded to Birmingham, Tuscaloosa, Huntsville and Trussville, crediting its longevity to founder Taylor Gee’s philosophy – “always put the customer first and make sure of their satisfaction.”
Then stroll over to Merch Boutique for boutique women’s clothing in sizes XS-3X along with baby up to tween sizes for the kiddos as well as accessories, home décor and more.
Head next door to Mum & Me Boutique for a shopping experience you won’t soon forget. Celebrating four years in business as a boutique specializing in local, Southern and American gifts and crafts, Mum & Me has a little something for anyone special in your life.
Gifts range from baby and infant wear, baby shower gifts and registry, to bath products made in Texas and Virginia, Sorrelli dazzling jewels and a wide selection of jewelry made by American hands. An expanded boutique features beautiful, “wearable” ladies clothing. “We have jeans that fit a lady’s body like she was still 18,” said owner Neva Reardon.
Mum’s Unique Consignment Boutique is the latest sister store to mum & me mercantile. A quaint shop specializing in finer consignments of jewelry, purses, shoes, children’s clothing birth to tween, adult women and menswear – all sporting finer boutique brands. Are you going to a formal or getting married? Mum’s Unique is a first-stop must. And their collectibles are quite a draw.
Hungry or need to satisfy a sweet tooth craving? Stop in at the Three Earred Rabbit for a delicious meal with choices of homemade soups and sandwiches made from scratch, salads and fresh baked goodies that will make your taste buds go wild.
One-of-a-kind cakes and other tasty desserts are made fresh every day.
Mills Pharmacies is your next stop with that hometown pharmacy feel, where everyone knows your name. But the features don’t end there. Mills carries a diverse collection of gift items and greeting cards in addition to filling all your pharmacy needs. Altogether, it’s just what the doctor ordered.
Overstock Mattress is growing in popularity, boasting the best prices around on quality bedding.
Your visit is not complete without a trip to Livery Square and the shop at LA Salon, Flowers & Boutique. This little shop has beautiful women’s clothing, accessories, home décor and gift items as well as offering tanning to keep you looking like you just returned from a well-earned vacation. You can also order floral arrangements for any occasion.
As you stroll these sidewalks throughout the downtown area, you will also find service organizations, a theater and art center, a dental center and all types of services needed in day-to-day life.
Nightlife is growing, too. Rails and Ales is fairly new to the roster, offering food and spirits at this craft beer and wine bar, featuring live music and games as part of its allure. Its entertainment line-up includes a number of local entertainers, and it hosts food trucks in its backyard on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.
Besides being voted one of the top suburbs for young professionals, Leeds has countless amenities to attract from near and far.
“We have things happening on all sides of Leeds, and we want to keep people coming downtown,” said Dona Bonnett, past president of the Leeds Area Chamber of Commerce and a business owner herself. That’s why all sorts of activities are centered downtown, making Leeds more than a destination point at the interstate where Outlet Shops of Grand River, Buc-ee’s, Bass Pro Shops and Barber Motorsports naturally draw crowds.
“We want to introduce them to all Leeds has to offer,” said Sandra McGuire, executive director of the chamber. “We do that by offering all kinds of activities to generate the foot traffic needed to support our downtown businesses.”
She noted that every Monday is Food Truck Monday, attracting food trucks at the gazebo park that offer menus fit for any taste and rivaling traditional restaurant fare.
Every Thursday during harvest season, you’ll find 6th Street block just outside the chamber making way for fresh fruits, vegetables and homemade treats at the Leeds Farmers Market, a venue for local farmers and makers from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.
In October, thousands come out for the trick or treat event for Halloween with games and candy for the kids, a movie and food trucks cooking up something special. And there’s a popular carnival in the fall, too.
On Nov. 13, thousands more are expected to turn out for a major car cruise-in by C&C Motor Co., “Cruising for Toys.” Admission is a toy for the cruise-in, which will provide Christmas gifts for kids in Leeds. Two hundred to 400 cars are expected. Food trucks, street vendors as well as a Christmas Open House with downtown retailers and other businesses open to greet visitors and shoppers to kick off the holiday season. A parade of cars is planned with Santa and the city’s tree lighting to round out the festivities.
It’s all aimed at bringing people and businesses together, Bonnett said. The chamber’s Retail Development Committee meets regularly to generate ideas and create projects that can cross promote and help one another.
“We’re all in it together,” she said, noting that they can pool advertising dollars and resources. “If we work together, we can achieve more. It’s about how we can move forward and grow. We have a wonderful little town. There is a lot going on. We invite everyone to visit Leeds and see for yourself what people are talking about.”
Col. Robert L. Howard State Veterans Home still a standout almost a decade later
Story by Carol Pappas Staff photos
When the Col. Robert L. Howard State Veterans Home opened in 2012, officials knew it would usher in a new era for the region. The state and nation, really.
After all, this cutting-edge concept in state veterans homes was the pioneer, leading others to fall in line and follow suit.
It wasn’t just the breathtaking design – more like an exclusive mountain lodge and resort town than a nursing, assisted living and memory care facility. It was the realization that finally, veterans had a home worthy of their service to the country.
In the years that have followed, others saw it as a model, an idea that has grown and thrived around the country. Here at home in Alabama, the state is getting ready to open its fifth state veterans home in Enterprise. And it’s no surprise that the model in Pell City became the inspiration.
“If you ask veterans where they would rather be, their answer would be, ‘I’d rather be at home,’” said Rear Adm. Clyde Marsh, commissioner of the Alabama Veterans Administration just before it opened. “We tried to create a home they would like to go to and enjoy. We think the veterans will be happy here.”
He was right. Inside its massive corridors is like strolling through a downtown main street. Glass storefronts reveal what’s housed inside – a beauty shop, barber shop, pharmacy, library, chapel and a café.
The town center is an immense room anchored by a floor-to-cathedral-ceiling fireplace, sitting areas and nooks, a gathering place for residents and visitors alike. Courtyards and covered patios with rocking chairs add to the welcoming atmosphere.
Residences aren’t hospital-style rooms, they are neighborhoods with private rooms, a central kitchen, dining room and living room – just like the admiral said nine years ago, a home.
The home boasts several places to eat and relax.
The $50-million project did not miss its target, providing homes for 891 veterans to date, giving them access from assisted living to Alzheimer’s/dementia and skilled nursing services.
Hiliary Hardwick, director of the veterans home, has served there since the opening. She has played a role in every one of those 891 admissions, she said.
In return, the rewards have been many over the years, she said. “I get to know them and their families and take care of them. I get to know their stories.”
She knows the personal remembrances of D-Day, women who served in World War II, the liberation of Paris, landing on Omaha Beach or the fighting in Korea and Vietnam. They are eyewitnesses to history.
As World War II veterans have aged and passed away over the past nine years, the veterans home staff are seeing rapid changes. “We are having more and more Vietnam veterans,” Hardwick said. Veterans of the Gulf War are beginning to come there to live as well.
“They’re a lot younger – in their 60s and 70s – instead of late 80s and 90s,” and the staff are adapting to their needs. “It’s a different mindset on how to take care of them,” she explained. “They’re more tech savvy. They know about Wi-Fi,” and the changing needs are being met.
They’re more active, she noted, and consequently, activities for them are changing. As an example, she said there are a lot of golfers, so they partnered with the Alabama Golf Superintendent’s Association to design and build a putting green on the grounds. The community joined the effort as well with donations from Disabled American Veterans, American Legion and Pell City Rotary Club.
Community involvement like the putting green project is not unusual at the veterans home over the years, although activity has been significantly limited in the past year due to pandemic concerns.
But in years past, the community has ‘adopted’ the veterans home and its residents, making sure needs are fulfilled – from special events to visits to decorating for Christmas to entertaining or just being a friend.
Just like Rear Adm. Marsh said, it’s their home, and it should befit their service.
Hardwick agreed, talking about the sacrifices they made and the history they’ve experienced and are willing to share. “They’ve lived history, it’s not just something you read in a book.”
Pair of Pell City engineers ‘engineer’ a Grand Canyon adventure
Story by Scottie Vickery Submitted photos
John Jones remembers reading a quote years ago that’s been on his mind quite a bit recently. The gist is that if you pick something to tackle, and it doesn’t seem impossible at the beginning, you didn’t choose something hard enough.
Jones and Dennis Vandegrift, his friend and co-worker, don’t have to worry that they set their sights on something too easy. Their idea to hike the Grand Canyon rim-to-rim-to-rim in two days was a daunting one. Five months after achieving their goal, they’re still amazed at what they accomplished.
Dennis hiking along the North Kaibab Trail, Day 1
“A little over a year ago, (we) hatched an insane idea” Jones said in a Facebook post after returning home. “We thought we should try to hike from one rim of the Grand Canyon to the other and back over two days. 110,000-ish steps, 45 miles, 20,000 feet of elevation change, and I’m not sure how many training hikes and runs later, we did it. I’m honestly more than a little surprised we pulled it off.”
Not many people do. According to the National Park Foundation, a partner of the National Park Service, fewer than 1% of the Grand Canyon’s 5 million annual visitors even venture below the rim – and many of those just hike a few miles. The ones who hike rim to rim, typically over two days, are even fewer.
Then there’s Jones and Vandegrift, who did it twice. They hiked from the North Rim of the canyon to the South Rim in 12 hours, spent the night in a hotel, and hiked back from the South Rim to the North the next day.
“It was cool, but it was a little bit nuts,” Jones said. “The more it’s in the rearview mirror, the cooler it becomes.”
The planning stages
Both Jones and Vandegrift, structural engineers with Barnett Jones Wilson in Pell City, are avid outdoorsmen. Jones, 49, is a hiking and backpacking enthusiast while Vandegrift, 41, competes in triathlons and owns Off-Road Multisport, which hosts swim/bike/run/paddle off-road race events in Alabama and Northwest Florida.
The two are always up for a challenge, and Jones proposed this one. “I mentioned it to Dennis, and it took him five seconds to say, ‘We’re doing it,’” Jones recalled.
They had to work quickly since lodging sells out a year in advance. “We hatched this plan 54 weeks before we could do the trip, so we had to make a lot of quick decisions,” Jones said. “The first day we were eligible, we booked everything.”
Their goal was to hike rim-to-rim-to-rim, but they decided to arrange for a shuttle at the South Rim in case they got there and weren’t up to hiking back. “We thought it would be a cheap insurance plan,” Jones said. Because of COVID, though, there were fewer shuttle options than normal, and all were booked. “At that point, it was all or nothing,” he said.
They began training in earnest. “I felt like I was the weak link,” Jones said. “He could have shown up ready to do it, but I definitely had a lot of conditioning to do. I was more worried about my general fitness level, and Dennis was more concerned about his feet and knees.”
The Grand Canyon hike is different from most, Vandegrift said, and they kept that in mind while training. “It’s like a reverse mountain climb,” he said. “You’re doing the descent first and then the ascent at the end when you’re tired. Normally, you get to the top, and you have gravity to bring you home.”
Another issue is temperature changes. The North Rim doesn’t open until May 15 because it’s got a much higher elevation than the South Rim, and ice and snow can be issues. “The first morning, it was 25 degrees when we left,” Vandegrift said. “By midday at the bottom, it was 90.”
Training included lots of hikes at Mt. Cheaha, and Jones had a previously scheduled hike in Wyoming. He also headed to Clingmans Dome in the Smoky Mountains after planning a hike that mimicked the Grand Canyon one as closely as possible.
“It was about 25 miles with 9-10,000 feet of elevation changes,” Jones said, adding that he started high, hiked down first and then back up. “I figured if I couldn’t do it in the Smoky Mountains when it’s 50 or 60 degrees, I couldn’t do it in the Grand Canyon when it’s in the 90s.”
Hiking the canyon
The two headed to Arizona on May 22. They camped out the night before the first day of hiking, which Jones said was their only big mistake. “We should have stayed in a hotel,” he said. “We had to break camp that morning, which took a long time, and it was cold. We were shooting to leave at 5 a.m. but it was more like 6:30.”
Each carried only the bare necessities in his pack – a toothbrush, water, change of clothes and two days’ worth of trail food, Vandegrift said. They planned to eat dinner at the hotel once they made it to the South Rim that evening, and there were water stations every three to five miles, so they never had to carry more than two quarts of water. “The packs probably weighed 18 or 20 pounds starting out, which is light for a pack,” he said.
John on a bridge crossing on the North Kaaibab Trail
One of the first things they noticed before setting out was all the warning signs around the Grand Canyon. “Hiking to the bottom of the Grand Canyon is optional. Hiking out is mandatory,” one read. Even still, they were determined. “I think where most people get in trouble is when they don’t respect it and understand it going into it,” Vandegrift said. “We knew it was going to be hard as hell.”
By the time they reached the bottom of the canyon on the first day, they were feeling it. They stopped for lunch and a cold glass of lemonade at Phantom Ranch, which offers the only lodging below the rim of the canyon and is accessible only by foot, mule or by rafting the Colorado River. Although many hikers stay the night, Jones and Vandegrift still had the ascent to the South Rim ahead of them.
“At one point we still had to hike nine more miles and gain 4,400 vertical feet to get to the hotel room,” Jones said, adding that the distance included a three- to four-mile section they later learned is nicknamed Heart Attack Hill. “We both had heart monitors on our watches, and they were beating pretty fast,” he said with a laugh.
By the end of the first day, all they could think about was food and a hot shower. “Our hotel room had a claw-foot tub that you had to step into. When we walked in and saw it, we were like, ‘Are you kidding me?’” After a hot dinner and a load of ibuprofen, they went to sleep only to be awakened by horrible leg cramps.
Getting up to catch the 5 a.m. shuttle to the South Kaibab trailhead was painful, and they started the hike in the dark with headlamps. A few miles in, they were rewarded with an incredible sunrise. “There are 360-degree views, and the sun just illuminates everything,” Vandegrift said. “It was incredible.”
Although they had seen some beautiful scenery and a full-size ram that jumped out of nearby brush the day before, they both agreed that the South Kaibab Trail, which is very steep, was their favorite. “In the really steep sections, you could look down and see as many as 10 switchbacks,” or zigzags of the trail, Jones said.
“You could see someone down below, and they seemed so close, like you could throw a rock to them, but they were probably an hour ahead on the trail,” Vandegrift added.
The views were spectacular. “If we had hiked that section and spent twice as much time there, it still wouldn’t have been enough; it was just so scenic,” Jones said. Vandegrift agreed. “You can take a million pictures and it doesn’t begin to capture it.”
Mission accomplished
By the time they made it back to the North Rim about 5 p.m., they were hungry, tired and had a 3-hour drive to their hotel ahead of them. They got a bison burger at a drive-through, turned in early, headed home the next day, and were in the office the day after that. “I don’t think we had that ‘we did it’ feeling until that first day back in the office,” Vandegrift said.
Although they were disappointed that they never saw a herd of bison, which are often spotted at the North Rim, Jones and Vandegrift said they loved the experience and the challenge. “The first three miles and the last three miles each day were the hardest,” Jones said.
Although they pushed themselves, they never considered quitting. “At the end of the first day when we still had a few miles left to go, I was feeling apprehensive about the second day,” Vandegrift said. “But you settle in, get down to business and start walking. It was two really long days of hiking, and there are times we were hurting, but it was never, ‘We’re about to die.’ We never thought that we weren’t going to finish.”
Jones said he was proud of their achievement and the determination that carried them through to the end. “My daughter runs cross country, and she would go to Cheaha with me and Dennis for some of our 13- to 14-mile training hikes,” he said. “She’d be running up the hills, and I was struggling to get up them.
“She saw me struggling in November with something that shouldn’t be that hard if you’re going to do what I signed up to do,” he said. “Then she saw what I did and saw what you can accomplish if you put your mind to it. That’s a pretty good feeling.”
Mud Factor bills itself as a “seriously fun, 5K obstacle run,” and it delivered exactly that.
Despite days of heavy rains leading up to the day before the race, organizers were able to put together a spectacular event at Pell City’s Millcreek MX Park just off the Eden Exit of I-20.
David Carpenter, one of the event organizers, said their run is supposed to be more family oriented than many of the more hard-core obstacle runs and tries to draw a diverse crowd of people who otherwise might not tackle such a challenge.
“We call ourselves a fitness-based entertainment event, very family oriented. Our obstacle course is more family friendly,” he said.
The early runs are for mixed groups of children and adults – people of all ages and athletic abilities. One lap is half the run, and there are no penalties if you opt out of an obstacle.
“One of our MCs says it best: ‘If you are staring up at an obstacle. And it is staring back at you, and you say, ‘Oh heck no.’ You can walk around it,’” Carpenter said.
There are also no 1st-place awards – but everyone gets a medal for finishing.
“The reality is that we are just trying to get people off the couch and have fun with their friends and family. Participants often help each other over the obstacles. There is no 1st place or last place. We are a fun run. No times are kept,” he said.
Don’t be fooled, though, this is still a challenging obstacle and mud run. And though one lap gets you through the entire course with all the obstacles, it takes two go-arounds to hit that 5K mark. Those runs are usually reserved for the afternoon.
Team Jamaica, Russ, Ronae, Sadike, and Sachell at the beginning
The course has the usual suspects of obstacles – mud holes, inclines and ladders, ropes and crawls, walls, and of course, water slides. All the extra rain this year made for some tricky spots – areas that are normally only a couple of feet deep required swimming in some spots. Like the rest of the obstacles, there were plenty of Mud Factor staff on hand, especially around the deep water, to help anyone who needed it.
Safety was always at primary concern. In addition to the staff monitoring the obstacles, there were water stations, places to store you backpacks and gear – the Mud Factor employees had every contingency covered.
For spectators and participants, there were food trucks, music, and the runners got bandannas and free stick-on tattoos.
Despite the weeks of wet weather leading up to the run, the actual day of the event was perfect – clear skies and warm but not sweltering weather – the perfect combination for the perfect outdoors event.
With the increase in COVID-19 cases, event organizers took extra precautions to keep everyone safe – there was plenty of room for everybody to social distance, but masks were required in the starting area where everyone was crowded together at the beginning of each run. Masks were encouraged, but not required, in any areas where people were close together. Nobody was required to run with a mask.
“Mill Creek is the perfect venue right now,” Carpenter said. The park is a top MX competition bike track that is privately owned. Some of the other venues Mud Factor uses are in government-owned facilities and have to follow very strict COVID guidelines. Millcreek did not have such stringent requirements, which made the run much more fun for the participants.
That’s not the only reason, though, that Carpenter likes the park so much.
“It’s ideal. It has good entrance and exits, there is plenty of parking, the track and surrounding areas are dirt with some great terrain,” he said.
But most important is the easy access to water.
“At other parks, we are a national mud-run company, so especially out West, we have to often port in our own water for the obstacles and the mud. That is a lot of water, a lot of work. Millcreek had all of that right there,” he said.
“We are celebrating 10 years this year, and the MX parks are ideal. The tracks are permitted for crowds, they have the parking … it makes it easy.”
Climbing obstacle at Mud Factor run at Millcreek MX park in Pell City
And true to the organizers’ intent, Mud Factor drew people from all walks of life and ages and from all over the region.
One trio was there from Madison because of a bet. Russ said with a smile that he was at the race because “Jamaicans run faster than Americans.” He had bet two of his friends from Jamaica, Ronae and Sachell, that America would win a track event they were watching on TV. “And there they went over the finish line, Jamaica, one, two, three, so here I am,” he said.
One of the things that made the race attractive to that group, who also brought young Sadike with them, was that the course was designed for athletes and non-athletes alike and was just a fun way to get out and get some exercise.
At the finish line, Team Jamaica Ronae and Sachell kept celebrating by throwing themselves back into the giant pool of water that served as the final obstacle, huge grins on their faces, as Russ filmed them from the shore with his phone, a grin plastered on his face as well.
That was the overall feeling from the other runners – a fun, athletic day in the sun and a chance to get out after a long year cooped up at home.
Nicole from Locust Fork said she had heard about the event on Facebook and that she liked the family-friendly atmosphere.
“This is great for kids, a good family event. We can go around any obstacles that are too hard for them,” she said.
A lot of the competitors were there in groups and said they often do these kinds of events together on a regular basis.
Candice, Jason, Lauren and Niles were one such group from Birmingham.
“We have done runs together before. We heard about it on Facebook and decided to come out,” Niles said.
Lauren agreed, “We saw it online, and it just looked like a lot of fun.”
The organizers enjoy the events almost as much as the runners, Carpenter said, and they have every intention of returning to St. Clair County for future mud runs.
“We have been doing this for 10 years. It is a lot of work. If we did not love doing this, we would not still be doing it,” he said. “I definitely see us returning here in the future.”
For people looking for additional Mud Factor races here, Carpenter did say that the events are usually named after the largest nearby metro area – so even though the race is held at Millcreek MX Park in Pell City, it is advertised as the Birmingham Mud Factor race.
Story by Jackie Romine Walburn Discover staff photos
St. Clair County medical practices are partnering with specialists from larger municipal area to bring specialty medicine – from cardiology to surgery to dermatology – closer to home.
“Having the specialists here in our office offers continuity of care for patients, plus convenience and familiarity,” says Pell City Internal and Family Medicine (PCIFM) office manager Terri Woods. “The response from patients is always positive.”
The specialists now seeing patients through PCIFM lease offices at the practice’s facility at 41 Emience Way in Pell City. When needed, the internal and family medicine physicians refer patients to specialists who bring staff and see patients in Pell City on a regular basis.
The medical specialties often needed by patients of Pell City’s internal and family medicine practices include cardiology, orthopedics, general surgery, gastroenterology, nephrology (kidney care), podiatry and dermatology.
Currently PCIFM has five medical specialists who see patients on referrals from the local practice. Each specialist’s offices schedule appointments and have medical staff who come to the Pell City offices.
Medical specialists now seeing patients in Pell City through PCIFM include:
Dr. Karl E. Hofammann III, an orthopedic surgeon who specializes in sports medicine, total joint replacement, hand and wrist surgery and general orthopedics. He practices at Orthosports Associates offices at Citizen’s Baptist Medical Center, St. Vincent’s East and Pell City Internal and Family Medicine.
Dr. Vinh Nyguyen, a general surgeon who focuses on areas and organs of the abdomen and related organs, specializes in invasive or minimally invasive surgical techniques with the latter reducing recovery time and stress on the patient’s body. He has offices in Birmingham, Oneonta and Pell City.
Dr. Raj Patel, a board-certified dermatologist trained in micrographic surgery and cutaneous oncology. A native of Shelby County, Dr. Patel is the only ACMS (American College of Mohs Surgery) fellowship trained in Mohs and reconstructive surgeon in Shelby and Chilton counties. Working with Truye Dermatology, Dr. Patel has offices in Alabaster, Birmingham, Clanton and in Pell City at the PCIFM.
Dr. Alvaro A. Aldana, a cardiologist with Grandview Medical Group. He specializes in intervention with coronary, renal and peripheral vascular disease and is board certified in internal medicine, cardiovascular disease and interventional cardiology. A native of Columbia, he earned his medical degree from Javeriana in Bogotá and completed a fellowship in general and interventional cardiology at St. Francis Hospital in Evanston, Ill. In addition to office hours at Pell City, he sees patients at Alabama Cardiovascular Group in Birmingham and Grandview Medical Group Primary Care and Cardiology Trussville.
Dr. Jay Long, a general surgeon specializing in bariatrics, who sees patients at Birmingham Minimally Invasive Surgery (BMI.com) in Birmingham. Associated with St. Vincent’s East and St. Vincent’s St. Clair, Grandview and PCIFM in Pell City, he provides a one-on-one consultation with all patients to begin their weight-loss journey. He and a multidisciplinary team offers support before and after any surgery with monthly support meetings, nutrition classes and customized high-protein diets.
At Northside Medical Associates, which becomes “Complete Health – Pell City” at the end of August, having specialists on site “helps ensure that the care patients need is convenient, even when being sick is not,” says Clay Barnett, corporate communications manager for Complete Health. It is a primary care medical group Northside joined in October of 2020.
“We strive for easy access and having these groups on our campus certainly makes that a simpler task, especially for our patients who might not be comfortable driving into metro-Birmingham to an intimidating hospital setting,” Barnett adds.
He noted that since Northside joined forces with Birmingham Internal Medicine Associates (BIMA) and Complete Health the group has become the Birmingham area’s leading primary care group. The addition of medical specialists, who lease office space at Northside’s 80,000-square-foot campus on Plaza Drive, complements Northside’s existing state-of-the-art imaging, on-site pharmacy and a 365-day-per-year Urgent Care center serving the people of St. Clair County. The Northside medical practice, founded in 2001 with three physicians, has grown to more than 150 care providers and staff in four medical offices, including Moody, Springville and Trussville.
Northside has more than 12 specialist physicians and practices seeing patients at Pell City offices, says Shelley Gallup, clinical services manager for the practice. The specialist groups lease space within the Pell City facility and respond to referrals from Northside’s 12 physicians and 16 nurse practitioners but are not directly affiliated with Complete Health.
Offering expertise in medical specialties including obstetrics and gynecology, ear, nose and throat, oncology, cardiology, ophthalmology, general surgery, gastroenterology, orthopedics, dermatology, nephrology and podiatry.
Northside Medical Home, which becomes Complete Health-Pell City at the end of August, hosts a multitude of specialties
Now seeing patients in Pell City via Northside and Complete Health are specialists:
Dr. Lewis Schulman, an OB/GYN physician with Grandview Medical Group, who specializes in obstetrical and gynecological care, urinary incontinence management, contraceptive options and hormone therapy.
Dr. Julie Taylor, a board-certified physician in obstetrics and gynecology with Ob-Gyn South and on staff at Brookwood Medical Center and St. Vincent’s St. Clair. Specialties include adolescent medicine, high-risk obstetrics and robotic surgery.
Dr. Justin Aldred, an obstetrician and gynecologist with Ob-Gyn South, has specialties including high-risk obstetrics, laparoscopic/robotic surgery and urinary incontinence.
Dr. Stephen Favrot, an otologist with ENT Associates, treats otologic and general otolaryngologic disorders. His areas of interest include treatment of hearing loss and balance disorders and of tumors of the skull base. He treats children and adults, including cochlear implantation and the bone anchored hearing aid (BAHA).
Dr. E. Scott Elledge, an otolaryngologist with ENT Associates, specializes in head and neck surgery, pediatric ENT, nasal and sinus disorders and allergies.
The campus of Ascension St. Vincent’s St. Clair
Cardiologists with Birmingham Heart Clinic in Birmingham specialize in treating coronary, carotid and peripheral disease with minimally invasive procedures to repair aortic aneurysms (PEVAR), replace aortic valves (TAVR) and transcarotid artery revascularization.
Surgeons from Eastern Surgical Associates of Birmingham specialize in minimally invasive laparoscopic and robotic surgery and operations in the areas of oncology, endocrinology, gastrointestinal disorders and vascular disorders.
Vision First Eye Center is a full-service eye care facility owned by Dr. Mark Bearman and Dr. Mark Mclintock. Vision First’s Pell City office at 74 Plaza Drive, specializes in laser cataract surgery and iDesign guided iLASIK surgery.
“Any person or persons who shall attempt to teach any free person of color, or slave, to spell, read, or write, shall upon conviction thereof of indictment be fined in a sum of two hundred and fifty dollars.”
This doleful Alabama law underscores the importance of education. Enacted in 1833, the law aligned with other Antebellum states’ laws which resulted from literate slave Nat Turner’s brief rebellion of 1831. Until then, slaves could be openly taught to read and write. Turner’s Rebellion ended in three days, and he was hanged.
Sometimes referred to as the “Black Moses,” Nat Turner was literate, preached from the Bible and influenced both races. From his rebellion, slave owners realized that educating slaves was dangerous. Therefore, soon after Turner’s execution, slave states began passing laws forbidding educating Blacks – slave or freedmen. Ex-slave Frederick Douglass would later write, “Knowledge makes a man unfit to be a slave.”
So, it’s no wonder that after the Civil War and toward the end of Reconstruction in Alabama (1874), freed slaves began organizing their own churches and schools. Established Dec. 17, 1868, the Alabama Black Baptist Convention urged their members to foster education through the local churches. In his history, Uplifting the People, Three Centuries of Black Baptist in Alabama, Wilson Fallin, Jr., records: “In 1870, the convention advised its churches ‘to build schoolhouses and churches in their own means, declining all union with others, unless absolutely necessary.’”
In St. Clair County, though, Ashville’s Black citizens had the “union” and support of White citizens in establishing the first school for children of former slaves. Old St. Clair County records show that on April 15, 1872, Pope Montgomery and wife deeded to the Methodist Episcopal Church a building to serve as a church and a school for “colored children.” That church was named St. Paul’s and continues today.
About 90 years later, this school evolved into Ashville Colored High School and in 1965 to Ruben High School.
According to Mrs. Bessie Byers’ valuable handwritten history of the school, the 1872 school began with two teachers who “were qualified to teach by having passed the teachers’ examination.” Attendance increased, and in a few years, more teachers were added, and both St. Paul’s Methodist Church and Mt. Zion Baptist Church served as classrooms for grades 1-7. Students sat on the church benches. Potbellied stoves supplied heat, and the men provided the wood and pine knots for starting the fires.
The school had no PTA, but parents and community came together to support education. Mrs. Byers writes, “The parents began having ‘Saturday Nights at the Hall.’ Admission was 25 cents, and every child who came was given 25 cents to spend on goodies, such as parched peanuts, cookies, and drinks. The money collected went to the teachers to purchase blackboards, chalk, erasers, and other necessities.”
These Saturday nights not only provided teachers with essentials but also brought the community together for fellowship. Those attending enjoyed spelling bees, poetry readings, games and singing. This community camaraderie has all but vanished in the whirlwind of today’s business.
As years progressed, music became part of the curriculum. Many of the students had natural musical gifts though they never had lessons. Mrs. Byers wrote of Ila and Eva Byers, “They could play any melody once they’d heard it, although they’d never taken piano lessons. Each day,” she recalled, “a time was set aside when lessons were put aside and every child sang, filling the building with the sound of beautiful old Spirituals.” She mentions that four graduates of Ashville Colored High School formed a quartet called The Happy Four and sang to groups as far away as Chattanooga. If they added a fifth member, they called themselves The Happy Five.
Margaret Bothwell LeFleur, class of 1963, recounted, “We had a little group of us girls called The Red Skirt Gang, and we used to sing the songs of the day – like Sincerely.” Gloria Williams, Gloria Woods, Pauline Mabry, Doris Turner and Margaret sang with the group.
By 1935, the school needed a new building. Mrs. Byers recorded that the County Board of Education, led by Superintendent of Education James Baswell purchased from Jim Beason three acres on the “hilltop known as Jim Beason’s pasture,” where the Board constructed a three-room frame building.
“It was a neat building,” she wrote, “painted white, with large classrooms and numerous windows. It was known as Ashville Colored High School, with grades one through 12.” The new school had running water but no lunchroom. Attendance grew quickly and the board added two more rooms. Five teachers gave instruction.
Earlier times
Let’s go back to1897 for a moment, for that year in Ashville was born to Wash and Sarah Yancy a baby boy they named Ruben. Sarah Yancy’s 1963 obituary lists Ruben’s siblings: Della Mostella, Gordan Yancy and Myrtis Noble. Ruben was the one destined to move Ashville’s Black school forward in the 1940s when he was known as “Professor Yancy,” principal of Ashville Colored High School.
Information about Professor Yancy remains scant. Where he attended college seems a mystery, although 91-year-old Boone Turner recalls that Professor had several college degrees and “When school was out for the summer, he would take off to Chicago and take up classes.”
He probably started at Millers Ferry, Wilcox County. He was teaching there when at age 21, he enlisted in the U.S. Army on Sept. 28, 1918. Teachers were exempt from registering, but he patriotically enlisted. However, the war ended less than two months later, and he received an honorable discharge on Dec. 26, 1918.
Just where he taught after the war and what year he arrived in Ashville to teach is elusive. By 1947, Professor Yancy had been appointed principal of Ashville Colored High School. Some local senior citizens recall him well. Joe Lee Bothwell recalled, “When he told you to do something, he meant it. He was all about you learning.” Boone Turner said, “I can tell you he was a good man. He was the principal of the school and taught classes.” His influence was on both Black and White communities, Boone said. When White parents whose children needed tutoring in math, they sent them to him for tutoring. Jay Richey, whose dad, J.W. “Shag” Richey, principal of Ashville High School and later St. Clair superintendent of education, recalls hearing stories of the math tutoring and how “extremely intelligent” Professor Yancy was.
As a well-educated, hometown man, Professor Yancy was respected throughout Ashville. Mrs. Byers observed that he “commanded the respect” of both students and parents. He also knew his students deserved a better school building with a lunchroom and library, and he set to work to bring that dream to fruition. “White citizens of Ashville,” Mrs. Byers wrote, “helped Mr. Yancy plan the new building,” which took several years.
When Professor Yancy’s health forced him to retire, Lloyd Newton took over as Principal. On Feb. 26, 1958, Professor Yancy died, never seeing the fruit of his labor.
The community’s love for him moved them to successfully petition the board of education to rename the school for him. Therefore, at the dedication of the new building, Dec. 15, 1965, they changed the name from Ashville Colored High School to Ruben Yancy High School.
Eloise Williams recalled that after integration there was a move to change the school’s name, but Brother Clifford Thomas led the way in gathering petition signatures to present to the board of education to keep the name Ruben Yancy. The board approved. The school served the middle school for some years and now serves alternative education students.
Under Professor Yancy’s photograph in the dedication day program appears these words: “The school is being renamed in honor of the late Prof. Ruben Yancy who was a native of Ashville and principal of Ashville Colored High School from 1947 to 1956. Because of his humanitarian efforts, the community has grown and become a better place to live. His life was an exemplification of all that is embodied in ‘The Teacher’s Creed.’”
Another legend
Professor Lloyd Newton’s education career in St. Clair County made him a legend not only in Ruben Yancy High School but also in the integrated Ashville Elementary School.
Lloyd’s father was a cotton farmer in Sumter County, according to a retirement article in The Anniston Star, Aug. 11, 1985. His mother died when he was three and his father married again.
Professor Lloyd Newton
Erroll Newton, Lloyd’s son, recalled that after his dad graduated from high school, he lived with relatives in Fairfield, where several other relatives lived and worked. One of his aunts recognized Lloyd’s scholastic aptitude and introduced him to the president of Miles College. He enrolled in Miles, lived with his aunt and worked his way through college.
The United States had entered World War II, and Lloyd joined the Navy where he was a first class motor machinist mate for four years. Erroll Newton says of his dad, “During WWII, the military was beginning to integrate all branches of service, and it was in the Navy that he developed his skill as an instructor.” According to the Anniston Star, “After working for Seaboard Railroad, the Navy, and (attending) Wayne State University in Michigan, he landed back in Alabama.” “It was after being discharged after WWII that he began his odyssey to further his career,” Erroll said. “He worked as railroad porter in the Ford Foundry and the Fairfield Foundry, and continuing college in Michigan.”
“Back in Alabama,” Erroll continued, “He ran a nightclub in Fairfield a while before Dr. Bell, president of Miles College, gave him a reference to teach veterans in St. Clair County. A St. Clair News-Aegis article of Nov. 14, 1991, states that Professor Newton returned to his home state in 1947 and that he spent 37 years in St. Clair County education.
Teaching veterans seems to be the beginning of his education career in St. Clair County, but at some point, he began teaching for Professor Yancy and taught until he became principal and was known as “Professor Newton.”
Thousands of children profited from his teaching and mentoring, and each has a memory, as does his son, Erroll, who spoke for himself and his deceased brothers Lloyd, Jr., and Paul when he said, “To me he was just ‘Dad.’ With me not having a mom, he played both roles, and he did a good job. When we came along, he kind of took the reins off, so to speak. It was like, ‘If you want to advance, I’m setting an example for you. You choose your own way, though.’ He was Dad; that was him to me.” And later he was Granddad to Terrell, Chery, Shawn (deceased) and Ryan and several great-grandchildren.
Margaret Bothwell LeFleur credits her teachers and Professor Lloyd Newton at Ashville Colored High School for much of her own success in teaching.
Margaret LeFleur at 75th birthday
“All of our teachers were dedicated,” Margaret recalled. “Mrs. Marcelline Bell taught seventh- through 12th-grade English. We had textbooks, but we didn’t have a library. But she taught us the Dewey Decimal System even though we had no library to use that knowledge in. However, when I went to Bethune Cookman College, I knew how to use that system in a real library! Our teachers knew what we needed, and they did their best to compensate for the deficiencies.”
Margaret’s dad drove her to Attalla twice a week for piano lessons for there was no Black piano teacher in Ashville. She progressed quickly, and as a seventh-grader played for high school graduation. She accompanied the school choir, which Professor Newton directed. In college she majored in music, which led to her career of teaching music in the schools of St. Paul, Minn.
After Margaret’s mom bought her a typewriter and instruction book, Professor Newton helped her learn typing, and she became an office assistant to him during her high school years.
Eloise Williams remembers Professor Newton as one who “set examples for the kids, and he and the teachers did a good job educating us.” She recalled that he disciplined when misbehavior called for it.
She also knew him as the principal of Ashville Elementary School where her son attended the integrated school. “When the law passed,” she said, “the school had to integrate. Our kids had a hard time. The Whites weren’t used to the Blacks, and the Blacks weren’t used to the Whites. It was new thing for all of them. It didn’t work for a while, but then it smoothed out, and they began to get along with each other.” Mrs. Williams is lovingly known as “Sister Ella” in Ashville today.
Most folk from the 1960s years agree that Professor Newton’s respect by both races, his professional demeanor, and his calm guidance helped ease tensions of integration in Ashville.
When Ruben Yancy ceased being a Black school in 1969, the County Board placed Professor Newton over the elementary grades at Ashville High School (grades K-12) where J. W. “Shag” Richey served as principal. When he moved to the central office of the county board, Mr. Keener became principal of Ashville High School and Professor Newton, principal of Ashville Elementary School, where he served until he retired in 1985.
Jay Richey said of Professor Newton, “He was first class, and a loyal school man to my daddy, and I loved him dearly. Whatever job needed to be done, Mr. Newton did it well.”
Recalling his father’s career, Erroll added that his “Dad considered Superintendent D.O. Langston a great asset to him” during his administration, and his “faculty members assisted him over the years.” He also mentioned the love of his “endless number of students.”
Professor Newton’s students and teachers hold his memory dear. Maurice Crim started teaching for Professor Newton in 1957 and described him as “a man of integrity who was very supportive of his teachers. There were no problems for we all got along well there.”
“He had a deep booming voice that made you automatically respect him,” student Joy Walker Raysaid. Others, too, recalled his voice and his love of singing.
Glorine Williams became his daughter-in-law when she married Erroll Newton. “Growing up, I remember Mr. Newton coming to my home, and he always talked about the importance of education, attending school and doing your best no matter what. He believed in helping students, and he didn’t show favoritism with anyone. Everyone was treated equal.”
His teachers at Ashville Elementary speak fondly of him. “Mr. J.W. Richey hired me,” recalls Beth Jones, “but Mr. Newton was my first principal. I remember ‘the Professor,’ as Mr. Richey affectionately called him, as a strict father to his teachers. He also had a firm but kind rapport with his students.
“My first year, I had 43 fourth-graders. That year, Mr. Newton reminded me of something very important. The two of us were standing in the hallway at dismissal time, trying to find ways to get poster projects home. There was one last poster with no way to get it home,” she said.
Margaret Jane Williams Bothwell
“As a new teacher and taking this lighter than I should, Mr. Newton chided me; for that last poster, even though not the best, demanded the same respect as any other. That poster was his work and important to the child. The child who made it was important. As a young, impressionable teacher, I never forgot Mr. Newton’s words to me, words that colored my entire career.”
Susan Kell also has memories of the professor. “When Mr. Newton came to Ashville elementary, I was teaching first grade. I later became librarian and worked with him until his retirement.
“Mr. Newton cared deeply for the Ashville community, especially the young children of Ashville Elementary. The 1970s were before school nurses, so he took care of the sick and all the playground ‘boo-boos.’ He once removed a tick from a child’s ear.
“This, however, is one of my favorite Mr. Newton stories. There was a disturbance in the lunchroom, so I walked to the table to investigate. I heard, ‘Is too.’ ‘Is not.’ ‘We do.’ ‘Do not.’ I asked, ‘What is the problem?’ and a child replied, ‘We do have a school doctor, and there he is,’ as Mr. Newton walked into the lunchroom.”
“He wore many hats other than principal – teacher, friend, counselor, singer, and yes, medical doctor!”
Professor Newton retired in 1986 and continued his influence in St. Clair County through the Alabama Retired Teachers Association, serving on the Committee for Protective Services, and in service to his church.
As a man of Christian faith, Professor Newton served as deacon and Sunday school teacher at Mt. Zion Baptist in Ashville. Well known for his basso profundo voice, he sang in the church choir and often sang solo.
Combining his love of singing with his love of children, one wonders if when he arrived at the empty school some mornings, he may have voiced the old children’s gospel refrain:
Jesus loves the little children,
All the children of the world,
Red and yellow, black and white
They are precious in His sight,
Jesus loves the children of the world.
“Children are the greatest thing in my life,” Professor Newton told Viveca Novak of The Anniston Star, and his loving influence continues in the multitude of lives that he touched in his lifetime.
