Backwoods Whitetails

Deer farm in Odenville building a brand, bringing visitors’ smiles

Story  by Carol Pappas
Photos by Susan Wall
Photos courtesy of Backwoods Whitetails

Drive through the gates of Backwoods Whitetails in Odenville, and you can’t help but sense you are about to witness something very special.

Wind through the property of rolling pastures, a canopy of towering trees lining both sides of the rocky road and pull to a stop at a nondescript barn. Fencing surrounds this farm, and it looks like most others around these parts, but instead of rows of crops growing all around, a hundred pairs of eyes are focused on you.

Fawns, bucks and yearlings wander through fenced pastures, their almond eyes trained on the strangers who have just arrived. Treats thrown in their direction bring them closer, and closer still.

At Backwoods, it’s all in a day’s work – raising prime stock deer from bottle-fed newborns to majestic bucks with racks wider than the length of your outstretched arms.

Owners Dane and Katelyn Dorsett and family are not your typical farmers, they breed deer, which now number 140 head, including fawns. And they sell to other breeders and owners of huge hunting enclosures around Alabama, fetching $4,000 and up each.

It’s not as easy as it sounds, said Dorsett. “It’s a big gamble. I tell people, don’t invest more than you’re willing to lose. One straw of semen to artificially inseminate in hopes of breeding prime stock can cost $15,000. And only 75 percent – “sometimes less than that” – take.

You might call this a family farm business. And you would be right. Dorsett’s wife, Katelyn, assistant principal at Odenville Intermediate School, bottle raises many of the fawns each year for the business they started in 2011.

Her father and three others help Dane with the daily chores of running an expansive deer farm like this that contains 10 pens stretching over multiple pastures.

Macy, the Dorsetts’ dog, hops aboard the all-terrain vehicle, keeping an eye on things and getting out at every stop. “She goes in every pen with me,” Dorsett said. She’s even been known to ‘kiss’ a deer or two.

The Dorsetts’ two boys — Hayes, 3, and Bryce, 1 — play nearby. It’s just another day to them as they round out the picture of this family affair.

“I am looking forward to next year, when I don’t have actual babies and deer babies we’re raising at the same time,” Katelyn said. “I am glad the kids get to grow up around this. They like being outside.”

When her “deer babies” are born, she starts bottle raising them in individual stalls located in the barn. Meanwhile, a ton – yes, that’s 2,000 pounds – of custom deer feed a week keeps the rest of the deer satisfied.

This all takes place on 40 acres in rural Odenville. Dane said the farm’s name came from its location – “the middle of nowhere.”

But around Alabama, it’s quickly making a name for itself, producing superior class genetics in its stock. According to its website, the Dorsetts have been on a “strategic breeding plan using Northern and Texas sires to create a range of genetic crossings.”

And farm visits are welcome daily. August is the busiest time of year when breeders are coming in and out, they are moving bucks and getting ready for breeding, said Dane.

This time of year is a little slower, and the deer actually seem to enjoy the company of admirers passing by on a Saturday morning. Realtor Lyman Lovejoy was among that group. He had brought his stepson and grandkids to experience it.

“This is unbelievable that we have something like this right here in our own backyard,” said Lovejoy. “These majestic animals are a sight to behold, and it’s heartening to know that a young couple can not only make a living but put St. Clair County on the map with this farm. What they’re doing is really impressive – the whole operation.

“And my grandkids see these beautiful deer, and their smiles tell me they think it’s Christmastime and Santa’s on his way!” l

 

New life for Little House

History saved and preserved
in Springville

Story and photos by Jerry C. Smith

The Springville Preservation Society refers to it simply as The Little House, but its transformation from forlorn vintage home to a quaint welcome center and community venue is no small story.

Built in St. Clair Springs sometime around 1880 (or 1835, depending on whom you ask), this homey two-room cottage was destined for demolition. In 2002, Roderick Brown made the society an offer: Move it, and it’s yours, but do it now. His only request was for a marker that acknowledges his gift. He’s since passed away, but a large oval plaque has been placed on the front porch in his honor.

The house was first relocated to the old Springville Lake property, where it underwent major restoration to prepare it for community use. Its windows were replaced with handcrafted copies of the originals. A fine front porch and tin roof were also added.

Springville’s John Trotter, who did most of the carpentry work, remembered those days well, “When we started this project, I was 6 feet, 4 inches tall and weighed over 200 pounds.” Now slimmer and a bit shorter, he quipped, “If we had to do this again, I would probably wind up 4 feet tall.”

A needlework plaque on the kitchen wall says it all: Hard work is the yeast that raises the dough. John, his wife Sara, and Gayle Hammonds were prime movers for the entire project and continue their leadership roles today, but other folks and factions have generously lent their support.

For instance, the magnificent wood flooring in the parlor was donated from a pile of demolition salvage. It was stored in a building belonging to Pearson Sawmill, owned by the family of Carol Pearson Waid, who, with her husband Frank, have worked tirelessly in other local restoration projects.

Originally painted a hideous green color, the 1-by-4-inch tongue-and-groove flooring had to be sanded and sealed, but is now a lustrous vintage pine color, complete with random worm tracks and deeply colored knots.

The Hammonds, the Trotters and other community members have donated furniture, kitchen equipment, labor and other goods and services to Little House, which now sits on land owned by the City of Springville.

Sara says, “A local councilman said (Gayle and Sara) were two of the most determined ladies he’d ever met.” They’ve worked tirelessly for years, seeking donations through local fashion shows and other fundraising activities.

Gayle adds, “For Sara, John and me, it’s been absolutely a labor of love.”

They point out that it’s by no means finished. It’s a perfect opportunity for local civic groups, garden clubs, Boy Scouts, landscapers, grass cutters, anyone with time and willingness to contribute something positive to the Springville community infrastructure.

John, who lives in a vintage home on Gin Street that he also restored, said, “When we got the house, it had no floors or ceilings, no bath and no wiring. We had to install all of it.” He pointed out a ceiling lamp and table lamp, both of which were converted from kerosene to electricity by the same electricians who wired the house using materials typical of rural electrification.

Other than a few comfort additions, such as air conditioning, there is little in the main parlor to betray Little House as being less than a century old. But the similarity ends there as you step into a modern kitchen, complete with microwave and refrigerator, then into a new bathroom, which is a story unto itself. The Society had intended using Little House as a welcome center on the old Spring Lake site, but found that it was not legal to install a septic system so close to the city’s water supply, thus the move to another location.

In 2012, the new front porch was removed, and the house was moved to its present location at 66 Walker Drive, just west of downtown Springville. Restoration work continued until recently, adding the restroom, floors, ceilings, a handicap ramp and reinstallation of the front porch. 

Gayle says it will serve several community functions. For one, it will be opened as a welcome center anytime there are large events, such as block parties, 5k races and Homestead Hollow events.

In addition, its main purpose is to serve as a rentable venue for small community group functions, including club meetings, showers, parties and other gatherings. Although actual occupancy is limited by fire law to 16, Gayle says there is ample level lawn space for tents, booths, outdoor festivities and overflow crowds.

Their brochure suggests wedding ceremonies on the front porch with bridal preparation inside, birthday parties, intimate dinners, anniversaries, child tea parties and any other functions not involving huge crowds.

Catering is available from The Choppin’ Block’s amazingly varied menu, or you can bring your own and use the in-house refrigerator and microwave. A limited number of chairs and tables are provided. For information or reservations, contact Sara Trotter at 205 467-3000.

Both Sara and Gayle emphasized that a quick private tour can easily be arranged at very short notice by phone, either to Sara or to Gayle, at 205-937-3071. Gayle adds, “We all live less than 10 minutes away and would be glad to meet you there.”

To reach Little House, go west from the four-way stop in Springville for about a quarter mile, then left on Walker Drive. The house will be on your immediate right. GPS coordinates are 33.76511N 86.4802W.

Editor’s Note: We are sad to report that Mr. Trotter passed away in late August, a few weeks after our story interview.

 

A Century of Panther Football

Story by Paul South
Photos by Mike Callahan
Submitted Photos

In the 1970s, like generations of little boys before and after him, David Gulledge lived for fall Friday nights and Pell City High School Panther football.

Growing up in Avondale’s Mill Village, the gleam of the stadium lights was for Gulledge and his pals, the stuff of hopes and heroes. And joy could come from something as simple as a shred of fabric from Panther running back Wayne McCoy or quarterback Jay Grogan, or future Florida State All-American Ken Roe.

“When I was a kid growing up, that was back when they had tear-away jerseys,” Gulledge said. “I remember looking up and admiring all those folks. I was one of those little kids standing by the fence waiting to get a piece of one of those tear-away jerseys.

“If we were fortunate, we’d get the whole jersey, tie it into a ball and go play football up on the hill,” Gulledge added with a laugh. “Friday nights, as in most towns, mean the town shuts down and comes together.”

Gulledge would grow up to be one of those Pell City Friday night warriors, a three-year starter at quarterback who would later play at Jacksonville State and in the NFL. His is just one of the many stories that course through the 100 years of Pell City High School football.

Friday Night Lights

The impact of Panther football reaches from some not-so-auspicious beginnings – like a 95-7 loss to Anniston Presbyterian in 1921 – to undefeated seasons and to pro football’s biggest stage. Pell City lore includes Bobby Skelton, who quarterbacked Coach Paul “Bear” Bryant’s first bowl team at Alabama. Skelton would later become an SEC and NFL official, part of the crew for one the most exciting Super Bowls, San Francisco’s win over Cincinnati. Grogan would also play for the Tide, part of a host of Panthers who would go on to play college football.

Pell City teams would endure the trials of losing seasons and the triumphs of winning ones. But every game night, the town would come together to cheer the sons of millworkers and merchants, lawyers and doctors.

“Friday night, it’s like the town closes down and everyone is there to support the program and it just kind of brought the community together,” Gulledge said.

Retired attorney Bill Scott knows Pell City football as well as just about anyone. For 25 years, Scott, a former Panther player, helped haul the sideline chains at Pete Rich-Alumni Stadium. Chat with him long enough and he’ll talk about Coach Will Glover, Pell City’s winningest all-time coach, (81-39-6), a mythical state title in 1951 and a tradition of great teams, players and coaches.

The 1951 team, led by All-State end Bobby Golden went 10-0 and allowed only 63 points for the season. The Birmingham News tabbed the Panthers the Class A state champions in the days before the statewide playoff system.

The Panthers made their first playoff appearance in 1974 and captured their first playoff win and region championship the same year. In 1986, Gulledge helped lead the team to its first 11-win season. And in 1993, Pell City earned its first 12-win campaign. Across its history, Pell City has won eight area or region titles, according to ahsfhs.org

Glory Days

Glover led the Panthers in what many consider the golden age of Pell City football. Scott, along with former Panther star Charlie Gray, even helped Glover by scouting the next week’s opponents. Gray “thought the world” of Glover, a beloved Panther head coach, who helped build the stadium with his own hands.

Glover was a fiery competitor, a fever that sometimes spilled into the crowd.

 “We are a country town, but especially back then,” Scott remembered. “People in the neighborhood liked to take a nip or two. And some of them would come to the ball games. Four or five would hang on the fence around the field. Will would get excited, and there’d be some skirmishes on the field. And some of those people on the fence would get a little too inebriated and crawl the fence.

 “I just happened to be the City Recorder (now city judge). A couple of (the fans) got excited and got arrested. They’d come before me and I’d tell ‘em. ‘You tell all your buddies – you know who they are – the next one of them that crawls the fence and gets on that football field, tell ‘em to bring their clothes for six months, because that’s how long I can put ‘em in jail. The next one of you guys that crawls the fence at a football game, you’re going to spend six months in the city jail.’ I didn’t have another one crawl the fence.”

Panther fans had reason to be excited in the Glover era. The 1954 team went without a loss, the only blemish on a spectacular year was a 13-13 tie at Cleburne County. And in 1955, led by senior all-state quarterback Bobby Skelton, the Panthers went 8-1-1.

The World War II generation also played a role in Panther football glory. Some veterans who hadn’t completed high school were able to return to the high school to play football and graduate. The 1946 team under Coach Bill Friedman went 8-1 and defeated rivals Oxford, Leeds and Lincoln along the way.

“I was a scrub on that team,” Scott said. “It was a great team.”

The 1948 team was also memorable, helping establish Pell City’s tradition for great defense. The Panthers shut out Cordova 12-0 in the first game of the season and did not allow a first down until the second half of the second game, Scott recalled.

Defense has been a common thread throughout Panther history, said Scott Adamson, former sports editor at The Daily Home in Talladega. Adamson covered the Panthers for nearly two decades beginning in the late 1980s.

“The one thing I do remember, they always had a good defense, even when they didn’t necessarily have a good season. During the time I was there, they had quite a few losing seasons, but it was very rare when they weren’t competitive,” Adamson said. “And even in their down years, it seems like it was usually the defense that carried the day for them.”

Along with championship seasons and all-star players, Bill Scott tells tales of colorful moments in Panther football, of missed weddings and Scandinavian kickers.

Scott knows the wedding story firsthand. It was his sister Martha’s. And he was the guest who missed the Friday afternoon ceremony. Even brides have to understand the importance of football.

“One of the first games I got to play in, we played Lincoln. My sister Martha got married that afternoon in Tuscaloosa, and I didn’t go to the wedding because I went to the football game and got to play a little bit. She was pretty understanding, I think. She never mentioned that I didn’t go.”

And then, there is the story of Vidar Lunde, the exchange student-turned-kicker. Scott doesn’t remember the opponent, but he remembers Lunde’s kick after a Panther touchdown.

“The ball hit the cross bar. It bounced straight up. The officials under the cross bar apparently ducked their heads. The ball went straight up about 10 yards in the air. It came down on the other side of the crossbar. It was good. But both officials under the crossbar signaled no good. Pell City didn’t get credit for the point.”

From sidelines to gridiron

And Gulledge, who grew from the little mill-village kid clamoring for a scrap from a tear-away jersey into a prep All-America quarterback, college star and NFL draft pick, has a colorful story of his own. Fittingly, it’s about a jersey.

Bill Scott, 1948

“We’re playing at Gardendale, both ranked, in the playoffs, and we go out and warm up in our white away jerseys,” Gulledge recalled. “We come in after we warm up and they’ve got probably the ugliest gold jerseys you’ve ever seen in your life to go with the gold pants we had. The atmosphere in the locker room, just because of the change of the jerseys… it created a lot of excitement and a lot of buzz, and we went on to win the game. But those kinds of memories and the plays that individuals made during high school, those are the things we cherish.”

One-hundred years of precious memories do linger. But more than championships captured and games won, there are generations of lives touched and a community unified. Regardless of the state of the world, color of skin, or station in life, Pell City could always come together to cheer for the Black and Gold. Those were the only colors that mattered.

“I think the main thing is that you’re a part of Pell City football ,whether you are a player or coach, or go to school there or just root for them,” Adamson said. “It is such an integral part of the community. That’s true of a lot of high schools, especially in smaller towns. But it seems for a lot of years, Pell City football was the focus of the community. Even out of football season, people were still talking about it. It was such a legacy situation. You would go to a game, and there were players and fathers and grandfathers who played for them.

“That’s true of a lot of places, but for me as a sportswriter and as someone who lived there, there was no escaping Pell City football. It permeated everything. You learned about the Black and Gold. You learned about the Panthers. It was the pride of the city. Even when the teams didn’t play that well, they still showed up. They still cheered them on. And those kids were looked at like, ‘You’re carrying on a tradition. You may not have the wins that other teams have had, but this is something you’re going to carry with you for the rest of your life.’”

Gulledge, who many regard as the greatest player in Pell City history, gets emotional when remembering his Pell City days. He remembers earning a Pell City letterman’s jacket as a privilege. Lessons learned on the playing field at Rich Alumni stadium serve him to this day as a regional executive for Coca-Cola. He is quick to point out that football, like life, is a team sport.

“(Football) is bigger than one person,” he said. “I’ve been blessed to be surrounded by really talented players, really good teams, really good coaches, through high school, through college and to the NFL at Washington. Now in my professional life, the Lord has really blessed me and shown me favor by putting great people around me.”

When he talks about Panther football’s impact, Gulledge’s voice cracks with emotion.

“As a mill-village kid growing up, there was a time when we were having family challenges and struggles. I was headed down a road of no good. Football was my avenue to get away from those things. Fortunately for me, Coach (Pete) Rich and Coach (Lyle) Darnell and the coaches who invested in me personally and into those other kids in that community and the community as well, for me is what high school football is all about.

“What high school football did for me is give me an opportunity to keep my nose clean and stay out of trouble. It was an avenue that gave me a platform to compete in life. “

Ask Bill Scott about the meaning of Panther football, and he thinks of the nights standing near the concession stand as he readied for another game on the chain gang. The autumn Friday night air was perfumed with the aroma of buttered popcorn, roasted peanuts and steamed hot dogs.

“I’ve told many a person, there’s no place I would rather be in the world at 7 o’clock than right here at the Pell City High School football field on Friday night.”

Pell City Growing

Story and photos by Carol Pappas
Photos by Graham Hadley

Driving around Pell City these days is like being on a tour of a boom town. Rooftops are going up. Steel framework for major businesses is being erected. Construction in various phases is under way in many parts of the city.

And the benefits aren’t lost on people like Brian Muenger, city manager of Pell City.

“We are now seeing through a combination of factors economic properties becoming available that are desirable. They’re coming onto the market, and we’re seeing a lot of focus on investment on US 231 and properties adjacent to I-20.”

In just the northern tip of Pell City on US 231 and I-20 thoroughfares, Town & Country Ford, McSweeney Automotive and Northside Medical Home are looming large on the economic landscape.

The old hospital property fronting I-20 is getting more than a second look of late. “Interested parties are looking that we didn’t have before. Now they’re showing interest.”

Just across I-20, market movement is being seen in the Vaughn and Hazelwood Drive areas. “Property transactions are taking place. People are ready to develop those areas,” Muenger said.

What once would have been a devastating blow – Kmart closing a little further south on US 231 – has the potential to rebound better and stronger than before. A trio of retailers is coming in – Tractor Supply Co., Martin’s Family Clothing and Bargain Hunt. Tractor Supply will occupy the end and outdoor portion of the 90,000-square-foot Kmart space, and Martin’s will bring its regional reputation and department store to 40,000 square feet of it. “Three retailers will almost exceed employment and sales of Kmart. It is a great thing for the community, and it says a lot about our retail community,” Muenger noted.

He turned his attention to Bankhead Crossing, where a new theater, bowling alley and entertainment complex is expected to begin construction soon. The project was delayed due to design revisions, but it appears ready to deliver on its plans.

With a burgeoning Walmart shopping center and surrounding businesses, it is easy to see cause for excitement. I-20 Development President and CEO Bill Ellison, who developed those areas and is continuing to do so, predicted that “the Premiere Entertainment Center will trigger the next tier of retail development along Highway 231 and the I-20 Corridor. I think you will see the addition of more restaurants and retail box stores. It will help expand the tax revenue for the City of Pell City.”

Already, businesses in that area are two of the top three revenue generators for the city, Muenger said. With the rerouting of Hazelwood Drive just across US 231 for improved access to St. Vincent’s St. Clair and the Col. Robert L. Howard State Veterans Home, development in that area is opening up new growth. That project is in the design phase and readying to enter the acquisition phase.

Muenger points with particular pride to the city’s recent Standard and Poor rating of AA Stable. “That’s a top tier” for a city the size of Pell City, Muenger said, and it underscores a strong economy, budget, management, liquidity and weak debt.

“We expect existing business to continue to grow with new business coming into the market,” Muenger said, a prospect that bodes well for the future.

“St. Clair County is often one of the top five counties in Alabama in population growth and median household income. Pell City’s leaders have taken a very thoughtful approach to growth by focusing on job creation, quality of life and safety. When you create a safe community for young couples to start a family and career, it will then become the perfect environment for retailers. We are seeing this more as the Birmingham market continues to grow to the east,” he said.

“Specifically, Pell City has understood that infrastructure is the key to future development and they have always invested wisely in water, sewer, and transportation infrastructure. Many people have already forgotten that at one point the bridge over the interstate had only two lanes. Pell City was willing to invest in its future.

“We believe that, with continued strong leadership from the Mayor, Council Members, City Manager and the entire community, Pell City will continue to grow and prosper.”

LAH Realtor Dana Ellison couldn’t agree more. She and LAH commercial broker Austin Blair have listed what has long been thought of as prime development property on the southern end of the city.

What is known locally as the Cropwell intersection, where 19th Street, Alabama 34 and US 231 South intersect, sizable acreage is being marketed and is expected to fuel substantial growth in that area.

Ellison talked about the potential in terms of convenience for anyone living south of the Kmart development. “It pulls from several counties, like Talladega and Shelby, as well as the residential areas of Logan Martin Lake and southern St. Clair County.”

She noted that when grocery giant Publix decided to locate nearby in what is now the South Park development, “they looked at the demographics of that area.”

And decision-makers liked what they saw.

“We have some key pieces of commercially zoned property on the market at that intersection, providing an opportunity for users needing from one acre up to parcels large enough for an entire shopping center,” Blair said. “It’s a real opportunity for growth.”

Nearby Pell City’s Civic Center and Sports Complex and Lakeside Park draw substantial traffic. Lake residents like the convenience of shopping and doing business in the area, and Ellison sees the properties that are available now as prime spots for medical offices, hardware, convenience stores, restaurants and office space.

“We’re seeing new rooftops,” she said, and demand is resurging. Household income is increasing, and interest in the lake is on an upward trajectory.

All those signs point toward major growth on the southern end of the city, and coupled with the growth on the northern end, Pell City appears to be in just the right spot heading into the future.

“You can get to Pell City from downtown Birmingham in just over 30 minutes most any time of day. Pell City is easy to access via free flowing I-20 compared to other growing areas near Birmingham,” Blair said. “That should continue to promote positive growth.”

 

Northside Medical Home Opening

Expansion creating a special place in Pell City

Story and Photos by Carol Pappas
Photos by Graham Hadley

It is hard to imagine that from a small office on John Haynes Drive, a mere 3,000 square feet, that a sprawling medical home could rise a decade and a half later.

But on Pell City’s north end, the construction seems endless as Northside Medical Associates continues expansion after expansion.

Founded in 2001 by Dr. Rock Helms, Northside has evolved into 80,000 square feet of patient-centered facilities, the latest of which doubles its size and significantly enhances its scope. Northside Medical Home opened in October, fulfilling the next step in Helms’ vision of health care. Official grand opening and ribbon cutting are set for Oct. 24.

At the center of what he envisions is always the patient – comprehensive care, access to cutting-edge diagnostic technology, expanded specialties and an atmosphere where doctors talk to one another for better outcomes for its patients. And all of it is conveniently located close to the patient on a single campus.

“It has always been good to provide a place for patients where they can obtain a full range of medical services at one patient location. This is the next step toward that goal,” Helms said. “We encourage collaboration between primary and specialty care because it enables better quality care.”

The two-story, 50,000-square-foot Northside Medical Home, fronting Interstate 20 on one side and the existing facilities on the other, represents a sizable next step – diverse specialties all under one roof.

In the new wing will be Alacare Home Health and Hospice, VisionFirst Eye Center, Birmingham Heart Clinic, Alabama Oral & Facial Surgery, Southeast Gastro, Eastern Surgical Associates, an expanded Northside Apothecary, and Northside CARE Team with expanded Health & Wellness department. It even has a café coming in January.

Northside Medical Home’s expansion also will include bone density and body composition, infusion suite, and health and wellness classes in its new training center. According to Chief Operating Officer Laura Gossett, the tenants have already expressed interest in hosting events for the public to educate and promote specific health-related topics. “Our training center will be the ideal venue for these types of events.”

Doctors Helms, Michael Dupre and Hunter Russell, along with their nurse practitioners and clinical staff, will relocate to the new building. Doctors William McClanahan, Bob Whitmore and Steve Fortson, along with their nurse practitioners and clinical staff, will expand clinical services in buildings I and II. Also expected are new timeshare specialty physicians from Birmingham and surrounding areas joining the Northside campus Timeshare medical staff soon.

“We want this to be a medical home for patients,” Helms said. “It’s exciting. It’s a more convenient, relaxed setting” than driving to larger, crowded metropolitan areas.

And the end result is an unrivaled collaboration coming together to put the patient at the center of everything they do. Here’s what Northside Medical Home’s newest residents had to say about the new venture:

 

Birmingham Heart Clinic

With the expansion from a time-share rotation space to a full-time 9,000+ square-foot clinic, it will give Birmingham Heart Clinic the capability of offering full service cardiology to the Pell City area. BHC will have anywhere from one to three physicians seeing patients in its new office every day starting in October. 

In addition, the new office space will give BHC the ability to perform a wide range of diagnostic testing in-house, such as nuclear and exercise stress tests, cardiac and vascular ultrasounds, Holter and event monitoring.

“BHC responded to growth in the Pell City area more than eight years ago by opening a clinic, and initially, that volume of patients was served with clinic coverage roughly one day per week,” explained Dr. Jason B. Thompson. “The area has seen remarkable growth and has outstanding primary care with both fueling the development of the clinic space set to open. BHC Pell City will be able to accommodate three full-time providers and offer an array of diagnostic testing, allowing patients to keep their care locally.”

 

VisionFirst Eye Center

VisionFirst’s Dr. Sara Clark Cleghern is looking forward to quadrupling the amount of space her clinic now occupies. It will have its own waiting room, which features an area for children, complete with toys and an iPad bar.

“More” is the operative word at Pell City’s VisionFirst – more examination rooms, more equipment and the ability to do more procedures in-house. With services from primary eye care to surgeons represented, “it will allow us to do more,” she said. And there will be an expanded, comprehensive line of glasses.

Birmingham-based VisionFirst affiliated with Northside in January 2015, and Cleghern came on board in August 2015.

“We love how it integrates patient care. So many of our patients have doctors there. We can talk things over with their doctors.” If there is a problem with eye care that is associated with their primary care, often the answer is just down the hall. In other communities oftentimes that kind of ease in communication between doctors isn’t the case.

As an example, she pointed to a patient with an acute eye problem. The primary doctor referred the patient to Dr. Cleghern, the patient had an MRI in Northside’s Imaging Suite before seeing her, so they were able to have access to all they needed before the exam and diagnosis. No delays.

“It’s really incredible,” she said.

“There is a good community within the clinic, good relationships and the facilities are better,” she added. Outside the clinic, “we love the community of Pell City, it’s close-knit. I love getting to meet patients and see them year after year,” building better relationships and becoming more familiar with their history – medically and personally.

This new clinic will have full vision care with access to comprehensive services – from ocular disease to surgical care.

 

Alabama Oral Surgery

Dr. Chris Rothman of Alabama Oral & Facial Surgery called the move to Northside Medical Home “a natural fit.” He has been practicing in Pell City for 15 years, but was having trouble with infrastructure.

“We needed a new state-of-the-art building,” he said.

They found it at Northside in a 2,000-square-foot suite the practice will occupy. “We like the people. It’s good for us. There is a pharmacy on-site, and patients can have their surgery, go through the drive through to pick up their prescriptions and be on their way home.”

He talked of the strong relationships developed with Northside’s key people. “(Chief Operating Officer) Laura Gossett is fantastic to work with, and (CEO) Rock Helms is great, too.”

 

Eastern Surgical Associates

“Our relationship with Northside Medical is paramount in our quest to service patients in East Alabama,” said Robin Smith, practice manager of Eastern Surgical Associates, which is based in Trussville and expanded to Northside. “Our practice has continued to grow in East Alabama due to the patient, physician and staff relationships garnered while working in the Northside Medical Building.

“We have been able to provide much-needed surgical assistance to patients that otherwise would have had to travel extensively for care.”

 

Northside Apothecary

 Northside Apothecary will be moving to the end cap of the new building with expanded room from its location in Phase II. “We are very excited about moving into our new space,” said Pharmacy Director Bradley Pate. The pharmacy will continue its hours of 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. weekdays and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays. “Being back on the end cap, we are able to offer drive-through services to our patients once again. We are adding a second pick-up window, so you definitely won’t be wasting time waiting in line to pick up your prescriptions or other needs.”

Northside Apothecary will continue to be a full-service pharmacy with a full line of OTC, home-health and compression therapy products. “We will have more retail space and are going to introduce a gift section, which will include items from Willow Tree, Melissa and Doug, an array of gift and greeting cards, and many other boutique and seasonal offerings. We have a wide array of items coming in and changing often, so you are sure to find something for everyone on your list,” Pate said.

Additional space in the pharmacy allows it to expand its compounding services to provide unique and individualized medication options for patients. “We can compound just about anything, from our popular arthritis cream to veterinary medications. Northside Apothecary has always been innovative and continues to integrate technology to better provide for our patients.”

Northside Apothecary has its own mobile app (currently available for Android users and will soon be added to the Apple App Store) that will allow patients to request prescription refills and transfers, set up refill reminders, and connect on Facebook and Instagram. Patients also have the option to sign up for free, weekly e-newsletters, which incorporate health-related articles and medication information.

“Northside has become a destination for health care in St. Clair County, and Northside Apothecary wants to become the premiere pharmacy in the area,” Pate said. “Our relationship with the practitioners at Northside allow us to always provide exceptional care for our patients. We love our patients and will continue to be the pharmacy that fills all your needs.”

 

Alacare Home Health & Hospice

Alacare Home Health & Hospice has been part of the St. Clair County health care community for more than 35 years. “The decision to move into the new Northside Medical Home complex was guided by a question we at Alacare ask ourselves each day, ‘How can we deliver the best care possible for our patients?’” according to Alacare CEO Susan B. Brouillette.

“Alacare’s ability to work more closely with Northside Medical’s “Patient-Centered” care model allows us the opportunity to improve the continuity of care and communication with other healthcare providers.

“The new Northside Medical Home complex that Dr. Helms has developed will facilitate a working collaborative health-care environment enabling us to improve patient’s outcomes and reduce the likelihood of a patient having to return to the hospital unless absolutely necessary,” she said.

“Across the nation and especially in Alabama, our aging population and increasing healthcare costs will make a person’s own home an important place for health care whenever possible. By coordinating with the patient’s physician, hospital or outpatient clinic, Alacare Home Health & Hospice can provide the necessary care in the best possible place, the patient’s own home.”

 

Northside CARE Team

The newly created Northside CARE Team is a chronic-care management team of health care providers who treat patients at the clinic or at home if needed. It began with four patients in April and has already soared over the 200-mark.

Its aim is to reduce hospitalizations and enhance quality of life by focusing on the relationship between the primary-care provider and the patient, identifying barriers to their patients’ health and executing a plan to navigate around those challenges.

“We want them happy, healthy and out of the hospital,” said CARE Program Director Dianna McCain.

The CARE Team offers assistance with medications on a weekly basis at patients’ homes or daily calls to remind patients to take their medications.

Because of a growing shortage of primary-care physicians, Helms envisioned a program that could take the best care of patients, whether it is at Northside or in the patient’s home.

Its new space will allow the program to grow and better serve its patients.

 

Editor’s note: To learn more about Northside Medical Home, go to northsidemedicalhome.com.

Battle for St. Clair High School

1908 battle for location of county high school lands in Odenville

Story by Joe Whitten
Photos by Graham Hadley
Submitted Photos

When Braxton Bragg Comer was elected governor in 1906, among his goals was upgrading Alabama schools. In 1907, legislation passed to establish county high schools in counties where there was not already a state-supported high school — for white students. It would be 60 years before integration of schools in the county.

Most of St. Clair County was excited about a state-accredited high school being established in one of its towns. Location committees were appointed by the state to review the towns and their resources.

A review of local newspapers of the day shows that Pell City, Odenville and Springville wanted the school. Ashville was not interested, and their newspaper, The Southern Aegis, consistently at odds with Gov. Comer, commented in its Feb. 26, 1908, issue that it seemed Comer was “… making a vigorous campaign for his future aspirations” and that “… he is taking advantage of the high school appropriation at the public expense.” The writer concluded, “He may fool some people all the time, but not all the people every time.”

Odenville published a newspaper, The St. Clair County News, and its editor, J.L. Maddox, set to work composing florid prose in praise of his town. Pell City had no paper, but was in the process of establishing The Pell City Progress, but it would not come into production until March 1908. So, it was Odenville’s newspaper that announced in February that the Governor’s Location Committee would come to Odenville on Saturday, March 7.

Location, location, location

An Odenville editorial of March 5 boasted reasons why Odenville was the perfect location for a state high school. It had:

  • A central location.
  • A prosperous agricultural community.
  • Sixteen wells in the area.
  • Ideally suited with good public roads leading to all areas of the county.
  • On the Seaboard Airline railroad (making it convenient for boarding students).

Maddox’s final point was that “Pell City has every advantage for cotton mills, but nature never intended it to be an educational site for the St. Clair County High School” — an incautious observation that could not go unnoticed by Pell City.

The date arrived for the governor and his Location Committee’s visit, and the day dawned clear and bright. Folks began trickling into Odenville before seven o’clock. By 9:30 the crowd was reported to be “a multitude,” for a special train had picked up and delivered citizens from Ragland, Coal City and Pell City. The papers estimated the day’s crowd to be between 2,500 and 3,000.

The meeting with the governor and committee took place at the elementary school in Odenville. Watt Brown of Ragland made a talk expressing his faith in Odenville’s future. Brown’s Odenville Land and Development Company had laid out Odenville’s town limits in a circle with a 1-mile radius from the center of the bridge over Beaver Creek on today’s Third Avenue. As a businessman dealing in real estate, Brown would not have been investing in the town had he not believed he would get a good return on his money.

After a lunch with Dr. and Mrs. C.C. Brown, the governor and committee journeyed to Pell City to hear their presentation of Pell City as the better location for the new high school.

Governor Comer’s comments to Pell City were not recorded in print, but it is clear that Pell City was offended by Comer’s observations.

On April 23, under the headline, “What’s Sharper than a Serpent’s Tooth?,” the Progress reported its assessment of the governor’s attitude.

Pell City had presented their town and the Coosa Valley area as the logical choice for St. Clair County High School. Their stated points were:

  • 30 percent of the county’s voters lived within 5 miles of Pell City.
  • 40 percent of the county’s cotton grew in Coosa Valley.
  • 30 percent of the cotton was ginned here.
  • 50 percent  of the county’s industrial wage was paid there.

They offered these facts to the governor and committee “… to fortify the figures of the county superintendent of education that over 30 percent of the county white school children lived within this same area.” Pell City saw these figures as logical reasons why Pell City was a better location than Odenville for St. Clair County High School.

The Progress observed that “Mr. Comer did not accept the argument” as presented. Rather, “He took it as proving that we were selfish in the Coosa Valley, that we had no concept of what this high school was to be, and that we were making political threats.”

The editor continued, “If it so happens that Mr. Comer himself believes in his accusations, we wish, taking advantage of the last word, to enlighten him.

“The Coosa Valley is not selfish, howsoever much individuals may say. The Coosa Valley does know what a High School is, and she knows it well enough to welcome every child who comes to it. … A High School is not a boarding school, [for] the large majority of its pupils will come from that territory within which the boys and girls may attend school and eat both breakfast and supper at home. … Pell City has more school children than Springville, Ashville and Odenville combined. … On the principle that Mahomet went to the mountain, Pell City claims the school and so here endeth the last word.”

And the winner is …

Having presented their best, Odenville and Pell City entered a busy waiting period as they anticipated the state’s decision. It was the county high school, and the state expected the entire county’s financial help with construction, therefore towns formed committees to collect pledges and funds.

In April, Progress reported that folks in Ashville and Springville claimed “inside information,” and were of the opinion Pell City had “no chance” of being selected. But rather than losing heart, Pell City published that they had “the best chance” based upon the facts submitted in connection with the state’s proposal for location.

 In hopes of winning, they continued collecting funds.

Then on Friday, May 1, 1908, the state announced Odenville as winner of St. Clair County High School. Whereupon, the town fathers set about to accomplish the awarded task —constructing a high school building.

Pell City Progress reported their loss in the May 7 issue, saying their loss showed “what comes from organized effort and what can be lost for lack of it.” They offered this opinion: “It is feared that our friends at Odenville have bitten off more than they can chew with comfort.” Then, perhaps still chaffing over Odenville’s “mill town” assessment, Tilton prophesied that the state would come to regret having “put a ten-thousand-dollar school building in a one-thousand-dollar town.”

With that parting zinger, Pell City turned her singular attention toward establishing their own high school and having it ready for occupation by September. The chairman of the Pell City school committee, McLane Tilton, announced in the Progress that “Coosa Valley may rest assured that a High School is going to be located at Pell City, and accomplished with or without the help of the state.” Tilton announced that “Donations to the [county] High School are hereby declared void.” Anyone wanting signed pledges returned should call at the Bank of St. Clair County (became Union State Bank in 1918), where he served as president, before May 15. After that date, notes would be destroyed. Tilton expressed faith that the town could raise “not less than four thousand dollars” to build a high school and that Pell City would “have the satisfaction of owning our own school, built and maintained by ourselves.”

In Odenville, Mr. and Mrs. John Newton, Mr. and Mrs. W.C. Hardin, and Watt Brown had donated land for the school. Now, the school committee set about collecting funds and redeeming pledges. This proved to be a slow process, for some outside Odenville were not forthcoming on pledges. However, one elderly woman, Nancy Turrentine, deeded 20 acres of her farm to the new high school. The Odenville paper noted that she offered to give 20 more if they were needed to raise the required amount.

On Saturday, July 18, 1908, Judge John W. Inzer laid the cornerston for St. Clair County High School. The St. Clair County News reported that “a crowd” from across the county was present for the event. Watt Brown was master of ceremonies. Gov. Comer and other state dignitaries made speeches. Judge Inzer, in laying the cornerstone, expressed his hope that wounded feelings would be laid aside and that every community would “stand united to advance the interest of our county.”

In the fall of 1908, the high school met in the Odenville Elementary School, for a new building would take months to construct. But despite setbacks and delays, in 1909, St. Clair County High School would occupy a two-story brick building.

The citizens of Pell City also coalesced to establish a high school. On May 7, 1908, the editor of the Progress reported that “the Town of Pell City has two thousand dollars which it contributed to the [County] High School fund and now goes back into the [Pell City] treasure.” Tilton suggested that the money should be used for the construction of the Pell City High School, which he speculated would cost about $3,000.

To spur on the town and surrounding area, he wrote, “The same arguments used to locate the County School here now demand of us that we show what we can do alone and unassisted.” The editor issued a trumpet call by saying, “Progress demands of the Council and School Board to hold a called meeting,” and concludes that city fathers could “… create a public sentiment that will result in the action desired without delay. … We must have this school by September 1st.”

The City Council and School Board accepted the call, met together, and in the June 4, Progress could report that “The Council and School Board each appropriated one thousand dollars” and that the “two thousand in all…will be at once utilized to build the high school addition to our present building.”

As the months progressed, meetings, suggestions and decisions were regularly reported in the newspaper. Just as in Odenville, there were setbacks and delays, but a Pell City High School was assured. An Aug. 13 article reports: “The new addition to the school is rapidly nearing completion and will be ready by the first day of the term. This addition will cost in the neighborhood of $3,500, including furnishings, and will give us a ten-thousand-dollar modern structure second to none in the State.”

The new addition would add four rooms and an auditorium “fitted out with orchestra chairs.” The auditorium would “hold about 400,” and the stage would have dressing rooms and be “electric lighted.”

Exciting days! For the completion of the brick addition with a metal roof would give “… Pell City and south St. Clair a primary and high school sufficient for our needs for several years to come.”

Thus, Pell City High School was born, and the Progress’ headline on Sept. 17 proclaimed: “OUR SCHOOL BEGINS,” noting, “The high school is open to all the children of the county, several having already entered from Seddon and Eden.”

A win-win situation

As years have waxed and waned since 1908, student numbers have increased in each school, validating the work of both towns over 100 years ago. In the 2016 school year, St. Clair County High School served 587 students, and Pell City High School, 1,105 students.

Most of the time, battles end with only one winner. In the battle for the location of St. Clair County High School, both Odenville and Pell City won. The loss of the county high school proved to be the impetus needed for Pell City to organize its own high school. Pell City High School and St. Clair County High School today cherish the past, yet each looks to the future and the challenges of their second century.