Museum of Pell City

Years of effort pay off with early 2023 opening

When the doors open to the new Museum of Pell City in early 2023, the journey to that pivotal point cannot be measured in steps or miles but in a vision and outright determination.

“It represents a group of people whose love of history and preservation never wavered along the way despite the twists and turns of the road to get here, and it will be an historic day for our community because of their perseverance,” said Museum President Carol Pappas.

When the ribbon is officially cut, the community will welcome a museum that exceeds the expectations of cities of comparable size. It features the local exhibit from mill town to global marketplace and so many people, places and events in history in between.

Local exhibits from the Smithsonian tour are being adapted for the museum.

The Making of Alabama, the state’s bicentennial exhibit awarded to Museum of Pell City by Alabama Humanities Alliance, showcases Alabama’s 200 years of statehood and beyond. Within that exhibit are artifacts and little-known nuggets of Pell City history weaved into the story that unfolds.

 Just like the whistle that sounded the beginning of shifts at Avondale Mills, formerly Pell City Manufacturing, at the turn of the 20th century, the museum will have its own replica of that whistle at the entrance to the exhibit, signifying the start of a new day.

Museum cases, made possible through gifts from citizens, are full of artifacts that bring the stories and photos of Pell City history to life. Hundreds of old photos are accessed on computer tablets for each period of history. A simple swipe across the screen reveals photo after photo of the days that were.

An interior room has been built to house music history, art and sports, and the national impact of Pell Citians on all three.

Another section tells the story of service with organizations and individuals dedicating themselves in public service, military and civic arenas.

The county exhibit that Miss Mays pioneered is featured as well as the places where memories were made – hangouts like the Rexall Drugs, Skad’s, Jill’s and Dairy Queen.

Alabama Power Foundation partnered with the museum on a project to build a working dam model to take visitors behind the scenes of Logan Martin Dam and the impact it had on the region. A $45,000 grant from the Foundation made the stunning exhibit possible as well as other aspects of the museum.

Pell City is no longer a mill town, and the Global Marketplace reflects exactly that – the evolution of Pell City as a player on the world stage in business.

The centerpiece of the museum is a Living History Studio, which will be used to record and produce oral history videos designed to capture recollections of events, people and places in history of the community.

A mobile video team will be dispatched on location for those who cannot travel, and a special project involving veterans of three wars – World War II, Korean and Vietnam – will make use of a partnership between the museum and the Col. Robert L. Howard State Veterans Home in Pell City.

A control room adjacent to the studio is planned as a working classroom for students to not only develop an appreciation for history through work with these oral histories but to hone skills in video production, audio, lighting, interviewing and research.

Lawley is spearheading the ongoing program.  “Since 1968, when my husband, Barnett, brought me to Pell City, I have been enriched by tales of an agricultural area with a Mayberry-paced town where everyone set their watch by the mill whistle. How quickly it began to transform with the damming of a river,” she said.  “We are losing the voices that make you smile, laugh, cry or reflect with their wonderful stories. Our goal is to have a living museum; the oral histories will provide that feeling before more are silenced.”

From ‘what if?’ to ‘where and when?’

Museum of Pell City was a vision long before this 4,000-square-foot suite became its home. That vision took many forms. The late Mary Mays, long known as an advocate for historic preservation, spearheaded a movement to place museum cases full of artifacts in the county courthouse in Pell City.

Others worked toward restoring the Mays House in Cropwell. Still others created April Walking Tours of historic downtown Pell City.

Another group brought the Smithsonian and Alabama Humanities Alliance exhibit, The Way We Worked, to Pell City in 2014 at the Center for Education and Performing Arts, CEPA, and created an impressive local history exhibit. That display, melded with the Smithsonian’s exhibition saw more than 7,000 people tour during its three-week stay.

It is widely viewed as the spark, a tipping point that caught fire and convinced a grassroots group that Pell City could indeed have its own museum. “So many people who toured that exhibition approached us about establishing a museum,” said Pam Foote, who served as project director of The Way We Worked. “It was gratifying, yes, but it also represented a huge hill to climb.”

There was no place to house it. How could a single exhibit grow into a museum?

So, Foote and Deanna Lawley, co-chairmen of the 2014 event, along with Pappas asked the city to store it, realizing it could be the nucleus of a museum. For seven years, it remained intact in the basement of the municipal complex while they pushed for a home.

They enlisted Jeremy Gossett, a local businessman with a deep love for history and an extensive background in set and museum design, to bring the vision to life. He had assisted on the design of the 2014 Pell City Works exhibit. “We are so fortunate to have someone of Jeremy’s caliber, talent and creativity working with us,” Pappas said. “His work is truly amazing.”

There was talk of locating it in the long vacant administrative building, the single structure still standing on the Avondale Mills property, and that course was pursued for a few years. After the Pell City Library moved into its new quarters in the municipal complex, that vacant building was seen as a temporary solution on location. The group pursued its prospects as well.

Then, Councilman Jay Jenkins had an idea in 2021, and his ‘what if’ turned into the museum’s home – two floors up from its storage in the municipal complex. The museum occupies a massive suite on the second floor.

“The city has been a terrific supporter of this museum,” Pappas said. “We couldn’t ask for better partners than the mayor, city manager and council. They provided us the space, infrastructure support and best of all, moral support for this project. Without them, we never would have made it this far.”

After the public ceremony officially cutting the ribbon Museum of Pell City, plans call for the museum to be open Thursdays and Fridays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and by special appointment for groups.

Setting the standard

St. Clair schools training for the future

Story by Elaine Hobson Miller
Photos by Mackenzie Free

It’s difficult not to notice the white letters E-C-T-C on the giant Adirondack chairs at the corner of U.S. 231 and U.S. 411 in Ashville. Perched on a hill overlooking the county’s only traffic roundabout, the chairs were built by carpentry students at Eden Career Technical Center to bring attention to their school.

Despite such high visibility, the school has been called “a hidden jewel” by its principal, and “the best-kept secret in St. Clair County” by one of its teachers. Neither knows why that’s true, but it’s something they both want to see changed.

“People don’t realize the opportunities we provide to learn skills that turn into jobs that they can make careers out of,” says Trisha Turner, career tech director for St. Clair County Schools and principal at ECTC since 2018.

Part of the county school system, ECTC is celebrating its 50th anniversary during this entire school year. It was named after its first principal, John Pope Eden, who lobbied for a vocational school for five years. Pope died in November of 1972, nine months before the school opened at the Ashville Armory in August of 1973 and 14 months before it moved to its permanent campus in January 1974. The school was officially dedicated to his honor in February 1975.

Getting ready to weld.

The tech school started with 360 students and four programs — cosmetology, masonry, plumbing and electricity — which are no longer offered. Courses have evolved through the years due to demand in the world of trades and technology. Today, enrollment is at 315.

“When school started in August of 1973, we went to the Armory in Ashville,” says Dorothy “Sis” Wilson, 80, who retired this past May after driving St. Clair County school buses for 55 years, including 50 for ECTC. “That’s where we started the vocational and trade school. Then we hauled kids to help build the new school, and that’s the reason the office, horticulture and air conditioner (HVAC) programs are in brick buildings. (The others are made of metal.) When we got out for Christmas holidays, Mr. Griffin (Thomas L.), principal, said when y’all come back in January come to the (new) vocational school. There are no brick masons there now, but they had one (study program) there for a while.”

Those first three brick buildings were completed and furnished for $500,000, with 70% of that amount coming from Appalachian Funds, 30% from local monies, including a $20,000 grant from the St. Clair County Commission, according to a Birmingham News article from the early 1970s. When Eden began dreaming about a trade and technical school, only 12% of the county’s high school graduates attended college, the article states. Only vocational agriculture (vo-ag) and home economics were offered to the other 88% at the high schools.

County schools now offer 14 different technical programs, according to Trisha Turner, career technical director for St. Clair County Schools and principal of ECTC. “Eleven are located here,” she says. “Agricultural Science and Family & Consumer Science programs are offered at each of the five high schools. JROTC is offered at St. Clair County High, Culinary is located on the Moody High School campus, and there is a business program at Moody, too.”

Programs on the ECTC campus include HVAC (heating and air), welding, carpentry, drafting, business information technology, information technology (IT), collision repair, automotive service, health science, plant & animal science, and emergency and fire management services. JROTC is located at St Clair County High School. The latter is not a military preparation course, but a program that promotes ethics, leadership and respect for business and industry, according to Turner, who calls business and industry “the driving force behind careers in tech programs.”

To attend ECTC, a student must be in the 10th-12th grades and enrolled in a high school in the St. Clair County School System. Students are on campus at ECTC for half a school day and at their high school the other half. They are bused back and forth by drivers employed by the county school system. The courses are considered elective high school classes, but they earn credentials and certifications that enable students to get paying jobs in their fields.

“Virtual or online high school students enrolled in the county’s Virtual Preparation Academy can choose to come here for a program or two with their own transportation or take a bus from their school, if they can get to their school,” Turner says.

Career Coach Christina Puckett says the goal at ECTC is for the students to be career-ready when they graduate. “We also offer dual enrollment in two areas,” she says. “We are paired with Gadsden State for automotive and drafting and with Jefferson State for welding and for child development. In other words, the students can get college credits here for these courses.”

The automotive service program includes everything about car maintenance and repairs, from engines to tires. The collision repair program trains students to repair damage and to refinish vehicles. “The need for automotive service technicians is growing rapidly as people continue to keep their vehicles in operation longer than ever before,” a brochure about the school states.

The ECTC campus now has six buildings, with two classes held in most of them. A seventh may be forthcoming if tentative plans to build a culinary building come to fruition. “Right now, the old Moody High School’s lunchroom, which was converted to accommodate the program, is being used,” Turner says. “Chef Melissa Allphin is in charge and her kids always win in state competitions.”

Most people don’t realize they can have something built by the school’s carpentry students, like a shooting house or a tiny house, for a price. “Our xarpentry program also covers a little electrical, plumbing and masonry. HVAC covers a little bit of electrical work, too,” Turner says. “Kevin Self heads our HVAC program, and he just got some equipment that will allow them to cut ductwork. He’s passionate about getting skilled workers because he sees the need in the HVAC company he owns.”

Self is one of four teachers at the school who are graduates of ECTC, according to Sis Wilson. The others include Marcus Graves, carpentry; Jeff Parrish, emergency & fire management services; and Roger Peace, collision repair, who got the same job his father retired from several years ago.

Medical training is in high demand.

“We’re the best-kept secret in St. Clair County,” says Jeff Parrish, who started his career with ECTC night classes and began teaching there when he retired from 25 years with Pell City Fire and Rescue.

“I don’t know why” it should remain a secret, he says. Its merits are being discovered. Three state troopers visited his program recently looking for future recruits. “One trooper was from the State Bureau of Investigation, one from aviation (helicopter & fixed-wing division of state troopers) and the other was a trooper recruiter. They were pitching jobs. The Air Force visits our classes, too.”

The Health Science program, taught by Deanna Hartley, RN, and Amy Stephan, a nurse practitioner, trains students for their EKG (electrocardiogram) and CNA (certified nursing assistant) certifications and their BLS (Basic Life Support) instructor licenses.

“They can become monitor technicians for hospitals and can conduct stress tests, too,” says Turner. “They actually get practical experience that helps them decide what they really want to be. For example, some of them work in nursing homes and some decide that’s not for them. This saves the parents money on education, because kids sometimes change their minds about their careers after they’ve finished college or a trade school.”

Another feature that helps kids decide on a career is ECTC’s Summer Camp for students in sixth through eighth grades. Camp takes place from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m., for three days during Memorial Day week. Parents interested in enrolling their children may call the school at 205-594-2070.

The business information technology program is for students who want to pursue careers in business administration and management, whereas the Information Technology program is for those interested in careers involving information technology security, network analysis, planning and implementation, according to the ECTC brochure.

Noah Duke, a senior at St. Clair CountyHigh School who is enrolled in the IT program, was one of the guides explaining robotics to visitors at the school’s open house in the fall. “We participate in the BEST Robotics competition,” he says, noting that BEST stands for “Boosting Engineering Science and Technology.

Sponsored by Shelton State Community College, the multi-level competition has a different theme each year but always involves building a robot. “This year’s theme is Made2Order,” Duke says. His team built a long, wooden conveyor that the remote-controlled robot rolled on. As it moved, it picked up items and loaded them into a cart. Each team got one point for each item the robot successfully loaded, and the team with the most points won. ECTC’s team placed seventh out of 14 at the first level in Tuscaloosa in October.

“We are in the process of trying to begin a modern manufacturing program on campus, pending approval by the St. Clair County Board of Education,” Turner says. “If approved, it will be a partnership with the Alabama Region 4 Workforce, also known as the Central 6.”

The program will cater to the Honda plant in Lincoln and all the periphery manufacturing plants that supply it, and to the Mercedes plant near Tuscaloosa. “The state is divided into workforce regions, and we’re in Region 4, also known as Central 6 because it includes the six counties in the center of the state,” Turner says. “The goal is for every region to have a modern manufacturing program. We’re working with others in our region to develop this program. We hope to start it next school year.”

Career-oriented night classes for adults may be a part of the school’s future next year, too. Turner says they are applying for a grant that will provide for 12-week courses to train people to earn certificates and get jobs in welding, carpentry and HVAC systems. “The grant would enable us to provide courses for free, but some of my teachers want to start it and let people or their employers pay for it,” Turner says.

Joe Whitten, a local historian, was a friend of the school’s namesake. He says all who knew “Pope” were greatly saddened that he did not live to see his dream come true. “The reality of his dream has flourished through the years,” Whitten says. “I know if he could see it today, he would be joyful that he did not fight and labor in vain for a vocational school for the students of St Clair County.”

Eye on the sky

Aviation Career Day much
more than just an air show

Story and photos
by Graham Hadley

It’s not every day that you get to see a Soviet-era MiG jet fighter roar down the runway and take to the skies over the St. Clair County Airport in Pell City.

But that was exactly what scores of visitors got to see Oct. 8. Children and adults pressed up along the ropes separating the viewing area from the runway as the powerful plane – and other vintage military and civilian aircraft of all kinds – took off as part of the St. Clair County Airport Aviation Career Day and Open House.

With the airport lined with unique aircraft, the event attracted people from all across the region. The lineup included military helicopters to an assortment of fixed-wing planes, including the Soviet-built MiG-17 fighter jet, a variety of World War II planes, a private jet, vintage and kit planes, not to mention the ever-present yellow sea plane that so often graces the skies over Logan Martin.

Precision flying over Pell City

Ant that was exactly the idea.

The Career Day has several purposes. It raises awareness about career possibilities in the aviation industry, highlights the importance the St. Clair County Airport plays to the local community, and ways the community and local governments can support the airport, said Ike Newton, a pilot, an event organizer and member of the airport board.

“We really wanted to shine a spotlight on why the airport is so important to the Pell City, St. Clair County and surrounding areas …,” he said. “We are the only general aviation airport in St. Clair County and a reliever airport for Birmingham,” and can handle a wide range of aviation needs, with the exception of large commercial airliners.

The St. Clair Airport not only provides hangars and fuel but is home to a flight school and related aviation businesses. It also handles some cargo flights and other related services.

According to a 2020 financial report, the airport had a $9-million financial impact on the region with a combined employment of over 100 people generating more than $3 million in payroll, and contributing over half a million dollars in local tax revenue, Newton said.

What’s more, the airport is a core service for the region, making it more attractive not only to people who own private planes, but also is one of the key things businesses and industries look for in any area where they are considering relocating. It also provides much-needed hangar space, something that is always in high demand across Central Alabama and surrounding areas.

And if what was on display at the Aviation Career Day is any indication, St. Clair County Airport is perfectly suited to the task.

“This airport we have here is a little jewel,” Newton said.

More than just an airshow

While all manner of unique planes lined the airport and flew in stunning aerial displays overhead – with regular overpasses by visitors taking rides in a helicopter – vendors lined the parking area and other parts of the property. Inside the airport building proper, presenters lined up to talk about careers in aviation and other topics of interest, like the roles women have played in the industry over the years.

Civil Air Patrol units from around St. Clair were especially on hand to help educate people, especially the younger crowd, about all the options open to them in the field of aviation and how to get involved.

Tomaze Jackson’s first time next to a jet

Major Richard Caudle with the Civil Air Patrol, with assistance from Cadet Staff Sgt. Luke Davis, manned the booth for the Springville Squadron 129 of the Civil Air Patrol. Touting the success of the program, especially the number of young members who have received their pilot’s licenses, the major showed off their displays of aviation information. It also featured tools, like model rocketry, they use in their training programs.

One of the key goals is to educate young people on the huge diversity of aviation careers available and the opportunities open to them for getting started with the programs from a young age.

And it’s not just airplanes and helicopters that the CAP and similar organizations are working with. Drone technology is becoming more important in both the civilian and military sides of aviation, and demand is high for people with those skill sets, they said.

While the vendors were busy talking to visitors outside, presenters in the airport were giving programs on all the career opportunities for people going into aviation, and there was something for everyone.

Holly Row, a retired air traffic controller and pilot, gave a class on Careers for Women in Aviation, followed by Lewis Holder, owner of Holder Aviation in Pell City, on Careers in Aviation Electronics. Other classes involved flying large commercial planes, aviation maintenance, military aviation and much more.

All about the aircraft

As much as the vendors and educators kept people informed, the biggest draw of the day was the aircraft – helicopters, seaplanes, personal jets and vintage aircraft of all shapes and sizes were on display – both on land and in the air.

As the various planes, particularly the vintage military ones, lined up and sped down the runway, people flocked to the dividing ropes to catch the takeoffs. Followed by demonstrations of formation aerial demonstrations, low passes just off the runway. It was particularly impressive when the MiG fighter jet did its flybys, followed by tight formations flying over the crowds, trailing streamers of smoke for all to watch.

Wave after wave of pilots showing off their very best skill held the constant attention of everyone on the ground.

For the planes on display, visitors got an up-close-and-personal view of some amazing aircraft.

Koley Thompson looks inside the Commemorative Airforce’s Fairchild PT-19 cockpit.

Tomazz Jackson of Pell City posed in front of a private jet on display and was quick to point out that was the first time he had ever been near a jet. The owner allowed people to walk through the small, twin-engine private jet and get a feel for what flying in one would be like.

Koley Thompson of Alpine got to see firsthand what a vintage open cockpit of a trainer airplane from World War II looked like up close and personal. The beautifully restored and maintained blue and yellow Fairchild PT-19 is maintained by the Commemorative Air Force unit in Birmingham.

Allen Pilkington and Andrew Kennedy from the Commemorative Air Force Birmingham Escadrille were thrilled to show off the plane, a great source of pride for both men. Compared to the cockpit of the jet or even some of the newer propeller planes, the controls for the Fairchild were about as simple as you can get – the bare minimum necessary to fly a plane. Because of that and what Pilkington and Kennedy described as one of the smoothest flying planes they had ever been in, the Fairchild PT-19 made for the perfect pilot trainer during the war.

As popular as the vintage planes were, one of the biggest draws of the day, especially for the youngest future aviators, was the UH-72A Lakota helicopter from the National Guard Unit in Birmingham.

The pilots had disconnected the batteries, and children were allowed full access to the military chopper, including the cockpit. The pilots said this helicopter is mainly used for scouting missions in the United States – everything from border patrol assistance to search operations and other support roles after hurricanes and other emergencies.

Looking to the future

Airport Manager Wendy Watson and Newton classified the day as a huge success.

“We had a good turnout this year. Every year we have been growing, and that is definitely the direction we want to continue,” she said.

Newton noted the event does an excellent job of highlighting the important role the airport plays in many aspects of quality of life for the area and in the economic success of the region.

Likewise, both cannot stress the important role the community and local governments can play in the success of the airport enough.

Aviation Career Day plays a vital role in doing all those things – in addition to being a great, family friendly way, to spend a sunny Saturday.

“It’s a win, win, win situation for everyone involved,” said.

And with everything it takes to put the event together, they are already looking ahead to next year, with expectations of an even bigger crowd. l

ROOdy, Springville Kangaroo

Story by Scottie Vickery
Submitted photos

Thanks to an ever-growing assortment of goats, pigs, chickens and horses, there’s always a lot going on at Caren and Danny Davidson’s Springville farm. These days, however, the place is really hopping.

That’s because the newest addition to the family, a red kangaroo named ROOdy, has stolen the hearts of all who have met him. “He makes people happy,” Caren said. “He’s got a great temperament.” Couple that with the fact that ROOdy loves to cuddle, still enjoys a good bottle and rocks the diapers he wears around the house, and there’s no doubt about it. ROOdy is definitely a cutie.

So why did the Davidsons, who host farm day experiences and goat yoga classes at CareDan Farm, decide to jump in with both feet and get a kangaroo? The credit – or blame, depending on when you ask – is all Danny’s. “He’s always trying to come up with something different,” Caren said.

Caren and Danny Davidson on vacation with ROOdy

ROOdy, who has grown by leaps and bounds in the six months he’s lived with the Davidsons, was a surprise Christmas present to Caren from Danny. A mere 11 pounds when the 7-month-old arrived at the farm, ROOdy tops the scales at about 25 pounds now. He won’t be fully grown until he’s 2 years old, though, and by then the Davidsons expect he’ll weigh about 200 pounds and stand about 4 feet tall.

“Red kangaroos are the largest kind of kangaroos – and of course, we needed the largest kangaroo,” Caren said with a laugh. In fact, red kangaroos are also the largest of all marsupials, which are mammals that continue to develop in the mother’s pouch after birth.

A soon-to-be giant marsupial was the last thing Caren expected as a gift, which she received on Christmas Eve. “It was a total surprise,” she said. Danny handed her what looked like a red duffel bag and said it was her present. “I thought it was going to be a trip or something,” she said. “I started opening the bag, those ears popped up, and I screamed.”

Her first thought was that Danny had gotten her a rabbit. “Keep opening,” he told her, a huge grin on his face. When she realized she was now the proud owner of a baby kangaroo, also known as a joey, “it took me a couple of days to wrap my mind around it,” Caren said.

 

One busy kangaroo

He may be a marsupial, but make no mistake, ROOdy is no pouch potato. In his first year of life he’s worn a lot of hats – or at least he would have if it weren’t for those ears. Since coming to CareDan Farm, he’s served as a social worker, human resources assistant, teaching assistant, wrestling team mascot and television personality.

His foray into social work came a few weeks into the COVID-19 pandemic. “I was watching the news and saw how people weren’t able to visit their loved ones at nursing homes,” Caren said. “ROOdy makes everyone so happy, I wondered if we could take him to a nursing home and wave to people from outside the windows to lift some spirits.”

Friends who had contacts at nursing homes quickly made it happen, and ROOdy was an instant hit, earning him a spot on a local television news program. “They loved it, and we loved it,” Caren said of the visit. “It was a happy thing to do in a time of isolation and sadness.”

Caren, human resources director for a Birmingham law firm, and Danny, an algebra teacher and assistant wrestling coach at Moody High School, both worked from home during the pandemic, which gave them plenty of time to bond with ROOdy and watch him try out his other roles. He was quickly fired from his human resources position after he started tearing up papers, but he had better success in the virtual classroom.

After all, Danny’s students had loved hearing about the kangaroo’s exploits well before Alabama schools adopted distance learning for the remainder of the year. “They kept asking me to bring him to school,” he said. “They even started a petition, ‘Educate ROOdy at Moody.’ “An unofficial mascot for the wrestling team, ROOdy even traveled to Huntsville to cheer on the athletes during a February tournament.

Once coronavirus hit, though, the kids were thrilled to watch him online. Danny hosted three to four 45-minute Skype sessions each day to answer students’ math questions and to see how they were progressing with their assignments. “I got a lot of participation because they knew they’d get to see ROOdy,” he said. “They got to watch him grow up, and it was a lot of fun for them. The parents’ reactions were hysterical. ROOdy’s a great teaching assistant.”

 

Kangaroo care

Since ROOdy joined the family, Caren and Danny have turned into students themselves, learning everything they can about caring for him.

ROOdy lifting spirits at a nursing home

“I’ve always been fascinated with kangaroos,” said Danny, who got ROOdy from a petting zoo in Louisiana. “When they’re born, they’re about the size of a jelly bean. They aren’t fully formed when they get to the pouch, and they’re there for about six months,” he said.

ROOdy was seven months old when he came to the farm and was in the “in and out phase,” spending much of the time in one of his manmade pouches and the rest of the time exploring his surroundings. He came from the zoo with two cotton knapsack-like pouches, and a friend of the Davidsons later made him some larger ones.

“At first, he stayed in his pouch the majority of the day and got out for playtime for three to four hours,” Caren said. “Since then, he’s been transitioning from the pouch and mostly sleeps there at night.” These days, ROOdy hops around the house and yard pretty freely. “He loves to follow us around,” Danny said.

ROOdy took three bottles a day when he first arrived and was down to a nightly bottle and cuddle on the couch by spring. The Davidsons order a special milk that’s formulated for kangaroos and is made in Australia, and ROOdy also enjoys timothy grass and a dry kangaroo food that’s similar to dog food.

His sense of adventure is as big as his appetite. A week after arriving, ROOdy joined the Davidsons for a planned beach trip with Danny’s family. “We had rented a beach house, and they didn’t list kangaroos as a problem,” Caren said with a laugh. “He stayed in his pouch and our nieces and nephews loved feeding him bottles. We put a harness on him one day so we could let him hop around the sand. He liked the sand, but he did not like the harness.”

The Davidsons knew ROOdy needed to be neutered early so he wouldn’t be aggressive, and they were shocked and relieved to find the solution just a few miles away. They learned that Dr. Paul Taylor, an associate at Branchville Animal Hospital, had a little experience with kangaroos, helping to provide dental treatment to one when he was at a clinic in another state.

Neutering a kangaroo was a skill he had yet to master, however. “I always say you should do something every day that scares you,” Taylor quipped, adding that he consulted with veterinarians in Texas and Maryland, both of whom own kangaroos, before performing the procedure, which went off without a hitch. Taylor said he will continue to see ROOdy at least once a year for a check-up and shots, and he’ll do all he can to help the Davidsons care for him.

While ROOdy seems right at home in the Davidson’s house, he’ll soon have a bigger place to call home. The couple, with the help of friends, fenced off two acres for him to share with the goats. “Kangaroos are actually very heat and cold tolerant,” Caren said. “In the winter, they just need a covered shelter and straw for bedding, and in the summer, they need shade.”

Danny, especially, is looking forward to introducing ROOdy to those visiting the farm. “If people love feeding horses, goats and chickens, I know they’re going to love feeding a kangaroo,” he said.

“Our animals are our family, and we get joy out of sharing them with others,” added Caren, who admits she fell in love with the best gift she never knew she wanted. “Who knows, once ROOdy has been in his habitat for a while, and we know that he’s happy there, I could see getting one more kangaroo.”

You can find more info at myfarmday.com

6th Day Creatures

Springville family turns passion into business, teachable moments

Story by Jackie Romine Walburn
Photos by Susan Wall

It’s hard to say exactly when 6th Day Creatures, an exotic animal education and entertainment venture headquartered in St. Clair County, really began for Jamie Hacker, his family and their collection of exotic pets.

The obvious start was when Jamie was asked to do a devotion at a children’s church event seven years ago, and he brought along a couple of small, friendly snakes and a black and white ferret with him “to illustrate how God created and loves all of us – even funny-looking animals and snakes.”

That impromptu devotion quickly morphed into more. “By Monday at school, our seven-year-old had volunteered us to do another program, and another.”

So officially began 6th Day Creatures, a business and mission that brings exotic animals and life lessons to children and adults at church, school and community events across Alabama and beyond.

The name 6th Day Creatures is based on when the Bible says God created all the creeping and crawling land creatures. As noted in Genesis 1:24. “And God said, ‘Let the earth bring forth the living creatures after his kind, cattle, and creeping things and the beast of the earth after his kind,’ and it was so.”

But, the true beginning for 6th Day Creatures can also be traced to Jamie and his wife’s family traditions of unusual pets and their family’s ongoing love, knowledge and care for exotic animals.

Both Jamie Hacker, who works as registered nurse at St. Vincent’s Hospital in downtown Birmingham, and his wife, Trussville native Leigh Fox Hacker, a nurse who works at St. Vincent’s East, grew up around unusual pets.

The couple’s passion for exotic pets was honed during their childhoods and passed on to their children, daughter Lauren, 18, now a freshman at Jacksonville State University, and son Brady, 14, who is a freshman in high school.

Jamie’s father raised show pigs, modern bantam chickens and cattle in Oklahoma, where Jamie stayed when not with his mom in Mississippi. Leigh’s grandparents bred and raised chinchillas, the rodent native to Peru and Chile that are prized for their dense, soft fur.

They both love animals and value exotic species, but it was Leigh who first bought the children their own exotic pets. For son Brady, she purchased one of the family’s first corn snakes, and daughter Lauren’s got a chinchilla named CeCe. Lauren also around this time adopted a rescue Maltese Yorkie (Morkie) named Sebastian, who became a family pet, too.

As the number and variety of exotic pets grew, the family sometimes raised exotic animals for the pet store market. “At one time, there were 100 snakes being raised in our son’s bedroom,” Jamie recalls. Their pet count got up to about 400 when they bred for pet stores. Now the pet count is about one-tenth of that. Also, they used to breed several kinds of cockroaches, mainly for food for pets. “We have bred Red Runner Cockroaches, Dubia Cockroaches and mealworms in the past.”

Now they have only Madagascar hissing cockroaches, one of the largest cockroach species that can reach two to three inches long. “We only have hissing cockroaches now just for fun since they are really big flightless roaches that gross people out,” Jamie says.

The pet lizards get live insects because they will only eat food if it is moving, he says. However, the Bearded Dragons sometimes get dried meal worms on their greens – “like you put croutons on a salad.”

Live food is never fed to the snakes or other carnivores. They do not feed any live rodents, he says, to keep the snakes from having the instinct to strike and be aggressive. Instead, they purchase frozen rodents, Jamie says, remembering how the UPS man commented “ya’ll must eat really good,” about delivering packages of what he assumed were frozen steaks or other expensive people food. Then they explained that the boxes were actually frozen rodents.

Through their days as pet owners, then breeders and now with an animal adventure business, their veterinarian has been Dr. Carl Grimmett of Grayson Valley Pet Clinic. Knowledgeable about exotic pet care, which is a shared interest, Dr. Grimmett usually makes house calls for the Hacker family pets.

 

The family business

Since 6th Day Creatures came to life, it’s been a family project, with Jamie up front as the animal adventure master of ceremonies and either Leigh, Lauren or Brady assisting.

“I love animals and kids,” says Jamie. His ease with both is plain to see as Jamie and Brady brought 6th Day Creature’s Animal Adventures to a Clearbranch United Methodist Church’s Wednesday night children’s service.

Like an exotic pet pied piper, children follow as Jamie walks around before the show, with Dewey the Bearded Dragon, an Australian lizard, clinging to his back or head or shoulder. “Put him on my head,” one child says. “Put him on my sister’s head,” another offers.

As Jamie introduces Dewey and then brings out Zelda, a colorful corn snake, he explains the 6th Day rules. If you don’t want to pet, see up close or interact with whatever creature Jamie offers, “just put your palm up, no thank you.” Even though you might make friends with 6th Day creatures, he tells the children, never touch a wild animal – like these or others – when you are outside in their territory. He also explains that audience members should consider it an “anointing” if a pet takes the opportunity to ‘relieve himself’ and reminds the kids that most of the exotic pets are not housetrained, so anything could happen.

After safety – 6th Day has never had an escape or incident with the exotic pets interacting with people – the main message this day is that God created us and all the creatures for a reason and that He loves us and all creatures of his creation.

“God has a reason for everything He does,” Jamie says, using the nonvenomous corn snake as an example. “The craziest thing is, without snakes, we wouldn’t survive,” he explains. Snakes eat rats and mice and keep the vermin’s population down and protect us from diseases they carry.

When Lucy the hedgehog makes an appearance, children see how God equipped hedgehogs to protect themselves – with their quill-covered skin and the ability to fold up into a ball.

When the so-ugly-it’s-cute hairless guinea pig is introduced, Jamie explains that the hybrid is called a skinny pig and reminds him of how God made us all different. “Some of us are tall, some small, some prettier than others,” he says. Telling a story about children teasing a boy in a wheelchair, Jamie encourages the young audience to appreciate the differences in all of us and never make fun of someone who is different. Instead, he urged, “use the way God made you special to do good and spread love.”

When Taco, the Chaco Golden Knee Tarantula, was introduced, the giant spider prompted squeals from the children, who could look but not touch. Ditto for the dwarf Caiman, an alligator relative from Central and South America whose jaws are taped shut for all outings. With 80 razor-sharp teeth, Caimans are generally more aggressive than their north American cousins who grow much bigger. Jamie points out its two sets of eyelids, so the amphibious carnivore appears to be asleep while he is actually watching for prey.

Up next is the African Spur Thigh Tortoise, slow and steady with temperature control built into its spurred feet. As a finale, 6th Day features its largest Burmese Python, named Sonnie, a male who is almost 11 feet long.

Big, little, scary or sweet, Jamie explains, God’s creatures are gifts and responsibilities and serve as testimony that God loves us all.

 

A growing family

Back at home, Jamie sits cuddling Pikachu, a Kinkajou that looks like a ferret-monkey mix. Pikachu is named for a Pokemon character. “We call him Pika because saying Pikachu the Kinkajou is a mouthful.”

Pika travels with 6th Day Creatures often. “He likes to snuggle and go hide in our shirts. A shy nocturnal animal like its cousin, the raccoon, the Kinkajou curls up inside his shirt as Jamie recites a list of animals that now live with the family in St. Clair County.

In addition to the family’s six dogs, the “regular” pets, the Hackers, and 6th Day currently have about 60 pets, including 25 snakes, all non-venomous, mostly colorful corn snakes and three Burmese Pythons, who often steal the show.

6th Day Creatures is a licensed and insured educational company. The business has an exotic animal exhibitor license with the USDA, which conducts annual inspections of the pets’ quarters in the Hacker’s home and yard in Springville.

Fees for the shows go to help feed and take care of the pets. The cost of a party or show varies according to how many miles the eight to 10 creatures need to be transported from the Hacker’s home in the 35146 zip code. The starting amount is $225, for up to 25 miles of travel, for an animal adventure of about an hour.

To count them down, 6th Day Creatures include the animals that starred in the show at Clearbranch plus: two pot belly pigs, two ferrets, several guinea pigs, two skinny pigs, more than 20 additional snakes, two more tortoises and several rabbits, including Rebunzal, the long-eared, 30-pound rabbit with 16-inch ears. They also have families of chinchilla which do not travel to shows because they cannot tolerate being hot or wet.

Seven years into 6th Day Creatures, with a daughter in college and son in high school, Jamie says they are working through a transition period with his key animal adventure helpers not available nearly as often as before. Feeding and caring for scores of unconventional pets is time consuming, especially after days of he and Leigh working 12-hour shifts as nurses.

But, the shows, the children and the chance to share his passion for animals while sharing beliefs in God’s love and wisdom prove to be worth the work.

Learn more about 6th Day Creatures – including how to book an animal adventure show – at www.6thdaycreatures.com.

Welding to Work

Jefferson State
creating new opportunities for
single mothers

Story and photos by Graham Hadley

Jefferson State Community College is stepping up its workforce-development efforts with new classes to help train single mothers to become welders.

Over the past few years, Jeff State in Pell City, working with organizations like the St. Clair Economic Development Council, Pell City and St. Clair school systems, and businesses like Garrison Steel, Ford Meterbox and Goodgame Company, has been focusing on workforce development.

Their efforts are helping to train people in skill sets like welding, plumbing and metal fabrication, giving students greater career and earning potential while meeting the critical needs for those skills by businesses.

These classes are not only helping meet the growing demand for those skills, but also dramatically increasing the job options for local residents of all ages.

Their latest classes are no exception.

Students who take the class are eligible to receive their entry-level certification in welding and combines both hands-on training with traditional instruction that cover everything from math to how to use the technical measuring equipment necessary for their new careers, said Danny Taylor, the welding instructor for the program.

For local industries and businesses considering locating in St. Clair, it means a better-trained workforce. For the single mothers, it means a whole new world of employment opportunities.

Several of the 10 students in the class said they first heard about the opportunity through their children’s daycare or school.

“My daughter goes to Head Start. They had a newsletter up for moms who are single to take these classes,” said Sherry Johnson during a break in welding training.

“I was in the Army, and loved it,” she said, but found her employment options limited when she got out. “I saw this as a reboot. I am one of those types, I think anything a man can do, I can do. I am loving this class — it is challenging and not without its issues, but I love it.”

She has two children and sees that the skill set she is receiving now will allow her to better provide for them.

“My own personal plan is to start at an entry-level position, then I want to go back to take more classes to get more certification.”

Amber Moten, who says she is the only left-handed welder in the class, also learned about it through St. Clair Head Start and saw the classes as a good opportunity and a good fit for her.

“My Dad is a welder, and you don’t hear about many girl welders. I wanted to show my girls we could do this. It’s a career as opposed to a job. I love it and look forward to class every day.

“It can be challenging and frustrating — and I love that. I like a challenge,” she said.

Moten, who is currently working as a waitress, said there is a big difference between her current job and what she is learning to do: “I wake up every morning and have to force myself to go to work. I wake up Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays when we have class; I have my coffee and am ready to go.”

Looking out at the working world, Moten said she sees a career in welding as proving more opportunities for steady employment.

“As a waiter, you are living day-to-day. As a welder, you are not just living, it’s a career. … I want to go as high as I can go. I want to be able to obtain the best career I can.”

Balancing classes, work and family is a challenge, but the students said it is well worth it, and not just for them.

“It’s empowering. … It has helped me be a better mother, to teach my girls not to doubt themselves. It has made me feel better about myself in all ways,” Moten said.

Krystin Whidden said she learned about the class through her child’s preschool, and like the others, she sees this as a path to a long-term career and a better life for herself and her family.

She currently works part time baby-sitting, but has no full-time job, and is quick to point out that the income level for welders is significantly better than what most entry-level minimum-wage jobs pay.

And like the others, she says she is not the only one directly benefitting from the classes.

“It’s a big challenge keeping family time and class time — you have a lot of homework when you would normally spend time with your kids,” she said, but added that between the example she is setting for her family and the improvement in quality of life down the road, it is well worth the effort.

“My kids have seen me struggle with homework and still stick with it. It shows them you can make it happen if you truly try. Before this, I never thought they would see me as a role model. It was a shock to me to be able to do this,” she said.

“This is a dream come true for me.”