Tag: Other Stories

Fresh Produce Central

Chandler Mountain: The tomato capital of Alabama

Story Leigh Pritchett
Photos by Michael Callahan

Two pieces of white bread glazed with mayonnaise. Slices of a fat, juicy, vine-ripened tomato still warm from the sun. A sprinkling of salt and pepper.

A good ole tomato sandwich is a summertime delicacy.

And St. Clair County’s Chandler Mountain just happens to be known near and far as the place to get tomatoes.

Alabama Farmers Federation, in a 2007 publication, calls Chandler Mountain “The Tomato Capital of Alabama” because truckloads are transported from there on a daily basis during the months of harvest.*

In fact, “Alabama ranks … 12th in (production of) fresh-market tomatoes,” notes another federation publication.*

St. Clair County leads the state in vegetable and melon production, reveals a 2013 report of the Alabama Cooperative Extension System and Alabama Agribusiness Council.*

Those statistics are not difficult to believe when considering that Smith Tomato, LLC – just one of a number of tomato farms on Chandler Mountain – annually cultivates 100 acres, producing about 200,000 boxes of tomatoes. Each box contains between 25 and 30 pounds of tomatoes. That amounts to at least five-million pounds of tomatoes a year from a single farm.

Chad Smith – the 26-year-old farmer who runs Smith Tomato with his brother, Phillip, and father, Leroy — said their tomatoes are shipped to wholesalers within a 15-hour driving radius. The tomatoes travel as far as Miami, Fla.; Washington, D.C., and Dallas, Texas.

Smith said their Mountain Fresh, Roma, yellow, grape and cherry tomatoes end up in restaurants, stores and large farmer’s markets.

Not far from Smith Tomato is Rogers Farm, operated by Dwight Rogers.

Rogers, a tomato farmer for nearly five decades, sows approximately 15 acres of them each year. Among the kinds he offers this year are Mountain Fresh, Florida 47 and grape tomatoes.

A “truck farmer,” Rogers grows peanuts, peppers, squash, cucumbers, corn, pole beans and cantaloupe on another 15 acres of his farm.

Tomatoes, though, constitute 70 percent of his business, he said.

Rogers’ tomatoes and other produce are sold at his shed and through a farmers’ market in Birmingham. From the farmer’s market, Rogers’ tomatoes ultimately end up in produce stands all over North Alabama, he said.

Tomatoes’ paradise found

Chandler Mountain is situated in northern St. Clair near Ashville and Steele.

“(It) is quite unlike any other in the Appalachian Range,” explains Mattie Lou Teague Crow in her book History of St. Clair County (Alabama). “It is a small, rock-rimmed, boat-shaped mountain, 1500 feet above sea level, and it is approximately seven miles long and one and a half miles wide. Its summit is a plateau of silky loam which grows tomatoes and beans to perfection.”*

Mike Reeves, regional extension agent in commercial horticulture for Alabama Cooperative Extension System, said Chandler Mountain offers farmers good soil, an ample water supply and the advantages of elevation. Because of elevation, there are fewer incidents of frost on the mountain than in the valley. That permits farmers to plant earlier in the spring and harvest later into the fall.

Jamie Burton, who retired after more than 60 years of growing tomatoes, said the altitude promotes cooler temperatures.

“In hot summertime, it is about five degrees cooler on the mountain” than in the valley, said Burton, who cultivated 75-100 acres in tomatoes on Burton Farm. Tomatoes, he continued, do not fare as well in temperatures greater than 95 degrees.

Rogers said air circulation on the mountain also benefits tomatoes.

“Feel the breeze,” Rogers said. “We have a breeze almost all the time.”

That, he said, helps to keep the tomato vines dry.

A way of life

The tomato farmer does the bulk of his work in 10 months each year, but gets paid during the four months of harvesting and selling, said Smith.

The days spent preparing, sowing and reaping, though, are frequently quite long, Smith said. A farmer might work more than 10 hours during daylight and then commence spraying after dark when it is better for the plants. Before the night ends, he may be loading a wholesale truck until 1 a.m. Four hours later, he is back in a field spraying until sunrise.

Rogers said there are times when he is up at 2:30 a.m. to get his tomatoes to market in Birmingham and may not finish his day of farming until 10 or 11 p.m.

Added to the long hours are other necessary aspects of the business, such as USDA inspections and new regulations to learn and follow, Smith said.

During the growing season, a tomato farmer really cannot take a vacation because of all that must be done, Burton said.

Nonetheless, “You don’t get bored of it,” Smith responded. “You get to do a little bit of everything.”

The growing season spans from April until the first frost (generally October). During that time, 50,000 to 80,000 tomato plants are sown every three weeks on the Smith farm. There are a total of seven planting cycles or “settings.” This staggered schedule produces a crop of mature tomatoes almost constantly.

“Most of the time, we can plant (a setting) in a day,” Smith said.

However, staking the plants in order to tie them and hold them upright takes longer.

“That, right there, really is work,” Smith said.

In a day’s time, it is possible to stake about 40,000 plants — or 10 acres, he said.

The cost to sow 100 acres — including expenses for plants, equipment, supplies and labor – would be at least $1 million, Smith said.

Because of all the time, effort and financial resources required to be a tomato farmer, Smith said a person has to be completely devoted to it. It has to become “a way of life. You’ve got to have the will to want to do it.”

Added Esther Smith, his wife, “Then, you pray you come out (well) in the end.”

One hailstorm, Chad Smith said, could doom a whole crop.

“Weather’s the biggest factor” that the farmers face, Smith said. “The next biggest thing is the market.”

Market prices for tomatoes fluctuate frequently, which means farmers could experience either “feast or famine” at harvest, Reeves said.

Last year, for example, the market price was low much of the season.

Smith said 85 percent of the tomatoes reaped on his farm last year brought a price that was either below cost or at cost. As the last 15 percent was being harvested, the market price rose significantly, which balanced the equation.

A changing legacy

Eighty-six-year-old Hoover Rogers of Chandler Mountain retired from tomato farming only four years ago.

He farmed for years and years, even while he was an educator and principal.

“It was hard work,” Rogers said, “but it was enjoyable.”

He said he has seen many changes occur in the science of producing tomatoes — from cultivating with mules to using tractors, from dealing with drought conditions to providing irrigation, from sowing on the ground to planting on raised, plastic-covered rows.

“The way of fertilizing, the way of spraying has really changed the last 15 years,” added Dwight Rogers, Hoover’s nephew.

Even the number and size of the farms have changed. Burton said there were more farms when he began tomato farming. Although fewer in number now, the farms tend to be larger.

Smith explained that the current method of planting on raised, plastic-covered rows is called “plasticulture.”

Creating “plasticulture” rows is done with a special attachment for a tractor. That attachment gathers soil into raised rows, lays irrigation line and spreads plastic over the rows, while directing more soil onto the edges of the plastic to secure it. All these tasks are done simultaneously.

Then, another tractor attachment punches holes through the plastic and into the soil. Finally, a tomato plant is placed by hand into each hole.

Smith said the plastic inhibits weed growth, holds moisture close to the roots and keeps the plants off the soil, which decreases the risk of disease and damage.

Yes, tomato farming requires an enormous amount of work. But “when this gets in your blood, you like it,” Dwight Rogers said. “Just the smell of the dirt when you start tilling the ground” keeps him farming year after year.

Tomato farming on Chandler Mountain has a legacy of being a family tradition. Hoover and Dwight Rogers’ family, for instance, has been farming the same land more than 100 years.

This past summer saw three generations working at Smith Tomato.

“Now, we’re getting grandkids involved in it,” said Kathy Smith, Chad’s mother.

Kista Lowe was reared in the tomato farming business like her brother, Chad Smith. As an adult, Lowe worked elsewhere for 15 years.

Yet, her heart kept recalling the excitement she felt when heavy picking commenced and all those boxes of tomatoes started arriving at the packinghouse. She missed it so much that she returned to the business three years ago.

Esther Smith understands why that would be the case. She grew up in tomato farming in Florida and enjoys everything about the process. “You look forward to it in the winter.”

Although Burton retired from tomato farming 10 years ago, and the farm responsibilities have passed to subsequent generations, the desire has not subsided.

Even now, Burton still gets the urge to go out and grow tomatoes.

A tasty attraction

Growing tomatoes for wholesale distribution is certainly a major part of Smith Tomato’s business. Yet, the farm is actually a multifaceted undertaking.

While wholesale shipping is being handled at one end of the farm’s packinghouse, there is laughter and lively conversation in the tidy produce stand at the other end.

Seven days a week from July to October, Kathy and Esther Smith and Kista Lowe can be found at the produce stand, which is open to everyone.

In addition to tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers grown on the Smith farm, the stand sells produce from neighboring farms.

The three ladies spend their days handling phone calls and attending to customers from many counties and numerous states.

“They’re either coming or calling all day long,” Kathy Smith said of the patrons.

Some are new customers and some have come back year after year.

On one August morning, H.J. Hamilton of Sylacauga explained why he travels to Chandler Mountain to get tomatoes. “I come up here because they have such fine tomatoes and such friendly people.”

Robert Bowman of Hiram, Ga., said he has been purchasing from Smith Tomato for years. This was his second buying trip in a week.

It was the first visit for Glenda Karr of Ashland, and she liked what she saw.

A relative’s comments about Smith Tomato had awakened the interest of Eunice Bowden of Anniston, and she had to check it out.

James Campbell of Argo had the bed of his truck loaded with tomatoes that he and others in his group had gathered from one of the fields.

“They’re the sweetest tomatoes I’ve ever tasted,” Campbell said.

For about 15 years, Campbell has gone there to take advantage of “u-pick,” which is Smith Tomato’s invitation for people to gather tomatoes for themselves. The cost to do so is nominal.

“All our fields get turned out to the public to pick their own when (we) get finished shipping them,” said Kathy Smith.

“U-pick,” for some customers, is a fun activity and is treated almost like a vacation. It is not unusual for individuals to drive as many as three hours for the chance to glean because they enjoy going into the fields so much, Chad Smith said.

For those who may have limited financial resources, it is an opportunity to get fresh produce for a small amount of money, Lowe said.

Then, there are people who minister through “u-pick.”

Kathy Smith said missionary groups gather the tomatoes to help feed people in need.

And after they finish gleaning, group members seek blessings for the farm.

“They pray over our fields for a good crop next season,” Lowe said.

For more information about Smith Tomato, LLC, visit its Facebook page or call 256-538-3116. Dwight Rogers may be reached at 256-490-4535.

*Information used with permission.

Other Stories

Cowboy Church

A new Sunday tradition

Story by Leigh Pritchett
Photos by Jim Smothers

As people gathered for worship time, the words of an old, familiar hymn floated through the church.

“I surrender all; I surrender all. All to Jesus, I surrender; I surrender all.”

The music and the male voice from the soundtrack had a decidedly western flair.

Of course, that was quite fitting because this church is a cowboy church.

Called St. Clair County Cowboy Church, it meets at St. Clair County Arena in Odenville each Sunday at 10:30 a.m. – rain or shine.

The first worship service was in December 2014 and, during the winter months, congregants met in a building on the arena grounds.

Rob Richey of Chelsea, who has preached frequently at the worship services, said a cowboy church is a “congregation of God’s people” where the “gospel of the Lord and Savior” is presented in a western atmosphere.

“It is a gospel church,” James Dailey, Jr., of Springville said in explaining why he goes there. “It preaches the gospel of Jesus Christ, and it just feels like home.”

Gina Rich of Odenville has found it to be different from any other church she has attended.

“These people are just like us,” she said. “They’re just normal, everyday people. We have the same interest with horses and farming and things like that.”

Richey said a cowboy church does tend to appeal to people who have horses. But “we have people who come to the worship time who really don’t ride (and) don’t have horses.”

It does not matter what a person wears or where he is financially or spiritually, added Angie Cleckler of Springville. “It’s a church where you can come as you are … in everything.”

That casual atmosphere is one aspect that appeals to Clark Thompson of Moody and his wife, Missy. “We feel real comfortable coming,” Thompson said.

Jamie Kuhn even drives from Childersburg to go to the church.

Although it currently is not a member of the American Fellowship of Cowboy Churches (AFCC), St. Clair’s cowboy church operates on the same model, said Johnny Caradine of Springville.

Caradine was instrumental in establishing the St. Clair church. “Actually, God started it. He just used me to do it,” he said.

He explained that his family went to a cowboy church in Cleveland, Ala., four or five years. Then, Caradine began to feel God prompting him to establish a cowboy church in St. Clair County, he said.

This church that began with 10 to 15 people eight months ago has now grown to 45 or 50. Plus, visitors come to the worship time almost every week, said Caradine.

At many churches, a gymnasium is one means for reaching out to people in the community. For a cowboy church, the arena is a ministry tool.

That is why congregants of the St. Clair cowboy church will readily change their worship time in order to minister to groups using the arena for events, said Dale Stubbs of Odenville.

He gave as an example a Sunday that the arena was rented for a rodeo. Members of the cowboy church met that day at a time that would allow the rodeo participants to attend as well.

“That was neat,” said Stubbs, who has been part of the church since its first service. “We just changed our time on the church service to include them.”

Another feature of a cowboy church is that the arena does not have to be the only location for worship time. Caradine said members might decide to go on a trail ride and have their worship service at some place along the way.

“We’re flexible,” Caradine said. “We’re cowboys.”

On any given Sunday

On a Sunday morning in June, Don King of Cullman – an evangelist with a 40-year radio ministry in Arab – sat with his Bible open, going over his sermon notes once more. He was dressed in jeans, western boots and a white shirt.

Attendees took their places on the bleachers, and Caradine opened worship time with prayer requests. Before prayer, the males removed their hats in reverence.

No offering plate was passed. Instead, a saddlebag that was hanging on railing was where offerings could be placed.

Caradine’s daughter, Lily, sang a cappella: “My chains are gone; I’ve been set free. My God, My Savior has ransomed me. And like a flood, His mercy reigns. Unending love; amazing grace.”

King’s sermon was about that amazing grace, which comes upon a person’s life when he asks Jesus Christ into his heart to be Savior and Lord.

Man, on his own, is unable to keep God’s commands, King said. Each and every person does wrong, and punishment is due for those wrongdoings.

Jesus Christ – God’s Only Son — was beaten, had a crown of thorns pressed down upon His head and was nailed to a cross to take the punishment for all the wrong that each person has done, King said. Jesus endured all that, shedding His blood and giving His life, to save people from their sin.

“It’s amazing what the Lord can do in a person’s life,” King said, explaining that God had pulled him from a “pit” of sin. God can straighten out any life, he said. “Without the Spirit of God (in you), you can’t go to heaven.”

As he shared his Bible message in the open arena, the sights and sounds of creation were all around. Trees swayed in the breeze and birds chirped their summer songs. Horses waiting patiently inside the arena occasionally gave a snort or stamped the dirt.

This particular Sunday just happened to be the day for the church’s monthly fellowship. So, after the worship service came a time to enjoy barbecue, potato salad and conversation.

Yet, that did not end the church gathering.

After dinner on the grounds, more horses were led into the arena, where some adults, teens and children rode them. Other young people honed their skills for different competitive events.

Many of the youths who attend the church participate in rodeos, team roping, obstacle challenges and other types of events.

Cason Davis of Odenville, one of those teens, said the youths generally practice after the worship service each week. “Everybody helps each other” and encourages one another, he said.

That is one of the great aspects of the cowboy church, said Colby Dodson of Remlap, another teen competitor. “People understand what we like.”

The fact that the church appeals to youths is a definite advantage, said Caradine. “If you can get the youth involved, the parents will come,” he said. “Our youths love to come to church.”

In June, the church added a Wednesday-evening Bible study to its ministry. The Bible study starts at 6:30 p.m. and is followed by an open-arena time for riding, roping, running barrels and the like.

Caradine said there is a special time for young people. “We have a youth message, then play in the dirt.”

Richey, who leads the Wednesday ministry, said everyone is welcome to attend the Bible study or come simply to ride.

Follow St. Clair County Cowboy Church on Facebook

Other Stories

The place for Fresh Produce

Kerry Joe is the man to see

Story by Sam Jackson
Photos by Wallace Bromberg Jr.

The first frost ushers in autumn, and the initial bloom means spring has arrived. But Pell City has a different kind of seasonal litmus test for summer: the opening of Kerry Joe Foster’s produce stand.

Pell City Produce, located a stone’s throw away from the Pell City Civic Center and Logan Martin Lake on Stemley Bridge Road, opened for the summer on April 1 this year. It will remain open until the end of September, with May through August typically acting as his busiest months. As spring turns to summer and into fall, he sells fruits, vegetables, Amish cheeses, local honeys and much more from his tent. If a food is grown in season, you can find it at Foster’s stand.

He hasn’t always been in the fruit-and-vegetable business, though. Foster previously worked with a construction company he opened with his father, but after suffering a heart attack, Foster was forced to step away from a 31-year construction career. In 2008, his outdoor produce stand opened its doors — figuratively, of course — for the first time. Since then, it’s become somewhat of a Pell City institution.

He doesn’t grow the products he sells, rather, he acts as a kind of farmer’s market conglomerate, buying fresh produce from close-to-home markets throughout Pell City, Vincent and Birmingham to sell under one roof at his stand in Pell City.

The array of growers he purchases from gives him a varied spread of 15 to 20 different kinds of products to offer on a given day.

These trips to purchase fresh goods aren’t monthly or weekly for Foster — they’re daily. His stand is open Wednesday through Saturday at 10 a.m., so Foster wakes up at 4:15 a.m. each of those days to make his rounds from market to market before arriving back at his tent. He usually drives about 100 miles each day when collecting products to sell, but the more miles he drives, the fewer miles his stand’s visitors have to log.

“(Customers) appreciate me being here,” Foster said. “They’d rather buy like this. You can hop out and get right back into the car. They like the openness of it.”

And how the customers do like it. A typical day at the stand sees more than 100 shoppers, many of who are repeat customers. Watching Foster in action, it’s easy to see why so many come back time after time. He jauntily smiles, chats and laughs with people and turns even the most routine transaction into a friendly interaction.

Jean Phillips, a weekly stand patron, sees his helpful demeanor and constant presence as an important part of his stand’s success.

“He’s always friendly and very helpful,” Phillips said. “He’ll even help you to your car with vegetables. I don’t think I’ve ever been by when he wasn’t there.”

It’s not uncommon to see customers purchase items in bulk, especially tomatoes, which Foster says are the most popular seller and his personal favorite product. Many people come from out of town to purchase them.

“A lot of people say, ‘We’ve heard your tomatoes are the best,’” Foster said. “That really means a lot to me.”

The stand’s notability draws customers from Pell City and the surrounding area, and Foster wouldn’t have it any other way. His favorite part of the job is meeting people from all walks of life, especially those who may come from farther away.

“I’ve had a lot of people from different states who are visiting — Oklahoma, California, Michigan,” Foster said. “They hear about (the stand) and have to come by to see what I’ve got. That’s always fun for me.”

Foster also loves that his job gives him the chance to remain outside and has always considered himself an “outdoors guy.”

Although his stand is only open from Wednesday to Saturday, Foster doesn’t take a three-day weekend. On Mondays and Tuesdays, he usually sells tomatoes to restaurants like nearby Good Ole Boys and The Shack and delivers unsold, though still edible, products to widows from his church. He says there is nothing wrong with these donated items, but he would rather give them away than let them go to waste.

This all may sound like a busy week for Foster to handle by himself, and that’s not far from the truth. Luckily, he has some help with the stand. Although Foster makes all product-purchasing runs on his own, Frank Boyanton, known as “Mr. B,” and Foster’s wife, Tanya, assist with some of the stand’s day-to-day operations. Mr. B is especially helpful, volunteering at the stand every Wednesday through Saturday.

In addition to his wife’s help, the stand’s family affair continues with his mother-in-law, Frankie Underwood, who makes a variety of fried pies to contribute to the stand’s product supply.

If you’re wondering how Foster maintains the will power to be around succulent fruits, vegetables and pies all day without being tempted to snag a bite or two, worry not. To prevent selling subpar products, he samples every item he displays.

This commitment to excellence comes across in the products he sells, Phillips said.

“I stop by because he has really nice vegetables,” she said. “I don’t think I’ve ever gotten any that were not fresh and good.”

The fruits and vegetables on sale are impeccable. Banners advertising “fresh produce” are draped near a picturesque spread of colorful southern garden favorites.

The stand’s location is in the heart of Pell City. Yet it’s Foster’s charm and friendliness that make his stand the destination point for return customers.

The next time you see his truck drive past, overflowing after a morning farmer’s market run, you’ll know he’s bringing good food and Southern hospitality to what has become an iconic institution.

Other Stories

Mulligan Stew

A distinctly Skeeter Park tradition

Story by Jerry C. Smith
Submitted photos from Hazelwood Family

What’s Mulligan Stew? Well, it’s a big potful of boiling water, loaded with whatever meats and vegetables one has on hand, and cooked until safely edible. However, for St. Clair’s Skeeter Park folks, it’s always been a fine excuse to get together for a grand party on a creek bank somewhere near Eden, pig out on Mulligan and enjoy a tradition that’s occurred non-stop since the 1930s.

You won’t find Skeeter Park on any GPS, nor talked about in society columns, but hundreds of St. Clair folks will agree it’s a culinary and fellowship delight for lucky invitees. While the cuisine has varied over the decades, the camaraderie has remained.

There were actually two distinctly separate groups who held similar events in the same general area: one, a private annual reunion begun in the 1930s that’s still celebrated today, and the other a more frequent but less structured community affair that got together in the 1960s and 70s.

The original group was organized by two local residents, Frank Patterson and John Willingham. They were soon joined by Frank’s brother, Willard “Shanghai” Patterson, and their close friend, W.T. “Dubb” Hazelwood.

These fellows had hunted and fished around Wolf Creek as boys, often camping there overnight to rest and cook their prey. As the youngsters grew into men, their outdoor meals became well-known and, before long, friends started drifting in to share their rustic fare.

Dubb’s son, Ben Hazelwood, soon joined the fun, later taking an active role in food preparation, with help from his own son, Benjamin, then called Little Ben but now 36 years old. The elder Ben recently passed away, but younger Ben continues the Mulligan tradition in memory of good times with his father, and because it’s so much fun.

The official Skeeter Park venue is an unimproved clearing in the woods near Wolf Creek, on land always owned by the Jones family. The park is only about 40 yards wide and 50 yards long, but has a good spring for cooking and drinking water. Dubb’s daughter, Marion (Hazelwood) Hultgren, currently of Tucker, Ga., says the area was a wondrous place to visit any time of the year, abounding with wildflowers. Mulligan Stews became generally popular during the Depression, when roving bands of hobos and others seeking work would gather into camps, often alongside railroad tracks. They had little, but usually shared it for the common good.

Various campers might contribute a couple of onions or a few ears of corn “borrowed” from a nearby farm, a chicken of similar origin, maybe some potatoes and carrots. Separately, not much of a meal, but when cooked together, they became a nourishing sustenance for all.

The Skeeter Park guys found Mulligan easy to make and serve, universally accepted, and impossible to criticize because there is no official recipe. Cooked in 5-gallon steel lard cans which were bought new every year for the purpose, these versatile stews could contain anything edible, including squirrels, rabbits, chickens, turtles, even beavers, but they never added pork until later years when it became plentiful. Nor was venison used, as deer were quite scarce in those days.

Young Ben recalls camping out at the site overnight so he could clean out the spring and be ready the next morning to build a fire big enough to heat two kettles full of water. He says his father expected that water to be boiling when he showed up a few hours later to start the stew.

Ben remembers that, even in latter years, they sometimes used freshly-killed whole squirrels, including heads but without entrails or skins. Side dishes included Southern-reunion staples like cornbread, biscuits, white loaf bread, green beans, sliced tomatoes, and occasionally a potato salad and other party fare.

Dubb’s children, Marion (Hazelwood) Hultgren, Kent Beavers and Freddy Hazelwood, were quite specific about the way their father ran the proceedings. Everyone who handled raw food had to wash their hands vigorously and keep them clean during its preparation.

He was very particular about who handled food and stirred the pots, usually doing most of it himself. The pot had to be stirred in perfect figure-eights, lest it burn. Further, Dubb insisted that stirring sticks had to be hickory saplings of a certain diameter, with just the right size fork at the end.

The stew was boiled and stirred for hours, until all meat had fallen off the bones which, coincidentally, helped disguise the species of whatever animal was in the pot.

Kent said, “If you didn’t know what you were doing, you just sat over there in the shade and drank beer with the others.” Marion added, “If you really messed up and burned the stew, you got thrown into Wolf Creek.”

Attendance was widely variable — as few as a half dozen to more than a hundred, including several regional dignitaries whose names would be easily recognized. Mulligans drew visitors from the ranks of many noted St. Clair families, among them Beavers, Castleberrys, Bowmans, Footes, Bynums, Ginns, Hazelwoods, Robertsons and Cornetts.

For the first three decades or so, participation was limited to men and boys, but in the “liberated” 1970s, they occasionally allowed family ladies to attend. Marion, who was 25 at the time, recalls being among the first girls on the scene. She helped memorialize those days with her photos, some of which appear with this story.

Naturally, these fun-loving folks didn’t confine their activities to eating. According to Freddy and Kent, the guys played poker, took bets on football scoreboards, pitched horseshoes and washers, even shot a few dice. Singing and guitar playing was usually part of the festivities, although they didn’t bring instruments on very cold days, as it could make the strings break.

Alcohol was usually present, but didn’t cause the kind of problems one might think, because Dubb and Ben kept strict order. Lawmen occasionally showed up, but only for food and fellowship. Whether certain attendees fell into Wolf Creek or were actually thrown in to help sober them up is still open for debate.

It’s rumored that Shanghai once asked some poker players for a share of the pot to help finance their meal. If more than $30 was spent on supplies in the old days, it was considered an especially lavish party.

In later years, another group began meeting nearby, at first along the north bank of Wolf Creek, then under a pole shed that still stands behind a convenience store in Eden. This gathering was started in the late 1960s by the store’s owner, Troy Bannister. Longtime Pell City resident Fred Bunn recalls going there in the 1970s, and seeing the late Tootie Hare and both Ben Hazelwoods among others who frequented both gatherings.

Fred says these events were held at random intervals, averaging about once a month, and usually ran all day long, averaging about 20 to 30 people at any one time, with others drifting in or out as opportunity allowed. Fred adds that they didn’t restrict themselves to Mulligan Stew, often substituting more basic country fare like chitterlings, barbecue or local game animals.

Under the leadership of young Ben, the Hazelwoods still follow the Mulligan tradition, usually every November at the old Skeeter Park site. They’ve been selling printed T-shirts and ball caps among their group since 1992 to help raise money for basic expenses, with the surplus going into a mutual aid fund to help members with unexpected hardship.

Ben mentions one fellow who got his hand chopped off in a work accident. The Mulligan fund helped this man’s family through some rough times.

The family says this year’s Skeeter Park Mulligan will be an especially poignant one, as they recently lost their beloved father and brother, Ben Hazelwood. Your writer has been invited, and I’m certainly looking forward to it.

No, I will NOT say when or where.

Other Stories

Iola Roberts

A 60-Year Legacy

Story by Carol Pappas
Photos by Wallace Bromberg Jr.
Photos courtesy Pell City Library Archives

Iola Roberts Elementary seems more of a tradition than simply a school. And its namesake would probably applaud that notion.

After all, Miss Iola Roberts more than earned her name on the school that has since seen generations pass through its doors. She set the standard that is still valued six decades later.

Present-day Iola Roberts School celebrated the legacy she left with an anniversary reception in late April, remembering 60 years of the school’s history.

Iola Roberts will always be a part of the school beyond the name. Her portrait hangs in the school’s lobby, seeming to keep a watchful eye on the school she loved and the students she nurtured and encouraged as if they were her own.

But step out of line, and the whack of a ruler across the palm or a tiny chin caught in her signature thumb and forefinger pinch weren’t far away.

Strict disciplinarian and cultivator of cultural arts were her hallmarks. And many a graduate will tell you those two seemingly opposite characteristics are what shaped their later lives – for the better.

It has been 60 years since Iola Roberts School opened on Pell City’s main thoroughfare, US 231. It was formerly known as South St. Clair School. Before that, it was the Avondale School, serving the Mill Village. Miss Roberts actually came to Pell City at the request of mill executives who wanted her to run their school.

And run it she did.

“Miss Roberts made sure we had music and art and good manners,” said Julia Skelton, a former student, who attended the anniversary celebration along with more than 100 others.

In a video tribute to the anniversary, Gaston Williamson underscored the recollection. “Miss Roberts’ emphasis was on 1. Behaving, 2. Manners, and 3. Culture,” he said. The school had a choir, and plays were standard fare.

Andrew Wright, who was principal at the school and a former student, said during his tenure, he tried to continue what Iola Roberts began. His administration offered a well-rounded education that included the arts, and faculty taught students how to understand the world around them.

Dr. Michael Barber is an Iola Roberts alumni who has a unique vantage point when it comes to Iola Roberts. He served as principal at the school, and he is now superintendent of the school system.

The values he learned at Iola Roberts as a student are the principles that guide him to this day – “making a difference in the lives of children every day.”

While his approach as principal was a little more unconventional than Miss Roberts’, he got students’ attention just the same. He focused on reading at the school, and when students met their goals, he rewarded them with feats like jumping out of an airplane, getting arrested by the faculty, shaving his head and kissing a pig.

“Iola Roberts has always been a magical place that seems to transport former students back to their childhood,” Barber said. “I am always amazed how accurately students from the 1950s, 60s, and 70s can with great detail recollect fond memories of the school. When a grandmother or grandfather of a current student pauses by a classroom door, lunchroom or staircase, you know they are visiting a very special memory of their own childhood.

“I still do the same thing today. I cringe when I walk into Iola’s cafeteria because that is where students received their vaccinations from the county health nurse, Ms. Zachy. All students lined up against the wall and received their shots in front of each other. Many of us fell to the floor writhing in pain.”

Barber also remembers field day, a highlight of the school year. “I relive the greased pig chase each time I walk onto the playground. We actually chased greased piglets during field day. If you caught the critter, you won a big candy cane. My brother, Kinsman, caught a pig and we ate the candy cane for a week.”

For Barber, he has seen the school from different angles over the years, but the conclusion is always the same. “The employees of Iola have always carried on the wonderful atmosphere found at the school. From the time of Ms. Roberts to today, they welcome children daily. For me, it was Millie Ann Lawley in the first-grade and wonderful teachers each year after.”

The school has traditionally been a mainstay of the community. “The people who attended Iola as students feel an ownership and special connection to their school. I don’t fuss when my own grown children want to go by Iola when they are in town. I feel so blessed to have attended and worked at such a special school.”

Although the anniversary celebration was an opportunity to look back at the legacy. It also was a time for new traditions. Faculty unveiled specially designed Iola Roberts pins, and former faculty and present faculty were “pinned,” forever linked by a common bond.

And when children leave Iola Roberts and continue their school career all the way through Pell City High School, faculty pledged to be back at their graduation to let them know how special they are with a pin of their own. It signifies a kinship shared by all those who pass through Iola Roberts Elementary.

“It was wonderful to see former teachers and students share their common love for Iola Roberts Elementary School at the 60th anniversary celebration,” Barber said. “I saw and listened to people who qualify for senior citizen benefits become children again.”

And that’s a tradition that seems to continue year after year.

Other Stories

Chicken Head Run

Zachary Mason:
And the Music Lives On

Story by Carol Pappas
Photos by Michael Callahan
Submitted photos

On a cool, spring morning in April, offering only a slight hint of warmer weather ahead, hundreds of people gathered at Pell City Lakeside Park in memory of Zachary Mason.

The next day would have been his birthday. Music from loud speakers echoed throughout the park, a celebratory prelude to the Fourth Annual Chicken Head Run. Zack would have liked that. Music was his first love. Friends and family were his passion. “Chicken Head” is what he playfully called most everybody. It became his trademark.

And on this weekend each year, they come together to raise money for the Zachary Mason Memorial Fund, which provides music scholarships to deserving students at Pell City High School.

Zack would have liked that, too. He walked at graduation from Pell City High School to a standing ovation in 2012, a tribute to the accomplishment of their fellow classmate who was born with Down’s Syndrome.

The son of Randy Mason and Melinda Pierce, Zack had a knack for making friends – plenty of them. “Anybody who had any contact with him fell in love with him,” said Tanya Osborne, his eighth- and ninth-grade teacher, who came up with the idea for the run. “He was my gentle giant. He was the sweetest thing possible. He played with my kids. He has a special place in my heart, and I will never forget him.”

In August the year he died, she saw information on Facebook about a Down’s Syndrome run in Gadsden. She and others formed a team for Zack. They donned T-shirts with a “kissy face” picture of Zack and dubbed themselves, “Zack Attack.”

About 30 people ran in that race, and it was the catalyst for a run every year since in Pell City near his birthday. “He called everybody Chicken Head. It was the perfect name for the race,” Osborne said. Now in its fourth year, the Chicken Head Run attracts nearly 200 runners and has awarded thousands of dollars in scholarships.

It’s a way to remember Zack and to keep the music alive. His aunt and Randy’s sister, Cacky Berlin, comes each year from her home in Clyde, N.C. “This is his element,” she said as she motioned toward the crowd, the music and the runners. “He touched so many people in his short life. It’s unbelievable. It’ really great that this race can help other students. He would be so happy.”

Rhonda Purdy, Melinda’s best friend, echoed the sentiment. “The music lives on,” she said. “It’s a way to continue to share what Zack loved most – music.”

His mother, Melinda, called it “exciting” and a testament to Zack. “He touched so many lives.”

Rhonda’s son, Adam, was one of those whose life was particularly touched. When Zack died, “I was heading down a path I didn’t need to go down. He changed my life. He was my best friend and my little brother. It was so sad to lose someone so close to us, but he inspired every life he met. He touched more people than most of us will touch in our life,” he said.

“As tough as it is, it makes it all worthwhile to see all these people,” Adam said.

Stepfather Todd Pierce concurred, recounting stories of “how much he loved people. He would be in the middle of all of it. He loved everybody.”

Zack was especially close to his brother, Austin, who was running the time clock at the race. Photos of them together over the years reflect the bond the two shared.

Shelby Weaver, a student at Jacksonville State University, won a music scholarship from the memorial fund. “It helps me to know I have a community scholarship like I have. It’s support from home. Because Zack loved music like he did, it helps me continue what I’m doing.”

His father, Randy, is known for his civic leadership. You could always count on spotting Randy involved in countless worthy causes throughout the city. And you could always spot Zack right alongside him.

Randy made it a point to make sure Zack was involved, too – at Chamber of Commerce events, Civitans and at Pell City Center for Education and the Performing Arts, where Randy acts as stage manager for shows.

“Both Randy and Zack are such a blessing to our community,” said former executive director of the Chamber of Commerce Erica Grieve, as she distributed packets for runners. “It is great to be able to come together in memory of Zack.”

“He came to all the rehearsals,” said CEPA Artistic Director Kathy McCoy. “He sang with Steve Shafer in the Christmas production. He would sit in the audience, and he knew every song, every word, so we started putting him on stage. He was our real sweetie.”

Unlike most teens surrounded only by peers, Zack’s reach transcended age demographics. At his 18th birthday celebration, 70 to 80 adults showed up, his grandmother, Sara Bain recalled. Four singers donated their time to entertain. When the classic, “My Girl,” was performed, Zack knew all the words. Barely masking her surprise, she said. “I didn’t know he knew the moves!”

Zack spent a great deal of time with his grandparents, and music was usually at the center of it, Bain said. He had baskets of cassettes and CDs at their home, and in the last few months of his life he took particular interest in the Gaithers Homecoming music video, featuring Singing in My Soul. “He played it over and over. All of it ministered to him deeply and therefore to me, too, because I watched and listened through Zachary’s eyes, ears and heart.”

What reminds her most of her grandson is a saying that seems to fit perfectly. “Live Simply. Love Generously. Laugh Often. Live Freely. That was Zachary.”

Other Stories