By Anne Ruisi
As Alice Womack accepted the Jemison Visionary Award at the Country Club of Birmingham during the Mountain Brook Chamber of Commerce’s annual luncheon, she thanked the chamber and the people who welcomed her to the city when she moved there 23 years ago.
“I may be this year’s recipient, but it is because you welcomed me into this community in February of 2000 and allowed me the opportunity to make this my place to live, work and raise a family,” Womack said at the Jan. 24 luncheon. “I am grateful.”
Mountain Brook Mayor Stewart H. Welch III, who introduced Womack and presented her with the award, noted the Jemison Visionary Award “is the highest honor to be bestowed to a resident and community leader in Mountain Brook.”
The award seeks to honor the vision of Mountain Brook developer Robert Jemison Jr. “by appreciating a citizen who has gone the extra mile to make this city the special place it is today,” Welch said.
“I can think of no person more deserving of the Jemison Visionary Award than Alice Womack. Alice has a long history, more than 20 years, as an unselfish servant-leader to our community,” he added.
Welch listed Womack’s public service to the city, including serving eight years on the city council, which ended in the fall; serving previously as president of the Mountain Brook City Schools Foundation and the Mountain Brook Chamber of Commerce; and serving as chair of the board of trustees at Canterbury United Methodist Church.
Among her other distinctions are membership in the Leadership Birmingham Class of 2021-2022, previous service as a board member and vice president of the Junior League of Birmingham and as a board member of the Service Guild of Birmingham. She also received the Woman of Distinction Award by the Girl Scouts of North Central Alabama in 2016.
The mayor recalled meeting Womack when he came into office.
“I instantly liked her and over time came to know her as someone who was always prepared, always compassionate, always thoughtful, always deliberate and always seeking the ‘win-win’ in difficult issues,” he said.
Grateful for Chance to Serve
Womack said she was grateful to have served on the City Council “because it gave me a front row seat to the inner workings of our city government.” She also praised city employees.
“We truly have the most dedicated men and women that work hard and with integrity. You have already heard from two of them, Heather Richards and Janet Forbes, who not only put their heart in soul into this community but do so with such positivity and enthusiasm.”
Richardson and Forbes were named City Employees of the Year at the luncheon.
She also lauded Mountain Brook police Cpl. E.J. Melton, who was present. Melton was on his way home after he ended a shift and stopped to help some people who were in a car accident in Birmingham. The people who were in the accident happened to be Womack’s friends, but Melton didn’t know that.
“Being in Birmingham’s district he acknowledged that he was limited in his ability to provide assistance but could wait with them until Birmingham police arrived, and he did for 20 to 30 minutes. This was not his municipality, these were not ‘his’ Mountain Brook residents to serve. He did it on his own accord, on his own time – he is representative of the men and women we have at the city of Mountain Brook,” Womack said.
