Vestavia Hills Grad Hunter Nichols Chronicles His 44-day Journey along Alabama’s RiversBy Cary EstesThere has always been a bit of wanderlust coursing through Hunter Nichols’ veins. As a teenager growing up in the Vestavia Hills/Cahaba Heights area, Nichols would often explore the nearby creeks and woods, alone, with only the fish and turtles as his companions.One … [Read more...]
Having a Heart for a Cause
By Donna CorneliusWhen James Kirklin decided to switch majors in college, the world likely lost a marine biologist.But it gained an internationally-known doctor.Kirklin was an All-American diver at Ohio State University when he decided to switch majors and prepare for medical school, he said.“I’ve always loved the ocean and still enjoy scuba diving,” said … [Read more...]
A Sense of Place, Southern-style
Local Landscape Painter Is Featured Artist at Hoover’s Southern VoicesBy June MathewsWhen artist Melanie Morris accompanied her husband, author Michael Morris, to the Hoover Public Library’s Southern Voices Festival in 2004, she met that year’s featured artist, Toni Tully, with whom she naturally felt a connection.“She was so nice, and I thought then that I would … [Read more...]
Waking Up about Addiction
Personal Experiences Highlight Prevention EventBy Emily Williams“I was on the right track, or what seemed like the right track, to doing everything you would want to do in life and everything that parents would ever want from their kid,” said Brad Blount, his image playing on a large screen in the crowded ballroom of Vestavia Country Club.A room packed with people … [Read more...]
The Long Run
By Lee DavisAlmost 23 years ago, nobody could have guessed that the birth of a child could lead to the establishment of one of the most successful charitable events in metro Birmingham.But that’s exactly what happened.In August of 1992, Paul and Cinna Sotherland of Homewood gave birth to their son, Matt. The child had Down syndrome, along with a heart defect that … [Read more...]