The congregation at The Lutheran Church of Vestavia Hills (LCVH) recognized Rev. Clifford Hellmers for 50 years of service at the church, locally and abroad. Pastor Hellmers served as full-time pastor of LCVH for 32 years and then over the course of the last 18 years, in active retirement, he has served as the coordinator of Project HOPE - the foreign mission ministry … [Read more...]
Mary Raines Alexander Receives Fulbright U.S. Student Award for 2026-2027
Mary Raines Alexander, a recent graduate of Northeastern University and a Mountain Brook High School alum, has received a Fulbright U.S. Student Program award to serve as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant (ETA) in Taiwan for the 2026-2027 academic year. As a Fulbright ETA, Alexander will teach young Taiwanese students English in Taichung, Taiwan, for approximately … [Read more...]
OLS Student Selected for U.S. Naval Academy Summer STEM Program
Isabella (BB) Painter, an 8th-grade graduate from Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic School, attended the prestigious United States Naval Academy Summer STEM Program in Annapolis, Maryland, this summer, earning a place in one of the nation’s most competitive academic enrichment camp programs for rising ninth-11th graders interested in science, technology, engineering and … [Read more...]
The 2026 Sporting Clays Classic celebrates 30 years of supporting local scouting programs
As the Greater Alabama Council prepares to celebrate a remarkable milestone, the 30th Anniversary Greater Alabama Sporting Clays Classic stands as a testament to the power of community support, youth development and firearms safety education.Established in 1996 by Don Williams, with founding support from Altec Industries and Alabama Power Company, the Sporting … [Read more...]
40 Years in the Field: Carol Robinson reflects on decades as a crime reporter in a rapidly changing field.
By Mary Clare IngramOne day Carol Robinson was getting her car repaired when she got a call from the Birmingham News, (now Al.com) saying they wanted to hire her. Forty years later, she is an award-winning senior reporter for the publication covering crime across the state. “If anybody had told me at 22, when I casually accepted that job, that it would become my … [Read more...]