THE NEXT STORM

3 years after tornadoes, work remains on

Alabama’s storm-preparedness to-do list
Taylor Manning
Staff Writer
The Anniston Star
 
July 20, 2014

More than three years after Alabama’s deadly tornado

outbreak, nearly half the items on the state’s must-do list for
severe weather preparedness remain unfinished — and there's
no timetable for completing the work.
After
the April
2011 storms
killed 244
people
across the
state, Gov.
Robert
Bentley
announced
the creation
of the
Tornado
Recovery
Action
Council. The now-disbanded panel proposed 20
recommendations for improving the state’s emergency response
tactics in January 2012. According to Bentley’s office, only 13 of
them have been completed so far.
Lawmakers, including Senate President Pro Tem Del Marsh
of Anniston, said they were unaware of the proposals, but would
be willing to work with the governor to get the remaining initiatives
passed.

“Every recommendation that the governor had the authority

to do at the state level has been done,” said Art Faulkner, director
of the state Emergency Management Agency.
Some of the unfulfilled items on the list would require action
from the Legislature. They include tax incentives that would
encourage businesses to own electrical generators and install
storm-proof safe rooms, tougher structural requirements for new
buildings and new rules to require shelters at apartment
complexes and mobile home parks.
Some storm victims say they’d like to see more being done.
“Just having recommendations out there is not enough,” said
Shirley Walden, whose northern Calhoun County house in
Webster’s Chapel sustained damage during a 2011 tornado.
“They should follow through.”
Marsh said the undone items simply haven’t been brought to
lawmakers for action.
“If it is in
the works,
then I will
work with
the
governor to
make sure it
gets
passed,” he
said.
Marsh
said he
knew of no
opposition
to the
measures still on the list. He said it’s typical for the governor to
seek lawmakers to pass the items on his own agenda — and
unusual for a legislator to pursue an item independently if the
governor has already announced he’s pursuing it.
In an emailed statement sent by the Bentley’s press office,
the governor was quoted as saying he’s pleased with the
progress made so far.
 “The recommendations in the TRAC report were carefully
researched and we plan to implement as many of the
recommendations as possible,” the statement read.
Repeated attempts to reach Blaine Galliher, the Bentley aide
who served as legislative director from mid-2012 until last month,
were unsuccessful.
Richard Fording, professor and chair in the University of
Alabama’s department of political science, said the
recommendations are competing with many other proposals that
crowd the legislative agenda each year.
“I don’t know if Gov. Bentley has made a significant effort to
push these
proposals in
the
Legislature,”
Fording said
in an email.
“He may be
choosing to
use his
limited
political
capital for
other
priorities.”
Fording
said that other unfulfilled recommendations would impose
significant costs on one party or another — for example, a change
to construction codes leads to increased costs for builders.
“Mandates from state government are generally not welcomed by
local governments, especially when they do not come with
funding,” Fording added.
‘Take their advice’

In the months after the storm, the 19-member recovery

council studied what the state could do to better prepare for the
next major storm outbreaks. On the panel were executives from
major Alabama businesses such as Regions Bank and Protective
Life Insurance Co., officials from cities hit by the storm, hospital
administrators and representatives of nonprofits.
In four and half months of consultation and seven public
forums, the panel sought insight from researchers, weather
experts, government officials, response coordinators, experienced
builders and other leaders. It produced a report that recounted the
April 27 outbreak hour by hour, twister by twister and community
by community — all building up to the 20 recommendations the
panel made for future storm readiness.
When the report was released, Bentley said he would put the
plans into motion, starting with the building of public safe rooms
and encouragement for more cities to adopt emergency disaster
plans.
“I do not believe that we should ask people to do a job, like
we have this council, and not take their advice,” Bentley said.
More than two years after the report’s release, state officials
point to some concrete progress. State money has paid for new
public shelters in buildings across Alabama — enough, EMA
director Faulkner said, to hold at least 50,000 people in an
emergency.
So far, 4,000 individual safe rooms and about 250
community safe rooms have been installed, and an additional 200
community safe rooms should be implemented by the end of the
year, Faulkner said.
The council’s recommendations called simply for more
shelters, but didn’t specify a numerical goal.
“I am very happy that the recommendations that have been
completed and that we continue to work on them,” Faulkner said.
 State agencies have also upgraded weather alert systems to
include the ability for residents to receive text, email and
telephone warnings, state officials say. The construction of a new
$7 million weather research facility at the University of Alabama in
Huntsville completed the council’s resolution to promote the study
of tornado formation and atmospheric conditions, the governor’s
office said.
“This will help take us to another level in terms of our
research,” said Ray Garner, UAH spokesman. “Hopefully, what
we do will save lives.”
Perhaps the most visible of the 13 completed
recommendations is a statewide sales tax holiday on storm
supplies. Modeled on the annual August sales tax holiday for
school supplies, the tax holiday sets aside one weekend in
February to allow people to buy storm-prep items such as
batteries and generators without paying sales tax.

A work in progress

Still, other recommended tax incentives for storm

preparation — including a proposed tax credit for businesses to
buy backup generators — remain on the drawing board.
Denise Rucker, a volunteer management coordinator with
Calhoun County’s Retired and Senior Volunteer Program, said
that acquiring generators businesses could use during power
outages should be at the top of legislators’ to-do list.
It is particularly important for grocery stores to continue
operating for 72 hours after a tornado, she said. Emergency
responders often encounter fallen trees and other roadblocks that
initially impede the delivery of supplies.
She said that grocery stores that lose power during these
times lose a significant amount of stock, meaning that
merchandise won’t be available to nearby residents who also
have power outages.
 The state’s emergency management director agrees.
“Some people, their homes are destroyed,” Faulkner said “It
can be days before we can get people in a situation where they
do have access to food.”

Talking codes

The governor’s panel did, in fact, recommend that the state

set up statewide building codes intended to make newly
constructed buildings more storm-worthy than the state’s current
housing stock.
“Some of the damage suffered on April 27 was preventable
with design
techniques that
are relatively
inexpensive,”
the panel’s
report stated,
adding that it “is
imperative that
the state use
this event as a
springboard to
save lives in the
future with
better-fortified
housing.”
Alabama’s
first statewide set of minimum fortification standards went into
effect in 2012 — but those standards were approved in 2009, and
brought Alabama up to a nationwide minimum seen in states that
aren’t hurricane- and tornado-prone.
No new, higher standards have been approved since the
2011 storms or the panel’s report. Jason Reid, regulatory affairs
director with the Alabama Home Builders Association, said the
Alabama Energy and Residential Codes Board is in the process
of developing additional fortification requirements.
State Rep. Christopher England, a Democrat from storm-
ravaged Tuscaloosa, said there are basic steps — such as tie-
downs and new ways of attaching shingles to roofs — that can
help houses withstand high winds.
“After the tornado, we discovered that some homes were
destroyed, not because they were directly hit, but that debris of
older homes with older construction flew off and caused damage
in other places,” England said.
Anne Williamson, a political science professor at the
University of Alabama who specializes in housing policy, said that
enforcing codes outside cities is often problematic because of a
lack of government workers in rural areas.
Williamson said similarly storm-prone states such as Florida,
have statewide building codes that cover more than baseline
standards. She said the construction codes introduced in Florida
after 1992’s Hurricane Andrew led to big improvements in
buildings being able to withstand high winds and other harsh
conditions, including the now-required hurricane shutters in some
areas along the state’s coastline.
Given that Alabama experiences both tornadoes and
hurricanes, the state needs to step up its standards, she said.
“It seems to me we actually should be in a leadership
position in terms of disaster preparedness, not lagging behind,”
Williamson said.

The timetable

Ron Gray, a member of the recovery council, said the panel

proposed a mix of simple and complex resolutions, some that
could be implemented reasonably quickly and some that would
require more time.
 “I think, given the complexity of the subject and the massive
nature of it, it’s actually a nice number of completed topics,” Max
Michael, another council member, said. “I think it’s moving well.”
He added that legislation for the seven unfinished
recommendations will be a long process.
“Unless somebody takes it on and champions it, it’s not
going to go anywhere,” Michael said. “So making sure that the
recommendations remain in the public eye is going to be
important.”
Oprah gets first look at memorial
Taylor Ford
Montgomery Advertiser
USA TODAY NETWORK
 
April 6, 2018
 
In a "60 Minutes" broadcast coming Sunday, the public will get a
sneak peek at a new memorial in downtown Montgomery dedicated to
thousands of lynching victims.
The broadcast will feature a report from Oprah Winfrey as she
tours the new facility.
Winfrey’s
report will air
at 6 p.m.
Sunday on
CBS.
The
memorial is at
417 Caroline
St.
“It will be
the first time
the public sees
the inside of
the structure and its 805 steel markers, each bearing the names of
people murdered — often with thousands of onlookers amid a picnic-
like atmosphere,” according to a release from CBS News.
Each marker represents a state county and contains the names
of victims of lynching from that area. The memorial takes up six acres
in the heart of Montgomery, “perhaps the best known city in the
struggle for civil rights,” the release states. Alabama was the scene of
at least 361 documented lynchings.
 Efforts to build “The National Memorial for Peace and Justice”
were led by Bryan Stevenson, a lawyer who founded the Equal Justice
Initiative.
“Asked by Winfrey why he chose to commemorate lynching as
opposed to other injustices done by white people to the Black
Community, he says the murderous acts were a way for whites to
maintain political control over African Americans, who were supposed
to get the right to vote after the Civil War,” the CBS News release
states.
“Lynching was especially effective because it would allow the
whole community to know that we did this to this person … a message
that if you try to vote, if you try to advocate for your rights … anything
that complicates white supremacy… and political power, we will kill
you,” Stevenson said.
In addition to the monuments displaying the names of the
victims, the
team has
collected jars
filled with soil
from many
places where
lynchings took
place. Winfrey
and cameras
record
descendants of
lynching victim
Wes Johnson
collecting soil
from an
Alabama cotton field. The 18-year-old was accused of assaulting a
white woman, arrested and then taken from his cell by a mob before
his trial. He was shot and then hanged from a tree.
Stevenson tells Winfrey, “Something happened here that was
wrong … unjust, and too few people have talked about it. … So that’s
what we want to do today. We want to recognize the wrong that was
done to Wes Johnson.”
The memorial will be paired with a museum, called The Legacy
Museum: From Enslavement to Mass Incarceration, that will also open
in downtown and explore slavery, lynching, segregation and modern
inequality issues.
Melissa Brown contributed to this report.
Recent UA alum saves family from fire
Taylor Manning
Staff Writer
The Crimson White
 
Jan. 16, 2014

Black smoke surrounded Jordan Wood as he made his way

to the bedroom window. Choking on the acrid fog, he blindly felt
his way to the window pane and punched through the glass. For
the first time in what felt like eternity, Wood breathed fresh air.
“I was
getting out of
that house,
even if I had
to kick down
the wall,”
Wood, who
graduated
from the
University in
December,
said. The 23-
year-old
narrowly
escaped with
his life on
Jan. 8 after a fire trapped him and his girlfriend, Caroline
Cavanaugh, in a bedroom of his grandparents’ Fairhope home,
which they were visiting.
Earlier, Wood was playing on his phone around 4 a.m. when
he heard the screams of his grandfather, James Blevins. He
discovered Blevins writhing under blankets completely engulfed in
flames, Wood said. He immediately alerted and evacuated
Cavanaugh and the Blevinses and is now being hailed as a hero.
“He is definitely a hero,” April Garrett, a family friend, said.
“He doesn’t see himself as one, but anybody who hears this
[story] will agree that he is a strong and amazing young man."
James Blevins is confined to a wheelchair and would have
been unable to escape the fire without assistance, Garrett said.
Amidst a rapidly spreading fire, Wood dragged Blevins
outside to safety. Cavanaugh and Wood’s grandmother, Carmen
Blevins, were able to exit the home without assistance. Wood said
he believes the fire resulted from a nearby space heater.
“If it hadn’t of been for Jordan being there, they probably
would have died. There is no way Carmen would have been able
to drag him out of the house on her own,” Garrett said.
After checking on his grandparents, Wood noticed
Cavanaugh re-enter the burning house in an effort to save their
two dogs, still in the house. Refusing to let his girlfriend venture
into the burning house alone, Wood promptly followed her.
“The smoke was already bad, but it kept getting worse and
worse,” Wood said. “We were screaming for the dogs, and I just
knew we had to get out of there or we were going to die.”
The fire herded the two into a bedroom, at which point Wood
was forced to break the window so they could escape. The couple
managed to leave through the window, although Wood sustained
superficial cuts. Cavanaugh suffered a deep laceration that
required several stitches.
Both dogs perished in the fire.
James Blevins sustained third-degree burns to his back and
feet and underwent surgery Wednesday, Wood said. Carmen
Blevins was not injured in the fire. The Blevinses are now staying
with relatives in the Mobile area. Their home was not covered by
insurance, and they lost everything in the fire, Garrett said.
Inspired by a need to help, she started an online fundraising
campaign using gofundme.com. So far, the site has raised more
than $12,000.
“Within an hour, we exceeded our $5,000 goal,” said Garrett,
who has raised $25,000 so far. “I was shocked. I didn’t think we
were going to reach the $5,000 limit, but I’m so glad we did. I’m
very overwhelmed. And we are still getting donations.”
Wood’s former brothers from Delta Chi fraternity, Peyton
Roberts and Barton Haddad, hosted a fundraiser for the Blevins
family Tuesday night at Gallette’s. The event exceeded the
original fundraising goal of $1,000, said Roberts and Haddad,
who both graduated in December.
“As soon as I found out, I knew we had to do something,”
Roberts said. “He’s kind of a hero.”
Gallette’s promised to match any donations made from its
employees, which increased the proceeds to more than $3,000,
Haddad said. All contributions from the event will be added to
Garrett’s fundraising site.
The Fairhope Volunteer Fire Department and the Alabama
State Fire Marshal’s Office will perform a routine fire investigation
as the family recovers, said Assistant State Fire Marshal Scott
Pilgreen.
“It’s been great to have all of this support and realize that we
have so many friends,” Wood said.
LETHAL INJECTION
Student heroin use increases

Taylor Manning
Staff Writer
The Crimson White

March 19, 2014

 As heroin use has grown across the country in recent years,
the Tuscaloosa and University of Alabama communities have
been no exception.
Wayne Robertson, commander of the West Alabama
Narcotics Task Force, said narcotics, such as heroin, are playing
an increasingly significant role in student life.
“We are seeing a big rise in heroin use among students,”
Robertson said. “[It] is probably one of the most powerful drugs
there is. We’ve seen more college kids on it in this area than any
other group. The problem that we’re having is so many
overdoses.”
The purity of heroin is characterized by how much it is mixed
or “cut” with other, generally non-lethal, substances, such as
sugar or starch. Typically, users buy heroin with a purity level of
20 to 30 percent, Robertson said. However, the average purity
rate of heroin in Tuscaloosa is a dangerously high 50 percent, and
neighboring Jefferson County officials have confiscated some with
purity levels as high as 90 percent.
“They’re selling it to the kids, and the kids just don’t know
what they’re getting,” Robertson said. “If you’re an addict, you
want that drug so badly. You’re willing to take the risk.”
Heroin overdoses rose in Jefferson, Shelby and Tuscaloosa
counties from 15 in 2008 to 83 in 2012, according to a press
release from the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern
District of Alabama.
The heroin landscape has changed since the 1960s and
’70s, when it was generally seen in lower-income areas of big
cities, Roberts said. Starting in 2012, the drug became more
prevalent in the community, mostly among the middle to upper
class.
The task force seized heroin totaling a street value of
$16,000 in 2012 and $19,000 in 2013. Robertson said local
college students used OxyContin and oxycodone until a few years
ago, when heroin became the more popular drug.
 Oxycodone, an active ingredient in the prescription drug
OxyContin, is an opiate that has an effect similar to that of heroin,
Robertson said. Heroin is more accessible because it does not
require a prescription or prescription forgery.
The number of heroin users in the U.S. has increased by
almost 80 percent from 373,000 in 2007 to 669,000 in 2012,
according to the federal government’s Substance Abuse and
Mental Health Services Administration National Survey on Drug
Use and Health.
“It’s easier to get heroin; it’s cheaper, and it’s a better high,”
Robertson said. “I think this is what’s caused the rise in the use of
it. It’s a very powerful, very addictive drug.”
Robertson said in addition to college-age students, the task
force is now seeing heroin users as young as 16. The drug is
mostly being distributed out of Jefferson County.
Despite this recent uptick in heroin distribution, though,
marijuana is still the most common narcotic in the area,
Robertson said. He said he has also seen why it has a reputation
as a gateway drug to more lethal substances.
“I know people consider marijuana a drug that is not
dangerous, and some people say it ought to be just like alcohol,”
Robertson said. “But at every [heroin] overdose I’ve been to, and
I’ve been to quite a few, we found evidence of marijuana usage.”
According to the University’s Annual Campus Security and
Fire Report, 72 arrests were made on campus in 2011 for drug
violations, which jumped to 103 in 2012. The task force arrested
179 students off campus in 2013. Robertson said campus police
arrests mostly involve misdemeanor charges, while the task force
handles all felony drug arrests.
“We deal with more students off campus than we do on
campus,” Robertson said. “We deal with a lot of students from
The University of Alabama, but they’re living outside the campus
area.”
 Thursday marks the one-year anniversary of the death of 20-
year-old Baker Mims, a UA student who died from a heroin
overdose at The Woodlands student apartment complex.
Mims’ mother, Beverly Mims, said her son’s small physical size
could not handle the potency of local heroin.
“If he had weighed more, he could’ve lived,” she said.
College students often take risks and experiment with drugs, but
those who die from heroin overdoses never get a chance to learn
from their mistakes, she said.
“I want heroin dealers off the streets,” she said. “I want them
to think of all the lives they are ruining just because of greed.”
Mims said she hopes her son’s story can still have an impact.
“He was humble, [and] he had so many gifts,” she said. “So
it’s debasing to us because he’s our child. Debasing I think, to the
world. But I can tell you that God’s definitely still using him to
make an impact.”
One UA graduate and former heroin addict, who wishes to
remain anonymous, said the drug made him feel like a different
person.
“I was doing stuff like stealing from my parents and breaking
into cars,” he said. “That was kind of a sign. The fact that I would
do just about anything to get it was a reality check after a while.”
After experimenting with LSD, ecstasy and cocaine, he said
he tried heroin for the first time and instantly became addicted.
For months, he wore long-sleeved shirts to hide the track
marks on his arms from injecting the drug. After surviving an
overdose, he decided to quit.
“It was hell coming off of [it],” he said. “I was feeling
nauseated and having mental breakdowns because I needed the
drug so bad. I would sleep 10 to 12 hours a day.”
He said he felt like he was in control of his life while using
heroin but that he was lying to himself.
 “There’s only a few options that can happen when you’re
using it frequently: death, rehab or jail,” he said. “That’s pretty
much all it can lead to.”
The Student Health Center offers treatment for students with
substance abuse issues through “Drugs, Alcohol and You”
programs that provide individual and group therapy, as well as
group classes.
“We know that substance abuse is a concern nationally, and
we are confident that we have a reasonable array of options
within the Student Health Center and other partners on campus,
such as the Counseling Center and Psychology Clinic, to help
address these concerns,” Delynne Wilcox, assistant director of
health planning and prevention, said.
Historic photos trace Alabama's past
Taylor Ford
Montgomery Advertiser
USA TODAY NETWORK

Dec. 26, 2017

In December 2016, Alabama Media Group donated more

than 3 million photographic negatives to the Alabama Department
of Archives and History. Throughout the year, ADAH has been
working to preserve and digitize the images, and make them
available to the public.
The negatives were produced by photographers who worked
at The Birmingham News, Mobile’s Press-Register and The
Huntsville Times from the 1920s through the end of the 20th
century.
The photos
document
millions of pivotal
— and ordinary
— moments in
Alabama history.
There are
scenes from the
civil rights
movement, the
1993 Amtrak
Sunset Limited
train wreck near
Mobile and
Huntsville's U.S.
Space and Rocket Center, as well as images of Rev. Martin
Luther King Jr., Coach Paul “Bear” Bryant, Elvis Presley,
Emmylou Harris, President Franklin D. Roosevelt during a visit to
Tuskegee and many
more.
"There are photos
in those archives that
have long since been
forgotten," longtime
Birmingham News
photographer Joe
Songer told al.com
when the photos were
released last
December. "There is
plenty of stuff in there
that is going to be
pretty cool to see."
Meredith McDonough, digital assets coordinator for the
archives department, said that over 900 images have been
digitized so far. Though it will take years to complete the
digitization, new material will be added each month.
To browse through the latest digitized photos, readers can
visit digital.archives.alabama.gov.
ADAH, located in downtown Montgomery, is the state’s
government records repository, special collections library and
research facility. It is also home to the Museum of Alabama, the
state history museum.
Fourth-graders host living history
museum
Taylor Manning
Staff Writer
The Anniston Star

May 9, 2014

Jimmy Buffett, Rosa Parks and Bo Jackson walk into an

elementary school.
In fact, several of Alabama's most illustrious historical figures
gathered at White Plains Elementary School on Friday – not
during the beginning of a cheesy joke, but as part of a living
history museum presented by the school’s fourth-grade class.
Each costumed student performed as a person from
Alabama history. Several incarnations of Rosa Parks, a few Helen
Kellers and at least five Paul “Bear” Bryants made an
appearance.
“The children went above and beyond,” said Wendy Turner,
an Alabama history teacher at White Plains who helped
coordinate the event. “A good bit of work was done at home, and
they just blew it out of the water. They are as excited as we are.
It's like the first day of school. It's so wonderful.”
Over the course of one month, students researched their
subjects. Throughout the day-long event, they lined up in various
locations in the school and showcased their individual project
posters. Parents and teachers floated down the line of historically
garbed students, each of whom recited short first-person
speeches whenever a participant approached.
Clad in Native American clothing and a feathered headdress,
10-year-old Gage McClendon continuously honed his
performance as the day progressed.
 “My name is Chief Tuscaloosa,” McClendon, requiring only
the occasional glance at his note-card, recited. “They do not know
when I was born, but I died in 1540. I was brave and I had
courage. I taught Alabama to never give up, even if you're
defeated.”
Jonathan Ferdinand, 10, donned a fake gray beard and
dark-framed glasses to assume the persona of David Satcher, an
Anniston native and former surgeon general. Ferdinand said that
his favorite part of the assignment was drawing for his poster,
which featured detailed illustrations of Satcher.
Turner said that the students were creative in their projects
and chose a wide array of historical figures.
“It's phenomenal what they came up with,” Turner said.
“We've got all kinds of athletes, from Kevin Green to Paul ‘Bear’
Bryant. We've got a wide range from Harper Lee in literature, and
actresses and actors.”
The event promoted project-based learning and bring-your-
own-device computing, two of the county school system's
educational initiatives.
Project-based learning centers on using a single theme or
project idea that relates to multiple subject areas, said Principal
Jonathan Gilbert. All of the school's fourth-grade teachers,
regardless of their subject, integrated the living history museum
project into their classes.
The bring-your-own-device program encourages students to
bring smartphones, laptops and tablets from home. If a child does
not have access to a device, the school with provide them with
one, he added.
“When you don't have a classroom full of computers, then
the kids can bring their own devices, and it puts it right there in
their hands,” Gilbert said. “With the touch of their finger, they can
go to a website and do research or do some type of game or
learning activity that we have planned for them. It just makes it a
little easier.”
 Turner said the children enjoyed using devices in class and
at home to research their subjects for the living history museum.
“It's kind of like you're tricking the kids,” Gilbert said. “They
think they're playing, but they're really learning.”
Other student projects included Nat King Cole, Kathryn
Tucker Windham and Willie Mays.
State auditor candidates would
change, expand the office
Taylor Manning
Staff Writer
The Anniston Star

July 6, 2014

Both of the men seeking the Republican nomination for state

auditor hope to expand the role of the little-known statewide
office.
Dale Peterson and Jim Zeigler will face each other July 15 in
a runoff election for the office, which is responsible for keeping
track of state-owned property. The winner in the runoff will go up
against Democratic nominee Miranda Joseph in November.
“I’ve got a plan to turn the state auditor into something that it
is not at present, a monitor of how our tax dollars are spent in
Montgomery,” said Zeigler, 66. “That’s not what it does at
present.”
Zeigler, a Mobile lawyer, said he would like to see those
auditor’s duties extended to tracing taxes.
“When our tax dollars go to Montgomery, there is not
sufficient accountability of how those tax dollars are spent,” he
said.
Peterson, a Shelby County llama breeder and former
Birmingham police officer, said the state auditor should take over
the duties of the state examiner, who has the ability to enforce
laws pertaining to state property.
“The auditor’s office is impotent,” said Peterson, 68. “They
can’t hold anybody responsible.”
 On his campaign website,
Peterson said the office is, at
best, a ceremonial post,
costing taxpayers more than
$85,000 per year, plus
benefits.
The limited role of the
auditor has come up
repeatedly as a theme in this
year’s election for the office. Anniston lawyer Ray Bryan, once a
candidate in the race, pledged to work to abolish the office if
elected.
Actually changing the office could be a challenge for a new
auditor, precisely because of its limited power. Zeigler said the
position would grant him easier access to tax documents, which
would help him detect when abuses of power occur. As an
attorney, he could then file taxpayer civil actions.
“After I run the first taxpayer action, I will become a lightning
rod for honest, hardworking, fair employees,” he said.
Zeigler, a University of Alabama graduate, ran
unsuccessfully for state auditor in 2002. The candidate has filed
legal actions several times against government officials, including
a case involving the illegal distribution of extra paychecks, he
said.
Additionally, he unsuccessfully filed ethics complaints in
2001 against then-governor Don Siegelman, who was later be
indicted on unrelated charges.
Peterson rose to nationwide fame during his unsuccessful
2010 run for agriculture commissioner, when campaign ads
featuring the candidate in a cowboy hat and carrying a gun went
viral. He made headlines again last in 2012 after two arrests for
alleged misdemeanor theft. He told The Star both instances were
misunderstandings and said his attorney had advised him not to
discuss them.
 The state’s current auditor takes offense at the suggestion
her office has little to do.
“This comment is not only insulting to me, but insults every
state auditor that has chosen to serve the people of Alabama,”
Samantha Shaw, the current auditor, wrote in an email. “As a
constitutional office, we perform an important and essential
function.”
In addition to daily responsibilities, the auditor serves on
several state boards, including the State Board of Adjustment and
the State Board of Appointments for Board of Registrars, she
said.
Both candidates said they expect low turnout in the July 15
runoff, though Peterson said that was unlikely to affect the results.
Zeigler got 47 percent of
the vote in the Republican
primary, but not enough to
avoid a runoff against
Peterson, who received 24
percent. Despite coming ahead
in the primary election, Zeigler
said he would continue
campaigning.
“We are campaigning as if
we were behind,” he said. “In a
poor turnout, anything can
happen.”
Jacksonville church celebrates pipe
organ’s return
Taylor Manning
Staff Writer
The Anniston Star

July 17, 2014

After a long period of separation, First Presbyterian Church

in Jacksonville is welcoming back its newly restored pipe organ.
The instrument resided at the A.E. Schlueter Pipe Organ
Company of Lithonia, Ga., for nine months while being
refurbished. To celebrate its return, the church will host a public
dedication service and organ concert at 4 p.m. Sunday.
“The
organ leads
the worship
in music,”
said church
organist
Susie
Dempsey.

Originally
installed in
1972, the
organ
received
some
modern
upgrades, including added electronic features and a new console,
she said. The instrument also doubled in size with the addition of
about 500 pipes.
In 2013, a committee was formed to oversee the complex
renovation process. Dempsey, a committee member and a
Jacksonville State University professor emerita, said the panel
interviewed five companies before ultimately deciding on
Schlueter.
“We found a builder who was most interested in worship and
how an organ supports worship,” she said.
The committee, in collaboration with restorers, brainstormed
ideas for the organ’s new design. The panel also visited the
company’s workshop before the restoration began.
Committee member Carlton Ward said the congregation
used an electronic organ during the renovation. An electronic
organ relies on speakers, while a pipe organ produces natural,
wind-driven music.
“We always said that it made us appreciate the pipe organ,
the more we played it,” Dempsey added.
Ward said the upgraded features dramatically enhanced the
organ. “I am hearing sounds that we’ve never heard before,” he
said. “Interestingly, some of the pipes are actually wood —
walnut. They’re pretty to look at, but they’re also beautiful to listen
to.”
Organist Jamie McLemore will be the featured artist at the
Sunday concert. McLemore, organist at South Highland
Presbyterian Church in Birmingham, served on the committee as
a consultant, Dempsey said.
Ward expects a good turnout at the concert, which will
include a variety of religious and classical pieces, including hymn
arrangements, Bach’s “Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring” and John
Stanley’s “Trumpet Voluntary.”
“I think this will be a public celebration of the pipe organ and
its capabilities,” Ward said.