HHS ranked #3 in Alabama by U. S. News & World Report

Homewood City Schools is proud to announce that Homewood High School was named one of the “Best High Schools” by the U.S. News & World Report.  Of the Alabama public schools that made the list, Homewood was third in the state. 

 Schools were awarded gold, silver, or bronze medals based on state proficiency standards, how well they prepare students for college, and other factors. Homewood High School was awarded the gold medal.  The gold medal high schools are the top 500 high schools in the country.

 Among the 2012 U.S. News “Best High Schools” in Alabama, 3 were awarded gold medals, 17 received silver medals, and 73 were considered bronze medal schools. 

 Overall, more than 21,000 public high schools were assessed to produce the final list.  Homewood High School was ranked 435 nationally.

To view the ranked schools in Alabama, visit their website.

Words from the Catherine Sims Garden Dedication

Kimberly Sharkins shared these remarks at the dedication of the Catherine Sims Garden in Edgewood on Friday, May 4:

Mayor Scott McBrayer thanks Girl Scout Troop 152 for the cookies they made for Catherine Sims EcoScape Dedication. Photo courtesy of Caroline Hubbard.

A hat box, lady’s evening gloves, gardening books and dirt – what do these things have in common?  They are all characteristic mementos of Catherine Sims, better known to many as “The Plant Lady” of Homewood, Alabama.  A long-time resident of Homewood, Ms. Sims was born in Georgia and grew up in Norwood.  As a child she would ride the trolley “over the mountain” to visit an aunt that lived on this side of Birmingham and spent many a summer night sleeping on the front porch and taking advantage of the breezes that were the draw to the area.  When she and her mother moved here in the early 1960s, she brought her love of gardening to the area.  When she was not working as a teacher or later at UAB’s Spies Clinic doing dental research, her time was spent with her children – her plants.  A gentile southern lady with bright blue eyes and a warm smile, she didn’t meet a stranger.  Everywhere she went she offered plants to the people she encountered – from the receptionist, nurse and doctor at the doctor’s office, to the check-out and bag boy people at the grocery store.

Flowers like these pink blooms will grow to line the wooden posts and form a canopy as the Sims Garden continues to mature.

Rebirth of an heirloom gardening legacy

Sims Garden resident caretaker Laura Rogers, Homewood City Council President Allyn Holladay and Southern Environmental Center Director Roald Hazelhoff were all instrumental in bringing the Edgewood community garden back to life. Photos by Madoline Markham.

By RICK WATSON

For decades, heirloom shrubs and flowers with standout roses lined five lots at 908 Highland Road.

Thanks to new efforts, the legacy of Catherine Sims, the “Plant Lady of Homewood,” is living on in her Edgewood home’s garden. The lots are now filled with heirloom plants you might have found in a garden half a century ago.

“Of all the projects I’ve done for the city, this is one that I’m really proud of because it can go on forever,” City Council President Allyn Holladay said. “It’s a quiet place in the neighborhood where people can take their children in the afternoon and show them plants they won’t see just anywhere.”

In her will, Sims offered the property to the City of Homewood, but there was a catch – the city had to utilize the property as a botanical gardens.
City leaders weren’t initially excited about the gift because they weren’t sure how to manage and maintain it, so from 2006 when she passed away until last year, the property fell into disrepair.

Restaurant Showcase: The Little Donkey

Homewood native Joshua Gentry holds an order of Chiliquiles (pronounced “chili-killies”) as he stands by shelves of fresh produce and a machine that grinds corn in Little Donkey’s kitchen. Photo by Madoline Markham.2821 Central Avenue

By MADOLINE MARKHAM

A machine from Mexico grinds corn to be freshly pressed into tortillas. The smoker cooks only whole hogs from nearby farms with humane practices. A wood-burning oven bakes bread for street sandwiches. The kitchen at Little Donkey renders fat from pigs for tamales, squeezes the limes for their margaritas, and grills and smokes arbol chilies and habanero peppers for earthy tones in their salsa.

“We wanted real Mexican food that isn’t dumbed down and all melty cheese,” Chef and Managing Partner Joshua Gentry said. “We wanted to be respectful to this culture and their food.”

The kitchen goes through six cases of tomatoes a day and boxes of organic avocados that are shipped the day they are picked in Mexico.

Something about this fresh, local, authentic concept has attracted huge crowds since the restaurant opened in the old ABC store location in April.

“I thought we would have to be out on the street explaining our food to people,” Gentry said. “But we are busy like it’s spring break or something.”

An unexpected journey to motherhood

Homewood family Jill, Shawn, Abigail and Luke. Photo by Madoline Markham.

By CRAIG KLEIMEYER

While growing up in Homewood, Jill always knew she wanted to be a mom.

“I knew since I was a little girl,” Jill said. “I used to babysit all the time, and I always loved children.”

But after struggling with infertility, she never thought her dream would come true.

Jill met her husband, Shawn, while working as a traveling nurse in California. They were married in October 2004 and in 2005 moved back to Homewood to a house about a mile from where she grew up.

“I can’t imagine having a family anywhere else,” she said.

Homewood moms of multiples

By ANNA CATE LITTLE

In May we salute our mothers, and Homewood has no shortage of busy moms racing about. While every mother is special, perhaps there are some who catch our eye a bit more than others – moms of multiples. To birth two, three, four (or more) children at once is nothing short of amazing, difficult and rewarding. For this special Mother’s Day issue, we have profiled four Homewood moms of multiples. Their stories are funny, uplifting, and most of all, very unique.

Kate and Gray Garrett
Quads Virginia, Jane, Broox and Rainer
Age 3

Virginia, Jane, Broox and Rainer Garrett with parents Kate and Gray

What was your first reaction when you discovered you were having multiples?
We were in complete shock.  It was the most surreal moment of my life.  As we waited on the doctor after the ultrasound, our minds raced.  We wondered how we were going to tell our family and friends the news, and who was actually going to believe us.  Everything about my pregnancy and our lives had been changed in an instant.  It took about a month for it to really sink in, and we still had no idea what to expect.

Describe your quads’ personalities/relationship.
Our children are very different but extremely close.  Daily there are many squabbles over attention, toys, food…you name it!  However, even though they are very competitive for our attention, they want the others to do well and act as cheerleaders.  They have a great concern for one another.

We Love Homewood Day set for May 5

By MADOLINE MARKHAM

Everyone in Homewood will come out to play at Homewood Central Park and Community Center on May 5 for the annual We Love Homewood Day festivities.

“We have always gone because we like the way it brings the community together,” Hollywood resident Tammy Stone said. “We see friends from other schools. It makes us realize how much we love our community.”

The evening street dance in Edgewood featuring The Shadowboxers will be longer this year by popular demand. Also new this year, a $15 wristband will provide unlimited access to rides. Individual tickets will also be for sale for 50 cents each; some rides require up to five tickets. This will also be the second year for the Spirit Scamper run, which starts at Homewood High School at 7:30 a.m.

Business Spotlight: General Pest Control

Terry Freeman owns General Pest Control and has recently started a new business, Wildlife Management. Photo by Craig Kleimeyer.

By CRAIG KLEIMEYER

Terry Freeman has been capturing wildlife since he was a child in the late 1950s. Growing up on the bayous in Gulfport, Miss., he quickly realized his love for hunting and capturing animals. Today, he owns and operates General Pest Control and his newest business endeavor, Wildlife Management.

Freeman got into the business in 1987. A friend suggested Freeman open a cable company, but he started a pest control business instead.

“I thought that I just needed a truck and a sprayer and to put some flowers out, and I could go to work,” Freeman said. “But, I ended up having a difficult time.”

He soon learned he needed certification and licensure by the State Department of Agriculture and took a crash course from Purdue University on pest control technology.

HCS given wellness award

Homewood City Schools was named a silver winner in the 2011-2012 School Employee Wellness Awards Program sponsored by the Directors of Health Promotion and Education (DHPE).

Homewood was one of nine school districts to be recognized for their excellence in implementing school employee wellness programs that promote employee health, lead to improved workforce productivity, and reduced costs of employee absenteeism and healthcare.

School employee health is one area that DHPE has focused its work on with funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.  In 2009, DHPE implemented an awards program to recognize schools/districts that have implemented school employee wellness programs.

Team Bottchen walks for MS

By RICK WATSON

Steve and Meridith Bottchen will be a part of the Walk MS at Homewood Central Park on April 14. Photo by Madoline Markham.

Meridith Bottchen was 28 years old when she began to feel an odd tingling in her left arm and leg. It would have been easy to dismiss, but she realized her grandfather with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) had similar symptoms.
Even though she knew the disease would change her life, she decided she wasn’t going to take it sitting down.

Meridith got treatment right away to address her own health, but she also became a fundraising machine to help raise money for research for the disease. Her efforts with the Alabama-Mississippi Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society have also helped raise awareness about MS.

“I told her she missed her calling,” said Meridith’s father, Steve Bottchen, who works for the City of Homewood. “She should have been a professional fundraiser.”

“Team Bottchen” participates in Birmingham Walk MS each year and has raised thousands for the MS Society.