Being diagnosed with breast cancer is the furthest thing from most young women’s minds. In 2019, Audra Chiles’s life was turned upside down when she was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer. Chiles’s first inkling that anything was amiss was when she noticed a marble-size growth. Before that, the busy young career woman looked only […]

The UAB medical community and the Jefferson County Department of Health (JCDH) issued good news: COVID-19 hasn’t yet been defeated, but “we’re at the 10-yard line.” “We need to continue to really follow the rules, get vaccinated and we’ll have the best chance to get through this. … We don’t want to spike the ball before we’re in the end […]

Chris Rogers left the heights of college football at the University of Alabama knowing he wanted to make a difference. Ten years later, he’s seeing his dreams come to pass through his nonprofit Together Assisting People (TAP). Rogers founded TAP with a focus on STEM – science, technology, engineering and math – to help propel young Black athletes into strong careers […]

Never underestimate the power of your vision. More than 10 years ago, Jenny Waltman and her husband, Jason, saw integral needs in their Avondale neighborhood and wanted to help. That desire led the couple to found Grace Klein Community, a Birmingham-area nonprofit that last year donated more than $2.1 million in groceries to 25,000 households. Before the pandemic, […]

Working in what could be compared to a war zone, a team of UAB doctors and nurses performed an onsite amputation to save an injured man after the F3 tornado hit Fultondale Jan. 25. Sometime after midnight, UAB trauma surgeon Dr. Don Reiff received a call from Vestavia firefighter and paramedic Lawrence Pugliese. The firefighter was in […]

Contemplating ways to better the community, sharing ideals of justice and unity, and giving back are some of the ways Alabama Power employees celebrated Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Jan. 18. Despite the challenges of the pandemic and social distancing needs, many members of the Alabama Power Service Organization (APSO) found ways to honor […]

There’s no “Grinch” in Mobile – 10 nonprofits and more than 411 happy children are proof of that. Thanks to members of the Barry Chapter of the Alabama Power Service Organization (APSO), several nonprofits and Mobile-area families will have a merrier Christmas. Employees and contractors at Barry Electric Generating Plant “dug deep” to ensure nonprofits and other […]

Newborns at St. Vincent’s Hospital in Birmingham will receive an extra blessing during December: a hand-sewn Christmas stocking to help welcome them to the world. Thanks to volunteers of the Alabama Power Service Organization (APSO), the St. Vincent’s Volunteer program and the Acts group at Gardendale Baptist Church, St. Vincent’s Hospital received about 200 handmade […]

Sometimes a blessing comes in the nick of time. That was the case for Build a Bridge Community Pantry in Vincent four days before Thanksgiving. Members of the Plant Gaston Chapter of the Alabama Power Service Organization (APSO) showed up with a truckload of food just in time to feed needy families for the holidays. […]

More than 150 sick kids at Children’s Hospital will enjoy a mini version of Christmas this week, thanks to employees at Southern Company Services (SCS) and Alabama Power. Several SCS employees recently spent a couple of hours organizing boxes of toys for the 13th-annual Playtime Extravaganza for Children’s Hospital patients. On Friday afternoon Nov. 5, seven volunteers met at Patrick […]

A “honey-do” list may have kept him busy for a while, but after several months of the extended pandemic, one retiree found that true satisfaction comes from helping others. When social distancing began in March, Danny Copeland happily complied. The 65-years-young Alabama Power retiree figured COVID-19 was ample reason to stay home, making repairs and […]

Sept. 11 will always be etched in Gloria Buie’s mind. The date not only marks the destruction of New York’s Twin Towers but, for Buie, a personal day of infamy: she received a diagnosis of breast cancer. Buie recalls going to her doctor for her usual yearly checkup. “It was found on a mammogram when […]

It’s all in a day’s work – and then some – for Alabama Power employees who put their lives on the line as volunteer firefighters. The calls run the gamut, from fighting fires at homes and businesses to fielding medical emergencies that range from saving choking victims and rescuing people in car wrecks to giving life-saving glucose […]

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, ¡HICA! and Fiesta are providing a lifeline to Alabama’s Latino community. Though it is difficult working through a major health crisis, staff of the Hispanic Interest Coalition of Alabama – ¡HICA! – have worked from home since March to serve their community. ¡HICA! champions economic equality, civic engagement and social justice for the state’s Latino and immigrant families. […]

In college, Natalie Mills enjoyed the best of both worlds: math and science were her passion, and performing arts was her dream. Since graduating from Auburn University with a civil engineering degree, that combination of skills has allowed Mills to shine. She was recently named Outstanding Young Auburn Engineer for 2020 by her alma mater. […]

Hitting the bull’s-eye is never so satisfying as when the arrow’s aim is to defeat breast cancer. So said Beth Bradner of the Breast Cancer Research Foundation of Alabama (BCRFA). On Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 22-23, about 200 archers will compete in the Bow-Up Against Breast Cancer Tournament at Cullman Community Archery Park.

Wearing a face mask to protect your health – and others – is the new normal. The problem is finding a mask that fits to a “T.” Obex Health CEO Forrest Satterfield and Dr. Kanti Sunkavalli may have solved that problem. Obex creates custom-made, digitally fitted masks that meld to every “nook and cranny” of one’s face. The secret is […]

The world’s next Nelson Mandela, Bryan Stevenson or Booker T. Washington might just hail from Montgomery, Alabama. Indeed, a generation of remarkable young men is being trained at Valiant Cross Academy, where daily learning is steeped in discipline and self-worth. It seems fitting that the state capitol is home to a school that provides outstanding education while providing boys with strong […]

John Smola is among the utility industry’s “shining stars” taking top honors as a 2020 Fortnightly Forty. Public Utilities Fortnightly Magazine annually recognizes the next generation of leaders in the utilities industry – people who could be responsible for the operations of the electric grid and regulatory systems. The magazine, which is read by top managers in the […]

A mom’s reaction to being reunited with her lost child – found by Küsse, a German Shepherd rescue dog – was to smother both with kisses and hugs. Indeed, the name Küsse – German for “kisses” – fits Corey Speegle’s rescue dog to a “T.” With her innate ability to find lost people, Küsse has earned huge praise during her […]

Flowers bring joy, and they can heal the soul. On Friday morning about 25 florists joined in decorating the Rotary Trail in Birmingham. As a beautiful start to the weekend, said Cameron Pappas, florists swathed the trail in greenery, roses and colorful blooms of all sorts. People even brought flowers from their yards. The effort was […]

The coronavirus may be keeping people at home, but it has not stopped nurses from providing prenatal and postnatal care to first-time mothers in need. The program, which has been in the Birmingham area for almost three years, connects nurses who support pregnant women having their first baby. The nurses provide weekly or biweekly home […]

Nurses at UAB Hospital’s Center for Nursing Excellence (CNE) are committed to ensuring their colleagues have the latest information and best practices to treat patients amidst the coronavirus pandemic. About 55 nurses work behind the scenes to safeguard UAB nurses in 14 different specialties, day and night. These nurses train and monitor other nurses to make sure they […]

The little town of Bayou La Batre – home of swaying palms and warm sunshine – has a lifetime commitment from Dr. Regina Benjamin to help heal and uplift its less privileged residents. Benjamin, the 18th surgeon general of the United States, has deep roots in the bayou. The village at the end of U.S. Highway 1 dates to 1786, near […]