By: Ali Elizabeth Turner
We met on July 2nd rather than June 30th, and the hum of activity and preparation for celebrating the 4th of July could be felt in the atmosphere. “Red, White and Boom is being sponsored by the City of Athens, Limestone County Commission and the Chamber,” said the mayor. The fireworks will start when it’s good and dark, and people will need to know that part of Hwy 31 and Hwy 251 will be closed off after it wraps up while APD directs traffic and gets us home safely. This year the festivities start at 4 pm at the Sportsplex. There will be a battle of the bands, food trucks, and just a good old fashioned 4th to be celebrated in a town and county that are trying to “build well for the boom,” pardon the play on words.
The Mayor also added that stuff like this, (having fireworks and celebrations) is so important because it speaks to quality of life. Over the years as I have watched the Mayor, and for that matter, the department heads field situations that almost always fall into the category of public safety, education, economic development and quality of life. All of them are inter-connected, interdependent, and any other “inter” you may want to add in order to make a city thrive. You can’t have quality of life if you don’t have public safety, and you certainly can’t have something as important as celebrating our country’s birthday if you don’t have an educational system that teaches people how to read and write so they can know their own history. “Later on, I want to take you to a celebration that is truly patriotic,” he said with a chuckle. He then added, “I have my red, white and blue tie on for the event.” I guessed it, that the Activity Center was going to have a 4th of July party, and the “rule” was that you had to dress for the occasion. My red hat was going to have to do.
Jumping ahead, when we walked into the center, line dancing was going on in full force. I get emotional especially when I see vets at events like this…most of whom served in Vietnam, and I am hoping that more than a half century later they understand how appreciated they are, and how important their role was in making us a free and thankful country. Walter Miller, a Korea vet walked up and gave me a hug with tears in his eyes. Oh, how I love this town! We have lived here for twenty-five years, and I am looking forward to 25 more, Lord willing. Some very young staff members at City Hall stood with smiles on their faces as they watched the smiles on the faces. It was a good, good day in Athens, AL, and I am looking forward to the rest of the festivities.
“Back at the ranch” the mayor and I discussed various topics pertaining to the city, one of which was changing back to stop signs from traffic lights at the intersection of Hobbs and Marion. Years ago, a request was made on the part of local shop owners and an experiment undertaken to see if stopping at stop signs gave time to observe local business and what they offered, without disrupting the flow of traffic. It has worked, and so that intersection is going to change to stop signs.
We moved on to a topic that I have missed writing about, and that is a current book being read by the Mayor. Over the years we have read the works of coaches, business execs, Alabama’s own Andy Andrews, public officials, thought leaders and more. It has been a minute, and I am pleased to announce that we will be tackling two books soon; both written by the same group of NYT best-selling authors. They are Crucial Conversations and Crucial Accountability, and I am looking forward to getting started.
There was just one thing to do, and that was to pray and thank God for our country and its birthday, and then it was time for Ronnie to roll.
By: Ali Elizabeth Turner
June 20, 2025
