Shaw Industries Group, Inc.'s (Shaw) Andalusia, Ala. manufacturing facility was one of 14 businesses selected by Gov. Kay Ivey and the Alabama Department of Commerce to participate in the second annual Made in Alabama Showcase at the Alabama State Capitol in Montgomery on Oct. 14, 2022.
"Today's Made in Alabama Showcase offered an excellent opportunity for some of Alabama's top companies to demo their products and connect with other businesses," said Gov. Ivey. "A vital part of the community for the last 30 years, Shaw Industries is Covington County's largest employer and remains dedicated to ensuring its work environment is representative of the top-notch products offered to consumers. I'm proud to have this world-leading company here in Alabama and am thankful for their participation in this year's Made in Alabama Showcase."
Plant 65, Shaw's Andalusia facility, creates fiber used to manufacture its residential and commercial carpets. Over the past three years, Shaw has invested in plant upgrades that improve efficiency, production, ergonomics and safety for more than 1,100 associates who work at the plant. Shaw has also made major investments in its people and their health and wellbeing with the recent opening of the on-site Shaw Family Health Center. The Shaw Family Health Center provides primary care, acute care, behavioral health and wellness services to the company's local associates and their dependents.
“The ‘Made in Alabama’ badge is synonymous with quality, and it’s crystal clear that the companies being honored in today’s showcase have mastered the art of turning out an amazing variety of world-class products,” said Greg Canfield, Secretary of the Alabama Department of Commerce.
The honorees were nominated by the Alabama Department of Commerce, Manufacture Alabama, the Chamber of Commerce Association of Alabama and the Business Council of Alabama. The other honorees are as follows:
- Frios Gourmet Pops, based in Mobile, produces gourmet popsicles for its franchisees across the country.
- To Your Health Sprouted Flour Company, a national pioneer in producing organic sprouted grains. In their 17 years of business, they have grown to become the largest U.S. producer of sprouted grains, flours, legumes, seeds and nuts, producing close to one million pounds per year. They are located in Fitzpatrick, Alabama in Bullock County.
- Victory Game Clocks is a female, veteran-owned and operated team sport timing supplier based in Roanoke, Alabama.
- WoodHaven Custom Calls designs top of the line turkey and deer calls in Heflin, Alabama.
- Red Land Cotton is a family-owned, direct-to-consumer e-commerce company crafting luxury bedding, towels and loungewear exclusively from cotton grown on their family farm in north Alabama.
- Golden Eagle Syrup founders, Mr. and Mrs. Victor Patterson Sr., produced their first can in Fayette, Alabama on October 28, 1928. The original manufacturing building still remains the home of Golden Eagle Syrup today.
- Jack Daniel Cooperage manufactures white oak barrels for Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey. The Jack Daniel Cooperage is located in Trinity, Alabama and is home to approximately 175 employees.
- Specification Rubber Products began in 1968 as a manufacturer of molded rubber components for the waterworks industry, specializing in rubber gaskets. All of their products are Made in the USA in Alabaster, Alabama.
- Central City Urban Farm is a hydroponic artisanal family farm producing herbs, leafy greens and vegetables. They grow gourmet lettuces, arugula, kale, swiss chard, parsley, basil, chives and cilantro. The farm location is in the Sloss Business District in downtown Birmingham.
- Hartzell Engine Technologies was formed in 2010 by Tailwinds Technologies from Kelly Aerospace Energy Systems. It is located in Montgomery.
- Prystup Packaging Products, Inc. is in the business of manufacturing folding paperboard cartons that are used to package a wide variety of consumer goods products, employing 140 local citizens in its operations. The company has been in business in Livingston, Alabama for more than 42 years.
- Evonik is one of the world leaders in specialty chemicals. They have about 1,000 employees in Mobile and Birmingham, Alabama and another 32,000 employees across the world.
- Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Alabama employs more than 1,800 team members and builds more than 3,000 engines each day in Huntsville.
Sherry Johnston wants to help area residents trace their histories.
The veteran library genealogist recently joined the staff of the Andalusia Public Library. Johnston’s library and genealogy career began when she joined the Evergreen Public Library as a part-time employee.
“I did everything from watering plants to going up the stairs because I was the youngest or most agile,” she said. “A gentleman who was in the family history aspect was getting ready to retire and asked if I would be interested in learning about it.
“It turned out, I had a natural niche for it,” she said. “I have a photographic memory, so if I see a family tree, it stays with me.”
From the genealogy work, she became interested in cemetery preservation, and wrote columns for the local newspaper. Historic preservation became a part of her work and interests, and she gained a reputation as a household name for helping with historic research.
She retired from the Evergreen Library in April of 2021 with grand plans to stay at home and do as she pleased, perhaps assisting with research as a side line of work. But that plan was short lived when she was invited to do some work with the Thomas E. McMillan Museum on the campus of Coastal Community College (formerly Jefferson Davis Community College) in Brewton.
“I did that from January until August of this year,” she said. “One day Curtis (Thomasson) and I were talking and he suggested maybe I could come here and help.”
Thomasson, who has written a genealogy column for The Star-News for decades, contacted Mona Simon, library director, and put Johnston and Simon together.
“I came to talk with her, not with the idea of being hired, but with suggestions about the kind of person she would be looking for to work in the department,” Johnston said.
But Simon convinced her to apply for the job part-time.
“So I did, and here I am,” she said.
Since early August, Johnston has been busy re-organizing the genealogy area, which fell into disarray when everything was moved to install new flooring. Linda Grimes had managed the area for years before her illness and subsequent death. With her loss, there was no one who knew about genealogy to restore order to the department.
“I am trying to introduce new methods of research with the use of technology, which is very user friendly,” Johnston said. “I’m also researching and getting to know more about local families.”
Through the Alabama Public Library Service, patrons can use library computers to access Ancestry, Heritage Hub, and other data hubs at no charge.
“We don’t have those services available for remote access at this time,” she said. “We also just got Proquest, which is a newspaper database. That’s a biggie. The days of going through pages and pages of old newspapers are gone.”
If someone wanted to visit APL for assistance with genealogy research, he should first decide who he wants to research, she said.
For instance, if someone chose to research his grandfather, John Doe, he would need to bring whatever information he had – like birth, death, marriage or military records.
“From there, we would develop a plan,” she said. “It’s kind of like a book report. You want to focus on one thing at a time, and organize it, so that you have a readable story at the end.”
Sometimes, she said, searches start at the end, with information found at cemeteries.
“That information can take us back to the beginning,” she said.
Johnston said the local library has many resources on file, like local city directories and church histories, as well as a good selection for military records.
“Most of that is online through Ancestry,” she said.
Many of Alabama’s Baptist Church records are at Samford University, while Methodist Church records are at Huntingdon College.
“These can be helpful if you had a relative who was distrustful of Census workers, but went to church,” she said.
The library also is growing its Native American and African American resources, she said, and will accept documents like store ledgers, church memberships, of photographs that people might be willing to donate.
Johnston is in the library 8 a.m. until 5 p.m., Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, and can be reached by email at .
NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING
PLEASE TAKE NOTICE THAT in accordance with Code of Alabama§ 23-4-20, on the 1st day of November, 2022, at 6:00 o'clock p.m. in Council Chambers at Andalusia City Hall, 505 East Three Notch Street, Andalusia, AL 36420, the City Council of the City of Andalusia, Alabama will hold a public hearing on a petition by Christ the King Parish to vacate Brown Street in the City of Andalusia. The street proposed to be vacated is described as Brown Street, lying between Through Street and Allison Street and bordered on the North by Lots 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, and 15 in Block B, and bordered on the South by Lots 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 in Block D, and Lot 8 in Block C, all in the Fairgrounds Subdivision, in the City of Andalusia, Alabama, as shown by Plat Book 2, Page 15 in the Office of the Judge of Probate of Covington County, Alabama.
THE CITY OF ANDALUSIA
M. Thompson, City Clerk-Treasurer