What type of future do you see for Coosa County?
PROTECTED CONTENT
If you’re a current subscriber, log in below. If you would like to subscribe, please click the subscribe tab above.
Username and Password Help
Please enter your email and we will send you a password reset link.
In My Humble Opinion
Jodi McDade
I recently read a post on Facebook from someone here in Coosa County who was on a trip to the north part of our state. They said they had never been outside of our county and were amazed at how beautiful the area was where they were visiting. As an outsider and newcomer to Coosa County – I’ve only been here for 24 years – these comments hit home.
Growing up in a city (Mobile) I was fortunate enough to travel as a small child back and forth to my mother’s home town of Calhoun City, Mississippi, and to where my dad’s mom spent half of each year in Columbia City, Indiana. While both of these small towns were larger than Rockford, they were still small towns where everyone knew everyone. I’m guessing there were people in these towns who also had never left the county where they are located.
Most of my family – on both sides – were fairly well-traveled because of being in the military during WWII or Korea. None of my uncles or their families came back to Calhoun City after their service ended, and they all went to larger cities scattered around the south.
Most all of them had gotten their educations or trades from their time in the military so they looked for areas more suited to raising their families. They all did the same thing my family did and returned home only for holidays, special occasions and funerals.
I think I have mentioned before that, because my mother worked, I spent my summers being passed between my grandmother’s house in Calhoun City and my uncles’ homes scattered all over Mississippi and Louisiana.
I rode buses and trains, saw a lot of different places and enjoyed learning about the “world”. Because of these adventures I never really felt “at home” in Mobile or Alabama. I wanted to study Mississippi history in school instead of Alabama history. If I was asked where I was from, I said Mississippi.
When I married Larry at the age of 40 and moved to Eclectic, my friends in Mobile thought I had lost my mind! They said I’d be right back to Mobile in six months. Now, 30 years later, I am rooted in Coosa County and feel like I AM home.
This is predominately because of the people I have met in both Elmore and Coosa counties, but I have also fallen in love with the environment and landscape, as well. While I had to drive 50-80 miles round trip to work for 20 years because of the lack of jobs, it was worth it to come home every afternoon.
I have learned that, while I would often say many people here had never left the county, everyone HAD to go to another county for medical care, groceries, gas, restaurants, and other conveniences. That is the saddest part of living here.
Most places want to improve their circumstances to provide for their citizens. I do not find that mindset here. In fact, I hear more opinions against development than for it. And usually these comments come from people who have only briefly left Coosa County. I don’t hear it from the people I have met here who HAVE left the county to serve in the military or for employment but have now returned as retired people. Yes, they like the slower lifestyle, but they also understand there is a happy medium.
What is wrong with having more than one grocery store, more than five to six gas stations, 10-12 places to eat (including gas stations), two doctor’s offices, one pharmacy, and at least one fast food outlet in the county? Thank goodness for Dollar General – wish they sold gas!
I wish someone would find out from the Department of Transportation what the vehicle count is on our major roads to show how many people pass through Coosa County. Some of these people just might want to stop and stretch their legs somewhere, get a cup of coffee and restroom, or even buy gas at night.
I appreciate all of you who don’t want to go outside of Coosa County and don’t want Coosa County becoming a metropolitan area. Believe it or not, we do have people moving in to our county – but we have our children and grandchildren leaving. Most of the people moving in understand the low taxes and great natural resources, but I wonder how many realize the lack of conveniences and basic needs they will not find here.
We have an election coming up in May so consider talking to the candidates about what type of future they see for Coosa County. Up until now there has never been a 10-year, 5-year, or even 1-year PLAN for our county. We tend to wander around in circles or just not move at all because we don’t know where we need or want to go.
Think about the nightmare surrounding the attempt to get a county-wide ambulance service. Forget the cart before the horse – we had the driver pulling the wheels, followed by the cart, and THEN a pony! Many people here have no idea how to put a plan together that sees the entire picture and how to get from point A to point Z. Do the people running for office understand any of this?
God, please bless our little piece of Heaven here on earth. Open our eyes to the great wonders You have blessed us with. Open our minds and hearts to realize how to help ourselves and work together. And, God bless our country and the people of Ukraine.
