“Going Home” by Michael Champion

(Michael Champion is a retired state employee and mathematics educator who taught at the middle school, high school, college, and university levels in Alabama. A native of Russellville (Class of 1979), he has lived in Montgomery for the last 37 years and retired earlier this year after 15 years as a mathematics professor at Faulkner University. In retirement, he enjoys a newfound hobby of writing about family, faith, and Southern life, and spending time with his wife, children and grandchildren.)

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Thomas Wolfe once wrote "you can't go home again." I think I understand what he was saying.

People, places, and times change. While his statement is true in a literal sense, I often "go home"

through memories of growing up in the small Alabama town of Russellville. Located in the northeast portion of Franklin County, Russellville had a population of around 8,000 when I was growing up in the 1960s and 1970s. In many ways, it resembled the fictional town of Mayberry, North Carolina.

It feltlike a close-knit community where doors were left unlocked and neighbors knew one another byname. I grew up during what now seems like a simpler era of American life. Whenever I visit my

hometown, these are some of the places and things that I still see in my mind.

Clothing stores abounded in downtown Russellville. We often shopped at Fred King's Department

Store for shoes and dress clothes, but most of my clothing came from the Sears, Roebuck and Co. catalog store on the bypass, where we frequently visited with Ms. Martha Greenhill. We bought our Cub Scout uniforms and supplies locally at James Department Store. Just a few doors down was Clark's Department Store. I always looked forward to their moving Santa Claus when the Christmas decorations went up. Other familiar names included Watson's, Sherman's, Carter's Men's Wear, and Tot'n Teen Shop.

For hardware items, we made frequent stops at Felton Hardware Company for unique items you just couldn't find anywhere else. The two Felton brothers, Hilliard and Henry, were always willing to talk for a while. General merchandise from sporting goods to televisions could be found at Dependable Service Center, owned by Mr. Cecil Batchelor. My dad most often dealt with Mr. Bobby Heaps, who was not only a salesman there but also a good friend. This was also the place if you needed service for your car or TV. Another local business for general merchandise was Western Auto.

For lumber and other building supplies, we frequented two main businesses, T.K. Moreland & Son Lumber and Hargett Lumber Company which was located downtown. Those trips often included as much conversation as commerce, thanks to the friendly and knowledgeable employees.

Of particular interest to me as a young boy were those stores that sold toys. The top spot for me was V.J. Elmore’s Five and Dime. I'll never forget the aroma of buttered popcorn and roasted nuts when you walked in the front doors. Over the years I purchased many model car kits along with the requisite glue and paints there. Elmore's was also the place to purchase school supplies in the fall. White's Five and Dime was located across the street, but in my young mind it never quite measured up to Elmore's. Toys could also be found at T.G.&Y. and Bargain Town if you didn't mind the drive out to the shopping center on the bypass.

Another store that I frequented was the local army surplus store. They always had a great selection of military items as well as camping and fishing supplies. Next to the army surplus store was a business that you don't see anymore these days, the ice plant.

Today, the idea of stopping at a store to buy a large block of ice seems almost unimaginable. These days we usually buy our ice in cubes or pellets at a grocery or convenience store.

No small town is complete without good food and Russellville had plenty of it. You could find a large variety of ice cream flavors at the Norris family's King Frosty and root beer floats in frosted mugs at the Frosty Inn, owned and operated by the Grissom family. Russellville Dairy Queen, owned by Mr. Elmer T. Hovater, was often our family's choice for supper before heading to Golden Tiger Stadium for the football game on Friday nights. Bradford Drug Store may have been the place for picking up prescriptions but it was also a great place to find tasty burgers and shakes.

If home cooking was whatyou were looking for, then a stop at Kinard's Cafe or Kent's Cafe was warranted. Kinard's Cafe was owned and operated by Ms. Opal Kinard, a neighbor of ours. My grandmother and an aunt both worked there at times, cooking in the kitchen. I also recall meals at The Iron Gate. Besides prepared foods, there were multiple places to shop for groceries. Some of the more notable ones were A&P Supermarket, Piggly Wiggly and Big Star. We often stopped by Thompson's Grocery, usually for their meats, especially Mr. Johnny Thompson's barbecue that was better than any others around.

When it came to feed for our livestock or seeds for the garden, we did business at two local stores. I suppose most of the time we shopped at the Franklin County Exchange out on the bypass. Occasionally we would stop by Jackson's Seed & Feed, located downtown. Even now, I can almost smell the mixture of feed, seed, grain, and fertilizer that greeted customers when they walked through the door.

There was no shortage of places for kids to play. Just east of town was a small lake, a holdover from the former iron ore mining industry in the county. We lovingly referred to the lake as the "pump pond", never by its official name of Sloss Lake. It was a great place for swimming and boating. On the northern side of town, near the high school, was the City Lake Park. Lots of kids spent time swimming there, especially in the summer when school was out. Another place frequented by many was the Moody Lot. I seem to recall a kiddie pool there at one time, along with a retired military jet on display. Local kids played on the airplane as well as the slides and swings located there among the huge

shade trees. Also on that site was a building that we referred to simply as the Canteen. It was used for various community gatherings such as scout meetings and birthday parties. Pee Wee football teams would also use the open areas for practice.

I distinctly recall going to the doctor growing up. My first doctor was Dr. Aubrey Terry at the

Russellville Clinic located downtown, a block over from Main street. I can still hear the soft "ding" of the telephone ringing while waiting for my turn to see the doctor. The unmistakable antiseptic smell of the lab remains etched in my memory. Another memorable figure in that office was Ms. Mildred Holliman. I can still feel the sting of the countless shots she administered over the years, especially those memorable penicillin shots administered in the least comfortable location imaginable.

When I was older, my doctor was Dr. Ralph Underwood, whose office was just south of the downtown area.

Our families attended church together.

I remember my parents banking at Citizens Bank and Savings Company and First National Bank

where it often seemed that a person's character mattered as much as their credit history. I recall

school trips to the Coca-Cola bottling plant plus the occasional movie at The Roxy Theater. Another source of entertainment were the STIR (Save Trade In Russellville) drawings held during the Christmas season. The town was always beautifully decorated for Christmas. To a young boy, it seemed like the whole town turned out for the chance to win a prize.

No visit would be complete without dropping by my old schools. Like many other buildings from my childhood, two of the three schools I attended have been demolished. I attended Russellville

Elementary School for the first through fifth grades. I probably shouldn't mention any names at the

risk of offending someone, but I will mention a few.

Three teachers come to mind when I recall my

elementary school years: Ms. Betty Moore, my first-grade teacher, Ms. Mable Saywell, my fifth-grade teacher, and Ms. Edwards, the music teacher. I loved each of these ladies for different reasons.

I attended Russellville Junior High School for grades six through eight. A couple of teachers stand out in my mind from this school: Ms. Ruth Benson, who taught eighth-grade science and Ms. Mary

Alexander, my American history teacher. From both of these ladies, I learned lessons about teaching and caring for students that I later tried to emulate during my own career in education. I attended high school in the only building of the three that is still standing.

I had many good teachers there, but I spent all four years in two of those teachers' classrooms so they had a big impact on me, both during school and then later in life: Mr. Hisham Durdunji, math, and Mr. Tim Ross, science.

I can't begin to mention all of my classmates that were a part of my hometown. Many are still around, living both there and abroad, and continue to bless my life.

The Russellville I carry in my heart is not exactly the Russellville that exists today. New buildings have replaced old landmarks, familiar faces have grown older, and some are gone altogether. Yet every time I return I find pieces of the town that helped shape who I am.

In the shade of an old tree, along a quiet street, or in the memory of a long-closed store, I catch glimpses of a simpler time, a familiar place, and a younger version of myself. Perhaps Thomas Wolfe was right that you can't truly go home again. But memory has a way of preserving what time cannot.

I have learned that a part of home never leaves us. It stays tucked away in our hearts, waiting to be revisited whenever we need to remember where we came from. Though the Russellville of my youth exists now mostly in fragments, it remains as much a part of me as the lessons I learned there, reminding me not only where I came from, but also the values and people that helped make me who I am.