May 2, 2022
By Beth Chapman Among the agencies recognized in the governor’s cabinet is the Alabama Department of Senior Services (ADSS). It is the one agency with guaranteed longevity because there is one thing for certain – we are all going to be senior citizens at some point in our lives. We pray we are anyway. Fortunate
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May 2, 2022
By Beth Chapman April is Child Abuse Prevention Month. Children’s charities will cover the doors of local businesses with symbolic blue ribbons, schools will have poster contests, and charities will take advantage of a heightened awareness and additional fundraising dollars. But what will you do? On average, child abuse is reported every 10 seconds in
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May 2, 2022
By Beth Chapman The legislative session just concluded and coincided with the release of VOICES for Alabama’s Children’s annual data book. The VOICES report indicated we have many more issues ahead that need attention. The research results provided by VOICES are not good. (But keep reading, help is on the way.) Too many children can’t
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May 2, 2022
By Beth Chapman Alabama’s Caleb Hicks was invited to the White House earlier this month to participate in the President’s annual Easter Egg Roll. Hicks was not just invited to participate but was given a leadership role (no pun intended) in helping manage the egg hunt section of this event. He and his fiancé, Katie
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May 2, 2022
By:  Beth Chapman Last month was designated by US Lawmakers as Financial Literacy Month. It would appear many of them aren’t financially literate, but we are fortunate here in Alabama to have government leaders who are. Alabama just passed historic budgets, and our state has the lowest unemployment rates ever. Financially speaking, things are going
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January 31, 2022 ryan
By Beth Chapman The special session of the Legislature ended with $772 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds going to expand high-speed internet, water and sewer projects and healthcare needs. But it could have just as easily ended with the Legislature holding hands and singing “Kumbaya.” The five-day session’s grand finale came when both
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January 28, 2022 ryan
By Beth Chapman This session is likely to be a sensitive one for most legislators. For at least 23 of them, it is their last session and for the rest, it is an election year. One must wonder what the legislators spending their last session will place their priorities on. The ones up for election
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January 28, 2022 ryan
By: Beth Chapman New Year’s resolutions originated over 4,000 years ago with the ancient Babylonians. They had the first documented New Year’s celebrations. During Akitu, a vast 12-day religious festival, in mid-March, the Babylonians crowned a new king and/or re-committed their allegiance to the existing king. Their celebration included making promises to “the gods” to
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January 28, 2022 ryan
By:  Beth Chapman The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) is in the top 10% of education institutions in the world, according to U.S. News and World Report (USNWR). You read that right, not the state or the nation, but the entire world. USNWR ranked UAB No. 147 of 1,750 universities from ninety countries as
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January 28, 2022 ryan
By: Beth Chapman Every four years Legislators come and go. Some bring joy when they come in, others when they go out, but they all bring joy. In the Legislature, we will lose approximately 19 members of the House of Representatives. Here are the ones I can confirm and the counties they represent: Mike Ball,
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January 28, 2022 ryan
By: Beth Chapman I was once Appointments Secretary for a governor – not appointments as in scheduling, but appointments of public officials and members to state boards and commissions. I had to vet candidates and make recommendations to the governor for jobs and appointments. I was the first woman to hold that position in state history.
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January 28, 2022 ryan
I am thankful all year long for so many things, but I am most thankful for Thanksgiving Day. It is a time set aside specifically for reflection and gratitude. It is a time when there is more than the traditional turkey and dressing dinner on the table. There are roofs over most of our heads
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January 28, 2022 ryan
By: Beth Chapman The average Alabamian may not know or care that every 10 years their legislative and congressional district lines are redrawn, but it is vitally important to their well-being in many ways. It dictates who will represent them in the State House of Representatives, State Senate, State School Board and Congress over the next
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January 28, 2022 ryan
By: Beth Chapman Shakespeare might say, “To vaccinate or not to vaccinate, that is the question.” The question is the same for many people, but not for me. I have been vaccinated, my family is, and most of my friends have been vaccinated. I believe it is the right thing to do – for me.
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January 28, 2022 ryan
By:  Beth Chapman Former State Treasurer Young Boozer has recently been appointed by Governor Kay Ivey to fulfill the vacant seat created by John McMillan who is now managing the Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission. (Hope he stays out of the “gummies.” I know John and I am sure he will.) Boozer is no stranger to
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January 28, 2022 ryan
By:  Beth Chapman Todd Stacy will become the new host of Alabama Public Television’s weekly political news show, Capitol Journal. The announcement came at the retirement of Don Dailey who has covered Alabama news and politics for one quarter of a century – 10 years of it on APT’s Capitol Journal. Because of this, Stacy
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January 28, 2022 ryan
By: Beth Chapman The state’s largest farm organization, the Alabama Farmers Federation held its centennial celebration in Montgomery this week. Approximately 1,200 farmers from all 67 counties were on hand to celebrate. In addition to celebrating 100 years for the Federation, members also celebrated 75 years of Alfa Insurance Co. which was founded by members
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January 28, 2022 ryan
By:  Beth Chapman “If you like laws and sausages, you should never watch either one being made.” That is a quote too often used and attributed to Otto von Bismarck: In other words, the legislative process, though messy and oftentimes unappetizing to some, can produce palatable results for all. Regardless of which political flavor you
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January 28, 2022 ryan
By Beth Chapman So, what can be read in five minutes in a column that was said in a 30-minute, seven-page speech – the State of the State Address given by the governor? Here is my Cliffs Notes version. For those who never used them before, it is a short, condensed version of a much
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January 28, 2022 ryan
By Beth Chapman No, this is not a column about “a few of my favorite things,” but about Alabama’s incredible tourism industry. Tourism is a key component to Alabama’s economy. In 2020, more than 22.5 million visitors in Alabama spent $13.3 billion for food, accommodations, travel, shopping and incidentals, according to the state tourism department.
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January 28, 2022 ryan
By:  Beth Chapman The University of Montevallo (UM) celebrated its 125th anniversary this year. Its rich history, cobblestone streets and beautiful, historic campus date back to 1896 when it was known as the Alabama Girls’ Industrial School. Later, it became the Alabama Girl’s Technical Institute until 1923 when it became known as the Alabama College
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January 28, 2022 ryan
By: Beth Chapman What can be said of veterans – those who serve in any of its distinguished branches?  The answer is simple – not enough! They protected and provided. They cared and conquered. They defended to the end and hoped they would live to tell about it. God bless our veterans. They received a pauper’s
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January 28, 2022 ryan
By: Beth Chapman Last week a politician in our state implied some negative things about our state’s farmers. Imagine that, a politician throwing stones at another profession. Funny, isn’t it? And of all times, it happens to be National Farm to School Month – a time for educating our children about the importance of farming which
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