News

Name: Lorrie Strickland Davis Where were you born and raised? “I was born right here in Etowah County and spent four years of my youth living in Orlando, Fla. Living in Orlando was a blast, but we eventually came right back here to Rainbow City and I love to call it home.” What is your

By Kaitlin Fleming Staff Correspondent Etowah County finished a few thousand voters short of reaching the voter turnout that the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election brought. 34,690 ballots were cast on Tuesday (Nov. 6), which was less than half of the registered voters in the county. Straight party voting benefited the Republicans this time around with

By Cole Frederick Staff Correspondent PART 1 Tony Reddick’s journey to becoming the new superintendent of Gadsden City Schools commenced over 1,100 miles away in Massachusetts. Reddick attended high school at the prestigious Saint Sebastian’s School, an all-boys Catholic school located in Newton. Saint Sebastian’s is the top parochial school in Massachusetts and one of

Name: Beth Dayton Where were you born and raised? “I was born in Gadsden. I have lived in four states.   I lived in Tampa, Fla., as a small child and in Virginia, where I attend K-5, first and second grade outside of Washington, D.C. I then moved back to Alabama where I attended Mitchell

By Sarrah Peters News Editor After 32 years, Robert “Bob” Wooten Echols, Jr., attended his last city council meeting as a council member on Tuesday, Oct. 30. Members of the city council, employees of the city and many others took the opportunity to honor Echols for his many years of service, both at the council

By Sarrah Peters News Editor Local students celebrated Red Ribbon Week from Oct. 23 to Oct. 31. Red Ribbon Week is a drug prevention campaign that began in 1985 after the death of DEA agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena. In addition to sporting red ribbons, local students participated in theme days to spread the word of

Several people have asked if it’s possible to vote a straight party ticket and still vote for me for State Senate. The answer is, yes! All you have to do is “Double Bubble.” First, you fill in the bubble next to your political party and then fill in the bubble next to my name in

Name: Morgan Cunningham Where were you born and raised? “I was born and raised in Gadsden and, other than college and law school, have always lived here.” What is your occupation? “I am an attorney.”    What made you decide to work in your field? “My father is an attorney, and some of my fondest

By Sarrah Peters, News Editor On Wednesday, October 17, Darden Rehabilitation Foundation held its annual meeting and award ceremony at the Downtown Civic Center in Gadsden. Darden is one of 26 community rehabilitation programs in Alabama and is number one in the state. The program serves clients with disabilities in five counties: Etowah, Cherokee, DeKalb, Marshall

By Sarrah Peters, News Editor The Love Center’s upcoming fundraiser transforms a popular televised game show into a fun-filled community competition. Community Feud will be held on Thursday, November 15 at 6 p.m. at the newly-opened Venue at Coosa Landing in Gadsden. To find teams, the Love Center Board approached local governing bodies and others and

Name: Katy Chandler Where were you born and raised? “I was born in Gadsden and raised most of my life in Attalla.” What is your occupation? “I am the manager at Sportclips Haircuts of Gadsden.” What made you decide to work in your field? “I have said from the beginning that cosmetology chose me. I

Photo by Kaitlin Fleming: Etowah County Mega Sports Complex Authority Chair Ralph Burke (left) announces the schedule for construction of the Sports Complex as authority member Craig Ford (right) listens on Thursday, October 11. After months of planning and preparation, the Etowah County Mega Sports Complex Authority (ECMSCA) is revealing plans for construction to begin.

By Sarrah Peters News Editor On Tuesday, October 9, City of Gadsden municipal runoff elections were held. In the District 5 City Council race, Jason Wilson beat incumbent Billy Billingsley. Wilson received 520, votes to Billingsley’s 296. “I cannot tell you how much it means to my family to have an opportunity to serve this

By Kaitlin Fleming Staff Correspondent At the age of four, Grace McClellan had a dream that she would one day play professional soccer. Now, the Southside High School senior has gotten one step closer to having her dreams a reality. McClellan has had an opportunity for the past two years to play with an Olympic

By Sarrah Peters News Editor On Friday, October 26, the Humane SocietyPet Rescue and Adoption Center will host a Halloween Bash from 7 to 11 p.m. at the Elks Lodge located at 118 West 1st Street in Gadsden. The event is a costume party, compete with a costume contest with prizes, games, music, catered food

By Sarrah Peters/News Editor On Tuesday, September 25, the City of Gadsden unveiled its newest event space. An open house allowed the public to view the newly-completed The Venue at Coosa Landing at 201 George Wallace Drive. City of Gadsden Public Affairs Coordinator Eric Wright said that they hoped for a few hundred visitors, but

By Sarrah Peters/News Editor Gadsden natives may have noticed the soon-to-open restaurant being built at 943 Rainbow Drive, right in front of the Gadsden Mall. In fact, the construction has caused the main mall entrance to be closed. Locals anticipating the new Longhorn Steakhouse won’t have to wait much longer. Longhorn recently announced that it

Name: Madison Cannon Where were you born and raised? “I was born in Gadsden and raised in Attalla.” What is your occupation? “I am an insurance agent at Hodges-Ford Insurance.” Tell us about your family and pets. “I have a rather small family with my mom and dad and younger brother and sister.” Describe an

(Photo by Sarrah Peters/Messenger: Gadsden Mayor Sherman Guyton presents Cothran’s Bakery owner Chris Cothran with a proclamation in honor of the bakery’s designation as the Sweetest Bakery in Alabama in a national contest held by Dawn Food Products, Inc.) By Sarrah Peters News Editor On Friday, September 14, Cothran’s Bakery celebrated National Bakery Day with some

(Photo by Sarrah Peters/Messenger: The Newman family poses for a photo at the reception honoring Dr. Lucian Newman, Jr.’s 50 years of service at Gadsden Regional Medical Center on Wednesday, Sept. 19. Dr. Newman, Jr. (second from right) is pictured with his wife Jane and their three children, Dr. Lucian Newman, III, Dr. Charlie Newman and

(Submitted Photo: A local youth competes in the last year’s XTERRA Parks of Alabama Trail Run Series race at Noccalula Falls Park.) By Kaitlin Fleming Staff Correspondent Black Squirrel Events is set to host the 2018-2019 XTERRA Parks of Alabama Trail Run Series kickoff race on Sept. 29 at Noccalula Falls Park and Campground in Gadsden.

By Sarrah Peters News Editor The Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Wilson-Parris Post 8600 located at 817 Rainbow Drive in Gadsden will host a Vietnam Veterans Appreciation Day on Saturday, September 22 from 2-6 p.m. The VFW post has partnered with the national United States of America Vietnam War Commemoration organization to host events in

Name: Leslie Harp Where were you born and raised? “I was born in Atlanta and raised in Leeds.” What is your occupation? “I’m the Marketing Director and Nurse Recruiter for Gadsden Regional Medical Center.” What made you decide to work in your field? “Working in healthcare marketing was not something I planned or even knew

By Sarrah Peters, News Editor On Tuesday, September 11, about 100 people gathered on the corner of 4th and Broad streets, where a small memorial park honors those lost in the September 11, 2001 attacks. Every year on the anniversary, the Gadsden Beautification Board hosts a memorial to remember what happened and the people that were

By Sarrah Peters, News Editor On Friday, September 7, the Gadsden Museum of Art opened a new exhibit titled “Korean Dreams” by photographer Nathalie Daoust. The exhibit will be open until October 29. “Korean Dreams” uses photos to capture life in North Korea. Because foreigners are closely monitored and only allowed to take photos in approved

By Kaitlin Fleming, Staff Correspondent On Thursday, September 6, the Greater Gadsden Housing Authority held an open house for newly renovated units at Colley Homes in Gadsden. The renovated units, which were built in 1951 and previously renovated in the 1980s, are part of the federal Housing and Urban Development (HUD) affordable public housing program. Greg

By Kaitlin Fleming Staff Correspondent More than 1,500 elementary school students in Etowah County and Attalla school systems participated in the Next Great Americans Kickoff Bus Tour and Super Citizen Program Kickoff on Friday, August 31. The students participating in the event waved flags and wore patina colored paper crowns with exactly seven spikes, just

By Sarrah Peters News Editor Next Tuesday is the 17th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks that rocked the nation. The Gadsden Beautification Board will host its annual memorial service to remember those lost in the attacks at 5 p.m. at the Memorial Park at the intersection of 4th and Broad streets in downtown

By Sarrah Peters News Editor Over a dozen people attended the Gadsden Civitan Club’s meeting on Wednesday, September 5 at Gadsden State Community College. After attending to club business, Tony Reddick, Gadsden City School System’s new superintendent addressed the crowd. Reddick used the opportunity to let the club member’s know more about him and what

Name: Shelby Windham Where were you born and raised? “I was born in Montgomery on Maxwell Air Force Base. As an Air Force brat, I was raised all over the place. We lived in New Jersey, Delaware, Germany, New Mexico and all over Alabama. I settled in Dothan at 14 and I’ve been here in