Working Together: Community unites during global pandemic

For many Homewood residents, the COVID-19 pandemic has turned their world upside down.

It was business as usual in Homewood until mid-March, when Samford University announced that all courses would be moved to online-only instruction due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. Following Gov. Kay Ivey’s declaration of a state public health emergency March 13, Homewood City Schools also announced school closures.

From there, local parks and city offices closed. People were told to only socialize in groups of fewer than 50 people, and then that guideline became groups of fewer than 10 people. Businesses deemed “non-essential” had to shutter — salons, gyms, theaters and more included. Restaurants could only serve their customers using curbside pickup. A state-wide stay-at-home order was implemented April 4. People lost jobs, and many of those who continued to work received pay cuts or furloughs.

History books will write about this once-in-a-century crisis and how the community responded to it. But even in a global pandemic, several members of the Homewood community came together to help one another.

LOCAL RESTAURANTS DONATE MEALS

For the owners of two local restaurants —Real & Rosemary and Homewood Bagel Co.— responding to a global health emergency meant feeding those in need.

Real & Rosemary’s Jennifer Mims set up a way for her customers to donate coffee and warm, nutritious food to doctors, nurses and medical support at UAB Hospital. To donate, customers visited the restaurant’s online ordering website and selected a Hero Meals or Hero Coffee option from the menu. Whatever customers purchased was then matched one-to-one by a food or coffee donation.

“Right now, restaurants are taking a big financial hit — we all are,” Mims said. “But at the same time, when I look around the medical community, especially in Birmingham, they’re putting their lives at risk every day. And they don’t get the choice to come to work or not.”

From her experience working in the restaurant industry, Mims said she knows what it feels like to work long hours without being able to take a break. That’s why she wanted to help support the medical community time by bringing them meals, she said.

“Hopefully it will be some encouragement to them as they’re working,” she said.

Within two days of starting the program in mid-March, her customers had donated 250 meals. She has been sending out 100-150 meals each week on average, she said.

The meals vary depending on what’s available but are typically a protein and two sides. For example, Mims said one delivery was grilled chicken with macaroni and green peas.

“Overall, we have really healthy food that’s pretty clean,” she said. “It’s good to boost your immune system and eat, especially during a time like this.”

Despite it being a tough month in the restaurant industry as sales have dramatically decreased, Mims said she has seen lots of encouragement.

“We’ve had a lot of people check on us,” she said. “That’s one of the great things about being a part of the community in Homewood— everyone takes care of each other. We’re very thankful for that, and we want to pay it forward during this time.”

Ginny Leavens, who owns Homewood Bagel Co. with her husband, Joe, said she was on the way to the store when she got the idea to provide free cereal and sandwiches to children in need during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I was heading to the store to pick up some supplies,” Ginny said. “I started thinking, ‘We’ve got the resources that a lot of people might not have.’”

She had just found out schools were canceled, including Edgewood Elementary, where her daughter attends. This meant that families with children who rely on school-provided breakfast and lunch would now have to make an extra effort to feed them.

“As a mom, I just can’t imagine anything more stressful than not being able to feed my kids or not knowing that the resources that I’d counted on were available,” Ginny said. “It’s a stressful time for moms everywhere trying to navigate this new landscape. But that is a type of stress that’s on a different level.”

Homewood Bagel Co. made the announcement on the evening of March 13 that they would be offering peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and cereal to children for free, no questions asked. There was a medium-sized response the first day, Joe said, but it’s grown bigger every day since.

All the credit goes to the Homewood Bagel Company team, Ginny said.

“We’ve had a great response from the community wanting to buy bagels and wanting to support us in that way and also from the community who have a need for the food,” Ginny said. “Our team has worked double time to not only put out meals for those in need but also just to have our regular service for our customers. They’re the ones who have stepped up big time for this.”

Marieanna Kozodoy, a staff member of Homewood Bagel Company, said her work-load has dramatically increased as people order bagels by the dozen and use the company’s free meals. But she said she doesn’t mind it.

“We’re happy to do it,” she said. “We’re happy to contribute to the community in one way or another.”

HBC plans to continue offering meals as long as there is a need, Ginny said.

“People are in a really tight spot now with a lot of places closing and people not being able to work,” she said. “If anybody has a need, they can reach out to us.”

BILL CLEVELAND DELAYS RETIREMENT

After serving as Homewood City Schools superintendent for the past 12 years — making him the longest-serving superintendent in the school system’s history — Bill Cleveland isn’t done yet.

Cleveland announced at a Feb. 18 school board meeting that his last day serving as superintendent would be June 30. Then the global pandemic hit.

“In light of the uncertainties created by the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Bill Cleveland is temporarily delaying his retirement as Superintendent of Homewood City Schools,” the school system said in a March 17 statement. “The Board of Education is thankful for his continued leadership as we navigate through this difficult situation in our community, state, and nation.”

Cleveland has been a part of Homewood City Schools since he was in first grade. He graduated with the class of 1985, and he said the leadership at the school when he was a student motivated him to become a superintendent.

John Dedrick was Cleveland’s assistant principal for seven years — Dedrick was first the assistant principal for the middle school and then moved up to the high school with Dedrick’s class — and Cleveland said Dedrick made an impact on him.

“He had to discipline me several times,” he said. “He probably knew my parents’ phone number off the top of his head. But the one thing I always knew was that he truly cared about me. ... You didn’t want to let him down.”

He went to college at Samford University, and Cleveland said he thought to himself, “I’m not sure what I want to do, but whatever I do, I want to enjoy it.”

That thought triggered the memories he had “back in the day” at Homewood High School. He said the teachers and administrators seemed to enjoy their jobs, and he wanted to make a difference like they did. That experience pushed him toward a career in education, he said.

When Cleveland looks back on his first year on the job, he said he had it pretty good. It was moving in such a good direction that his number one concern was to not mess it up, he said, laughing.

“Fortunately, it really was impossible because there were so many good teachers, administrators, principals and folks at the central office,” he said. “You would have to work really hard to mess up the job our teachers do.”

Cleveland’s favorite memories over the years have been going into the classrooms, and each one of those times has a special memory, he said.

He laughed while telling the story about visiting a P.E. class at Edgewood Elementary earlier this year. He was speaking to John Dorough, a P.E. teacher, when a kindergarten girl walked up to them.

“She said, ‘Coach, is this your dad?’” he said. “Dorough laughed and loved it. I laughed too. My gray hair did not used to be gray.... Coach Dorough is just about two years younger than I am, but he doesn’t have the gray hair.”

Cleveland has spent 28 years of his life associated with Homewood City Schools— 12 years as a student and 16 years as an employee. It has not been announced for how long Cleveland’s retirement will be delayed.

“There is not another place like it,” he said about the school system. “This community has always supported this school system, and I don’t take that for granted.”

GBHS FOSTERS OUT EVERY ADOPTABLE ANIMAL

Even though the Greater Birmingham Humane Society is on the edge of Homewood, the building has a Birmingham address and had to close under Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin’s shelter-in-place order. This meant that over 200 adoptable animals had to find a home — fast.

The community stepped in, and over the course of 10 days, 210 dogs and cats were fostered out. In a March 25 Facebook livepost, CEO Allison Cornelius said the building was completely empty for the first time since opening in the early 2000s.

When the humane society first discovered they would have to close their doors because of the COVID-19 pandemic, director of marketing Lindsey Mays said there was a fear of the unknown.

“For us, it’s always really overwhelming because we do have so many animals in our care,” she said. “We want to make sure they’re going to the best place they can go to, and it’s scary.”

But as soon as the humane society announced an urgent need for fosters, the applications came pouring in. At one point, Mays said, there were over 200 foster applications in one day.

Many of the fosters have already adopted their animals, Mays said. The foster parents are all members of a Facebook group where they can share photos and stories of their animals, and Mays said she has seen many people surprised by how much they love their foster pets.

“Someone said they have an older dog, and they were so surprised at how gentle she was and how amazingly she’s fitting into their family,” she said.

Even if the foster parents choose not to adopt, allowing those animals to stay at home with them helps the transition into adoption for that animal. This is because they are more acclimated to a home environment, Mays said.

“We are beyond thankful for everyone who has stepped up and become a foster home or opened up their hearts to one of these pets,”she said. “We are also thankful for people who are making donations right now. We know it’s a really hard time for everyone — a lot of people have lost their jobs, a lot of people have no idea what they’re going to do next— but they’re still thinking of us and making donations.”

The GBHS is a nonprofit that relies almost solely on donations, and Mays said the humane society is thankful for every dollar now more than ever.

Even though all of the adoptable animals were fostered out early April, Mays encourages those who are interested in fostering to fill out applications. The humane society is currently not taking owner surrenders, but neglected or abused animals and strays are still coming into the humane society.

“We don’t know how long this is going to last,” she said. “And it is spring, and for us, that’s normally when the baby boom happens.”

Since GBHS is not able to use their Snow Drive location to showcase adoptable animals, the building has been transformed into a community pet pantry where those in need can receive donated pet food and toys. Visit gbhs.org for more information.

LOCAL RESIDENTS CHALLENGE COMMUNITY TO COVID CREEK CLEANUP

Instead of sitting at home, two Homewood residents are using the COVID-19 pandemic to spend time cleaning up the local waterways.

Bill and Suzanne Andrews, who both teach fifth-grade students at Mountain Brook Elementary School, call it the “Covid Creek Cleanup.” The challenge is simple, Bill said — take some time to pick up trash around the area you live or a place you like to visit.

Because of health concerns amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Bill said he is encouraging people to only go out in family groups or solo.

“It’s a great family activity — to get out and clean and give back a little bit,” Bill said. “It’s an easy thing to do with a positive impact.”

They have had friends from across the state also participate, and Suzanne said some of her students have participated in the challenge, as well.

“We’ve had so much rain and so much flooding, and the trash is just unbelievable,” Suzanne said. “And now we have some time on our hands, so it’s a great way for us to make a little bit of an impact.”

It only takes about 20 minutes of picking up litter to fill up a trash bag, Suzanne said.

“It’s not something that’s going to take all day,” she said. “It’s something where you can just do a little bit.”

They’ve seen it all — dog poop bags, leftovers from construction sites, soda cans and even a hula hoop. Bill said their kids were shocked when they saw how much trash was out there.

Whether you care about it or not, the health of the environment impacts your life, Suzanne said. Being outdoors and respecting the environment has always been important to her family, she said.

“We were always out — our vacations were always camping, hiking, kayaking and things like that,” she said. “Being out in it, you become respectful. It builds a natural respect for the environment.”

As of April 4, five participating groups recorded their cleanup data using an online form. Between the five groups, they collected 21 large bags of trash, three small bags of trash and two grocery bags full. Other odd items that were collected included a mattress spring, random car parts and a traffic cone.

Email Bill at bill@treeline-expeditions.com for more information.

Editor’s note: While this article focuses on the positives that have happened in the Homewood community since the pandemic hit, The Homewood Star understands how devastating this pandemic has been for some, and we do not wish to minimize this pain. We hope you stay safe and healthy during this crisis.