Mentone Matters – July 2024

A day to remember

Hopefully June 18, 2024, will long be remembered as a pivotal day in the life of Mentone. Many of our citizens gathered at the historic Moon Lake School to celebrate the new Sculpture Garden, and while there we heard a major announcement about the future of the campus.

The sculpture “Firmly Planted, Forward Moving” features pollinators indigenous to the region. (Photo by Rhett
Bentley, Thrive Regional Partnership)

The sculpture is an amazing piece of public art by Deedee Morrison, who was a student at Moon Lake 50 years ago. I was actually her 4th-grade social studies teacher before Deedee moved to the mountain. However, I can’t take any credit for the accomplished person and sculptor she became! After working across the country for years, I’m thankful she returned home to live in Mentone and to give back to her hometown in powerful ways.

I want to thank the Little River Arts Council, led by their president, Juli Jordan, for their work on this project. They created the vision and secured major funding. The totem Deedee designed is perfect for this installation, carrying the motto of our school: “Firmly Planted, Forward Moving.” I encourage everyone to stop by and spend some time with this artwork. It’s especially powerful when you see it lit up at night.

It was my honor at the June 18 ribbon cutting to introduce Alabama House Speaker Nathaniel Ledbetter. He has represented us well in House District 24 since the day he was elected in 2014. As he’s risen in leadership in Montgomery, he’s not forgotten his home county or our small mountain town. When Mentone needs help, we can turn to Speaker Ledbetter to help us find solutions.

Next, I welcomed Dr. David Campbell, president of Northeast Alabama Community College. He officially announced that NACC will begin offering classes on the Moon Lake campus this fall. What an incredible opportunity for students who live in Mentone and Valley Head, but also for those in north Fort Payne and the Henagar/Ider area. Even our neighbors across the state line will have an opportunity to attend classes here.

It’s exciting that, in addition to offering traditional classes, NACC will also offer courses that anyone in the community can take. NACC is beginning its presence in Mentone with classes such as creative writing, music appreciation, and vocal ensemble. That tells me they understand the artistic nature of this community and want to be an integral part of it.

There are so many people to thank for their work to improve the Moon Lake campus. Moon Lake alumnus and local builder David Hilliard and his crew rebuilt the wall in the Bill Berry Community Room to create two classrooms for use by NACC. Outside, the big oak tree had grown into the surrounding deck. David reframed the deck to take it off the tree and put in additional support underneath. This not only protects those who use the playground, but also protects this historic tree that is estimated to be 240 years old.

Public Works Director Paul Nail has done an outstanding job with all the projects we’ve tackled at the campus. Now he’s adding some additional parking spaces between the library and rescue squad building using a grass reinforcement mesh. He’s also working to secure a permanent power source for the Ken Shigley Pavilion at the amphitheater.

Countless meals have been served in the Moon Lake lunchroom, and those days are returning with a new restaurant. The town has signed a lease with Robie York, and we can’t wait to have our first meal from his menu.

You can read the details about these projects elsewhere in this issue. I’ll close by announcing that Mentone has two new police vehicles. The cost of one was covered in part by the sale of some surplus vehicles. The other vehicle was purchased with the help of these local camps: Alpine, DeSoto, Laney, Riverview, and Skyline. The Town of Mentone is grateful to these camps for their support of the town and their commitment to public safety.