Greg Farrell Ward 4 Alabaster Connection: What items/projects included in the budget this year will directly affect Ward 4 residents? What are the most pressing issues facing your constituents? Greg Farrell: “After pausing the City’s annual paving projects last year, we allotted additional funding in order to be more aggressive with our paving projects—and that … Read More
Citizen Spotlights
City Spotlight: Rosie Robinson
Rosie Robinson Director of Courts For almost 30 years, Rosie Robinson has worked for the City of Alabaster. Starting out as a communications clerk for the Alabaster Water Board in 1995, Robinson was promoted to magistrate in 2000 and was named Director of Courts in December 2021. “I’ve seen a lot of growth in Alabaster,” Robinson … Read More
Meet Alabaster’s Tracy Coyne
Working hard and giving back Longtime Alabaster resident Tracy Coyne is a busy person. Her professional job as a Realtor/Associate Broker with ARC Realty and a Military Relocation Professional keeps her plenty busy, however she is also the Director of the Alabaster Business Alliance which she took over from State Representative Leigh Hulsey in October … Read More
Meet Councilor Stacy Rakestraw
Stacy Rakestraw, Ward 3 Alabaster Connection: What items/projects included in the budget this year will directly affect Ward 3 residents? What are the most pressing issues facing your constituents? Stacy Rakestraw: The intersection of County Road 17 and 42, near Fox Valley, will be getting a right turn lane to help with traffic. The City and County … Read More
Meet Ellis Lawrence
It’s about more than sports for Alabaster’s busy volunteer coach. By Lori Culpepper Volunteering as a coach with Alabaster Parks and Recreation was born out of necessity for Ellis Lawrence in 2015 when his son’s team needed someone to step up and fill the role, but the experience turned out to be so positive that … Read More
Teen Council Roundtable: Stress, Success, and Learning Your Way Through a Pandemic
By Barry Smith Photos by Brit Huckabay Alabaster sat down with four members of the Alabaster Teen Council to talk about life in the fast lane. Jasmine Jones is a THS senior who currently serves as Miss THS, Miss CityFest, and the Executive President of both the SGA and THS Ambassadors. Phillip Martin, also a … Read More
Essay: A Courageous Woman
By Rosia Dowdell My mother, Estella Dewberry Sawyer, was an extraordinarily amazing woman. She was born January 17, 1906, in the part of Alabama called the Black Belt. She lost her biological mother early in her in life and was raised by her father and stepmother. In all aspects of life, she inspired and encouraged … Read More
An Interview With Councilman Rick Ellis
Rick Ellis, Ward 2 Alabaster Connection: What items/projects included in this year’s budget will directly affect Ward 2 residents? Rick Ellis: The biggest project that will affect Ward 2 is the construction of Patriots Park. I am really excited about this! If you drive by the park on Industrial Road, you can see the progress being made … Read More
Meet Public Works Director Mark Harris
By Lori Culpepper Photo by Neal Wagner The City of Alabaster Public Works Department includes services like household trash pick-up, limb service, rubbish pick-up, and much more. Along with his teams, Public Works Department Head, Mark Harris, has been helping provide reliability with these services since 2005. As a resident of Alabaster for 62 years, … Read More
Kevin Derryberry: Reaching Others Through the Gift of Music
By Lori Culpepper Photo by Brit Huckabay While Kevin Derryberry may not have planned to land in Alabaster, it’s clear 30 years later that this is where he was meant to live; start his ministry, Kevin Derryberry Ministries (KDM); and where he would begin making Jesus Christ known in the immediate area and far beyond … Read More