MIDDLE GROUND

Cool change

By June Mathews
 

In an article written last year about Dr. Suzanne Freeman after she was chosen to lead Trussville City Schools, I recall reading that when she was first approached about the superintendent job, she wasn’t interested. She had a perfectly good job with Cullman City Schools. Her family was settled there. They had friends, a church they loved and a home in Cullman. Why uproot them to come to Trussville?
 

But happily for Trussville, she changed her mind. For the better part of a year now, Dr. Freeman has been busy with the challenges of building a school system from scratch and by all indications, is doing a splendid job. Employees have been hired, offices have been remodeled and agreements have been signed. In only a matter of months, Dr. Freeman has proven her great worth as a leader.
 

And to think, she initially didn’t want to come to Trussville. Well, join the crowd, Dr. Freeman. I didn’t want to come to Trussville, either.
 

When my parents broke the news to my two brothers and me that we were moving here, we were appalled. At least my older brother and I were. Our grubby little sibling was only five at the time and unfazed by the coming trauma. As long as there was a pile of dirt in Trussville, he’d be fine.
 

“We=re moving where?” the elder two of us chorused, horrified at the thought of living “out in the country.”
 

We were ensconced in the comparative comfort and refinement of a Birmingham city school (remember, this was the 1960s), and like Dr. Freeman, not interested in yanking up roots. But at 10 and 13, we had become accustomed to the food and shelter our parents provided, so getting with the program was about all we could do.
 

My brother was slated to attend Hewitt-Trussville Junior High, a relatively new and stable structure back them. But I was headed for Hewitt Elementary – the one that burned in 1973 – and felt nothing but dread.
 

My first glimpse of the school was at night. I could barely see the dingy brick facade, but could tell it was old. On my first day, dirty wood floors, dark hallways and bathrooms that stunk to high heaven did nothing to improve my view. I was equally unimpressed with two scruffy little boys sitting behind me. I’d never encountered “poor” kids before.
 

First impressions notwithstanding, I soon settled in. And after Leigh Denton had invited me to her spend-the-night party, and I had walked with Cathy Davis to her daddy’s drug store where we filched Pixie Stix out of the candy case, I felt right at home.

The rest of my school career was spent in Trussville, and I treasure my memories of those days. (Well, except for the time Mr. Robison, the high school principal, caught me packing a water pistol. I never did get that thing back... But that’s another story for another day.)
 

To be a product of Trussville schools hasn’t always been considered “cool” by outsiders, but it has always been a source of pride for me. And with the formation of the new system, the stock of Trussville grads, in my opinion, only rises. It’s funny how the world’s perception of us has changed. Funny, but nice.

Makes me glad I came to Trussville. And I’ll bet Dr. Freeman is glad she came, too.

June Mathews is a middle age freelance writer who possesses all the typical neuroses of growing up a middle child. She can be reached at jmathews120@charter.net