Over Memorial Day weekend, I had a chance to flutter into a wonderful bar-be-cue offered by Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2702 in Huntsville. Afterwards, with buckets of food now settled in my owl’s stomach, I could barely fly away. The veterans put on a tremendous feast, free for first responders like firemen, police and emergency medical response teams. Nice people were everywhere, easy going and easier to talk to. What a welcoming feeling to be there. Our military service veterans offered their master-skills-at-the-grill to those currently risking their lives daily to make ours safer, healthier and happier. We have so much like this going on here in North Alabama.

Limestone County is now, in part, annexed into Madison County. Our world is becoming smaller but our lives richer. Look where thousands of Limestone County people go regularly during the baseball season. They swarm to Toyota Field in Madison to watch the Rocket City Trash Pandas. For fishing, boating and a riverside restaurant, they go to the marina in Decatur, in Morgan County. Likewise, Ingalls Harbor hosts the Bassmaster tournament in that town. There you can find a huge, multiple boat launch capability. Like Lauderdale County’s Joe Wheeler State Park on the Tennessee River, fishermen find a place to call home for a few hours on a pleasant summer’s day.

For me, particularly now that Tina Turner, the queen of rock ‘n’ roll died, I’m reminded of a special day in Decatur’s Rhodes Park, on the Tennessee River. A Tina Turner imitator was rocking her heart out to the passionate, enthusiastic cheers of a spellbound audience. The “queen” drew a huge crowd to hear her immortal, “What’s Love Got to Do With It,” “Proud Mary,” “Private Dancer” and “Be Tender With Me Baby.” This musical gift is something which remains forever with those who saw the show. What also remains is how pleasant the evening was. We were outside in the park, with cool river breezes wafting overhead, and the waters rolling by, just as in “Proud Mary.”

One other occurrence which caught my eye back then was seeing all my Limestone County friends watching Tina Turner. Ask yourself, why can’t we in Limestone County do similar great events here? We’ve bargained away whole county segments and given tax breaks to giant corporations to bribe them to come here. One bright shining exception is our Alabama Veterans Museum, which hosted an international exhibit brought here by Polish museum specialists to show that beleaguered country’s role in World War II. This shows it can be done; we can do it. The museum came up with a place, publicity and well-chosen speakers to commemorate this special event. We clearly can, and did such a great presentation. For some reason though, we seem content to see all our neighbors leave town when it comes to attending other quality productions and activities. Oh, sure, there will be those who say, “We’re not wealthy like Madison or Huntsville or Decatur.” Is that true? Who’s paying for all the “tax breaks,” access roads and other preferential offers we regularly hand corporations to come here? We do!

How about this? Why couldn’t these giant corporations that now spread out over our former cotton fields build a riverside park, complete with amphitheater overlooking the river? They could put picnic tables everywhere under pavilions and an Ingalls Harbor-type community center for weddings, reunions and other get-togethers? We could have riverside shows, social outings, fishing competitions — the works! Why, the corporation could even put their name on the park! Consider this. Point Mallard Park in Morgan County was ingenious. Now their internationally known events such as the Memorial Day Weekend balloon flights are special to North Alabama. People come to see these, just as they swarm to the host of sporting events which also draw vast crowds. Did you notice the massive outpouring of those who wish to participate in, say, Huntsville’s Cotton Run?

We can do this. Where are our visionaries, our designers and our people who know life can be good here? We’re not just a bedroom community, are we? Of course not. We have enough smart, inspired and inspiring people right here who can make all this happen. Let that flutter around in your mind for a while.