SHORELINES

"It took weeks and months of planning to get out there," said Phifer. e planning was extensive. From purchasing rakes, grabbers and trash bags, to borrowing heavy machinery and boats from the municipality, Alabama Power and other businesses and individuals, every detail had to be identified and planned. "We did a lot of reconnaissance on this river, which Alabama Power helped with," Phifer said. "We went up and down the river system with huge topographic and river maps, to see the heaviest deposits and what we needed to do to get it out." "We put safety and communication first, because one safety problem could negate any good things we did," Phifer said. e cleanup effort had the backing of police, firefighters, sheriff 's department, emergency management agency and the local hospital. "We wanted to put people in areas where they felt good about what they did," Phifer said. "You want them to have fun, I can't emphasize that enough." During the first year of Renew the Coosa, volunteers pulled 16 tons of debris from the waterways in and around Gadsden. e city of Gadsden intentionally had the debris placed in the amphitheater parking lot, in view of U.S. Highway 411 and traffic that passed through. "ere was some skepticism of how it would make the city look if we put that all in the parking lot and people drove by and saw it," Phifer said. "But the mayor said that as far as he was concerned people needed to know what was coming out of the river system." A large sign was made to the educate the community and those passing through about Renew the Coosa. "It was a mountain of debris, and it really got people's attention," Phifer said. e first cleanup was a prototype for future ones in the Gadsden area and throughout the state as cleanups moved from the Coosa River to the Tallapoosa, Warrior and Tombigbee rivers. Doug Powell, with Alabama Power Environmental Affairs, was instrumental in helping the program to spread. "He took the concept we developed here, and through collaboration with other environmental affairs groups, helped it to move into other areas," Phifer said. "Since everyone has different resources, he helped them to adapt." As the program expanded to other rivers, the name changed to "Renew Our Rivers," a slight change to Lowery's original list of potential names. "I know there won't be anything like that first year," Phifer said. "Because of all of the uncertainty and trepidation, and all the excitement, too – it was exciting and exhilarating, but at the same time you were concerned and worried. ere were so many mixed feelings and knowing we pulled it off the first year gave us a lot of confidence going forward." e following year, a bottle with a note written by a young boy who lived near Terrapin Creek made its way to Gadsden. e bottle had floated intact for over a decade. From that find, Charlotte Phifer developed an educational program called Message in the Bottle to help children learn about the ecosystem and the value of biodiversity. "When we started Renew the Coosa and Message in the Bottle, those high school kids were 17 and 18 years old – that's 20 years ago," Gene said. "You hope that with the age they are now, if they have children, they're teaching them to be careful with our resources. … I think that they probably are, I hope that is the legacy of it." Phifer knew the program wasn successful when it grew beyond the Coosa into Renew Our Rivers. He takes pride that so many other lakes, rivers and streams have been cared for and appreciated. In addition, the national recognition and awards the programs has received encouraged Phifer that others might adopt the program. "We wanted to make it a cleaner place for all of us and I hope that ROR sets the tone for river cleanups and for other things that people can do to help the environment – maybe taking and applying the same principles to land … and things like that," Phifer said. "I hope it continues – every year is a learning experience and we want to make it better and better," Phifer said. Environmental Affairs Specialist Mike Clelland said, the program has continued to grow. "Because of Gene identifying a need, and his vision of putting together a community effort, the Renew Our Rivers program thrives today. "His passion for a clean waterway is infectious and spreads to all those that have worked with him, then carried to efforts all across the state," Clelland said. "I'm proud to have Gene's example as I try to steer this great program for Alabama Power." Always an educator, Phifer encourages people to help make a difference. "You can go through life and not take any chances and that's OK … to be real safe. … But if you take a risk on something important, then that's a risk worth taking." 6 | 2019 Vol: 1

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