POWERGRAMS

19 PROFILE Lego have some fun. For Wesley Higgins and family, working with Legos is a way for this close-knit clan to spend quality time. It's not unusual for the Higginses to kick back on a weekend night to a tableful of colorful Lego blocks. The pastime appeals to the entire family, from eldest son, Patrick, 17; and fraternal twins, Jonah and Thomas Earl, 16; to 13-year-old Caleb. Even the children's mother gets in on the act – and she's learned not to sweat the small stuff. "I let go of being stressed about the mess, and we just enjoy each other," Christy Higgins said. "We have designated Lego areas of the house." For instance, large displays are confined to a living room table that Wesley bought just for Lego projects. Lately, all the men of the household have been creating huge Lego projects. Wesley – with help from Patrick – completed a massive miniature replica of the McWane Science Center and the old Loveman's Department Store in Birmingham. The small-scale version now "stars" in McWane's lobby, where the display gets attention from just about everyone who enters. The model created great interest at McWane at its March debut, rocketing local fascination with Legos to new heights. Thousands of children – young and old – take in every detail of the buildings, including Patrick's carefully crafted Van de Graff generator, Lego dinosaurs and Tesla coils. The Lego characters and cars are more "icing on the cake." Wesley, who is the Online and Operations Support manager at Alabama Power Corporate Headquarters, spent about a year on the creation. Lego craftsmanship "I worked on the McWane model off and on, often at night with my family gathered around the living room, and on the weekends," said Wesley, a Lego aficionado since childhood. "A lot of times, we were watching TV." Patrick said, "I miss being able to see it every day for free. I had a lot of fun with Dad building the McWane Center." The model is rating a "10 on the cool factor" for thousands of McWane visitors. Higgins made the display after receiving a request from McWane board members Norman Jetmundsen, Lamar Smith and Gordon Martin, senior vice president of Corporate and Administrative Services at Alabama Power. Nearly two years ago, Wesley met with the team. He received architectural drawings for the project and created a mock-up display. Wesley supervised the installation at McWane, where volunteers gingerly transported the model in sections. It took about two hours to piece together the sections. The Higgins children consider Lego a great hobby for the whole family. The time they've spent together, Wesley and Christy say, in planning and drawing Lego designs, discussing ideas and just enjoying old-fashioned conversation, is all part of making memories. The importance of maintaining a strong family bond is a foundation of the Higgins' marriage. They've known each other most of their lives: They were in the same kindergarten class and were high school sweethearts. "Our kindergarten teacher even came to our wedding," Wesley said. As for carrying his childhood hobby into the adult world, Wesley put Lego aside after he and Christy married in 1996. With the birth of their first son, it was natural that Duplo blocks would be among Thomas Earl's first toys. Patrick likes Lego custom superhero characters; Jonah's favorite is Lego video games; Thomas Earl enjoys the Lego Hero Factory (similar to robots); and Caleb likes Lego dinosaurs. Working with Lego has provided Patrick a foundation for learning design concepts. "After doing Legos so long, it's made me want to study architecture and maybe do it as a career," said Patrick, who is homeschooled with his siblings. "Building with Lego helps all of us see the process and what it takes, and we appreciate it more. It's taught me that what you want takes a lot of work and time." by Donna Cope • Photography by Billy Brown Higgins

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