Issue link: https://alabamapower.uberflip.com/i/846958
Jack Avant For us, it was a wonderful environment in which to spend our early childhood. We were free! We hunted squirrels and rabbits. We fished whenever we wanted to. We had secret hiding places in the woods. We played cowboys and Indians to our heart's content and we did all those other things that young boys love to do. It was fabulous and my memories always take me back to those happy days at Lay Dam. e power company provided and operated a swimming pool for us, tennis courts, a community clubhouse where we had Halloween parties, dances for the grown-ups and the highlight event of the year – a 4th of July barbecue. … I feel very fortunate to be at a loss for words to describe my happiness at Lay Dam. We used to shell purple hull peas in the screened porch on the le front of the house and during the heat of summer, I would lay down on the cool, smooth concrete floor of the porch to rest. During the summertime, the gate was the focal point of activity for us kids when we were not swimming in the pool or the river. I can remember it as if it were yesterday … shimmying up the iron I-beam on the le side of the gate and just lying there with my face on the cool metal to get relief from the heat. From the ages of about 5 to 12, myself, my brother Lawrence, along with friends Frank, Toby and Ben, would arrive at the gate at 5:30 in the morning so we could open and close it for fishermen coming from Clanton. We would take turns opening and closing the gate and would stand there with our little hands held out hoping for a tip. Most would tip us a nickel or a dime and sometimes we would go home with a couple of dollars at the end of the day. ere are hundreds of memory vignettes that I could describe about Lay Dam Village life during my childhood – all of them wonderful. Like the time my cousin, George, and I built a Huck Finn type ra out of small trees at the gate. We lugged that ra a half- mile to Bates' slough and launched it into the water down the hill from Downie's house. We had planned to paddle out to the island on it but since we had green trees, it went straight to the bottom, never to be seen again. We just stood there like little idiots trying to figure out what had gone wrong. So thank you, Alabama Power Company, for providing me with a childhood environment unmatched in happiness and wonder. Photo By: Chris Jones Gate to Yellowleaf Creek 25 www.apcshorelines.com