Let me see a show of hands who knows that Auburn University has a competitive bass sports club? Unbeknownst to many people, the AU Bass Sports Club is a chartered competitive sports club at Auburn University, just like any other sports club. To everyone that does not know anything about the AU Bass Club, I am going to shed some light on this interesting and already very successful group of young anglers.

The AU Bass Club began in March 2007 when a group of 16 young men wanted to be part of a bass fishing team. These young men already had an advisor selected, Jann B. Swaim, who is the Manager of Special Projects and Deferred Maintenance at the AU Facilities Division. The club was provisionally chartered in September 2007 and quickly following, the AU Bass Club solidified its presence at Lake Guntersville in Guntersville, Ala., where the club won first and second place at the Guntersville Invitational over 18 other schools.

Since then, the AU Bass Club has been very successful, placing fifth in the National Championship last summer. The club has also grown to 32 members, which are all male (although females are more than welcome to join).

The club has put together the Southern Collegiate Bass Fishing Series which includes a fishing trail in north Alabama from Gadsden to Florence. Last year was the first year the AU Bass Club hosted this competition and had 11 schools participate.

Competitive bass clubs actually started 14 years ago at colleges and universities in the North.

"You would think they [competitive bass teams] would have started in the South," said Swaim. "But now there are 11 schools in Alabama that have fishing teams."

There are no requirements to join the AU Bass Sports Club. Just a love of fishing, a slight competitive nature, and maybe a few rods and reels. There are different skill levels of the young men in the group, with guys who have trouble maneuvering boats in the water to one angler who has won All-American in the Bass Fishing League two years in a row.

Swaim hopes that the AU Bass Club will win the the National Championships the club attends in Texas and Arkansas this summer, just like any coach of a sports team hopes his team will win the grandest title. He also hopes the club will keep growing and will help promote fishing around the campus and the community.

"I'm not like advisors of other clubs. I don't kiss their hands and send them off. I go out there with them," said Swaim.

The AU Bass Club is gearing up to compete in Guntersville in two weeks, which is the second event in the South Collegiate Bass Fishing Series. The next big event will be the National Championship in May in Texas, then in July in Arkansas.

"I am involved with the AU Bass Club because I want to try to regrow the interest in the sport on campus and in the community. And just in general we want to be a competitive part of Auburn University," said Swaim.




Find more videos like this on The Loveliest Village

It’s almost that time again, time for the annual ‘Old 280 Boogie’ in Waverly, Ala. This will be the ninth year Waverly has put on this multi-cultural arts and music festival.
As always, the Boogie, which is on Saturday, April 18, is a free event welcoming people from all over. It will be in downtown Waverly, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., rain or shine. There will be live music, art exhibits and tasty food.
A small group of townspeople from Waverly set up this event every year.
In 2001, U.S. 280 was re-routed around Waverly. The Boogie celebrates being bypassed by 280, said Carolyn Graves, one of the committee members.
The Boogie is sponsored by the community and by businesses such as Oskar’s Café, Wickles Pickles, The Guitar Shoppe and Standard Deluxe, Inc.
This year the emcee’s for the day will be the “Hot Damn!” Boys. There will be live entertainment from a nine-year-old Elvis impersonator, Drake Jennings, who will portray both the young and old Elvis.
Other entertainment includes live music from the 29 South Band; Dooley’s Blue Revue; a six-person, all female band, known as The Figs; and a returning favorite, The Pine Hill Haints.
Scott Peek, owner of Standard Deluxe, Inc. and one of the committee members, says over 20 bands contact him every year wanting to play at the Boogie, but he has the difficult task of choosing only a few to perform during the day.
“Most bands come because they want to play, and we don’t pay them. But we end up splitting the donations between the bands,” said Carolyn Graves.
This year there are more than 20 vendors selling handmade jewelry, pottery bags, soap, organic products and art.
There will also be many activities for kids such as The Rowdy Rooster Puppet Show, cake walks, chalk drawing on the street, hula hoop and horseshoe games, and many more.
Food will be provided by Oskar’s Café, Johnny Bruscos, Papa D’s Super Grille and Red Root Organic Farm.
“Last year, almost 3000 people showed up. Some stay for a few hours or stay all day. But there’s something for everyone to enjoy.” Graves said.
Coincidentally, Auburn University’s A-Day game and the Sticks Country Music Festival, are on the same day. A-Day is a popular event every year for Auburn football fans and Sticks is a fast-growing multi-act country concert. One would think this would be a concern for a small-town arts and music festival.
“We’ve thought about it… and we think the pros and cons kind of even out. The better bands [of Sticks] are late at night and the Boogie is during the day, so it won’t really affect us,” said Graves.
So “come on home to Waverly” and enjoy the many events and festivities of the 9th Annual Old 280 Boogie on April 18.

Fitness Together owner Vanessa Ocasio always considered health and wellness a hobby from a young age.

“I’ve been thinking about health and wellness since I had memories,” said Ocasio.

But after graduating with a degree in Computer Science and 15 years of working in the Information Technology industry, Ocasio decided to change careers. After being a client of Fitness Together in Montgomery for a year, Ocasio opened her own branch here in Auburn.

Fitness Together officially opened two weeks ago on Feb. 23. Ocasio believes Fitness Together is distinctive because it offers more privacy than a normal gym. Their motto is “1 Client, 1 Trainer, 1 Goal”.

“There is more focus on the client,” Ocasio said. “Atmosphere and the customer service are unique too.”

Fitness Together offers session packages which includes nutrition guidance and fitness assessments. Fitness assessments are important to see how the clients are improving and what changes need to be made to get the client towards their goal. The bigger packages offer cheaper session prices.

Each session allows the client and the trainer to work in private suites with no outside distractions, where they can customize the fitness training and nutrition schedules. Individual sessions range from $40 - $65.

“I’m excited that we’ve opened in Auburn. I’m looking forward to helping people and changing lives,” said Ocasio.

Fitness Together is open Monday through Friday 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Saturday 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. by appointment only.

Fitness Together is located on 2021 S. College St., Suite D.

To make an appointment, call 334-501-2222.



Find more videos like this on The Loveliest Village

For the last few decades, “mom and pop” stores have survived by hanging on a string. A few local stores still exist in Auburn that have been around for around 50 years, such as J & M Bookstore and Flowersmith’s.

Johnston & Malone Bookstore (J & M) has been in business since 1953 when “Big George” Johnston bought into a bookstore that already existed. For half a century, J & M has thrived as a bookstore and as an Auburn University memorabilia store. J & M has maintained popularity as one of the key stores to visit while in downtown Auburn. Trey Johnston, the current owner of J & M, says that the peak of J & M was during the ‘80s to the turn of the century, particularly when Auburn University football was doing exceptionally well.

Until now. The downfall of the current economy has affected this local store in more of a way that it has affected larger retail stores.

Pat Giddens, manager of J & M, says the economy has affected the store “tremendously”.

“People are deciding between what they really need and what they want. It’s like needing a new T-shirt versus groceries,” said Giddens.
Most of the money that J & M receives comes between August and December of every year, the peak time of football season.

“Because of the faltering football team, we didn’t get our cash reserves built up. Throw in the economy and it was not a great year,” said Johnston.

Johnston believes that parents may have a slight influence on their kids, telling them not to buy the expensive textbooks. Johnston’s newest and biggest competitor is the Internet, where students can buy a $150 textbook for a third of the price.

Johnston says that his immediate goal is to get the store to August, when money from football season will come in. But in the next 10 years, Johnston says he thinks J & M will be sold to the highest bidder. Johnston also believes J & M Bookstore will become known as a “college store” which only sells collegiate merchandise and will cease selling textbooks.

As a student employer of J & M’s art department, Jalyn Gibson has also noticed the effects of the uncertain economy on the bookstore. Gibson, a senior in Marketing and Administration, has observed that the managers are cutting back the workers’ hours.

“It seems like the students are waiting until the last minute to get supplies and they get what they absolutely need,” said Gibson.
Even though J & M is competing with other bookstores and also other stores selling Auburn paraphernalia, the falling economy is a key factor to low sales.

On another side of the local business spectrum is Flowersmith’s, a flower and gift boutique also located in downtown Auburn. Flowersmith’s was established in 1961 by Esther Lewis and her daughter, Sally Barrett. Currently, Barrett and her daughter, Susan High run the store.

High says that the economy hasn’t affected Flowersmith’s as much as shops that deal with only Auburn souvenirs.

“The unfortunate thing about most of the shops downtown is that their items are a luxury and you don’t have to have it,” said High.

High hopes that with the current economy that Flowersmith’s will “stay on course with what we’ve been doing for the last 48 years”.

Though it is apparent these local stores are slightly effected by today’s economy, they still manage to stay strong. Both J & M and Flowersmith’s are well-known downtown stores and hope to be for at least another couple of decades.



Find more videos like this on The Loveliest Village

“Ending Hunger… Yes We Can!” is the theme of this year’s “University Hunger Summit” at Auburn University. This is the fourth year that Auburn University has teamed up with “Universities Fighting World Hunger” to host a weekend long conference.

“Universities Fighting World Hunger” (UFWH) is an association of colleges and universities that have partnered with the “United Nations World Food Program” to help raise awareness and develop solutions to end hunger and poverty. The UFWH approached June Henton, dean of the School of Human Sciences and asked her to help inform students about world hunger through a web site. Henton wanted to go above and beyond just creating a web site, and a World Hunger campaign was born. In 2005, Auburn University held its first “University Hunger Summit.”

The “University Hunger Summit” is a chance for other schools to get involved with helping solve world hunger and poverty. The summit focuses on what hunger is, how it affects people a in the United States and abroad, and to explore the issues surrounding hunger. The conference helps other schools start their own campaigns and gives them the tools necessary to start a UFWH campus chapter.

Auburn University has had great success with the “University Hunger Summit” conferences and is looking forward to another weekend with the “Fourth Annual University Hunger Summit” coming up Feb. 27 to March 1.

Those who attend the summit will have the opportunity to hear a number of speakers and interact with experts in the field who can offer advice. Spencer Bacchus, a representative in Congress from Alabama, is a fighter for hunger relief and will be attending this year’s Summit.

Angela Montoya is a graduate student who is helping plan this year’s summit. Montoya is from Colombia, South America, where she witnessed hunger and extreme poverty growing up. When she came to the United States, Montoya felt that people weren’t aware of the vastness of world hunger and became involved with Auburn’s chapter of UFWH.

“Most people in third world countries think the US has it all, but people are experiencing food insecurities here too. I want to let people know what’s happening around the world,” said Montoya.

Montoya said that she hopes that the “Hunger Summit” will help people become more aware about hunger domestically and globally.

“Our theme ‘Ending Hunger… Yes We Can!’ gives you empowerment and drive. Even small changes help because you’re doing something for the community and world,” said Montoya.

For more information on Universities Fighting World Hunger, go to http://www.universitiesfightingworldhunger.org.



Find more videos like this on The Loveliest Village

There exists an unspoken rule for Southerners: as much as you try, you can never really leave the South. This is the simple theme of “Eat, Drink, and be from Mississippi”, the latest book from author Nanci Kincaid.
“Eat, Drink, and be from Mississippi” is a book about a brother and a sister from Mississippi who travel to California to pursue their dreams. But like mentioned earlier, the duo can never really leave the South, even though they physically relocate themselves. Surprisingly, there is a little black boy from the ghetto who turns out to be the siblings’ savior and brings them purpose.
Kincaid was married at a young age and was a stay at home mom working random jobs as a bank teller and at a doctor’s office. She began taking writing courses because she always loved English classes while in school. With some encouragement from the teacher, Kincaid decided to turn one of her short stories into a novel. Kincaid spent the next seven years working on the story and finally produced her first book, “Crossing Blood”.
Since that first book, Kincaid has written five others including “Verbena”, “Pretending the Bed is a Raft”, “Balls”, “As Hot As It Gets You Ought to Thank Me” (which was adapted into a movie titled My Life Without Me) and the newest, “Eat, Drink, and be from Mississippi”.
Dawn Pierce, a family friend of Nanci Kincaid, has read all of her books. Pierce says all of her books have witty dialogue with true Southern colloquialisms. Kincaid always uses a female hero and always incorporates some “grain of truth” in her plots.
“She uses a ‘child’s eyes’ to describe derogatory views of the South. So it’s easier for her to get away with it,” Pierce says, on the uniqueness of Kincaid’s southern fiction books.
Kincaid just completed a book signing in Auburn at the Auburn Public Library where she read a few chapters of her new book and answered questions.
Pat Giddens, a manager at J & M Bookstore, was a first-timer to Nanci Kincaid’s book signing.
“I’ve never been to a reading before, I didn’t know what to expect. But she [Kincaid] read with such passion and quenched my thirst enough to want to read the book,” Giddens says.
Kincaid is touring other big cities in the South doing book readings and signings for the book. After her book tour, she will return home to California to complete a work-in-progress about the women in Tutwiler Prison.



Find more videos like this on The Loveliest Village

Who wouldn’t love to have their own music on the most popular music downloading Web site? Samuel Childs is a very talented young man, who is studying hard in Instrumental Music Education, but still manages to find the time to write his own music and lyrics.

Childs is a 21-year-old junior from Mobile, Ala., and is involved in many ensembles on campus and with his church. These groups include the Auburn University Singers, Auburn University Chamber Choir, Auburn University Marching Band and an acappella group called FOCUS at the Auburn Christian Student Center.

Since Childs does write his own lyrics and music, he says the process is pretty stubborn.

“I guess you could say it’s like riding a bike, once you learn how to do it you don’t have to think about how to stay balanced. Ideas for songs come out all at once, but the process of composing each song is different.” Childs said.

Childs currently has an album on iTunes called “206” and an EP called “The Sounds of the Season”. He claims that getting music on iTunes isn’t as complicated as one might think, but there are a few requirements. These requirements include having a recording and the legal right of the music you are wishing to sell, a Universal Product Code (UPC) and a digital distributor. Childs recorded his music with his own equipment, and acquired a UPC when he made CD’s last summer. After iTunes responded to his application, they suggested Childs use Catapult Distribution. This is digital label who acts as digital distributor to distribute his music to all the major online music stores, such as Napster, Rhapsody, emusic and Zune.

One review on iTunes said “An excellent collection of exciting musical expertise… His creative composing ability is phenomenal.”

Childs is a little intimidated that his own music is on such a popular website since he is limited by a keyboard, instead of a real piano. But all of his tracks have been recorded live with no editing done to them.

“I have to remind myself this is the best I can do and I didn’t put my music on iTunes to beat out John Mayer’s sales for the month. But I did it for my fans.”
Childs feels that there are advantages and disadvantages for having music on iTunes. He now has the ability to give his fans his music. But the one disadvantage is that people may never give his music a chance. Childs doesn’t want people to expect a Warner Brothers recording.

“It’s really humbling to realize that there are people who like what I have to say and what is on my heart,” said Childs.

For the future of his music, Childs is making investments to professionally record his new stuff. He will also be auditioning for America’s Got Talent in Atlanta on Feb. 7.

In the meantime, Childs plays around Auburn at dinners, parties and formals. He is scheduled to play April 6 at the Recital Hall in the Goodwin Music Building at 7:30 p.m. to showcase some songs from his CD “206” and also a few new pieces.

So if you have a couple of dollars, and you want to hear some good, original music, check out Samuel Childs on iTunes.


Find more videos like this on The Loveliest Village

For those of us who may not understand the thought and inspiration that help create a piece of art, no worries. The artwork of Rafal Olbinski seems like a trip with Alice into the magical Wonderland. Pictures of a Roman soldier leaping over a scary mountain cliff on top of a “slinky” horse and a woman’s head covered in sets of wings like hair flying through the sky look as if they are still images from a person’s dreams.

These pieces of art may represent something different to each individual person, but to Rafal Olbinski this art symbolizes "New Dreams of Old Values."

This is the current exhibit that is being showcased at the Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art now through Feb. 28.

Rafal Olbinksi was born in Poland in 1945 and is now living in New York. Olbinski is a noted painter, printmaker and illustrator and is extensively known as a contemporary surrealist artist. Although this categorization doesn’t fully describe Olbinski’s distinctive art.

Upon seeing his artwork, Olbinski likes to incorporate surprise and unexpected coincidences. For example an acrylic painting of three flags, each represents a different ethnicity and each portraying a different facial feature. The piece is titled "Confrontation of Similarities," showing that we all have two eyes and a pair of lips, they might be a different color or shape, but each feature is similar.

Andrew Henley, Education Curator for the museum, described Olbinski’s niche as being able to combine “a large amount of information into a quick burst of visual imagery.”

"New Dreams of Old Values" builds on a series of paintings that were specially made by the German magazine "Stern." The exhibition at the JCSM features Olbinski’s recent reflections on the subjects of ethics and morality in the modern world. The exhibit includes many acrylic and oil paintings along with numerous posters designed for operas, theater and musical shows.

“He is certainly well-known in publishing, newspapers, and the opera world creating set designs. So this is an interesting combination of a current working artist in a different space than he’s used to working in,” said Henley, on how this exhibition is different from others Olbinksi has done.

Olbinski studied architecture at the Warsaw University of Technology in Poland but immigrated to the United States in 1981 and established himself as an outstanding painter, illustrator and designer. Olbinski started in the commercial end of art making movie posters and magazine covers by using visual imagery but still tying in abstract story lines.

Olbinski has had his art appear in has appeared in publications such as New York Times, Newsweek and even Time magazine. He has created numerous poster illustrations for music festivals, opera productions and theatre. In addition to these, Olbinski continues to produce several paintings and murals and has held more than 30 one-man shows in six different countries. His paintings can be seen in the collections of the Smithsonian Institution and the U.S. Library of Congress. Olbinski has also acquired more than 150 awards for his work in the United States, England, France and Italy.


Find more videos like this on The Loveliest Village