Athens native Richard Martin comes from a long line of Martins with the Martin surname coincidentally shared by both his mother and father. After hearing stories all his life, he began researching his family history. Combing the Limestone County Archives and calling on relatives, his search extended all he way to California to find ancestors as far back as the Revolutionary War. The end result is a 3-volume series of books full of personal narratives, news stories, genealogy, anecdotes and photographs within their historical context. Richard talks about his books highlighting the nostalgia of a bygone era where all the neighbors knew your name and you knew them by the cars they drove. He remembers playing at the site of an old Civil War fort, which is now the location of the Athens-Limestone Public Library. With this year marking the 250th anniversary of America, these books portray a look at our nation's history through the eyes of the Limestone County Martins.

 Links:
https://www.alcpl.org/    

If you would like to share a story, please call the library at 256-232-1233 or email [email protected] for more information.
Music from Pixabay      

Frank ‘Max’ Grose was 21 years old in 1967 when he was sent to Vietnam to serve in the 147th assault support helicopter company known as the Hillclimbers. He piloted his Chinook helicopter in and out of dangerous missions to supply troops fighting on the ground. In 1973, as the last U.S. troops pulled out and the country fell under Communist regime, many Vietnamese families made the difficult decision to leave their country in search of a better future. Enter 12-year-old Thanh Boyer: a Vietnam boat refugee who braved the treacherous waters of the South China Sea, both physically and mentally, to finally land in her newly adopted home in America. In Athens, Alabama. 
Together, for the first time, Frank Grose and Thanh Boyer share their Vietnam experiences and the work they have done since to help veterans who returned home bearing the scars of war. 

Links:
https://www.alcpl.org/    

If you would like to share a story, please call the library at 256-232-1233 or email [email protected] for more information.
Music from Pixabay     

July 18, 1980, Thanh Boyer arrived in Athens, Alabama as a Vietnamese Boat refugee. She was 12 years old. This is her story - a journey of courage, pathos, humor, and single-minded determination to bring the rest of her family to America. 

 Links:
https://www.alcpl.org/    

If you would like to share a story, please call the library at 256-232-1233 or email [email protected] for more information.
Music from Pixabay    

Joel Mize is the son and nephew of five World War II veterans representing the U.S. Army, Army Air Corps, U.S. Navy, and U.S. Marines Corps. Growing up they were his personal heroes, along with his grandmother, the matriarch of the Putnam family. Deeply patriotic, she worked in the support staff of the Muscle Shoals nitrate plant in World War I and in Mobile's Brookley Air Base during World War II. She set the tone for her sons to follow, and they served both in the European and Pacific fronts as well as in Occupied Japan. In this podcast Joel Mize talks about their war stories and the legacies they left to a young boy coming of age in the postwar era. 

Links:
https://www.alcpl.org/    
http://www.alabamaveteransmuseum.com/
 
If you would like to share a story, please call the library at 256-232-1233 or email [email protected] for more information.
Music from Pixabay   

Frank ‘Max’ Grose served in the 147th assault support helicopter company in Vietnam, known as the Hillclimbers. He was 21 years old when he got to Vietnam in 1967 and tasked with flying a Chinook helicopter in and out of dangerous sorties to aid troops fighting on the ground. In this podcast he recounts, in riveting detail, missions where mere seconds and inches meant the difference between life and death.

Links:
https://www.alcpl.org/   
http://www.alabamaveteransmuseum.com/
 
If you would like to share a story, please call the library at 256-232-1233 or email [email protected] for more information.
Music from Pixabay     

Gene Keith, retired Athens art teacher, taught his students much more than art: for thirty four years, he also gave them lessons in life.  He reflects on his career and we get a a glimpse of why his creative and thoughtful approach to teaching made him a student favorite. Since retiring, Gene's avocation has been genealogy research and learning about his family history here in Alabama.

Library Links
https://www.alcpl.org/
 
If you would like to share a story, please call the library at 256-232-1233 or email [email protected] for more information.
 Music from Pixabay  

Fred Smith has lived in Limestone County all of his life. He remembers a slower, gentler time and describes his life growing up in 1950's Athens. He looks back at a time when everyone knew their neighbors and no one locked their doors because "you just couldn't think of a reason why not." He also talks about his first job at the old Ross Hotel just off the Athens Square.

Library Links
 https://www.alcpl.org/
 
If you would like to share a story, please call the library at 256-232-1233 or email [email protected] for more information.
 Music from Pixabay 

At age 5, Louis Rossignolo looked up at the skies from a farm outside Sicily to see American and German planes dropping bombs during World War II. At the time, Limestone County was not on his radar. Lou relates his story of how he came to America and why he thinks Athens, Alabama is the best place to live.    

Library Links
 https://www.alcpl.org/
 
If you would like to share a story, please call the library at 256-232-1233 or email [email protected] for more information.
 Music from Pixabay 

Helga Stover came to America from Germany in 1956, settling in North Alabama in 1964. Though initially in "culture shock" Helga's is a story of adaptation and embracing life both in Madison and Limestone County. She also talks about Limestone County's original Germantown  - a thriving community started by German immigrants back in the 1890's.   

Library Links
 https://www.alcpl.org/
 
If you would like to share a story, please call the library at 256-232-1233 or email [email protected] for more information.
 Music from Pixabay 

They call him P.I. Paul Irons. A veteran firefighter who responded to fire alarms in Athens for over 40 years. In that time he developed a rapport with both his men and his community. In this episode he recounts a fiery rescue with a divine intervention. P.I. unfolds stories about the dangers, risks, and rewards that came from serving people in his favorite town. 

 Library Links
 https://www.alcpl.org/
 
If you would like to share a story, please call the library at 256-232-1233 or email [email protected] for more information.
Music from Pixabay