By Staff
Adam Prestridge
The best part about small towns is the people that live in them.
The past couple of weeks have been very hectic with the new job, finding a house, moving and trying to get things unpacked. In fact, it's hard to figure out when one day starts and the other ends. After a while they all just kind of mix together.
Even though its been hectic at home, each day the opportunity to meet new people and work with a great staff helps in the struggle of rolling out of bed after the midnight unpacking spree or a late night at the office. Having people who understand the various differences of moving to a new town, not knowing who everyone is or where every business is located, helps tremendously.
Hopefully the newness will wear off soon.
As a former Rotarian in the small town of Luverne, having been greeted with open arms by the Atmore Rotary Club helped in that transition as well. You never know who you're going to meet and how they'll react to you. The Rotarians down south are just as hospitable and helpful as any I've ever met.
One might believe it is a bit different singing before every meeting, but it will be beneficial in the long run. My pipes are pretty rusty and before I enter a local church, they may need a little tuning. It would be tragic for a local congregation to lose some members due to my lack of singing ability.
As for the various business owners, political figures and townspeople I've met, you know who you are, thanks for the nice welcome. If you were ever new to a town or job, you can understand my concerns and gratefulness for such a warm welcome.
Even though the movers had just pulled out of the driveway, it was a point for me and my wife to attend the Atmore Area Chamber of Commerce's annual banquet last week. Not only was this newcomer there to work, but to meet new people and build new friendships. Hopefully that mission was accomplished. t was definitely good use of a Thursday night.
New places, new jobs or new decisions are not always bad, but they are always different. Being the new kid on the block, it is left unsaid that there were nerves involved when the decision to work and reside in Atmore was made.
Everyone has made bad decisions in their life, me being one of them, but the move to Atmore was a wise choice.
The generosity and kindness of the citizens of Atmore is requested as the long process of making your hometown newspaper more informative and stable continues. Hopefully, you, the reader, has seen several changes in The Advance's layout, photography, quality and quantity of stories and the overall hometown feel of the paper.
It's not a secret that several changes have occurred throughout the years, not only with the papers overall look, but with staff members as well. The new faces you see have committed to serving Atmore's readers and doing so in a timely manner.
There will be times when mistakes are made, but bear with us as we all get to know more about Atmore and the people that live here.
I may be from the big city of Birmingham, but it's nice calling Atmore home.
Adam Prestridge is the president and publisher of Atmore Newspapers, Inc. His column appears weekly.