Building on faith and community was the message that former Alabama Crimson Tide football player Siran Stacy brought to the 66th annual Atmore Area of Commerce Chamber Meeting Thursday night.

With more than 300 guests on hand to hear his speech as well as see the presentations for Citizen of the Year and Lifetime Achievement, Stacy spoke to chamber members and Atmore residents about building even when faced with obstacles.

To be prepared for his address to the Atmore crowd, Stacy said he researched the city he was visiting and also sought from his faith.

“I’ve been praying about having an impact with my message to this community,” he said. “I began looking up the history of Atmore and Mr. Carney and how he named the city. As I studied deeper, I realized Atmore is strategically planted in a very opportune area. Atmore and its citizens need to build upon that and where they come from. It’s important that the families and businesses in this community build on where they started.”

When speaking about the difficulties about moving forward, Stacy pulled from his own past.

He spoke about the horrific accident in 2007 where a collision with a drunk driver took the lives of his wife, four of his five children and the other driver.

During the speech, he referred to himself as a “zombie” through that time, but also talked about how he moved forward.

Stacy encouraged the audience not to dwell on the past. He added he believes God has good things in store for Atmore.

“It’s not so much about what you have lost, but what you are going to gain,” he said. “Identifying who you are as a city is what it’s all about. I believe God has great plans for the city of Atmore. It’s clear he has hands on this city, and if he can bring the people of Atmore together, then the sky is the limit.”

Throughout the address, Stacy continued to maintain the idea of building.

Maintaining Atmore and what if offers, while continuing to grow, is the mindset that Stacy said he wanted the community to walk away with.

“I want the community to build on that message instead of focusing on what other cities like Mobile or Pensacola are doing,” he said. “Focus on what Atmore needs to do with what it already has.”

Stacy met with a number of guests after the banquet, many of whom praised his speech.

“It’s encouraging,” he said. “A lot of people are telling me they were blessed by it. There was a lot of love in this building tonight, and I’m honored to have made friends in this city tonight. I will pray for this city as well. Everything has been great during my visit.”