Words & Images by Justin Hunter

Most Alabamians would cherish a quiet morning chat with James Spann, ABC 33/40 chief meteorologist.  The residents and staff at the Beacon House in Jasper got to experience Spann up close and personal on Thursday, July 22. He wasn’t wearing his iconic white button-down and suspenders, but rather a red ABC 33/40 polo and khakis.

At first, everyone in attendance seemed to be starstruck by the weatherman, who has been the warning voice of severe weather in the state of Alabama since 1989. With a bit of humor and a couple of questions, Spann shifted the atmosphere of the room. He went from a TV personality to an uncle sharing deeply from his heart about the weather in a matter of minutes. 

“Can anyone guess my favorite season?” Spann asked to break the ice. One of the girls nestled on the couch answered, “winter.” He smiled and proceeded to tell the audience his love for the season of winter. 

The Beacon House, a program of Concerned Citizens of Our Youth, Inc. (CCfOY), is a moderate-level residential facility licensed by the State of Alabama Department of Human Resources (SDHR) for girls in foster care ages 12-17. Beacon House has been serving Walker County and the state of Alabama since 1973 and has positively impacted the lives of hundreds of girls. 

The group home brought in Spann as the cherry on top of their 2021 summer learning program. The staff and residents transformed the living room of the facility into a cozy classroom. A couple of the residents had created hand-drawn posters to welcome Spann. There was an assortment of weather-themed sugar cookies and cakesicles as refreshments for the occasion. 

“I’m not sure who was more excited, our staff or our residents,” said Allison Hunter, Education Coordinator at the Beacon House. “Obviously, James Spann is a big deal, not just to our area but all over the state. Here at Beacon House, we teach our girls all the basic living skills they need to know in order to thrive in their lives once they leave us. And weather awareness is a piece of that. As a staff, we can teach them all day long, but it means so much more coming from a trained expert.” 

The Emmy Award-winner and author spent the morning fielding questions from the residents and staff about his iconic suspenders, his growing up in Greenville, Alabama, as a boy, and why he pursued a career in meteorology. He shared about the uniqueness of the weather in Alabama and what to do in a severe storm. 

“I grew up loving weather, and I followed my passion,” Spann said. “I don’t actually love being in front of the camera, but I love talking about the weather.”

Living in Alabama, Spann couldn’t leave his crash course on the weather without debunking the myth of the county-wide tornado siren and how to accurately spot storms by breaking down the various types of cloud formations seen in the area.

“People are waiting for a World War II era, air raid siren to sound when a tornado is coming. During the April 27, 2011, tornado outbreak, dozens of people lost their lives waiting for a siren,” said Spann. “Most counties are taking down tornado sirens and giving residents free weather radios.”

Spann has nearly memorized the 253 names of the individuals who lost their lives on April 27. Their stories seem to be etched into his soul. 

He also shared why we are to “respect the polygon” when watching the weather because that is how meteorologists inform residents of a storm. “Can you believe that most adults and kids cannot find where they live on a map?” said Spann. “It’s because we are dependent on the GPS in our phones.”

He looked around the room, catching the eye of each child and teen, and said, “I am getting old, and we are going to need some smart kids like you guys to become meteorologists.”

Hunter says the organization’s goal is to have more speakers like Mr. Spann visit the home to speak on different topics. “Hopefully, the girls will be able to apply the principles learned from these speakers to their lives once they complete our program,” she said. 

Even after Spann had left for a meeting in Birmingham, the room was electric and humming with disbelief—as if lightning had struck. 78