“We've been working on this project for seven years. I tell people it's like dating. You don't just call and say, ‘we want you here.’ It is a process.”

“Our purpose in life is to love people. It’s not about me but about the amazing people in our community where we have a strong network. I now see this more each day.”

“We noticed there was a niche for a community bank. So, we started in my old upstairs bedroom. Dad knew how to put together a budget, and I knew how to work an Excel spreadsheet…”

“When I walked into Sumiton City Hall on my first day of work, I told them two things,” Nina says with a chuckle. “One, I might randomly burst into song and dance at any given time, and two, we have to be a family here.”

“I love what I do. Learning about what buyers’ and sellers’ goals are and taking that information, applying it, and matching them with buyers or finding buyers homes and properties that they fall in love with is about as gratifying as it gets.”

“Surround yourself with successful people and success will follow you. I did that in Corner, and I’m doing the same thing here at Jasper Main Street. I’ve surrounded myself with forward-thinking individuals who are helping create a successful downtown

“Some people think we just want to put a sign in their yard and get it sold as quickly as possible. The special part is when people understand that you weren't just trying to make a sale, that you were truly looking for the right house for them…”

“I am the type of principal who interacts with the kids, and I want to be a good role model for them in hopes that some of them, once they graduate, will come back and be teachers.”

“I am a lot like my dad and not afraid to work hard,” Diane admits. “I am a fighter.”

“We want to operate with excellence, we want to operate with honesty, we want to operate with consistency.”

“Technology is making locksmithing a different kind of trade. I still do it the hands-on way.”

“I have always been into [dentistry,” she says. “Every time I went to the dentist, I was asking questions and looking at everything.”

[Michael] recalls sitting at the dinner table at an early age, listening to his parents and grandparents discuss concerns and problems in the community. It was then that he decided he wanted to run for office one day and hopefully find solutions to those problems.

“The neurosurgeon told my family that he would do what he could…people with that kind of injury don’t usually make it to the hospital.”

“Having a really good dad was the main structure in figuring out my life. My dad is basically my best friend. I realized I wanted to do that for other kids who didn’t have that in their life.”

“Nothing fires me up like watching a player who’s worked on a skill for months and then finally gets it, or a team that really worked to build chemistry, and then it finally clicks.”

“We were mapping out an American WWII cemetery. I met two Englishmen over there walking through the cemetery whose parents had lived in that area during the war. They told me about their experiences, the food shortages, and so on.”

“A good leader pushes everybody to their limits so that they feel great,” he says. “I want to be great, but I also want everyone around me to be great.”

“There is something about molding and conditioning clay that is very therapeutic to me,” Riley explains. “I mix a lot of my own colors, so I get them exactly how I want them.”