After a year of reconstruction, the East Selma Community Pond is reopening on Jan. 31 with a completion ceremony hosted by project leader UAB Live HealthSmart Alabama and its partner, the city of Selma.
Leading up to the event, the University of Alabama at Birmingham program is hosting several volunteer opportunities to get the pond and walking trail ready for community use, including tree planting with a landscaping company this week and fence beautification planned for Friday.
A fence beautification company will be on hand for Friday’s event with volunteer help from UAB engineering students who are riding down to Selma to help out.
Live HealthSmart Alabama expanded from working in 10 Birmingham neighborhoods over the last five years to work in Selma starting in 2024. The goal is to make changes to the communities that will help reduce the number of residents with chronic diseases, said Teresa Shufflebarger, chief administrative officer of Live HealthSmart Alabama.
The program is looking to expand into other Black Belt cities in the next few years, starting with Demopolis and Camden.
Live HealthSmart in Selma has worked mostly in Wards 6 and 8 and focused on gathering partners to rebuild the East Selma fishing pond that had fallen into disrepair. The team has also hosted wellness events twice a month throughout the city.
In the last year, workers have replaced 4,000 linear feet of sidewalks, added 15 ADA ramps and put in 17 crosswalks at 14 intersections in the area, Shufflebarger said. Alabama Power has replaced or repaired nearly 20 light fixtures for safety.
The walking trail will now be useable by the community, which Shufflebarger said is important for improving walkability for residents.
“We are thinking about safety and connecting points to homes, the park, the walking trail, church – the connectivity of the community and safety,” she said.
The gazebo and bathrooms at the pond have been repaired, and a contractor donated their time to reinforce the walls of the pond so it will keep water. Next, they will stock fish in the pond. The fish will be ready to be caught by March after they get time to settle in, she said.
Besides its usability, Live HealthSmart wanted to ensure the park added to the look of the community, she said.
“We opened up the fencing and added landscaping so there is not only a safe and physical activity aspect to it, but also a beautification element, so it promotes civic pride,” Shufflebarger said.
Live HealthSmart Alabama is part of UAB’s Minority Health & Health Equity Research Center that works with Dallas County residents in other ways, including repaving the walking trail at Keith High School and operating a continuing community outreach program in Orrville.
Shufflebarger said the investment in Selma has been made with many private-public partnerships. Novo Nordisk, the drug company that makes the diabetes drug Ozempic, gave $2.47 million toward Live HealthSmart Alabama projects in the Black Belt. The city of Selma helped with permits for work conducted and will take on the light bill from the new fixtures put in by Alabama Power. Caddell Construction made significant investment by paying for construction and hiring subcontractors. And GMC architecture firm helped with landscaping plans.
“We all collaborated with a common goal of improving and revitalizing the neighborhood and community of Ward 8 and Selma,” Shufflebarger said.
Live HealthSmart Alabama is expanding with a mobile wellness van this spring that is being shared with Whitfield Regional Hospital in Demopolis. After that, they will launch a mobile grocery van that will come to Selma in early fall to “promote more broadly good nutrition,” Shufflebarger said.
UAB President Dr. Ray Watts is expected to attend the East Selma Community Pond ribbon cutting ceremony on Jan. 31 at 10:30 a.m., along with Mayor James Perkins Jr. Parking is available at Second Baptist on Hardie Avenue. Lunch will follow at partner church Mt. Ararat Missionary Baptist.
After a year of reconstruction, the East Selma Community Pond is reopening on Jan. 31 with a completion ceremony hosted by project leader UAB Live HealthSmart Alabama and its partner, the city of Selma.
Leading up to the event, the University of Alabama at Birmingham program is hosting several volunteer opportunities to get the pond and walking trail ready for community use, including tree planting with a landscaping company this week and fence beautification planned for Friday.
A fence beautification company will be on hand for Friday’s event with volunteer help from UAB engineering students who are riding down to Selma to help out.
Live HealthSmart Alabama expanded from working in 10 Birmingham neighborhoods over the last five years to work in Selma starting in 2024. The goal is to make changes to the communities that will help reduce the number of residents with chronic diseases, said Teresa Shufflebarger, chief administrative officer of Live HealthSmart Alabama.
The program is looking to expand into other Black Belt cities in the next few years, starting with Demopolis and Camden.
Live HealthSmart in Selma has worked mostly in Wards 6 and 8 and focused on gathering partners to rebuild the East Selma fishing pond that had fallen into disrepair. The team has also hosted wellness events twice a month throughout the city.
In the last year, workers have replaced 4,000 linear feet of sidewalks, added 15 ADA ramps and put in 17 crosswalks at 14 intersections in the area, Shufflebarger said. Alabama Power has replaced or repaired nearly 20 light fixtures for safety.
The walking trail will now be useable by the community, which Shufflebarger said is important for improving walkability for residents.
“We are thinking about safety and connecting points to homes, the park, the walking trail, church – the connectivity of the community and safety,” she said.
The gazebo and bathrooms at the pond have been repaired, and a contractor donated their time to reinforce the walls of the pond so it will keep water. Next, they will stock fish in the pond. The fish will be ready to be caught by March after they get time to settle in, she said.
Besides its usability, Live HealthSmart wanted to ensure the park added to the look of the community, she said.
“We opened up the fencing and added landscaping so there is not only a safe and physical activity aspect to it, but also a beautification element, so it promotes civic pride,” Shufflebarger said.
Live HealthSmart Alabama is part of UAB’s Minority Health & Health Equity Research Center that works with Dallas County residents in other ways, including repaving the walking trail at Keith High School and operating a continuing community outreach program in Orrville.
Shufflebarger said the investment in Selma has been made with many private-public partnerships. Novo Nordisk, the drug company that makes the diabetes drug Ozempic, gave $2.47 million toward Live HealthSmart Alabama projects in the Black Belt. The city of Selma helped with permits for work conducted and will take on the light bill from the new fixtures put in by Alabama Power. Caddell Construction made significant investment by paying for construction and hiring subcontractors. And GMC architecture firm helped with landscaping plans.
“We all collaborated with a common goal of improving and revitalizing the neighborhood and community of Ward 8 and Selma,” Shufflebarger said.
Live HealthSmart Alabama is expanding with a mobile wellness van this spring that is being shared with Whitfield Regional Hospital in Demopolis. After that, they will launch a mobile grocery van that will come to Selma in early fall to “promote more broadly good nutrition,” Shufflebarger said.
UAB President Dr. Ray Watts is expected to attend the East Selma Community Pond ribbon cutting ceremony on Jan. 31 at 10:30 a.m., along with Mayor James Perkins Jr. Parking is available at Second Baptist on Hardie Avenue. Lunch will follow at partner church Mt. Ararat Missionary Baptist.
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