PC dedicates park

PHIL CAMPBELL – The past week has been filled with somber memorial services paying tribute to those who were lost on April 27, 2011, during the horrific tornado outbreak that changed many Franklin County residents’ lives forever.

While the dedication at Phil Campbell Memorial Park on Saturday was also a time for a reflection, the sounds of laughter and excitement could be heard from children playing at the park’s playground, and it was a sound that brought hope for a brighter tomorrow in a town that has been through so much in a year’s time.

A large crowd gathered to officially dedicate the park and unveil the monument bearing the names of the 27 Franklin County residents who ultimately lost their lives on that day.

As the monument was unveiled by city officials, community members and family members of the victims shed silent tears and hugged one another close as they remembered their friends, family and neighbors.

Mike and Evelyn Ashton admired the smooth, granite surface that bears the name of their 10-year-old grandson, Ethan Knox, who was killed that day.

Mike Ashton said he was proud of the town’s new park and the memorial honoring his grandson and so many others.

“This will be a place we can visit to remember Ethan,” Mike Ashton said. “This park also shows me the strong people of Phil Campbell and how much love and warmth they have shown us this past year. “I just honestly can’t put it into words how great everyone has been.”

Evelyn Ashton said it’s a place they will come often with their other nine grandchildren.

“I’m glad that this park is a happy thing and not just a sad memorial,” she said. “This would have been something Ethan would have loved because he was always wanting to play outside. We’ll think of him always when we come here.”

U.S. Congressman Robert Aderholt addressed the crowd of community members and officials and said he knew how special this park would be for those who wanted to remember the ones who passed away in the tornado.

“When you look at these names, every name you see represents a life that touched friends, family and the community,” Aderholt said. “We may never really know how many lives these people touched.”

As Sen. Roger Bedford stood looking at the American and Alabama flags that were lowered to half-mast before the unveiling of the monument, he said he had many emotions one year after the tragedy.

“I look at that flag at half-mast and I am reminded of those who went on to heaven before us,” he said. “But then I see the vigor in the flag as it flies and I am reminded that this is a great too,” Sen. Roger Bedford said. “This is a day of hope, a day of triumph and a day of moving forward.

“The best days for Phil Campbell are still ahead because we’re building back bigger and stronger than ever.”

Rep. Johnny Mack Morrow said he remembered growing up in the town of Phil Campbell and spending many hours in the lot where the park now stands.

“I can remember that oak tree that still stands here today in the park,” Morrow said. I look at that oak tree now and how it is devastated on one side, but what’s on this side of the tree? That’s new growth.”

Morrow said even though part of the tree was destroyed by the fierce winds, part of it remained to continue growing and showing new signs of life.

“I can look at that oak tree and see it’s a symbol for Phil Campbell,” he said. “We’re growing too.”

Phil Campbell Park and Recreation Director Rita Barton said the park itself was a sign of growth in her town.

“Standing in this park today is very surreal because it means my dreams to have a park in our town have become a reality,” she said. “It’s a place we can reflect and remember but it’s also a place we can all come together as a community.

“It’s wonderful to see the kids playing on the playground today and I hope this is the start of something new and bigger for Phil Campbell.”