The Homewood Star Cycle city Volume 5 | Issue 3 | June 2015
neighborly news & entertainment for Homewood
Celebration time
Find all the details on Vulcan’s Birthday Bash and other events this month inside this issue.
See page B3
NFL-bound
Homewood High School graduate Ameer Abdullah has been drafted for next season. Read more in this issue.
See page B10
Homewood considers bike-share program By SYDNEY CROMWELL West Homewood resident Shawn Fitzwater bikes around the city every day, and his wife and two sons frequently join him in pedaling to Patriot Park. He’d like to see more residents
Shannon, Noah, Shawn and Gabe Fitzwater regularly ride their bikes around their Hall-Kent neighborhood. The Fitzwaters support a bike-share program in Homewood. Photo by Sydney Cromwell.
using two wheels for transportation instead of four. “It’s great to get out with the family without jumping in the car,” Fitzwater said. “It’s cheap, it’s something everybody can enjoy.” The Homewood City Council is moving
toward the same goal. On April 27, council members approved a feasibility study to consider a bike-share program like the one recently launched in Birmingham. If implemented, the
See BIKE-SHARE | page A18
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Team Marco An Army lieutenant mentors a future soldier By MADOLINE MARKHAM
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Marco Garcia Camacho has been focused on one word since first grade: Army. When Army Lt. Wes Porter first came to visit him in January, he reacted with a different word: Wow. Marco didn’t know about Porter coming to see him, and when the Army lieutenant walked in wearing fatigues, Marco was awestruck, his eyes lighting up with joy. “It was as if his superhero had just showed up,” said Alli Phelps, Marco’s ESL teacher at Shades Cahaba Elementary School. “It felt like Christmas morning seeing him look at Wes.”
See MARCO | page A19
Shades Cahaba Elementary student Marco Garcia Camacho meets with his mentor, Wes Porter, once a week to talk about their goals and train for a 5K. Photo by John Perry.