April 9, 2025 • 29 mins
Youth Towers Director and CEO Alice Westerly talks about her organizations mission to help youth who are ageing out of the foster system keep from ending up on the streets of Birmingham. Then we are joined by Tammy Hall of Sea Harvest Fesh Shrimp in Bayou La Batre and Mark Yeager CEO of Red Kand Cotton in Moulton, two Alabama Business people who give their position on the Trump Tariffs.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Helping out young people at risk here in Alabama, staying
off the street and keeping them off the street and
setting them up for a better life. Hello, I'm John
Mount and this week on Viewpoint, Alabama, I'm talking with
Alice Westerly. She is the executive director of Youth Towers. Alice,
Welcome to Viewpoint. Hi.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
How are you doing, John?
Speaker 1 (00:17):
I'm doing great, Alice. I'm glad you were able to
come in so you and you when I spoke with
you a little while ago, you were talking about your
organization and your passion for the young people that it helps.
Tell me why you got involved to begin with.
Speaker 3 (00:29):
Well, basically, I got involved because I was an employee
of the Department of Human Resources at Jefferson County in Birmingham, Alabama,
and I was working as independent living program coordinator, and
I found out that young people between the ages of
fourteen and twenty one were actually aging out of foster
care and becoming homeless.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
And that's a problem because the you know, when they
were younger, of course they had somebody kind of watching
over them and that sort of thing. But you know
when they do when they do age out of foster
care and they don't have somebody to watch over them.
That's that's a real problem because now where do they
transition to?
Speaker 3 (01:02):
Yes, And that's the thing that's why Youth Towers was created.
Youth Towers is a continuous care in order to prevent
it in homelessness for young people nineteen to twenty six.
But we're able to help young people from birth all
the way up to eighteen with parental consent and permission
from the Department of Human Resources. So guess what, John,
they don't do anything if we don't have transitional sites,
(01:24):
rapid rehousing and emergency sites that can be there on
the outside in the community to help the young people transition.
Speaker 1 (01:31):
So let's talk about some of those functions you talked
about how you're able to help those who are still
have a printal care. When would Youth Towers become involved
with younger people who still have parents in their lives.
Speaker 3 (01:42):
Well, we'd like to become involved as soon as possible.
A parent can just notify us and say, hey, I
need some help. I'm not able to take care of
the basic living needs. I'm not able to maintain house
instability unless I have some assistance. So then all they
have to do in writing is give us permission. It
does not have to be anything for with the Department
of Human Resources. What they do they put us in
(02:03):
the individualized service plan and then from there we're able
to be able to help the young people before they
exit foster care. And we're able to help young people
who have never been in foster care and just have
grandparents and aunties and uncles and cousins who are raising them,
but they just need a little bit of help in
order to make sure that they don't have to put
that child out on the streets.
Speaker 1 (02:24):
So when you talk about this help, are you talking
about monetary help to pay for things like clothes and
food or you're actually talking about putting a roof over
their head.
Speaker 2 (02:31):
We're talking about all of the above. We're talking about.
Speaker 3 (02:34):
Housing stabilization as far as having somewhere to lay their
heads that's safe. We're also talking about those basic living
needs that's food, clothing, moral support, mentors, mobility, transportation, bus passes,
so all of the above, because once you get them
stabilized are either Once you know that they're stabilized in
a safe place, then you can work on all of
(02:55):
those things that wrap around services.
Speaker 1 (02:57):
In order to assist and Alice wants the individual that
when they age out of foster care or they just
they are out on there. There's a lot of kids
who sometimes leave home with mom and dad. Maybe it
was a bad situation, maybe they you know, turned eighteen
and thank goodness somebody of here and they move out
and then they realize, wow, this is the real world.
I'm not prepared. Is that another time when youth towers
might get involved?
Speaker 3 (03:17):
Absolutely, because we've got a lot of young people. It
has no economic status. Our young people come from all
types of households. So yes, a lot of time they
walk out in their own they don't want to follow
rules in regulation, and then they find out that the
real world is horrifying. It's a jungle out there. And
so then we're able to help them stabilize themselves. Because
(03:37):
one thing about young people, many times when they leave home,
they don't want to go back until they've got their
act together. So we help them get their act together.
Speaker 1 (03:46):
So how do you do that? How do you because
I imagine if they didn't want to listen to mom and dad,
why are they going to listen to you?
Speaker 3 (03:51):
Well, basically, because what we do, we meet them where
they are, they have to let us know that they're
going to do ninety percent of the work and we're
going to be ten percent of the real or is
making sure that they're connected.
Speaker 1 (04:02):
So when you need to get them on their feet
holding a job, do you help with placement in jobs.
Speaker 3 (04:09):
Absolutely, because once they're stabilized, once they have somewhere that
is guaranteed that they can lay their head for the night.
Then we started working on education, secondary education, so we
do interviews, mock interviews in order for them to know
how to interview for a job and filling out applications.
But we have them held accountable. We are a hand
up and not a handout. We want to make sure
that they know that from the very beginning, so we
(04:30):
hold them accountable for doing the work as far as
doing the things that we give them to do through
stabilization planning. So we'll start off meeting them sometimes as
much as three times a week to make sure that
they're own point and on target, and they have to
come back with the progress report.
Speaker 1 (04:47):
And I'm sure I've heard of organizations before that they
provide clothing because you don't always have the best stuff
to wear to these interviews, and it makes a real
impression just when sometimes that you've either got or lost
a job in the first couple of seconds, if you're
late or not, if you look good or not, if
you make eye contact, shake hands, all that kind of stuff,
you've already got the job or lost it just in
(05:08):
that ten seconds.
Speaker 2 (05:09):
That's right.
Speaker 3 (05:09):
And the big thing is is that when we talk
about basic living skills, John, many young people don't even
know how to dress.
Speaker 2 (05:16):
They've culturally been wearing certain clothing all of their life.
They've not had anyone to roll model how they're supposed
to look.
Speaker 3 (05:23):
So we do those basic things by making sure they
understand that, guess what appearance is very important. You dress
for success. Now, on the weekend, you dress however you
want to, but for this job, you're gonna have to
look a certain type of way. So we've got clothing
closet at all of our transitional sites. We've got it
at the north side the piercing site, We've got it
at the West site, so we've got it at the
(05:45):
Cotton site, and we're gonna have it at a ten
bedroom that we're getting ready to open in Birmingham, Alabama,
and our Innsley site to whereas a young person can
go in there and shop and get whatever they want.
All they have to do is fill out a disbursement
saying that they receive the items. Because we'd like to
be good steward over our donations, so we like to
make sure that we're held accountable so that the community
(06:05):
will continue to donate to us. So everything that we
do for the young person, we document it and they're
held accountable, but they don't pay anything, so real charge.
Speaker 1 (06:14):
So where does Youth Towers? You mentioned a lot of sites,
so how many locations do you have?
Speaker 3 (06:19):
Well, right now we've got three locations and we're getting
ready in June to twenty twenty five, a few months,
we're getting ready to have a grand opening at our
Insley Slight and that Ensley Slite is our better safe
place and it's a transitional emergency slash, rapid rehousing and
supportive housing, ten bedrooms with three different stories to whereas.
Speaker 2 (06:39):
Young people will be able to come in.
Speaker 3 (06:40):
There as they are through emergency, then transition into rapid
rehousing and supportive housing, and then someday being our rapid
rehousing program where they have their own key. And that
means that young people are able to sign their own lease.
We have some as young as eighteen and they've got
their own apartment. But guess what, we keep a closer
eye on them, and we wrap around services.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
To make sure that they do not fail.
Speaker 1 (07:03):
And because there's things that go along not just having
a key, but you know, there's utility once you move
get it like an apartment of somebody, that's utilities and
all those other things that are all part of being
an adult. And probably money management skills. Absolutely. You know
what if you've never really managed money before, you get
twenty dollars too, Oh this is great, I can go
buy soda, I can go buy all these fun things.
But well, maybe you should save that because you're going
(07:24):
to need that to pay for this and this that
are you going to use to become a functioning member
of society.
Speaker 3 (07:29):
Absolutely, so when they first get their job, that's when
we have a budgeting form that was created by one
of our interns. We get interns that assistant help us
along with our staff and coordinators, and so they get
a budget and whatever they're making, they have to put
in the intake and what goes out. So whatever comes
in and goes out, that's when they first start learning
about budget, but as you said, John, many times they
(07:51):
don't even understand the language of a budget or what.
Speaker 2 (07:54):
Is needs versus wants, and so we have to help
them with that. So it's a very vary a.
Speaker 3 (08:01):
Patient calling to whereas it takes sometimes from three to
six months just to get the basic training done, and
then it takes the other six months. Our program was
a twelve to eighteen month program, but that's case by
case because if it takes longer, we'll work longer. Because
we got into their twenty seventh birthday to do So.
Speaker 1 (08:20):
Why you say twenty seven is your cut off or
is there a reason why it's twenty seven.
Speaker 2 (08:24):
Well, I'm gonna tell you that.
Speaker 3 (08:25):
The reason why because when we were called to do
this work, we saw where everybody was doing eighteen and
twenty four.
Speaker 2 (08:30):
But we found out and I'm a social worker, I'm.
Speaker 3 (08:32):
A licensed social worker, and I've had a little psychology classes.
I'm not a psychiatrist, but I found out that the
brain does not truly develop until the age of twenty six.
So when I was called to do this work, I
was obedient enough to make sure that we went a
little bit above the norm because those babies at twenty
four still don't have a clue and they still have
(08:53):
not actually chronologically developed the brain. So at twenty six
you can pretty much almost know your name and have
some direction.
Speaker 1 (09:05):
Alice your organization. It does a lot of things for
a lot of people. It sounds like it would take
a lot of money to operate. Where do you get
operating capital to be able to do all these things?
Speaker 3 (09:14):
It does take a lot, but the one thing first
of all, you've got to being genuine and you've got
to be called for the work. So basically we get
from foundations, faith based organizations, donors that love us. We
get some money from COC the HUT funding with your
vouchers to whereas you're allowed a certain amount of low
income housing to put them, but it's nearly not enough.
(09:36):
We don't receive enough, so we're advocating at all times.
We always need sponsors, we all always need donors. We're
even looking into plan giving. Somebody may say, well, hey,
you know, i've got some property out here, I've got
a house out here, we're not doing anything with it.
We want to make a change. We want to help
you help them stay off the streets. So we're always
(09:56):
advocating both. Those are our different funders, and we have
wonderful foundations like Better Place and Community Foundation, Greater Birmingham
Community Foundation, just to name a few. It's just several,
but those are some that have been supporting us ever
since twenty twelve.
Speaker 1 (10:10):
And the people that you do help. I understand that
you've helped over six hundred and eighty two beneficiaries to date.
Do you have a story and maybe a particular success
story that you're proud of somebody who went through the
program and has gone on to succeed even more than
you would first imagine they would.
Speaker 2 (10:28):
Yes, I do.
Speaker 3 (10:29):
I have so many, But the one that really sticks
out in my mind is a young lady that came
to Youth Towers and she's also you can find it
online from al dot Com did a story on this
young lady and she actually was pregnant and homeless and
so Youth Towers she was able to apply for Youth Towers.
She did the assessment, the coordinator assessment, she did our assessment,
(10:52):
and then from there she was able to be housed
into her own apartment before she delivered her babies. And
what that did that made sure that her baby did
don't have to go into foster care. And so when
we're able to actually assist in stabilization for two lives,
one that's not even born.
Speaker 1 (11:09):
Two generations.
Speaker 3 (11:11):
Absolutely what we believe in is breaking generational curses. So
that's one baby that won't have to go through the
foster care system and go through the traumer of being
separated from her biological mom. So that means we kept
a mom together, we broke generational curses, and now her
and her baby is doing well. They're in their own apartment,
living life. We still are there for them because she's young.
(11:33):
She still got four more years for she actually could
age out of our program even though we don't even
have to assist her anymore. We also helped her get
a car through an organization which helps us get cars
called the Hearts of Wheels.
Speaker 2 (11:46):
So she got a car, which is very.
Speaker 3 (11:48):
Important here in the state of Alabama as we know,
because of transportation of concerns and the quality.
Speaker 1 (11:54):
Of Yeah, we don't have it's not We're not a
very walkable community, and the bus system is not great either,
So yeah, cars are almost essential to be able to function.
Speaker 3 (12:03):
Absolutely, especially for something that you mentioned earlier, John, because
if you come to the job late.
Speaker 2 (12:08):
They don't care if the bus broke down, Alice.
Speaker 1 (12:10):
Do you find it difficult when you're working with younger
people who some of them they like you mentioned, they
probably haven't been brought up with a full understanding of
how the world works. Sometimes they almost have to reap
the consequences and they have to struggle a little bit
so that they can fully appreciate what you're doing and
what you're trying to do. Does it ever, is it
ever difficult for you to watch people struggle knowing that
it's a tough love situation and on the other side
(12:32):
of it, they will come out and they will be
stronger for it.
Speaker 2 (12:35):
Yes, it hurts every time. You never get over that
part of it.
Speaker 3 (12:39):
I'm a mother, and so I have a son, and
I have a daughter that's close to these ages of
this population, and so therefore every time, because you want
so badly for them to succeed, Yes, it hurt, and
the struggle is within the heart.
Speaker 2 (12:52):
But then what you have to do, you do have
to be strong.
Speaker 3 (12:54):
You cannot enable because one thing once I was called
to this work, I was told, do not enable the
young people, because if you enable them, they will never
be able to succeed and understand inter independence.
Speaker 2 (13:08):
There's no such thing as dependence. I'm not dependent.
Speaker 3 (13:11):
I have to rely on others to do things that
I cannot do. So what we teach them is inter
independence to where they know how to navigate through this
world and utilize the resources that exist in their lives.
Speaker 1 (13:24):
And lean on others in their community and build those
relationships so they are there when you need.
Speaker 3 (13:29):
Them absolutely, And that's what that navigation is to where
they learn, Okay, this person can do this, I can't
do this. I'm not going to act or reach out
until I know that I can't do it on my own.
But I'm also going to give back to society.
Speaker 1 (13:43):
So Alice Westerly from the Youth Towers organization, we are
talking to two groups of people who are interested in
what we're talking about. One group is those that are
able to donate to give to your program right now,
give your best elevator pitch. How they can give and
what that giving will mean.
Speaker 3 (14:01):
Well, basically they can go to www dot Youthtowers dot
org and we have a donate budding and that donate
buddon is PayPal and they can go there and directly
give or they can mail in a paymental check to
six h one nineteenth Street North, which is our downtown
office where we have assessments. Six one nineteenth Street North, Birmingham,
(14:23):
Alabama three five two oh three, and they would make
checks payable to youth towers. And what they would be
doing is something that we've talked about in this interview John.
They would be breaking generational curses. They would be changing lives.
They would be given a population that's very very valuable
to our community, to our society, to our world, ages
(14:43):
nineteen to twenty six and eighteen and under. They're not
just our future, they are our presence. They would be
decreasing violence, because we know violent crime in our state
has risen in these past decade and so they would
be actually doing that because when a person has as
the basic living needs, then that would decrease crime and
make our communities a safer place. So holistically donating, supporting
(15:09):
mentoring will benefit the world as a whole.
Speaker 1 (15:12):
And you're also a five O one C three source.
You assume that means that your donation is one tax deductible.
Speaker 3 (15:18):
One tax deductible, and we're able to give form for
the r so we know we need those so you'll
be able to get that tax ID number along with
our appreciation of your donations.
Speaker 1 (15:29):
In addition to donations, do you do any fundraising throughout
the year, like an event that maybe a once a
year gala or something like that that you want people
to help out with.
Speaker 2 (15:38):
Yes.
Speaker 3 (15:38):
Since COVID we have not actually had one, but this
year and the years to come, we will be having
a galo once a year as in previous past. We
also have an event called Driving for Change where young
people can just drive up to the sites or any
population can drive up to the sites drop off donations.
We have young people come out and receive the donation.
(16:00):
They don't even have to get out of their car
and they can keep it running. And we also have
the grand opening open house in June and we will
have more information about that for the ten bedroom on
the website.
Speaker 1 (16:11):
Okay, now I mentioned the other group of people that
your organization that we're talking with right now, and that's
those who could receive help from the organization. If you
have a child who a youth that might be in risk,
or you yourself are a youth that you feel like
you need the services, how can they get connected.
Speaker 3 (16:28):
All they have to do is call area code two
five two three four seven two. That's area code two
five two three four seven two, and just leave a message.
Please don't just call and hang up. Leave a message
and say, hey, I need some help. I'm homeless, I'm
living in my car, I'm living in a bando abandoned building,
I'm living on the streets. I've just gotten put out
(16:52):
of my home. So all they have to do is
leave a message. Then we will call them back according
to first Come, first serve, and we will call them
back and make an appointment for an assessment. That assessment
takes normally forty five minutes to an hour that first time,
because we need to make sure that we direct that
young person or direct that support system to the right
(17:12):
people to make sure that they're able to utilize youth
services from Youth Towers.
Speaker 1 (17:18):
Alice Westerly the executive director of Youth Towers and the
founder too Right, Yes, thank you so much for joining
us this week on from Point Iabama. My name is
John Mounts, and for the last week we've been hearing
about the tariffs that have been implemented by the Trump
administration and the reaction by the world, reaction by markets,
and the reaction by many businesses. But I wanted to
(17:39):
find out what Alabama businesses thought. So we've contacted two
of them, and this is our conversation with one business,
Mark Jeger. He's the founder and CEO of Redland Cotton.
It's in Molten, Alabama. Mark, welcome to the show.
Speaker 4 (17:53):
Thank you, good to be here.
Speaker 1 (17:55):
You are involved in a business where you actually are
making something contributing to our economy, and you say it's
going to be good for us. Explain, well, I.
Speaker 4 (18:02):
Think it could be good for us. In our business,
we take our cotton and have it milled, and then
we start looking for companies factories that can do what
we want. And the textile industry has just been so decimated.
Our country is growing like thirteen million bails and we're
(18:24):
only keeping about a million of them in the United
States and doing anything with them. It's all going to Asia, India,
who knows where, and coming back in here on tariffed
until yesterday. And so I think it could help our
supply chain. I think it could even up some competitiveness
(18:45):
where countries are dumping their products in here, and just
a world of things really and of.
Speaker 1 (18:51):
Course, Mark, critics say, well, it's going to raise prices,
but perhaps what it is is prices have been artificially deflated.
Now prices go to go back to where they should be,
and it'll make American products competitive with things that are
made with slave labor over in China or Indonesia or
any of these countries you know in Asia that are
(19:12):
just destroying our kind of and by the way, it's
not good for them either, because they're they're forcing their
people to work in these horrible conditions to make these
products at these low prices. So it might actually be
good for the world.
Speaker 4 (19:24):
I think it will be good for the world. I mean,
if you know, if you're competing with slave labor, it's
not a good chance you're ever going to come out
on top, you know. And the regulations that we have
here in the country, the matching social security, the four
oh one case, everything you want to offer here is
it will never be competitive without some kind of looking
(19:49):
at it and making it fair.
Speaker 1 (19:52):
And that's all we're really talking about is making things fair. Well, Mark,
I don't want to overlook the fact that you are
a Alabama business making making a product right here in
our state. How many people do you employ?
Speaker 4 (20:04):
Well, we have a plan here in Alabama and a
plant in Mississippi that's strictly cut and sow. In our
fulfillment center here, we've got about seventy five.
Speaker 1 (20:12):
Employees, seventy five employees just here in.
Speaker 4 (20:15):
Moulton, seventy five total. There's probably probably fifty here in Molten.
Speaker 1 (20:21):
So if somebody wants to purchase one of your products,
you've probably got a website where people can go.
Speaker 4 (20:26):
Whack.
Speaker 1 (20:26):
So I know you do. I've been to it. You've
got a website where people can go and they can
order products from from Red Land Cotton. And it's all
one made in the Southeast, a lot of it made
in Alabama. Do you How do you source your cotton?
I grow the cotton, so you grow the cotton. So
you grow the cotton. You harvest the cotton.
Speaker 4 (20:47):
I harvest the cotton. I have a cotton gin. I
gin the cotton. We select bales that have the highest
of qualities. We send them to a meal in North
Carolina's where they're based out of. And it's done probably
in a meal in either North Carolina or South Carolina,
and it's turned into yarn and then we use a
(21:08):
meal in Gapney, South Carolina that weaves that yarn into
our sheets and they do our towel. We have another
vendor there who does our towels. It's a one hundred
percent United States made product that we would never use
foreign cotton in anything we do. So this is kind
(21:34):
of something I sat down on a long time ago.
We're getting it. There's not going to be a textile
industry left in the United States that something doesn't change.
Speaker 1 (21:43):
And that's such a shame because we used to make
all of our own stuff here and that was one
of the reasons I think why we used to be
so successful when we went to war is because we
were able to ramp up production during World War Two
and we can make everything we needed. We didn't have
to rely on stuff from another country. Now I worry
if we went to war, we might not be able
to create, like you said, the uniforms for the for
(22:04):
the soldiers, or the tanks that our soldiers going to drive,
or any of those things. Because so few products are
made in America. I'm glad that you're one of the
few that are still hanging out there.
Speaker 4 (22:14):
Well we're trying. I mean, it's a giant problem. But
I mean as far as the textiles go, I think
you're exactly right. I mean, how could you couldn't even
clothe your soldiers? You know, it's it's really really important.
It's just people got to think about it, and I
(22:35):
think they will be low. I think that it's I mean,
it's going to take a while for things to get
evened out. But everybody knows the US can do things
better than anybody.
Speaker 1 (22:46):
That's right, and so it's not only an economic issue,
it's a national security issue. One more time, Mark, I'd
like you to plug your business. Where can people go
if they like to purchase any sheets or anything you
guys make, Where can they go?
Speaker 4 (23:00):
Redlandcotton dot com very neat.
Speaker 1 (23:02):
Well, if if somebody say, wants to take a field trip,
you should have some kids in to see how it's made.
Do you do any of that kind of stuff like
the tours where the field trips, the kindergarten comes in
and if they want to get involved in you know, agriculture.
Speaker 4 (23:13):
Well you have, Yes, we've had several tours here.
Speaker 1 (23:17):
Sounds like sounds like a great way to spend your afternoon. Mark,
Thank you so much for joining us, and we wish
you nothing but the best success, and we hope that
these tariffs will help you beyond our wildest imaginations. Keep
money here, keep money going to our people here in
the state of Alabama, and you know, improve our own
tax base.
Speaker 4 (23:36):
Yes, I'll leave you with this one phrase, Matt got
m A T G A make American textiles great again.
Speaker 1 (23:44):
There you go, Mark Jeger, thank you so much for
joining us this morning on Viewpoint, Alabama.
Speaker 4 (23:48):
Good have a good day.
Speaker 1 (23:49):
We now go from Molten, Alabama to the other end
of the state in by Alibatory as joining me now
from Sea Harvest Fresh Shrimp, Tammy Hall, Tammy, thank you
for joining me.
Speaker 5 (23:59):
Thank you for having us.
Speaker 1 (24:00):
Your business has been hurt in years gone by by
the unfair practices of people who import shrimp from overseas.
Isn't that right?
Speaker 5 (24:08):
That's correct?
Speaker 1 (24:09):
So how will something like this, this tariff, which is
aimed to try and get people to buy American products,
how will this help you?
Speaker 5 (24:17):
We're hoping that this is going to help to drive
up our price and have people look to buy golf
shrimp more often than what they would a foreign shrimp.
Most of the restaurants now are buying foreign shrimp because
they are so cheap.
Speaker 1 (24:31):
And it's affordable, but the quality is not great.
Speaker 5 (24:33):
Correct. And I advise anybody if you are eating or
purchasing and imported shrimp, go on Google and google how
they catch them and find out all the facts for yourself,
because it will make you not want to ever eat
another one again, I promise.
Speaker 1 (24:48):
And that's the thing we see time and time again.
People will critics will say, well, these foreign products are
just so much cheaper, we're gonna have to pay more
for these American products. And they're right, we will have
to pay more for American products. But the point is
the quality is so much better, and that's the case
with your product, heal.
Speaker 5 (25:03):
As a matter of fact, once someone eats one of
our shrimp, they can't believe it. And we have people
travel from all over to come down and purchase our shrimp.
We do sail right off the boat, so my husband
pulls the boat up to the dock and we sell
right there to the general public and people absolutely love it.
Speaker 1 (25:19):
Temmy describe an Alabama shrimp. What do your shrimp look like?
Speaker 5 (25:23):
Mostly our shrimp we catch white shrimp or brown shrimp.
Speaker 1 (25:25):
How big are the ones that you usually bring in.
Speaker 5 (25:27):
The biggest that we catch. Are you twelve which means
that is twelve and under in a pound, and then
they go down, you know to probably about our smallest
shrimp is about a forty fifty and that's about forty
to fifty shrimp and a pound.
Speaker 1 (25:43):
So that might be like the salad shrimp you see
versus the big ones you see in like a shrimp cocktail. Yes,
with all of what's happening, I'm sure your business is
you might have to eat some higher prices on some things.
They're saying that some things might cost a little bit more,
But do you think that it'll come out in the
wash in terms of you'll pay more. I might have
to pay a little bit more for I don't know
shirts or nuts or so. I don't know what you
(26:04):
guys buy, but you might have to pay more there,
but it'll come out in the wash because you will
be bringing you more money from people buying from you guys.
Speaker 5 (26:11):
Yes, sir, we're hoping. So. So what the problem is is,
over the years, everything has went up except for shrint prices.
I have some share slips, which is basically like an
invoice that were my grandfather's The shrint price back in
the late sixties, and some go back as far as
(26:33):
the fifties, was not much different than it is today.
And it's a lot of it is due to the imports.
The imports are coming in and just flooding the market,
and they're so cheap that they're keeping our price down.
The problem that it's caused over the years of nobody
doing anything about it is a lot of your local
(26:55):
shrimpermen have had to get out of the business. They
can't afford it. When I was a child, there were
hundreds of boats in the Bayu that shrimped. Now I
can count on two hands how many fresh ice boats
there are left in the Bayu. And it's all due
because people can't afford to make it. You know, fuel,
(27:18):
We have to pay for fuel, We have to pay
for boat maintenance. We have all these licenses. We feel
like we are just licensed to death in every area.
Our boat and many boats in the Bayeu as well,
not just us. You know, we need to haul up.
We got repairs that need to be done, but they
can't afford to We can't afford to do it because
(27:38):
we're just not making enough. You know that we're not
getting enough money for our product to overcome all our expense.
And this has been going on, like I said, for years.
And the only thing that is kept my husband and
I in the business is the fact that we in
twenty twenty during COVID, the shops quit buy in our
(27:58):
shrimp because the restaurants wouldn't buying anything at that time.
And I told my husband, I was like, well, people
have to eat, you know. So what we did we
purchased some property and started selling right off the boat
to the public. If it had not been for that,
we would probably not still be in the business. And
my husband's been a seafood worker his whole life, and
(28:21):
we're in our fifties.
Speaker 1 (28:23):
And you said that we have people who you have
people who drive down because we're up here in Huntsville
and Birmingham, Tuscaloosa, Gadsden. People would drive all the way
down there to the coast, probably not just for the shrimp,
but while you're there, you pick up some shrimp, you
bring it back north. A lot of people do that, yes, sir.
Speaker 4 (28:39):
A lot.
Speaker 5 (28:39):
We have customers that come from Tennessee, Atlanta and they
make just a shrimp trip. They will come down, rent
a room, stay in the room, get up the next morning,
come pick their shrimp up and head home.
Speaker 1 (28:53):
And it's called Sea Harvest Fresh Shrimp. And it's a
family business. It's you said, it's been your family for
how long it sounds like sixty years.
Speaker 4 (28:59):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (29:00):
So my grandfather was a shrimper, My father was, and
my husband is as well, and my son does it sometimes.
My son has to. He has another job as well,
but he does the shrimp and two on the side.
Speaker 1 (29:12):
Well, we very much want to keep a business like
yours in business and serving the people of Alabama with
a quality product, even if it means we have to
pay for what it's what it costs, because it's worth it.
I'd like to thank you so much, Tammy for joining us,
and I hope you, I hope you have nothing but
success and this the outcome of this thing, will help
you guys beyond measure.
Speaker 5 (29:33):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (29:33):
We appreciate that, Tammy Hall from Biola Battery. And you've
been listening to Viewpoint Alabama on the Alabama Radio Network.
My name is John Mouk.
Speaker 4 (29:41):
The opinions expressed on Viewpoint Alabama are not necessarily those
of the staff, management, or advertisers of this station.
Helping out young people at risk here in Alabama, staying
off the street and keeping them off the street and
setting them up for a better life. Hello, I'm John
Mount and this week on Viewpoint, Alabama, I'm talking with
Alice Westerly. She is the executive director of Youth Towers. Alice,
Welcome to Viewpoint. Hi.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
How are you doing, John?
Speaker 1 (00:17):
I'm doing great, Alice. I'm glad you were able to
come in so you and you when I spoke with
you a little while ago, you were talking about your
organization and your passion for the young people that it helps.
Tell me why you got involved to begin with.
Speaker 3 (00:29):
Well, basically, I got involved because I was an employee
of the Department of Human Resources at Jefferson County in Birmingham, Alabama,
and I was working as independent living program coordinator, and
I found out that young people between the ages of
fourteen and twenty one were actually aging out of foster
care and becoming homeless.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
And that's a problem because the you know, when they
were younger, of course they had somebody kind of watching
over them and that sort of thing. But you know
when they do when they do age out of foster
care and they don't have somebody to watch over them.
That's that's a real problem because now where do they
transition to?
Speaker 3 (01:02):
Yes, And that's the thing that's why Youth Towers was created.
Youth Towers is a continuous care in order to prevent
it in homelessness for young people nineteen to twenty six.
But we're able to help young people from birth all
the way up to eighteen with parental consent and permission
from the Department of Human Resources. So guess what, John,
they don't do anything if we don't have transitional sites,
(01:24):
rapid rehousing and emergency sites that can be there on
the outside in the community to help the young people transition.
Speaker 1 (01:31):
So let's talk about some of those functions you talked
about how you're able to help those who are still
have a printal care. When would Youth Towers become involved
with younger people who still have parents in their lives.
Speaker 3 (01:42):
Well, we'd like to become involved as soon as possible.
A parent can just notify us and say, hey, I
need some help. I'm not able to take care of
the basic living needs. I'm not able to maintain house
instability unless I have some assistance. So then all they
have to do in writing is give us permission. It
does not have to be anything for with the Department
of Human Resources. What they do they put us in
(02:03):
the individualized service plan and then from there we're able
to be able to help the young people before they
exit foster care. And we're able to help young people
who have never been in foster care and just have
grandparents and aunties and uncles and cousins who are raising them,
but they just need a little bit of help in
order to make sure that they don't have to put
that child out on the streets.
Speaker 1 (02:24):
So when you talk about this help, are you talking
about monetary help to pay for things like clothes and
food or you're actually talking about putting a roof over
their head.
Speaker 2 (02:31):
We're talking about all of the above. We're talking about.
Speaker 3 (02:34):
Housing stabilization as far as having somewhere to lay their
heads that's safe. We're also talking about those basic living
needs that's food, clothing, moral support, mentors, mobility, transportation, bus passes,
so all of the above, because once you get them
stabilized are either Once you know that they're stabilized in
a safe place, then you can work on all of
(02:55):
those things that wrap around services.
Speaker 1 (02:57):
In order to assist and Alice wants the individual that
when they age out of foster care or they just
they are out on there. There's a lot of kids
who sometimes leave home with mom and dad. Maybe it
was a bad situation, maybe they you know, turned eighteen
and thank goodness somebody of here and they move out
and then they realize, wow, this is the real world.
I'm not prepared. Is that another time when youth towers
might get involved?
Speaker 3 (03:17):
Absolutely, because we've got a lot of young people. It
has no economic status. Our young people come from all
types of households. So yes, a lot of time they
walk out in their own they don't want to follow
rules in regulation, and then they find out that the
real world is horrifying. It's a jungle out there. And
so then we're able to help them stabilize themselves. Because
(03:37):
one thing about young people, many times when they leave home,
they don't want to go back until they've got their
act together. So we help them get their act together.
Speaker 1 (03:46):
So how do you do that? How do you because
I imagine if they didn't want to listen to mom and dad,
why are they going to listen to you?
Speaker 3 (03:51):
Well, basically, because what we do, we meet them where
they are, they have to let us know that they're
going to do ninety percent of the work and we're
going to be ten percent of the real or is
making sure that they're connected.
Speaker 1 (04:02):
So when you need to get them on their feet
holding a job, do you help with placement in jobs.
Speaker 3 (04:09):
Absolutely, because once they're stabilized, once they have somewhere that
is guaranteed that they can lay their head for the night.
Then we started working on education, secondary education, so we
do interviews, mock interviews in order for them to know
how to interview for a job and filling out applications.
But we have them held accountable. We are a hand
up and not a handout. We want to make sure
that they know that from the very beginning, so we
(04:30):
hold them accountable for doing the work as far as
doing the things that we give them to do through
stabilization planning. So we'll start off meeting them sometimes as
much as three times a week to make sure that
they're own point and on target, and they have to
come back with the progress report.
Speaker 1 (04:47):
And I'm sure I've heard of organizations before that they
provide clothing because you don't always have the best stuff
to wear to these interviews, and it makes a real
impression just when sometimes that you've either got or lost
a job in the first couple of seconds, if you're
late or not, if you look good or not, if
you make eye contact, shake hands, all that kind of stuff,
you've already got the job or lost it just in
(05:08):
that ten seconds.
Speaker 2 (05:09):
That's right.
Speaker 3 (05:09):
And the big thing is is that when we talk
about basic living skills, John, many young people don't even
know how to dress.
Speaker 2 (05:16):
They've culturally been wearing certain clothing all of their life.
They've not had anyone to roll model how they're supposed
to look.
Speaker 3 (05:23):
So we do those basic things by making sure they
understand that, guess what appearance is very important. You dress
for success. Now, on the weekend, you dress however you
want to, but for this job, you're gonna have to
look a certain type of way. So we've got clothing
closet at all of our transitional sites. We've got it
at the north side the piercing site, We've got it
at the West site, so we've got it at the
(05:45):
Cotton site, and we're gonna have it at a ten
bedroom that we're getting ready to open in Birmingham, Alabama,
and our Innsley site to whereas a young person can
go in there and shop and get whatever they want.
All they have to do is fill out a disbursement
saying that they receive the items. Because we'd like to
be good steward over our donations, so we like to
make sure that we're held accountable so that the community
(06:05):
will continue to donate to us. So everything that we
do for the young person, we document it and they're
held accountable, but they don't pay anything, so real charge.
Speaker 1 (06:14):
So where does Youth Towers? You mentioned a lot of sites,
so how many locations do you have?
Speaker 3 (06:19):
Well, right now we've got three locations and we're getting
ready in June to twenty twenty five, a few months,
we're getting ready to have a grand opening at our
Insley Slight and that Ensley Slite is our better safe
place and it's a transitional emergency slash, rapid rehousing and
supportive housing, ten bedrooms with three different stories to whereas.
Speaker 2 (06:39):
Young people will be able to come in.
Speaker 3 (06:40):
There as they are through emergency, then transition into rapid
rehousing and supportive housing, and then someday being our rapid
rehousing program where they have their own key. And that
means that young people are able to sign their own lease.
We have some as young as eighteen and they've got
their own apartment. But guess what, we keep a closer
eye on them, and we wrap around services.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
To make sure that they do not fail.
Speaker 1 (07:03):
And because there's things that go along not just having
a key, but you know, there's utility once you move
get it like an apartment of somebody, that's utilities and
all those other things that are all part of being
an adult. And probably money management skills. Absolutely. You know
what if you've never really managed money before, you get
twenty dollars too, Oh this is great, I can go
buy soda, I can go buy all these fun things.
But well, maybe you should save that because you're going
(07:24):
to need that to pay for this and this that
are you going to use to become a functioning member
of society.
Speaker 3 (07:29):
Absolutely, so when they first get their job, that's when
we have a budgeting form that was created by one
of our interns. We get interns that assistant help us
along with our staff and coordinators, and so they get
a budget and whatever they're making, they have to put
in the intake and what goes out. So whatever comes
in and goes out, that's when they first start learning
about budget, but as you said, John, many times they
(07:51):
don't even understand the language of a budget or what.
Speaker 2 (07:54):
Is needs versus wants, and so we have to help
them with that. So it's a very vary a.
Speaker 3 (08:01):
Patient calling to whereas it takes sometimes from three to
six months just to get the basic training done, and
then it takes the other six months. Our program was
a twelve to eighteen month program, but that's case by
case because if it takes longer, we'll work longer. Because
we got into their twenty seventh birthday to do So.
Speaker 1 (08:20):
Why you say twenty seven is your cut off or
is there a reason why it's twenty seven.
Speaker 2 (08:24):
Well, I'm gonna tell you that.
Speaker 3 (08:25):
The reason why because when we were called to do
this work, we saw where everybody was doing eighteen and
twenty four.
Speaker 2 (08:30):
But we found out and I'm a social worker, I'm.
Speaker 3 (08:32):
A licensed social worker, and I've had a little psychology classes.
I'm not a psychiatrist, but I found out that the
brain does not truly develop until the age of twenty six.
So when I was called to do this work, I
was obedient enough to make sure that we went a
little bit above the norm because those babies at twenty
four still don't have a clue and they still have
(08:53):
not actually chronologically developed the brain. So at twenty six
you can pretty much almost know your name and have
some direction.
Speaker 1 (09:05):
Alice your organization. It does a lot of things for
a lot of people. It sounds like it would take
a lot of money to operate. Where do you get
operating capital to be able to do all these things?
Speaker 3 (09:14):
It does take a lot, but the one thing first
of all, you've got to being genuine and you've got
to be called for the work. So basically we get
from foundations, faith based organizations, donors that love us. We
get some money from COC the HUT funding with your
vouchers to whereas you're allowed a certain amount of low
income housing to put them, but it's nearly not enough.
(09:36):
We don't receive enough, so we're advocating at all times.
We always need sponsors, we all always need donors. We're
even looking into plan giving. Somebody may say, well, hey,
you know, i've got some property out here, I've got
a house out here, we're not doing anything with it.
We want to make a change. We want to help
you help them stay off the streets. So we're always
(09:56):
advocating both. Those are our different funders, and we have
wonderful foundations like Better Place and Community Foundation, Greater Birmingham
Community Foundation, just to name a few. It's just several,
but those are some that have been supporting us ever
since twenty twelve.
Speaker 1 (10:10):
And the people that you do help. I understand that
you've helped over six hundred and eighty two beneficiaries to date.
Do you have a story and maybe a particular success
story that you're proud of somebody who went through the
program and has gone on to succeed even more than
you would first imagine they would.
Speaker 2 (10:28):
Yes, I do.
Speaker 3 (10:29):
I have so many, But the one that really sticks
out in my mind is a young lady that came
to Youth Towers and she's also you can find it
online from al dot Com did a story on this
young lady and she actually was pregnant and homeless and
so Youth Towers she was able to apply for Youth Towers.
She did the assessment, the coordinator assessment, she did our assessment,
(10:52):
and then from there she was able to be housed
into her own apartment before she delivered her babies. And
what that did that made sure that her baby did
don't have to go into foster care. And so when
we're able to actually assist in stabilization for two lives,
one that's not even born.
Speaker 1 (11:09):
Two generations.
Speaker 3 (11:11):
Absolutely what we believe in is breaking generational curses. So
that's one baby that won't have to go through the
foster care system and go through the traumer of being
separated from her biological mom. So that means we kept
a mom together, we broke generational curses, and now her
and her baby is doing well. They're in their own apartment,
living life. We still are there for them because she's young.
(11:33):
She still got four more years for she actually could
age out of our program even though we don't even
have to assist her anymore. We also helped her get
a car through an organization which helps us get cars
called the Hearts of Wheels.
Speaker 2 (11:46):
So she got a car, which is very.
Speaker 3 (11:48):
Important here in the state of Alabama as we know,
because of transportation of concerns and the quality.
Speaker 1 (11:54):
Of Yeah, we don't have it's not We're not a
very walkable community, and the bus system is not great either,
So yeah, cars are almost essential to be able to function.
Speaker 3 (12:03):
Absolutely, especially for something that you mentioned earlier, John, because
if you come to the job late.
Speaker 2 (12:08):
They don't care if the bus broke down, Alice.
Speaker 1 (12:10):
Do you find it difficult when you're working with younger
people who some of them they like you mentioned, they
probably haven't been brought up with a full understanding of
how the world works. Sometimes they almost have to reap
the consequences and they have to struggle a little bit
so that they can fully appreciate what you're doing and
what you're trying to do. Does it ever, is it
ever difficult for you to watch people struggle knowing that
it's a tough love situation and on the other side
(12:32):
of it, they will come out and they will be
stronger for it.
Speaker 2 (12:35):
Yes, it hurts every time. You never get over that
part of it.
Speaker 3 (12:39):
I'm a mother, and so I have a son, and
I have a daughter that's close to these ages of
this population, and so therefore every time, because you want
so badly for them to succeed, Yes, it hurt, and
the struggle is within the heart.
Speaker 2 (12:52):
But then what you have to do, you do have
to be strong.
Speaker 3 (12:54):
You cannot enable because one thing once I was called
to this work, I was told, do not enable the
young people, because if you enable them, they will never
be able to succeed and understand inter independence.
Speaker 2 (13:08):
There's no such thing as dependence. I'm not dependent.
Speaker 3 (13:11):
I have to rely on others to do things that
I cannot do. So what we teach them is inter
independence to where they know how to navigate through this
world and utilize the resources that exist in their lives.
Speaker 1 (13:24):
And lean on others in their community and build those
relationships so they are there when you need.
Speaker 3 (13:29):
Them absolutely, And that's what that navigation is to where
they learn, Okay, this person can do this, I can't
do this. I'm not going to act or reach out
until I know that I can't do it on my own.
But I'm also going to give back to society.
Speaker 1 (13:43):
So Alice Westerly from the Youth Towers organization, we are
talking to two groups of people who are interested in
what we're talking about. One group is those that are
able to donate to give to your program right now,
give your best elevator pitch. How they can give and
what that giving will mean.
Speaker 3 (14:01):
Well, basically they can go to www dot Youthtowers dot
org and we have a donate budding and that donate
buddon is PayPal and they can go there and directly
give or they can mail in a paymental check to
six h one nineteenth Street North, which is our downtown
office where we have assessments. Six one nineteenth Street North, Birmingham,
(14:23):
Alabama three five two oh three, and they would make
checks payable to youth towers. And what they would be
doing is something that we've talked about in this interview John.
They would be breaking generational curses. They would be changing lives.
They would be given a population that's very very valuable
to our community, to our society, to our world, ages
(14:43):
nineteen to twenty six and eighteen and under. They're not
just our future, they are our presence. They would be
decreasing violence, because we know violent crime in our state
has risen in these past decade and so they would
be actually doing that because when a person has as
the basic living needs, then that would decrease crime and
make our communities a safer place. So holistically donating, supporting
(15:09):
mentoring will benefit the world as a whole.
Speaker 1 (15:12):
And you're also a five O one C three source.
You assume that means that your donation is one tax deductible.
Speaker 3 (15:18):
One tax deductible, and we're able to give form for
the r so we know we need those so you'll
be able to get that tax ID number along with
our appreciation of your donations.
Speaker 1 (15:29):
In addition to donations, do you do any fundraising throughout
the year, like an event that maybe a once a
year gala or something like that that you want people
to help out with.
Speaker 2 (15:38):
Yes.
Speaker 3 (15:38):
Since COVID we have not actually had one, but this
year and the years to come, we will be having
a galo once a year as in previous past. We
also have an event called Driving for Change where young
people can just drive up to the sites or any
population can drive up to the sites drop off donations.
We have young people come out and receive the donation.
(16:00):
They don't even have to get out of their car
and they can keep it running. And we also have
the grand opening open house in June and we will
have more information about that for the ten bedroom on
the website.
Speaker 1 (16:11):
Okay, now I mentioned the other group of people that
your organization that we're talking with right now, and that's
those who could receive help from the organization. If you
have a child who a youth that might be in risk,
or you yourself are a youth that you feel like
you need the services, how can they get connected.
Speaker 3 (16:28):
All they have to do is call area code two
five two three four seven two. That's area code two
five two three four seven two, and just leave a message.
Please don't just call and hang up. Leave a message
and say, hey, I need some help. I'm homeless, I'm
living in my car, I'm living in a bando abandoned building,
I'm living on the streets. I've just gotten put out
(16:52):
of my home. So all they have to do is
leave a message. Then we will call them back according
to first Come, first serve, and we will call them
back and make an appointment for an assessment. That assessment
takes normally forty five minutes to an hour that first time,
because we need to make sure that we direct that
young person or direct that support system to the right
(17:12):
people to make sure that they're able to utilize youth
services from Youth Towers.
Speaker 1 (17:18):
Alice Westerly the executive director of Youth Towers and the
founder too Right, Yes, thank you so much for joining
us this week on from Point Iabama. My name is
John Mounts, and for the last week we've been hearing
about the tariffs that have been implemented by the Trump
administration and the reaction by the world, reaction by markets,
and the reaction by many businesses. But I wanted to
(17:39):
find out what Alabama businesses thought. So we've contacted two
of them, and this is our conversation with one business,
Mark Jeger. He's the founder and CEO of Redland Cotton.
It's in Molten, Alabama. Mark, welcome to the show.
Speaker 4 (17:53):
Thank you, good to be here.
Speaker 1 (17:55):
You are involved in a business where you actually are
making something contributing to our economy, and you say it's
going to be good for us. Explain, well, I.
Speaker 4 (18:02):
Think it could be good for us. In our business,
we take our cotton and have it milled, and then
we start looking for companies factories that can do what
we want. And the textile industry has just been so decimated.
Our country is growing like thirteen million bails and we're
(18:24):
only keeping about a million of them in the United
States and doing anything with them. It's all going to Asia, India,
who knows where, and coming back in here on tariffed
until yesterday. And so I think it could help our
supply chain. I think it could even up some competitiveness
(18:45):
where countries are dumping their products in here, and just
a world of things really and of.
Speaker 1 (18:51):
Course, Mark, critics say, well, it's going to raise prices,
but perhaps what it is is prices have been artificially deflated.
Now prices go to go back to where they should be,
and it'll make American products competitive with things that are
made with slave labor over in China or Indonesia or
any of these countries you know in Asia that are
(19:12):
just destroying our kind of and by the way, it's
not good for them either, because they're they're forcing their
people to work in these horrible conditions to make these
products at these low prices. So it might actually be
good for the world.
Speaker 4 (19:24):
I think it will be good for the world. I mean,
if you know, if you're competing with slave labor, it's
not a good chance you're ever going to come out
on top, you know. And the regulations that we have
here in the country, the matching social security, the four
oh one case, everything you want to offer here is
it will never be competitive without some kind of looking
(19:49):
at it and making it fair.
Speaker 1 (19:52):
And that's all we're really talking about is making things fair. Well, Mark,
I don't want to overlook the fact that you are
a Alabama business making making a product right here in
our state. How many people do you employ?
Speaker 4 (20:04):
Well, we have a plan here in Alabama and a
plant in Mississippi that's strictly cut and sow. In our
fulfillment center here, we've got about seventy five.
Speaker 1 (20:12):
Employees, seventy five employees just here in.
Speaker 4 (20:15):
Moulton, seventy five total. There's probably probably fifty here in Molten.
Speaker 1 (20:21):
So if somebody wants to purchase one of your products,
you've probably got a website where people can go.
Speaker 4 (20:26):
Whack.
Speaker 1 (20:26):
So I know you do. I've been to it. You've
got a website where people can go and they can
order products from from Red Land Cotton. And it's all
one made in the Southeast, a lot of it made
in Alabama. Do you How do you source your cotton?
I grow the cotton, so you grow the cotton. So
you grow the cotton. You harvest the cotton.
Speaker 4 (20:47):
I harvest the cotton. I have a cotton gin. I
gin the cotton. We select bales that have the highest
of qualities. We send them to a meal in North
Carolina's where they're based out of. And it's done probably
in a meal in either North Carolina or South Carolina,
and it's turned into yarn and then we use a
(21:08):
meal in Gapney, South Carolina that weaves that yarn into
our sheets and they do our towel. We have another
vendor there who does our towels. It's a one hundred
percent United States made product that we would never use
foreign cotton in anything we do. So this is kind
(21:34):
of something I sat down on a long time ago.
We're getting it. There's not going to be a textile
industry left in the United States that something doesn't change.
Speaker 1 (21:43):
And that's such a shame because we used to make
all of our own stuff here and that was one
of the reasons I think why we used to be
so successful when we went to war is because we
were able to ramp up production during World War Two
and we can make everything we needed. We didn't have
to rely on stuff from another country. Now I worry
if we went to war, we might not be able
to create, like you said, the uniforms for the for
(22:04):
the soldiers, or the tanks that our soldiers going to drive,
or any of those things. Because so few products are
made in America. I'm glad that you're one of the
few that are still hanging out there.
Speaker 4 (22:14):
Well we're trying. I mean, it's a giant problem. But
I mean as far as the textiles go, I think
you're exactly right. I mean, how could you couldn't even
clothe your soldiers? You know, it's it's really really important.
It's just people got to think about it, and I
(22:35):
think they will be low. I think that it's I mean,
it's going to take a while for things to get
evened out. But everybody knows the US can do things
better than anybody.
Speaker 1 (22:46):
That's right, and so it's not only an economic issue,
it's a national security issue. One more time, Mark, I'd
like you to plug your business. Where can people go
if they like to purchase any sheets or anything you
guys make, Where can they go?
Speaker 4 (23:00):
Redlandcotton dot com very neat.
Speaker 1 (23:02):
Well, if if somebody say, wants to take a field trip,
you should have some kids in to see how it's made.
Do you do any of that kind of stuff like
the tours where the field trips, the kindergarten comes in
and if they want to get involved in you know, agriculture.
Speaker 4 (23:13):
Well you have, Yes, we've had several tours here.
Speaker 1 (23:17):
Sounds like sounds like a great way to spend your afternoon. Mark,
Thank you so much for joining us, and we wish
you nothing but the best success, and we hope that
these tariffs will help you beyond our wildest imaginations. Keep
money here, keep money going to our people here in
the state of Alabama, and you know, improve our own
tax base.
Speaker 4 (23:36):
Yes, I'll leave you with this one phrase, Matt got
m A T G A make American textiles great again.
Speaker 1 (23:44):
There you go, Mark Jeger, thank you so much for
joining us this morning on Viewpoint, Alabama.
Speaker 4 (23:48):
Good have a good day.
Speaker 1 (23:49):
We now go from Molten, Alabama to the other end
of the state in by Alibatory as joining me now
from Sea Harvest Fresh Shrimp, Tammy Hall, Tammy, thank you
for joining me.
Speaker 5 (23:59):
Thank you for having us.
Speaker 1 (24:00):
Your business has been hurt in years gone by by
the unfair practices of people who import shrimp from overseas.
Isn't that right?
Speaker 5 (24:08):
That's correct?
Speaker 1 (24:09):
So how will something like this, this tariff, which is
aimed to try and get people to buy American products,
how will this help you?
Speaker 5 (24:17):
We're hoping that this is going to help to drive
up our price and have people look to buy golf
shrimp more often than what they would a foreign shrimp.
Most of the restaurants now are buying foreign shrimp because
they are so cheap.
Speaker 1 (24:31):
And it's affordable, but the quality is not great.
Speaker 5 (24:33):
Correct. And I advise anybody if you are eating or
purchasing and imported shrimp, go on Google and google how
they catch them and find out all the facts for yourself,
because it will make you not want to ever eat
another one again, I promise.
Speaker 1 (24:48):
And that's the thing we see time and time again.
People will critics will say, well, these foreign products are
just so much cheaper, we're gonna have to pay more
for these American products. And they're right, we will have
to pay more for American products. But the point is
the quality is so much better, and that's the case
with your product, heal.
Speaker 5 (25:03):
As a matter of fact, once someone eats one of
our shrimp, they can't believe it. And we have people
travel from all over to come down and purchase our shrimp.
We do sail right off the boat, so my husband
pulls the boat up to the dock and we sell
right there to the general public and people absolutely love it.
Speaker 1 (25:19):
Temmy describe an Alabama shrimp. What do your shrimp look like?
Speaker 5 (25:23):
Mostly our shrimp we catch white shrimp or brown shrimp.
Speaker 1 (25:25):
How big are the ones that you usually bring in.
Speaker 5 (25:27):
The biggest that we catch. Are you twelve which means
that is twelve and under in a pound, and then
they go down, you know to probably about our smallest
shrimp is about a forty fifty and that's about forty
to fifty shrimp and a pound.
Speaker 1 (25:43):
So that might be like the salad shrimp you see
versus the big ones you see in like a shrimp cocktail. Yes,
with all of what's happening, I'm sure your business is
you might have to eat some higher prices on some things.
They're saying that some things might cost a little bit more,
But do you think that it'll come out in the
wash in terms of you'll pay more. I might have
to pay a little bit more for I don't know
shirts or nuts or so. I don't know what you
(26:04):
guys buy, but you might have to pay more there,
but it'll come out in the wash because you will
be bringing you more money from people buying from you guys.
Speaker 5 (26:11):
Yes, sir, we're hoping. So. So what the problem is is,
over the years, everything has went up except for shrint prices.
I have some share slips, which is basically like an
invoice that were my grandfather's The shrint price back in
the late sixties, and some go back as far as
(26:33):
the fifties, was not much different than it is today.
And it's a lot of it is due to the imports.
The imports are coming in and just flooding the market,
and they're so cheap that they're keeping our price down.
The problem that it's caused over the years of nobody
doing anything about it is a lot of your local
(26:55):
shrimpermen have had to get out of the business. They
can't afford it. When I was a child, there were
hundreds of boats in the Bayu that shrimped. Now I
can count on two hands how many fresh ice boats
there are left in the Bayu. And it's all due
because people can't afford to make it. You know, fuel,
(27:18):
We have to pay for fuel, We have to pay
for boat maintenance. We have all these licenses. We feel
like we are just licensed to death in every area.
Our boat and many boats in the Bayeu as well,
not just us. You know, we need to haul up.
We got repairs that need to be done, but they
can't afford to We can't afford to do it because
(27:38):
we're just not making enough. You know that we're not
getting enough money for our product to overcome all our expense.
And this has been going on, like I said, for years.
And the only thing that is kept my husband and
I in the business is the fact that we in
twenty twenty during COVID, the shops quit buy in our
(27:58):
shrimp because the restaurants wouldn't buying anything at that time.
And I told my husband, I was like, well, people
have to eat, you know. So what we did we
purchased some property and started selling right off the boat
to the public. If it had not been for that,
we would probably not still be in the business. And
my husband's been a seafood worker his whole life, and
(28:21):
we're in our fifties.
Speaker 1 (28:23):
And you said that we have people who you have
people who drive down because we're up here in Huntsville
and Birmingham, Tuscaloosa, Gadsden. People would drive all the way
down there to the coast, probably not just for the shrimp,
but while you're there, you pick up some shrimp, you
bring it back north. A lot of people do that, yes, sir.
Speaker 4 (28:39):
A lot.
Speaker 5 (28:39):
We have customers that come from Tennessee, Atlanta and they
make just a shrimp trip. They will come down, rent
a room, stay in the room, get up the next morning,
come pick their shrimp up and head home.
Speaker 1 (28:53):
And it's called Sea Harvest Fresh Shrimp. And it's a
family business. It's you said, it's been your family for
how long it sounds like sixty years.
Speaker 4 (28:59):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (29:00):
So my grandfather was a shrimper, My father was, and
my husband is as well, and my son does it sometimes.
My son has to. He has another job as well,
but he does the shrimp and two on the side.
Speaker 1 (29:12):
Well, we very much want to keep a business like
yours in business and serving the people of Alabama with
a quality product, even if it means we have to
pay for what it's what it costs, because it's worth it.
I'd like to thank you so much, Tammy for joining us,
and I hope you, I hope you have nothing but
success and this the outcome of this thing, will help
you guys beyond measure.
Speaker 5 (29:33):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (29:33):
We appreciate that, Tammy Hall from Biola Battery. And you've
been listening to Viewpoint Alabama on the Alabama Radio Network.
My name is John Mouk.
Speaker 4 (29:41):
The opinions expressed on Viewpoint Alabama are not necessarily those
of the staff, management, or advertisers of this station.
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