T hat - Economic Development Partnership of Alabama

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That’s What I LikeAbout AlabamaMark LaRue, plantservices divisionmanager atHonda Manufacturing ofAlabama, and his family(wife Amy and childrenCaleb, 14, and Hannah,10) moved to Anniston inDecember of 1999. WithHonda for 18 years, he wasthe first company transplantto Alabama. After thestartup, he decided to stay.He has a degree in electricalengineering from OhioState.“To be honest, I didn’treally have an accurateimage of Alabama,” LaRueadmits. “The only thing Iknew about the state waswhat I had seen in movieswhich gave me the pictureof a very flat state. Whenmy wife and I visited, wewere amazed to find themountains and hills — notat all what I had visualized.Right off, the scenery wasvery appealing.“I have complex reasonsfor staying. The first NewYear’s Day I spent here, Iwas at my outside grill inshorts and golf shirt. I lovethe sunny days and blueskies. Certainly part of theaura here is the football tradition.I have to tell youthat I will be an Ohio Statefan until I die. I haven’tgotten to an Auburn orAlabama game, but I certainlywant to. I see a greatparallel of traditions atAlabama with Bear Bryantthat we have in Ohio withMark LaRue: “When my wife and Ivisited, we were amazed to find themountains and hills — not at allwhat I had visualized.”our longtime coach, WoodyHayes.“More than that, we havebecome part of the community.In May of 2001, Ibecame the lay minister atthe church, so needless tosay, we are very active there.Alabama is famous for itsexcellent scouting opportunities.My son immediatelybecame involved in the BoyScout program in Anniston,and I became an assistantscoutmaster. Caleb hasalready finished his EagleScout project, which was awheelchair ramp for a hos-Mark LaRue (at home inAnniston) says about moving toAlabama: “The first New Ye a r ’sDay I spent here, I was at myoutside grill in shorts and golfshirt. I love the sunny days andblue skies.”pice. My wife Amy isinvolved in the Knox ConcertSeries, which bringsballet and music events totown, and we are allinvolved in the local foodpantry. We have settled onin. It’s been a good movefor the whole family.”■FALL 2004 33
That’s What I LikeAbout AlabamaRandy Nykamp, plantmanager of KeySafety Systems, hadcompleted some assignmentssix years ago forAllied Signal (later KeySafety Systems). The companywas considering closingits Butler County plantin Alabama and sent him totake care of it.Nykamp says, “I wasborn and raised in Michigan,and was working thereand in England. Financialand customer-satisfactionratings were not good inGreenville [Alabama]. So Icame down here to checkthings out. After a few days,I called management andsaid the plant was salvageable,the people were great,and what they were doingshould be saved. It has beenan outstanding run. Overthe last couple of years, wehave had scored exceptionaldelivery and financial performance.“My work experiencehere is outstanding and,since I am single, it hasbecome my life. I am a Yankee,but I hate coldweather. In Michigan, fromOctober to April, you basicallystay inside. In lowerAlabama, we have only sixto eight weeks of badweather and that is heatand humidity. I have aHarley motorcycle, which Ilove to drive. Most of theyear is great for riding —besides, the country roadsare fantastic. I have a placeon Lake Martin, and Ienjoy driving there on thegreat and curvy Highway49. In fact, this part ofAlabama has wonderfultwo-lane highways, whichwind all through thewoods. I’ll drive up toMontgomery to meetfriends for dinner. Or, thebeach is so close, sometimesI just zip down to Sandestinto eat lunch and then afterwards,come right back.“If someone had told me20 years ago I’d be living ina town with a population of7,200, I would have toldthem they were crazy. But Ilive four minutes fromwork and I fight no trafficto get here. I can imagineRandy Nykampsays of hisa d o p t e dA l a b a m a :“This is an easyplace to makeh o m e . ”Randy Nykamp at the Butler CountyCourthouse in Greenville, Ala.myself retiring here andthat is 19 years away! Thepeople of Greenville are sofriendly. I have encouragedfriends from the North toconsider moving Alabama.It’s not perfect, but no placeis. However, this is an easyplace to make home.”■34 PARTNERS
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