Birmingham’s Avondale Park gets a refresh with help of Alabama Power Service Organization and friends

To help welcome spring visitors, Birmingham’s historic Avondale Park received a spruce-up Saturday, March 8.

Several members of the Magic City chapter of the Alabama Power Service Organization (APSO) joined Friends of Avondale Park (FOAP) and Birmingham Parks and Recreation employees in a project to clean the park.

APSO includes more than 5,000 Alabama Power, Southern Nuclear and Southern Company Services employees and their families who volunteer in charitable projects that help improve the quality of life for Alabama residents and their communities.

“The Friends of Avondale Park asked us to help with a service project for them,” noted Deirdre Thomas, Magic City APSO president and team leader of Transmission Project Management – Power Delivery at Alabama Power. “It was fun. It was a nice day to get out and help in giving the park a refresh,” said Thomas, who supported the Birmingham Heart Walk after working at the park.

FOAP is a nonprofit dedicated to the restoration, maintenance and full use of the 37-acre municipal park. Michael Sznajderman, a FOAP board member and recent Alabama Power retiree, knew the efforts of several people would be required. A former Magic City APSO member, he contacted Thomas for assistance. She quickly put together a team to assist in the project.

The FOAP team asked volunteers to bring hand tools “to help with the cause,” said Thomas, whose team enjoyed camaraderie while working together.

The various groups spent a couple of hours raking leaves, clearing debris, cutting bushes, hauling tree limbs and removing refuse. Magic City APSO members gave approximately 12 volunteer hours of community service.

Thomas and her son, Nicholas, a Magic City APSO member and a McAdory High School senior, were joined in the work by Elizabeth Grinder, Environmental Affairs specialist; Jim Heilbron, senior vice president of Technical Shared Services; Markell Heilbron, director of Corporate Responsibility; and Caitlyn Brothers, business development officer of Southern Energy Credit Union.

The teams plan another spring cleanup at the park in April. The FOAP is truly grateful for Magic City APSO’s assistance, Sznajderman said.

“We are so appreciative of the partnership we are building with Magic City APSO to support Avondale Park, which is one of the most historic greenspaces in the city,” he said. He noted that the friends group has also received support from the Alabama Power Foundation to help create a new native plant garden in the park.

“APSO does so much to help our community,” Sznajderman added. “It is truly a force for good.”