Two Special People – A Southern Lady and A Storyteller

I want to share a couple of special people with y’all this week. For those who may not know, I grew up in Andalusia, Alabama. That’s in southwest Alabama, not too far from the Florida line. It was the best place in the world to grow up.

We moved there when I was about to go into the fourth grade and my big sister, Bobbie the eleventh grade. Our daddy had been named the new manager of Baxter’s Shoes in that little town of fewer than ten thousand people. Mama worked in the store with him, selling shoes and doing the bookkeeping duties. I can still see them in there in my mind’s eye and in my heart.

Andalusia is now known for its  Candyland. If you’re from near there, you really do need to visit it at Christmas time. They really know how to do it. Something for everyone. Even if you’re from far away, it’s worth the trip!  https://www.facebook.com/christmasincandyland/

MEET BRENDA GANTT AND WALT MERRELL

But in recent years, a lovely lady, Brenda Gantt, became an overnight sensation when she made biscuits by holding her phone in her left hand and making those biscuits, mixing and rolling them, and putting them in the pan, with just her right hand. She now has over a million followers on Facebook at Cooking With Brenda Gantt. She is delightful, and she freely shares her faith. Love that!

Her son-in-law, Walt Merrell, is the District Attorney in Andalusia, Alabama. He is quite the character and has his own Facebook page, Shepherding Outdoors. He writes stories about his family and life. He’s good at what he does. Very good. He does videos and you can find Miss Brenda photobombing some of his videos. They are an adorable family. His wife is Miss Brenda’s daughter, Hannah, and they have three daughters with unusual names. I’ll let you discover those for yourself.

Both Miss Brenda (everybody calls her that, it’s a Southern thing) and Walt have books out. Miss Brenda’s are cookbooks, and Walt’s are based on his Shepherding Outdoors. I have one of the cookbooks, and one on order which will arrive in November, just in time for the holidays. Yay! I haven’t gotten any of Walt’s but I know where to order them. He tells you in a video. Another Yay!

Two Special People - A Southern Lady and A Storyteller@DDuPreeWilliams #Friendship #SouthernFolks #FacebookCelebs Share on X

STRANGERS WHO FEEL LIKE FRIENDS

I may sound as if I know Brenda and Walt, but I’ve never met them.  Brenda’s husband was a few classes ahead of me in high school and with his little brother, a year behind me. My sister, seven years my elder, went to school with their big brother. Their sister worked with my daddy in the shoe store mentioned above. She was a friend of my youth. It’s too long a story for here, but in a roundabout way, I wouldn’t be married to my husband had it not been for my friendship with Mary Ann.

I thought y’all would enjoy getting to know these two souls. As my late brother-in-law (a good ol’ Andalusia boy) used to say, “Them’s good, good people!” And he was right.

Find them on Facebook and other social media sites. Be sure to find their original sites as many aren’t official. Don’t you just love it when people do that? Sigh.

https://www.facebook.com/cookingwithbrendagantt/

https://www.facebook.com/shepherdingoutdoors

Blessings, y’all!

PS In addition, if you’ve ever eaten Sister Schubert’s rolls, you’ve invited another Andalusian into your home. Yep. She lives there, too. Small world.

 

This is new to me. Love it so much. I was going to do Katherine Jenkins singing the Welsh hymn, Cwm Rhonda, but I found this and I really like it. Earthly food and heavenly food. Good eatin’ either way!