CULLMAN – City of Cullman Councilman Andy Page ran for office in 2008 with the campaign slogan of “For the future of Cullman” and he still stands by that motto today as he readies for another election cycle.
“In 2008 I ran ‘for the future of Cullman’ and it was the same in 2012. I’m running this year for the future of Cullman. If I run for two more terms it’ll be for the same reason – for the future of Cullman.
“I’m running for a third time,” said Page. “It’s a great group to work with. Being a coach, my big thing is teamwork and you get so much more done working together. Teamwork is the name of the game. What we’ve gotten done in the last eight years speaks to our teamwork.”
During his tenure on city council, Page has worked to see Fire Station No. 2 built, the complete renovation of the Cullman Shopping Center and its new merchants and the city’s public service officials and citizens working together as a formidable unit to recover from the 2011 tornadoes.
Page says he is looking forward to the completion of projects that are in the works. “We have a lot of projects going on. The north shopping center is almost complete. We’ve got good things going on up there. The Duck River Project is huge for the city and the area and we want to continue on with our economic growth. I do a lot with public safety with the police and fire. The thing that I’m really looking forward to is the third fire station. We’ve been talking about it since we got together on the council and we needed it when we got here. We finally have that off the ground and started. We have a new water building in the works and a new street department building. Those are some projects that we have in the works coming down the pipeline. Who knows what else is out there in the future, but whatever it is, it’ll be good!”
Proudly calling Cullman home since 1972, Page originally moved to Alabama in the late 1950s to attend college at Jacksonville State. Upon graduation, his lengthy career in education as a math instructor and football coach began at Cherokee County High School and he married a Blount County girl soon after.
From there he went to Cleveland High School then Oneonta High School where he was an assistant coach under a hall of fame coach who led the football team to a state championship with Page’s help. Coming to Cullman County to coach at Fairview for a few years, he then headed to Cullman Middle and High Schools in 1977, where he remained until his 1993 retirement. Page then purchased a hardware store with a business partner.
However, teaching wasn’t done with Page, and he sold his portion of the business to his partner and accepted a position at Wallace State Community College where he taught math for another eight years.
Teaching and a love for the future generations run deep in the Page family with his wife, son and daughter all being educators. His son Jay is the principal at West Elementary and Page’s daughter calls Florida home, where she works as an English teacher.
“I run for council for the children, my children, my grandchildren and those generations to try to make Cullman an even better place. We’ve got a great city and all of the previous administration and council members did a great job and my vision was to expand on that and go from good to great. There’s been a lot of good things going on in the last eight years. We’ve won numerous awards and there’s been so much economic development which is really fantastic.”
While it may be hard to imagine Page having free time, he and his wife are dancers who practice weekly and visit nursing homes and assisted living facilities in the area. Specializing in the Carolina Shag, the couple love entertaining their audiences and sharing their passion.
His dancing is evidence that Page practices what he preached as a coach regarding physical fitness and activity. His diligent work as a councilman is proof of his love for the city of Cullman and the generations to come.
“When we do things in my family we commit to it. Fifty-two years later, my wife and I are still happily married. We’ve spent 44 years at the same church. When we commit, we commit. I love what I’m doing. I love working for the city of Cullman and the citizens of Cullman. After spending all of these years coaching and to be able to come back in a different way, it’s just gratifying. I’m having a good life.”
