Civic Dispatch: Leadership and Community in Walker County
Photo by: The Walker Area Community Foundation
Jean O’Connor-Snyder Intern Rylen Dempsey spent the summer in Walker County, Alabama, learning about the community and its leaders. At Jasper Lumber Company, Rylen met Plant Manager Cliff Beall, whose dedication to his faith, family, and community exemplifies servant leadership. Beall’s commitment to professional excellence and uplifting others highlights the positive impact of community-focused leadership.
This summer, seven students from The University of Alabama – including myself – are immersed in Walker County. Rather than working at our non-profit placements and leaving town at the end of the day, we spend every day here.
From bingo and trivia at Tallulah Brewing Company to New Era Wrestling at Swann Gym, we are blessed to get a glimpse into life in Walker County. We are also fortunate to travel the area visiting with business, non-profit, and community leaders.
On a sweltering June morning, we piled into two cars and rode down Hwy 78 through the gates of Jasper Lumber Company (JLC). Walking through the front doors of their office, I was struck. It was so… wooden.
We were led up the winding stairs by Jeremy Piper – a soft-spoken, blonde-haired father in his early thirties – to a conference table. There, Mr. Cliff Beall warmly greeted us with company swag, a nice surprise. Beall is JLC’s Plant Manager. For over 20 years, he has worked at Jasper Lumber Company. It’s in his blood. His father, Mr. Roy Beall, is the Chief Operating Officer of the company, which was recently acquired by Canada-based Tolko Industries.
Just as we got settled into the upstairs conference room, the mill’s camera monitors began to show a slowdown in the plant operations. Mr. Piper got up.
“Nobody knows what’s going on”, Piper said as he exited the room.
I was touched by Mr. Beall's calm response. “I trust the team”, Beall said. “You put the right people in the right seats, and you let it work”, he continued. With that, we were back to our conversation.
For the next hour plus, Mr. Beall, who insisted we call him “Cliff”, shared with us about his family, education, faith, work, and service.
After graduating from Auburn University, Cliff came back to Jasper to work at the mill. He worked his way up and became manager. He and his wife, Kailyn, a teacher at Memorial Park Elementary, started their family here in Jasper.
As a father, husband, and plant manager, Cliff prioritizes community impact. From serving on the Walker Area Community Foundation’s Grant Review Team – which evaluates grant applications through site visits and presentations – to formerly chairing the Chamber of Commerce of Walker County, Cliff embodies servant leadership.
He was recently appointed to serve on the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act Board for North Central Alabama. Rather than simply cutting a check, Cliff uses his unique skillset to design immersive educational experiences for high school students, focused on manufacturing and forestry. Cliff continues to venture beyond the board room to show local students what is possible in the lumber industry.
He admitted to a habit of saying “yes” too often but is getting better. “I’m saying ‘no’ all the time now”, Cliff said, stressing the importance of committing within your capacity. “If I can impact, influence, and love people, I try my best to do it”. So, when his church, Glory Fellowship, asked him to host a young adult Sunday school class, he jumped in.
Cliff Beall is driven by his faith. “God works through me” he told me. His new Sunday School teacher role has taught him a lot, because he learns alongside the young people he’s teaching.
After our conversation with Cliff, the seven of us took up his offer to walk through the mill. We were in awe. Just one shift after a new mill record, Cliff and Jeremy gave over an hour of their time to walk us through the process. Suited up in our hard hats, reflective vests, jeans, closed-toe shoes, earplugs, and gloves, we got to see the entire process: from pile of logs to stack of lumber.
We were able to see the advanced scanning technology that ensures each log is used to its full capacity. We met an employee with over twenty-five years of JLC experience operating the chip n’ saw. We saw a high school student mowing the grounds in the mid-summer Alabama heat; twenty years ago, as a fourteen-year-old, Cliff joined the payroll in the same, grueling role. Climbing through the maze of the mill, we took refuge from the humid Alabama heat in an air-conditioned computing room.
“Two years ago, something shifted”, Cliff shared during the A/C break. “You’ve changed”, his friends and employees would say. Cliff began to really grow as a leader and Christian... “I stopped drinking, began to read the Word more, and desired to positively impact those around me”. The wisdom he found in The Bible has significantly impacted the way he lives his life. “It’s not about looking good to others”, Cliff said, but making an impact.
When asked where Cliff makes the most impact with his service, he delivered a clear answer: “work”. His ministry is uplifting, mentoring, and supporting his team at Jasper Lumber. While they produce over 130 million board feet, JLC is so much more.
JLC is a company on the rise. They are leaning into a better, people-centered culture that expects excellence but provides support. With Tolko as full owner, JLC has expanded capital resources to improve the plant’s physical infrastructure. That will make the Jasper mill a more technologically driven mill that keeps up with the competition. We are blessed to have this forward-thinking company that thinks about contributing to the community.
“You will, 100%, be successful if you surround yourself with good people”, he said. “Not perfect, but good people”. Cliff strives to be a father, husband, and leader that lifts others up instead of being a “stumbling block”,
The good news? Cliff and Jasper Lumber are not alone. Walker Countians are good, hard-working, family-oriented, faithful folks. This summer has taught me what it means to truly know and love a community. Across this area, fine people get up every day determined to make this place better for their family and their neighbors.
“I live by the two most important commandments”, Cliff told me on a phone call. “Love God, Love People”.
Rylen Dempsey is a sophomore at the University of Alabama from Birmingham, Alabama. He is pursuing an interdisciplinary major with a depth study in civic leadership and social innovation through the New College Program.
Rylen’s internship is with the Walker Area Community Foundation where he is focused on collaborating with county leadership to connect and build economic development opportunities for Walker County.
Rylen is a member of the Blackburn Institute, Farmhouse Fraternity, and is Deputy Chief of Staff for the Student Government Association.
Photo by: The Walker Area Community Foundation
Summer 2024 JOIP Interns. This internship program is made possible through our collaboration with the University of Alabama’s New College and the Walker Area Community Foundation.