Constance D. Lawrence Hurst

Constance D. Lawrence Hurst

I am a veteran of the U.S. Army. I have 3 children, 6 grandchildren & 2 great grandchildren. I attended the University of Montevallo briefly after high school (Montevallo High School).

After my first marriage ended 20 years later, I went back to school at the age of 39. I earned 2 Associate Degrees from Jefferson State Community College & then went to University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) where I earned a B.S. in Elementary Ed, 2 M.A. degrees (Elementary Ed & Collaborative Teaching), Administrative Certificate & a PhD in Early Childhood Education; working straight through. I taught in the Birmingham City School System for 10 years.

I am currently happily married and we are both happily retired. We care for my youngest grandson who is 3 and we enjoy watching him grow & learn by leaps & bounds.

Were my parents correct in shielding us from the turmoil?

Our family attended Birmingham’s First Methodist Church in 1963. The Children’s building was under construction, and all the school age children were attending Sunday School in the Alabama Power building just a block away from the 16th Street Baptist church.

I remember hearing the bomb explode on September 15, 1963. All of our parents were a block away in the main sanctuary building and I remember them running into our Sunday School room in panic because they didn’t know where the bomb was.

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