“The biggest life lesson was the one that my father tried to pound into my head. It was use your brain, not your back. I have to use my brain every day – mathematical equations to figure out the velocity of air that we have and the percentage of gases that are down there. I got 15 guys that rely on me. We all pretty much take care of each other. If one of your workers has a problem, or one of your buddies that you’re working with has a problem, everybody has a problem because you spend more time with that group of guys than you do with your own family. We eat dinner underground together during holidays. It’s just a way of life.” – Derek Cravens of McCalla.

Cravens is a foreman and third-generation coal miner. Cravens and his family moved here from southern Illinois two years ago and thinks that people in Alabama are so nice and polite.

Derek Cravens moved to Alabama from Illinois two years ago. (Dana Mixer / People of Alabama)

These are the faces and stories of people from all walks of life who call Alabama home. People of Alabama is a Red Clay Media and Alabama NewsCenter partnership.