Estes said she had him as a History teacher
in 9th grade and that her favorite part of
that year is when he made them all bring
Confucius quotes to class. “Everything was a
life lesson that we didn’t even realize we were
learning,” she said.
Bartlett said that some of his greatest
memories involved coaching and teaching
students like Estes.
“To be quite honest, I enjoyed being a bus
driver and teaching drivers education,” said
Bartlett.“The only time in my life that I did
not enjoy teaching was his first two years in
the system as a 7th, 8th and 9th grade science
teacher. However, that role allowed me to
eventually step into a position that I really
loved and opened the doors that lead me to
where I am now.”
Bartlett said if it had not been for those
two years, he would not have landed the job
as driver’s education teacher, paving the way
to 26 years in the Education System within
Cullman County. And of course, his love for
the community, and the city of Good Hope,
where he spent the majority of his career,
lead him and his family to finally move to the
community and build a house—eventually
opening the door for him to run for city
council.
When asked if he had always had a political
aspiration, he just shook his head and said
politics were never in his blood.
“I spent the majority of my life as a coach,
teacher, bus driver and driver’s education
instructor that I never once imagined I would
be dedicating my retirement to serving on
council or as the mayor of Good Hope.”
The road to politics actually was thrown in
his lap, according to Bartlett, after a friend
called him and convinced him that he should
run for council.
“I was retired and I really wasn’t sure if this
is what I wanted to do,” he said. “But after
really spending some time thinking about it,
I decided to do that, and it has proved to be a
great experience.”
Jerry Bartlett, Bill Oliver, Kenneth Nail, Ken Smith,
Randall Shedd, Greg Cochran pictured with
Governor Kay Ivey.
“I spent the majority
of my life as a coach,
teacher, bus driver
and driver’s education
instructor that I never
once imagined I would be
dedicating my retirement
to serving on council or as
Mayor of Good Hope.”
Jerry Bartlett
Greg Brown, Susan Eller, Terry Shabel, Taft Dillashaw,
Jerry Bartlett, Maxie Jones
CULLMAN COUNTY SENIOR MAGAZINE FALL 2020 | 29