The Mark White Show

11/08/2025

He never chased fame. He chased better.

Woodrow Lowe didn’t just make tackles, he made men.

At the The University of Alabama, under the legendary Coach Paul “Bear” Bryant, Lowe was the heart of the defense. A 3x All-American linebacker from Phenix City, he led with quiet strength and relentless consistency. He wasn’t loud, he wasn’t flashy, but he was everywhere the ball went.

From 1972 to 1975, Lowe helped anchor some of the most dominant Alabama teams in history. He left Tuscaloosa as one of the Tide’s all-time greats, a player Bryant himself often pointed to as an example of discipline, character, and class.

Then came the NFL. Eleven solid seasons with the San Diego Chargers. No shortcuts, no drama, just hard work and respect from everyone who lined up beside him.

After his playing days, Lowe went home to where it all began, Central High in Phenix City. The same school that shaped him. The same community that loved him.

He coached kids who needed someone to believe in them. He taught discipline, respect, and effort. And when Central won a state championship, he was right there on the sideline, smiling like it was his first win all over again.

He coached at Selma High, then in the NFL with the The Kansas City Chiefs and Oakland Raiders. From Coach Bryant to Marty Schottenheimer to Jon Gruden, he learned from the best and passed it on to others.

When his mother was diagnosed with cancer, he didn’t think twice. He left the NFL and came home to Alabama to be near her while she underwent treatment. Family came first. Always.

He continued coaching at UAB, Smiths Station, Jackson-Olin, and finally back at Central. Wherever young people needed guidance, Woodrow Lowe showed up.

He was a Hall of Famer many times over. The College Football Hall of Fame, the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame, the Senior Bowl Hall of Fame, and the Sugar Bowl Hall of Fame all bear his name. One of the greatest linebackers to ever play the game.

But if you asked him, the real victories weren’t the titles or the trophies. They were the lives he helped change.

Woodrow Lowe passed away this week at 71.

A man of faith. A teacher. A quiet leader who gave his best on the field and beyond it.

Let’s send our best to his family and remember a man who made Alabama proud, not just for how he played, but for how he lived.

11/08/2025

Congratulations, Kerri!

📚🎉 Celebrating a special retirement! 🎉📖 - https://mailchi.mp/truthpublications/truthnews110825

11/08/2025

November is National Family Caregivers Month, a time to honor the quiet heroes who care for loved ones day after day.

Nearly 59 million Americans are providing unpaid care right now. Many don’t even see themselves as caregivers, just family doing what love requires. But the emotional and physical toll is real.

Yesterday, I spoke with Dr. Michael Gabriel, National Medical Director for Carelon Palliative Care, about how families can recognize burnout, set boundaries, and understand the role of palliative care. His insight is both compassionate and practical and a reminder that caring for yourself is part of caring for others.

Read the full story below and share it with someone who may need to hear these words today.

Mark White | The Mark White ShowClinton, Connecticut - November is National Family Caregivers Month and National Hospice and Palliative Care Month, a time to honor nearly 59 million Americans who provide unpaid care for loved ones every day. They balance work, family, and their own health while help...

11/08/2025

On this Make A Difference Minute, Dr. Michael Gabriel, National Medical Director for Carelon Palliative Care, reminds us that caregivers need care too. With nearly 59 million Americans serving as unpaid caregivers, burnout is real, but support is available. Dr. Gabriel shares how families can recognize the warning signs, set healthy boundaries, and access the help they deserve.

This message is a gentle reminder that caring for yourself is one of the best ways to keep caring for those you love.

Listen: audioboom.com/posts/8803790-make-a-difference-minute-caring-for-the-caregiver-with-dr-michael-gabriel

Sponsor: Hydration Lounge
HydrationL.com

11/08/2025

Community Thanksgiving Food Drive in Colbert County

From Conesa Frederick and Haley Lowery:
We’re still collecting donations for our Community Thanksgiving Food Drive happening November 24th at 4p in Spring Park, Tuscumbia.

100 Thanksgiving food boxes will be handed out while supplies last.
We’re especially in need of hams, the main donation item, along with nonperishable foods, jackets, blankets, and hygiene products.

If you or your business would like to sponsor a box or a ham (just $25 or you can purchase one yourself), please reach out and help make a difference for families this holiday season.

Contact:
Conesa Frederick – 256-483-1025
Haley Lowery – 256-633-8519

This is another opportunity for people to come together. No family should go without a Thanksgiving meal.

11/08/2025

He was the man who took us back to space when America needed healing.

Captain Rick Hauck, U.S. Navy officer, physicist, and NASA astronaut, has passed away at 84.

He was the commander of STS-26, the shuttle mission that lifted off two and a half years after the Challenger tragedy.
He and his crew, Dick Covey, Mike Lounge, David Hilmers, and George “Pinky” Nelson, carried the hopes of a nation still hurting.

And when the shuttle Discovery cleared the tower that morning in September 1988, the world held its breath.

From orbit, Rick’s voice came through steady and full of purpose:

“Dear friends, we have resumed the journey that we promised to continue for you.”

Those words, meant for the Challenger 7, reminded us that courage keeps the human spirit alive.

He flew three shuttle missions.
He helped bring lost satellites home.
He wore a Hawaiian shirt in zero gravity and reminded the world that even astronauts need to smile.

“Life’s a beach,” he joked from 200 miles above Earth.

That was Rick Hauck, serious when it mattered, lighthearted when it helped, and steady through it all.

Before NASA, he flew 114 combat missions off the USS Coral Sea.
After space, he guided programs that kept satellites, and dreams, aloft.

For 15 years, he faced Parkinson’s disease with that same quiet strength.

At his retirement home in Maine, they called him “a man of courage and dignity.”
But for anyone who watched him lead us safely back into space, he was something more:
He was the calm in a shaken nation.

Let’s send our best to his wife Susan, his family, and the generation of dreamers who followed his path to the stars.

Blue skies and smooth landings, Captain Hauck. You brought us home.

(📸: NASA)

11/08/2025

He’s known simply as Peanut.

If you’ve spent any time around the Shoals, you’ve probably seen him.

Yesterday, Peanut was hit by a vehicle in a hit-and-run. He’s now in the hospital with nine broken ribs, a fracture in his back, a facial fracture, and a small bleed on his brain. But somehow, in true Peanut fashion, he’s still talking about going fishing.

That’s the spirit of the man this community loves so much.

Now, folks like KK-Edgil Mills are stepping up to show that love right back, putting together a gift basket for Peanut.
He likes Doritos, cheese dip, donuts, chocolate milk, Mountain Dew, pizza, hamburgers, and chicken.

If you’d like to help, you can drop items at Renaissance Antiques (booth 1941), there’s a box ready.
Gift cards or donations can be left at the counter, marked for Peanut.

Because in times like this, we take care of our own.
And right now, Peanut could use a little bit of that Shoals love he’s given all of us.

Let’s lift him up. Let’s pray. Let’s remind him that he’s not alone.

11/08/2025

UPDATE ON PEANUT

From Tina Bullington:
“Nine broken ribs, a fracture in his back, a facial fracture, and a slight bleed in his head, but he is talking and says he’s still ready to go fishing! My cousin, Diane, will be visiting him tomorrow and will keep us all posted on his condition.”

Even through pain and recovery, Peanut’s spirit shines through, that same strength and heart the Shoals community knows and loves him for. Please keep him in your prayers for full healing and comfort.

We’re all pulling for you, Peanut.

11/08/2025

Sometimes, the strongest people are the ones quietly carrying someone else.

They wake early.
They cook, clean, drive, lift, and listen.
They show up again tomorrow, without applause, without rest, without asking for much in return.

These are the family caregivers.
Nearly 59 million across our country, sons, daughters, spouses, and friends, who give their time, energy, and love to care for someone they hold dear.

On tonight’s episode of The Mark White Show, I spoke with Dr. Michael Gabriel, National Medical Director for Carelon Palliative Care, about what caregiving really looks like.
Not the perfect image, but the truth, burnout, guilt, love, and grace all rolled into one.

We talked about recognizing the signs of exhaustion, setting healthy boundaries, and understanding the gift of palliative care, a service that walks beside both patients and caregivers, bringing comfort, coordination, and hope.

Dr. Gabriel reminded me that caring for others doesn’t mean forgetting yourself.
He said it best: “You can’t pour from an empty cup.”

If you are a caregiver, please know this, you are seen, you are valued, and you are not alone.
Take a breath. Accept help. Let someone care for you, too.

Listen to the full conversation at TheMarkWhiteShow.com or wherever you get your podcasts.
And if you know a caregiver, thank them. Their love is saving lives every day.

Let’s make sure they know it.

11/08/2025

Sometimes heroes wear badges and sometimes, they walk back into a hospital room just to check on the life they helped save.

Deputy Christopher Win with the Clay County Sheriff's Office, Florida, was the first to arrive after Bubba’s accident. His quick action made all the difference. Doctors say that without the help he received as fast as he did, Bubba would not have survived his brain bleed.

Tonight, Deputy Win came to visit Bubba, not because he had to, but because he cared.

That’s the kind of heart that changes lives.

Thank you, Deputy Win, for being there in Bubba’s moment of need and for reminding us what compassion in uniform truly looks like.

Let’s keep praying for Bubba’s continued healing and giving thanks for those who rush toward danger when the rest of us can’t.

(📸: Melissa Elsberry)

11/08/2025

Tomorrow is the BIG day!

11/08/2025

Behind every patient is someone quietly holding things together, a spouse, a parent, a friend, a child. They manage appointments, offer comfort, and often sacrifice their own wellbeing in the process. November is National Family Caregivers Month and Dr. Michael Gabriel, National Medical Director for Carelon Palliative Care, joins me to talk about the signs of caregiver burnout, how to find support, and how palliative care can bring peace and partnership to families.

This one’s for those who give so much and rarely ask for anything in return.

Listen: https://audioboom.com/posts/8803743-caring-for-the-caregivers-with-dr-michael-gabriel