Back in 2014, we were both freshman members of the State Legislature who barely knew how to get around the State House. Neither of us imagined we would one day wind up in House and Senate leadership positions. That was not the goal back then. We simply wanted to represent our districts the best way we knew how, both of which include DeKalb County.
Somewhere along the line, we decided to put together a Fourth of July Breakfast for the community. Which of us came up with the idea remains a friendly point of contention to this day.
That first year, we maybe had two dozen people show up, most of whom were longtime friends and local elected leaders killing time before watching the parade or making their rounds to all the different booths at the Henagar Potato Festival, as well as several police officers and sheriff’s deputies. It was mostly a crowd of people we both knew well, and to be honest, we were happy that anyone showed up at all.
Most of the folks who attended also helped cook the food, with the two of us assigned to bacon-frying duty.
When we finished that first year, we were unsure if that would be the first and last breakfast event. But word started to get out that we made a pretty good country breakfast, causing the crowd to grow little by little.
By the third year, the breakfast was drawing well over 200 people from not only DeKalb County, but all across Alabama. By 2018, pretty much every statewide political candidate and dozens of House and Senate members showed up, using the breakfast as an opportunity to talk to voters from Sand Mountain, who are about as straightforward as one can get.
As the event grew and became a bit more political in nature, we were concerned about whether we wanted it to be viewed as a campaign stop. But the more we thought about it, the more we realized that giving everyday working folks an opportunity to meet the men and women asking for their votes over breakfast on the Fourth of July is about as American as it gets.
We don't allow candidates to make speeches – they simply get an opportunity to stand up and tell the crowd their name and what they are running for. After that, we pray for our country, our military, our first responders, and every Alabamian before sharing a meal together.
Last year, ahead of what ended up being quite the campaign season, we welcomed over 550 people – our largest crowd yet – leading veteran political columnist Steve Flowers to call the breakfast a must-go political event.
We are expecting another big crowd this weekend for America’s 250th, and if you want an opportunity to talk one-on-one with one of our state's GOP primary winners, there's a good chance they will be there.
Even though the event has changed and grown over the years, it will always be about recognizing the blessings of living in a free country and honoring the generations of Americans who built, defended and preserved that freedom. At the end of the day, we want everyone to get up from the table with a renewed commitment to leaving this country stronger for the next generation. That's our responsibility as Americans and the spirit we have always hoped this breakfast would capture.
The doors of the Henagar Community Center will open at 7:30 a.m. on the Fourth, and the price of admission is loving the United States of America and the great state of Alabama.
We hope to see you then.
Nathaniel Ledbetter serves as Alabama's speaker of the House and Steve Livingston serves as Alabama's Senate majority leader.
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