Making Friends Takes More than a Walk in the Park

Kindall and Chase Cornelius love to call West Homewood “home.” Kindall bought her house on Montgomery Lane in 2013. Her husband Chase moved into the neighborhood in 2016 after the couple’s beach wedding. Both passionate educators, Kindall is a ninth-grade English teacher at Helena High School, and Chase is the Head Basketball Coach and Health/PE teacher at Banks Academy in Birmingham. Hearing their passion for their students was the highlight of our chat. Chase shared how many of his students see him is a mentor and father figure, and his favorite part of his job is building relationships with them. “It’s typical for me to spend hours talking with my students every day, and that means a lot to me,” Chase shared. The quality of education in Homewood was one of the selling points for Kindall when she first moved into the neighborhood. “When we have kids one day, we will definitely be excited to send them to Hall Kent!”

Kindall and Chase are an outgoing couple who love being with people and having fun. They have been very intentional about becoming a part of West Homewood in hopes of connecting with people in the neighborhood. They attend Trinity West Homewood weekly and enjoy having a great church community so close to home. They love eating at the restaurants in the neighborhood and being recognized by owners and neighbors alike. Chase is a member of Nexus fitness and appreciates being able to walk to work out daily while also having a sense of community there. Once frequent visitors of their much-loved Magic City Sweet Ice, they cannot wait for Neighbors Ice Cream to open. Chase really enjoys The Briary since they know him and his order by name. “It’s one of the friendliest places in West Homewood,” shared Chase.

Seeking Deeper Connection with Neighbors

Kindall and Chase have been purposeful in their pursuit to connect to West Homewood over the past 8 years yet building a strong sense of community has been a slow process. “We are a busy couple in our thirties with no children, and it can be difficult to establish strong friendships even though our neighborhood is so friendly. It seems harder to connect once you are out of college but don’t yet have children. We are glad to see more young couples moving in recently, and we hope we will find ways to connect with them,” Kindall shared. They have a deep desire to have true friendships with their neighbors. They want West Homewood neighbors and friends to say “YES!” to invitations to hang in the backyard and play yard games on a Saturday night. They want more connection than simply seeing people out and about around the neighborhood. “In our experience, West Homewood just isn’t there yet, but we know it will be,” said Kindall.

When asked how they envision their future in West Homewood, Kindall and Chase would love to have their backyard filled with new friends from the neighborhood. “We love West Homewood, and we have no plans to move. We love that neighbors know each other, and it feels like we live in a small town within a big city. The only place that could take us out of the neighborhood is a home on the beach!”