Festival Fun In Tuscaloosa + A Heartwarming Rescue

Good Morning Tuscaloosa! Let's get you started on this Saturday with everything you need to know going on today.

In today's Daily, we have these stories and more ...

• More on the Druid City Arts Festival.
• A sit-in at Warrior Met Coal.
• SEC Softball Tournament updates.

First, today's weather:

Tuscaloosa can expect patchy fog before 8 a.m. before an otherwise sunny day with a high around 82°

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Patch Pick: If you've ever been on a Zoom call with me, you know I'm a longtime Dead Head, so obviously I was over the moon t0 hear the local band Dire Wolf perform at the Druid City Arts Festival on Friday. Here's one of my favorite pictures of the group playing the classic Grateful Dead tune "Franklin's Tower."

Here are the top 5 stories today in Tuscaloosa

1. The Druid City Arts Festival will continue today at Government Plaza in downtown Tuscaloosa from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. Here are some of my favorite sights from Friday. (More on Patch)

2. The Shelton State Bucs are gearing up for its fifth appearance in the NJCAA World Series later this month and I spoke with head baseball coach Bobby Sprowl to hear more as the team prepares (More on Patch)

3. Alabama softball's Bailey Hemphill hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the sixth inning to claim the program's top spot for career long balls with 61 as the Tide edged out Tennessee 6-5 Friday night to advance to the SEC Tournament title game today against the top-seed Florida Gators, Brett Greenberg reports. (Tuscaloosa News)

4. Congratulations to longtime Paul W. Bryant Museum Director Ken Gaddy on his retirement, as our local television station did a touching profile on a living institution of the Tuscaloosa and Crimson Tide communities. Thank you for your commitment, Ken! T-Town is thankful for you. (WVUA 23 News)

5. Tessa Worley was on the ground as union members of United Mine Workers of America held a sit-in at the Warrior Met Coal headquarters in Brookwood Friday morning as the labor strike that began in April shows no signs of slowing down. (Tuscaloosa Thread)

3 Things To Do Today

1. The Tuscaloosa (7 a.m.) and Northport (6 a.m.) farmers markets are obvious staples for a fun Saturday morning. Be sure to give them a visit!

2. "The Bee's Knees" at Children's Hands-on Museum. (More)

3. The Druid City Arts Festival, kicking off at 10 a.m. (More)

Check it out!

Kiwi decided that a Friday evening would be best spent with the heroic folks from Tuscaloosa Fire Rescue, who retrieved the 15-year-old miscreant from the top of a telephone pole in what can only be described as both the most cliché and heartwarming news item of the past week. (More)

Tuscaloosa Patch Notebook

- The incoming Tuscaloosa City Board of Education, elected Tuscaloosa City Council members, Mayor Walt Maddox will be sworn in to their terms in office on Monday. The District 7 seat will remain open for now, as a special election to decide the winner is expected over the summer.

- Tuscaloosa County Park & Recreation Authority (PARA), along with the Tuscaloosa VA Medical Center and The University of Alabama Office of Veteran and Military Affairs, will host a Memorial Day Program on May 31 at 9 a.m. in Tuscaloosa Veterans Memorial Park. (More)

- The Northport City Council on Monday will receive a presentation from the consulting firm tasked with conducting a feasibility study for the city's proposed water park.

- Miss the first Tuscaloosa StoryWalk? Then check out the second installment at Snow Hinton Park on Saturday, May 22! (More)

- Regions Bank and the Chamber of Commerce of West Alabama will hold a rescheduled joint ribbon-cutting on Tuesday to celebrate the opening of Regions’ new downtown branch and the West Alabama Workforce and Community Development Center.

Now you're in the loop and ready to start this weekend off. But don't miss out during the rest of day! Be sure to follow me on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for exclusive content every day of the week.

I'll see you around!

- Ryan

Have a news tip or suggestion on how I can improve Tuscaloosa Patch? Maybe you're interested in having your business become one of the latest sponsors for Tuscaloosa Patch? Email all inquiries to me at ryan.phillips@patch.com.