Little River Canyon Center gets new director

Jacksonville State University announced a new director for the Little River Canyon Center earlier this month after founding director Pete Conroy retired.

And it’s starting to sink in for new director T.C. McLemore.

“I just wrote my first note that came ‘from the office of the director.’ It was a surreal moment. If you’d told me when I moved away for college that this place existed, let alone that I’d one day lead it, I’d never have believed you.”

T.C. McLemore

The Fort Payne native said he wants everyone to know what he’s always known: the Little River Canyon is one of the prettiest places in the state. McLemore said he intends to continue the commitment to environmental education and conservation initiatives championed by Conroy.

Some of McLemore’s points of focus include:

• Economical impact
• Strengthening connections with local schools
• Partnership with the National Park Service

“I appreciate the power of the outdoors in facilitating economic growth and strengthening communities. Being able to balance conservation with attracting more people to either visit or relocate here is a major opportunity to explore. Little River Canyon’s preservation makes our community a place people want to visit and to live.”

T.C. McLemore

T.C. McLemore

After graduating from Fort Payne High School in 2007, McLemore attended the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). He grew up hunting and fishing in the woods and on the waters of Northeast Alabama with his father.

Though he loved the outdoors growing up, it wasn’t until he got to UAB that hiking – or, as he’d called it, “walking in the woods” – grew from hobby to obsession.

McLemore graduated from UAB with a political science degree in 2010, followed by a master’s degree in history in 2013. Between his years in graduate school, he hiked more than 1,000 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail, which runs from the U.S.-Canada border through Washington, Oregon, and California to the U.S.-Mexico border.

McLemore’s career in outreach and economic development started with the nonprofit corporation Alabama Possible, where he spent more than two years before becoming the program director with the Alabama Humanities Alliance.

Because of his love of backpacking, McLemore considered moving out West, likely to Colorado or California, to pursue his passion. But in 2012, while he was hiking the PCT, Red Mountain Park opened in Birmingham. That provided him with 15 miles of trails and allowed him to start his career closer to home.

He joined the Red Mountain Park Junior Board in 2015 and became executive in 2018, where he served until 2023 after helping found the Jefferson County Greenways Commission.

“That’s when I sort of professionalized my passion for the outdoors. It’s been a key part of my life and my civic engagement for a long time, but that was the first time I really went to work in an outdoor setting.”

For the past two years, McLemore has served as the executive director of outdoor recreation for Innovate Alabama launching the SEEK AL outdoor recreation marketing campaign to recruit and retain talent, hosting a statewide outdoor recreation summit and working with communities throughout the state to take advantage of their outdoor recreation potential.

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