Sand Mountain Sam doesn’t see his shadow Friday during festivities

• By MARY BAILEY The Reporter

Hundreds gathered for Possum Day at Bama Bucks in Sardis Friday morning to listen to the official proclamation for either early spring or six more weeks of winter for Sand Mountain.

“We want to welcome everyone here this morning,” said Sardis Mayor Russell Amos from the podium in his overalls. “This is a special day for us here in Sardis and we are proud you have come out to join us.”

The Possum Day festivities began right at daybreak and continued through mid-morning with the Snead State Street Singers, All That Jazz Dance Company, Billy Boyd, fiddler Hillary Klug, Steve Hickman, Mala Patterson, a saxophone playing Saxsquatch, live Bluegrass Music, spoon playing musicians,  mule-drawn carriage, Buck Dancing and the crowing of this year’s Possum Queen and Possum Princess.

This year’s Possum Queen is Trinity Cunningham from Leesburg and the Possum Princess is Swayzie Battles from Hokes Bluff.

Terry Turk, owner of Bama Bucks, where Sam currently lives, said this has grown each year.

“It just seems to get bigger and bigger,” he said. “We have the proper license to have Sam here with us and thank everyone for being here today. We have Senator Andrew Jones here with us and many of our local town mayors. Keeping fingers crossed for an early spring.”

For the moment all had waited for, Sand Mountain Sam, the weather predicting possum was erected from her Lynchburg, Tennessee whisky barrel and predicted an early spring.

Earlier Friday morning in Pennsylvania, groundhog Punxsutawney Phil also predicted an early spring.

On average, Phil has gotten the correct forecast 30% of the time over the past 10 years. Sand Mountain Sam has a 30-1 record of being correct, only missing the blizzard of 1993.