ALBERTVILLE – In this small, quaint, Marshall County town, home to such stars as former Texas Ranger Rusty Greer and University of Alabama/NFL star John Hannah, another couple of celebrities have emerged.
John and Peggy Spratling.
Not ring a bell?
How about this – Paul McDonald’s grandparents?
Some outside Albertville may not have heard of these two folks, but they certainly feel like celebrities as they watch their grandson compete on this season of “American Idol.” McDonald, 26, a Huntsville High School graduate, is not only competing, he’s in the Top 8 and hoping to continue when the show resumes tonight at 7.
“We’re having fun; it’s the best time of my life,” Peggy Spratling said. “’We’ve become celebrities. We can’t go to the grocery store or church or the hospital without somebody asking us about Paul. Everybody is voting for him ... at least that’s what they’re telling us.”
His grandfather adds: “We think it’s great. We’re following him closely and it’s hard to realize that’s where he is. We’re so pleased with him and feel that’s what he’s meant to be.”
John and Peggy are the parents of Susan Spratling McDonald, Paul’s mom in Huntsville. Her parents recall the moment they knew their grandson had some special musical talents.
“We noticed it a long time before high school,” his grandfather said. “He’d walk in and hit the piano. Maybe he didn’t know how to play it, but he could feel it out, and he and his grandmother would do a duet on the piano.”
“I remember years ago we would sit at the piano and he would write songs,” his grandmother said. “After we got through eating, I’d come in there and say, ‘Paul, that’s pretty, who wrote it?’ And, he would say, ‘I wrote that, grandmother.’ As he went on, I’d say ‘Paul, you sound like Rod Stewart’ and I love Rod Stewart. ‘Maggie May’ is my favorite song.’ ”
Practically everybody who has ever met McDonald talks about his fun personality – and his white teeth, of course. The Spratlings have seen that for most of their grandson’s 26 years.
“Let me tell you a funny story,” his grandfather said. “We went to President Jimmy Carter’s Sunday School class (in Plains, Ga.), and while we were waiting for the president to come out – this is a small, Baptist church – Paul was working the crowd. He was about 16 or so then.”
“We always said, ‘We think Paul is special and a gift,’ but we didn’t know if anybody else knew it,” his grandmother said.
Now they do.
