By DAISY WASHINGTON / Community Columnist

Utah native Clem Muck said he has “lived all over the country and Alabama is the best.”

He and Alice, his wife of 53 years, followed their daughter Monica and son-in-law Doug to Alabama in 2000.

Monica, Doug and their seven children settled in Alabaster, while Clem purchased a home in Calera.

Having worked for some of the major manufacturers in the cosmetic industry such as Max Factor and Revlon, Clem retired from corporate America and eventually became an entrepreneur.

A member of the Columbiana Ward of the Latter Day Saints (LDS), in 2002 he started his own business, Choose the Right (CTR) Bikes which he operates from his home office.

Having sold 12,500 bicycles over the past 15 years, (CTR) Bikes is the only national supplier (the others being local) and largest supplier of bicycles for the Latter Day Saints missionaries.

Clem, who turned 80 years old in May, has no plans of slowing down his pace.

He is involved in a host of activities and projects, which he says “keeps me active and busy.”

“The idea of retirement to me means the beginning of the painful walk to the grave,” Clem said. “Volunteering is a deterrent to that journey, and it is my full intention to keep volunteering for at least another 10-15 years. I volunteer to help those with needs and to fulfill my responsibility to use my skills to help others.”

Clem Muck has been an RSVP member since 2013 and has logged more than 6,000 hours as a volunteer. He is a Gold recipient of the Presidential Volunteer Service Award, and the RSVP Spirit Award, State of Alabama’s Golden Eagle Lifetime Achievement Award by the Senior Citizen’s Hall of Fame and the Sons of the American Revolution Certificate of Appreciation.

Clem is a board member of Thompson High School’s Skilled, Knowledgeable Youth (SKY) program.

SKY helps students develop a business plan for the tandem bicycle project developed by the Engineering Academy at the high school.

He is a retired board member of Shelby County Historical Association.

The Association is dedicated to the discovery, collection and preservation of things related to the history of Shelby County.

Clem works with the charity Acts of Kindness, which finds jobs for Holy Family Christo High School’s students and provides clothes for the needy.

He is the organizer of Memorial Day traffic at Alabama National Cemetery, and was responsible for the refurbishing of Columbiana City Cemetery.