Video: Friends Of ‘Big Jack’ Remember His Humor And Concern For Others

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TUPELO, MISS. (WCBI) – People across our region are mourning the passing of Jack Reed Senior.
Those who knew him say he had a passion people, a love of learning and the
desire and determination to improve the community he called home.

“Well, I’m a Yankee and my first impression of Jack Reed was, I was very
impressed with him,” said Dick Hill, who first met Jack Reed, Sr.  in the late 1950s, when his family
opened a Western Auto store, right across from Reed’s Department Store. Hill
soon became a regular member of the “Coffee Club.”

“The group was made up primarily of downtown businessmen, there were a lot
of professionals, we had a lot of politicians, city aldermen, city
councilmen, mayors would come by,” Hill recalled.

For years the Coffee Club met at the former TKE Drugstore. Now, Coffee
Clubbers gather at Cafe 212. Hill says many folks have a perception that
politics were discussed and policies determined over coffee, but he says
that was never the case.

“We were just an ordinary coffee group that got together, enjoyed one
another, talked about old times, what the family was doing, kids, grandkids,
things like that,” he said.

But there was a game, played nearly everyday by regulars.

“We played a numbers game and the loser would have to buy coffee for the
group. One member of the group picked a number between 1 and 1,000,
wrote it down on a piece of paper, didn’t let anybody else see it. You would
go around and take each, take a turn, picking a number, it would narrow
down, and if you hit the number, you had to buy the coffee,” Hill said.

At Reed’s downtown store, Clyde Biddle is on the job. The chief financial
officer was hired by Jack Senior 41 years ago.

Biddle says he can’t imagine working anywhere else and says the Reeds care
about each employee.

“My wife had MS and she was in a nursing home for 15 years, they allowed me,
to go home when I needed to, never questioned when I needed to go home and
you can’t find that anywhere else,” Biddle said.

As a businesswoman and member of the Junior Auxiliary of Tupelo, Trentice
Imbler says she was blessed to know Mr. Reed.

“Mr. Jack, Iam so thankful our paths crossed in life. I’m thankful for the father and husband you have been and I just thank you
for loving so many of us and loving this community, rest in peace my friend,” Imbler said.

Friends of Jack Reed Senior say he truly enjoyed making a positive
difference in the community and throughout the state.