Close to Nowhere

Louis Greene had probably more character than just about anyone else in town. He could have been a character on television except no one would have believed the character.

I think my most prominent memory of Louis is one that many people share ­ Louis limping down the middle of a street hoping for a ride. He knew where everyone was going and when. He often hitched a ride (to his work) with Will and Patrick Carlton on their way to school in Memphis, Tenn.

Louis had a great love ­ a horse he kept at a city barn that used to be on West Street. He could always find a way to get to the horse shows at Shelbyville, Tenn. The late Dudley Moore Sr. showed horses at Shelbyville and Louis was a frequent attendee at those shows.

He loved City Cafe, and perhaps his best friends were Becky Cupp and Bea Green. He had breakfast every morning at City Cafe at the table in the back where all the "guys" gathered for breakfast, coffee and talk.

And he loved The South Reporter. There was rarely a day when he didn't shuffle in and ask "Have y'all heard..." He was the closest thing to a town crier since the Middle Ages. Nothing, good or bad, happened in town that Louis didn't know about and he had his regular route to distribute the news.

Every Wednesday morning he would wait, not very patiently, for the newspaper to come back from the printer. He filled his newspaper bag up and was on his way. He often made two or three trips back to the office for more papers to sell.

Perhaps the funniest story I've heard comes from Fred Carlisle. Fred picked Louis up one day on his way to Olive Branch (to get Louis to a job). Fred bought Louis breakfast and arranged to pay for his lunch. Louis told Fred all the local news on their way and when he ran out of news to talk about he just casually mentioned to Fred that "they say" Piggly Wiggly had better meat than Carlisle's Big Star (now Cash Saver). The Carlisles' store has always been wellknown for the quality of their meat. Fred still laughs today telling the story.

Louis had been in bad health for a long time and it's been several years since he made his rounds selling The South Reporter and telling all the news that wasn't fit to print.

Holly Springs is a lonelier town without its town crier.