Mr. James Marvin Greer's Obituary
Funeral Service for James Marvin “Big Daddy” Greer, 91, of Dadeville, Alabama, will be Thursday, July 12, 2018 at 3:00 pm at the Calvary Baptist Church. Rev. Johnny Pritchard and Rev. Dennis Floyd will officiate. Burial will follow in the Dadeville City Cemetery. The family will receive friends on Thursday, July 12, 2018 from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm at Calvary Baptist Church.
James Marvin Greer passed away Monday, July 9, 2018 after living a full and rewarding life of more than nine decades -- a time still much too short for those who loved him and miss him.
Marvin passed away peacefully in his home, with his beloved wife Lily Mae at his side. Marvin and Lily Mae were part of each other’s life since they attended first grade together at Dadeville Elementary. They would have celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary this Fall on October 9.
Marvin’s passing is mourned by his family and friends who knew him as a courageous, generous and honest man with a fantastic sense of humor. He lived a good life of service to God, his Country, his church, his community, and his family.
Born on June 7, 1927 in Fairfax, Alabama, Marvin called Dadeville his home from the time he moved here at age 6 until his death at 91 years of age. From his earliest childhood, Marvin was a hard working and dedicated person. As a boy as young as eight years old, he took responsibility for plowing fields and taking corn to the grist mill on the back of an ox. He left school when he was 17 to work full time as a carpenter and joined the Navy in 1945, serving in the Philippines. After his return, he and his brothers opened two successful grocery stores in Dadeville. Marvin used his carpentry skills to build a “rolling store” and he drove all through the back roads of Tallapoosa County, bringing groceries to the rural people, many of whom didn’t have vehicles or convenient ways to get to town.
It was during this time that Marvin and Lily Mae fell in love. Lily Mae claims she can’t remember the details, but more than 70 years later the events were still clear to Marvin. He recalled getting a shoe shine downtown when he saw a pretty girl walk past him. He liked the way she looked and the way she walked, so he followed her into the movie theatre and sat behind her. The rest was a blur for them both. In October of 1948, Lily Mae and Marvin were married in the backyard of a rented house on the Mill Village and had lived their married life together as part of the Mill Village and Calvary Baptist Church community ever since. In 1954, when their daughter Charlotte was three years old, they bought their first and only home on Hatcher Street and looked toward a bright future.
But despite being so happy with their young family, an easy life was not meant for them. Just when the grocery business was becoming successful, Marvin had to give it up because of increasing complications from multiple sclerosis. By 1953, he was confined to a wheelchair with complete paralysis from the waist down. At that time, the diagnosis was a death sentence. He was just in his mid-twenties, with a young child and a promising career when the doctors told him that he would probably become an invalid who wouldn’t live to see 30. Always the fighters, Marvin and Lily Mae refused to give up.
With so few jobs available to a disabled person at that time, Marvin decided to run for tax collector of Tallapoosa County. Marvin thought his chances of winning were slim -- he wasn’t wealthy or well connected. But he had the support of the rural people who knew him so well from his rolling store. They rallied around him and elected him to serve two terms as tax collector from 1955-67. Marvin quickly taught himself everything he needed to know to do the job well. He was the youngest tax collector in the state and the first to get his accounts in every year, always perfectly balanced. The voters of Tallapoosa County got a two-for-one because Lily Mae was right by his side the whole way, serving as his unpaid assistant and making sure Marvin was healthy and successful.
Although he had been officially “retired” since the late 1960s, Marvin never stopped working or learning. Marvin farmed as a hobby and kept a large home garden until he was well into his 80s. He also pursued his great love for checkers, teaching himself the winning secrets and practicing in all his spare time. At age 91, he unofficially ranked as a “master” player through his favorite online checkers organization. He was happily playing checkers the morning he died.
Marvin also served as a deacon at Calvary Baptist church for more than 60 years. In his later years, many people in the church and community were inspired by the site of Marvin riding his wheelchair from his home to his church on Sunday mornings. He first attended the church with his family when he was just six years old, and he was faithfully there in church the day before he died.
Marvin, affectionately known as Big Daddy by his granddaughters and great-grandsons, was loved by his family, friends, community and all who know him. He leaves behind his wife of 70 years, Lily Mae Greer; grandchildren, Misty Speake (Ferrol Blackmon) and Nikki Speake; great-grandchildren, Rawson Blackmon and Grady Bleu Blackmon; and a brother, Martin Greer (Elizabeth).
He was preceded in death by his daughter, Charlotte Speake; father, W.B. Greer; mother, Mae Jule Martin Greer; sister, Dot LeVan; brothers, Robert Greer, Banks Greer, and Clyde Greer.
Memorial messages may be sent to the family at www.langleyfuneralhome.com.
Langley Funeral Home is in charge of the arrangements.
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