Jason Connolly

The side door of Montgomery Farm &#038; Garden opens and a chorus of jubilant voices greet the newest addition to the morning gathering. “Hello Shorty,” Bennie Gay, 68, announces as Boyd Van Winkle, 83, takes a seat amongst the group of five men assembled around the wood-burning stove. Both Bennie and Shorty, along with the other congregants, are self-proclaimed “loafers,” and coffee and conversation, brewed several times a morning, bring these locals to convene at the store daily.
Bud Montgomery, 47, and his father, Bradley, 69, purchased the store and opened the doors as Montgomery Farm &#038; Garden in 2005. It is here that locals, retirees, business owners, workers, politicians and even passers-by come together to discuss current events, world developments, and both local and national politics.
These visitors don’t become so serious, however, that they can’t enjoy a good laugh. For them, the store offers a place “to loaf, talk, kid and everything else,” says Bennie.
Faced with a decision to possibly tear down the store and replace it with a storage-unit facility, Bud chose to continue with the tradition of running a country-style general store. He pulls into the store lot at 8 a.m., and many days he finds a crowd awaiting his arrival. By 8:10 a.m., a fresh pot of Maxwell House coffee sits on the burner.
“If you walk into the store, you feel welcome, you feel wanted and the culture of the store is inviting. It’s good for the community; it’s good for those guys,” says Bud.

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