Nov. 22, 1938 - Sept.14, 2018
Grady was a monster. Ridiculous, right? If you believed all the stories my Qik-n-EZ managers told, you were left with no other choice but to reckon he was a real bear. It seemed as if anytime they wanted something done a certain way, came up with a new rule or just wanted to strike fear into someone, it was because of Grady. If I had a dime for every time I heard that Grady would walk in the doors of his stores and, if one thing was amiss, you were going to get a tongue lashing or worse, I could have bought the Toronto Road store! The stories were exacerbated by the fact that in my first three years at the Toronto Road location, I never met him.
By 2009, I was working at the Chatham and Monroe location. One morning, around 4 a.m., the store was spotless, but there was a mess where I was standing, making a double load of popcorn and transferring it into heaps of corn. I had the music going a little loud and I was startled by a senior citizen who must have walked into the store like the phantom. He was tall, athletic and had a huge smile. I said, “Good morning sir. Pardon the mess. What can I do for you?” He smiled bigger, waved off the mess and said, “I am Grady Chronister.” Trust me when I say his smile was genuine and disarming. In my boldness I replied, “Grady. The Grady. I expected you to walk in with a loudspeaker and a bull whip!” I couldn’t help it. For three years I had been told that Grady had a brilliant mind, a keen eye for details and accepted no excuses, especially as it pertained to getting it right for the customer. But, that morning, I made him laugh!
Let me tell you about the Grady Chronister I grew to know. He was a marketing and retail genius. He was tireless and gave 100 percent and, though he was kind and respectful to all, he gravitated towards others who gave 100 percent. He most certainly wasn’t shy about getting on you to make something right. He sometimes had crazy ideas that may have been secretly scoffed at, until you realized those ideas worked! He made it a mandate to hire people from all backgrounds and histories and promoted them as well. He introduced himself to any employee he didn’t know, purchased items from his own stores and always paid full price, even for coffee and fountain drinks. He was also hardcore about getting the fuel prices where they needed to be and ensuring the layouts of the stores were refreshed and customer-friendly. Oh, and like I said before, he paid attention to details.
But, there was even more to Grady. During the nine years I knew him, most of our conversations were more personal than about work. Grady was also an “eye contact” guy and remembered previous conversations, so you know it’s genuine. If I asked him about his wife or kids, he always had an interesting update. Remember the blizzard of February 2011? It was Grady and his Isuzu Trooper offering employees rides to and from work all night. Grady has given money to managers and employees in financial distress. In November 2016, when I was off work because of major surgery, he gave me the best Christmas bonus I have ever received. He truly appreciated people. One time I had a fairly major dispute with a boss, and even though I never took disputes above the manager level, it somehow made it up the chain. Grady must have believed I was right and the manager was in error, because I got an apology, and the manager got a few days to “think it over.”
Qik-n-EZ has been my second, and sometimes main job, for 12 years. Whenever I get frustrated, feel unappreciated or genuinely tired of the people I work with, I take my talents to another QE location. But more truthfully, I just remember Grady’s commitment to me and it makes everything all right.
On Friday, Sept. 14, 2018, two days before my birthday, I walked into the Toronto Road store in great spirits and was immediately informed by my co-worker, Matt, that Grady Chronister had died. I stayed composed, waited for a break in the stream of customers and then stole a few moments outside at the back of the store and I cried. You see, I didn’t love, cherish and respect Grady Chronister because he was the owner. I loved him because he freaking rocked! The world doesn’t have enough genuine rock stars and we just lost one.
Submitted by AJ Woodson
