Stars gather in Montgomery to celebrate Greg Calhoun

Brad Harper
Montgomery Advertiser
Steve Harvey speaks at the funeral service of his friend Montgomery businessman and entrepreneur Greg Calhoun that is held at True Divine Baptist Church in Montgomery, Ala., on Friday October 19, 2018.

There was no funeral for Greg Calhoun.

Instead, TV stars, business leaders, politicians and preachers joined a crowd of hundreds at what was officially called a celebration. They sang, laughed and shared stories about the former south Montgomery bag boy who started his own chain of grocery stores across Alabama, then grew a national business empire.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. said Calhoun “took ill” Oct. 17 while playing golf in Los Angeles and soon lapsed into a coma. He died the next morning at age 66.

More:Montgomery businessman Greg Calhoun has died, family says

He owned Calhoun Foods, which operated in west Montgomery for more than 20 years, starting in 1984. At one point he owned 15 locations. He also founded Calhoun Enterprises and was involved in several other business ventures.

Jackson, a longtime friend and partner of Calhoun, described him as man who always “swung for the fences” with his ambitions, while helping others along the way. Jackson remembered a time that Calhoun was asked to caddy at a golf course in Montgomery, then pointed out that “he died playing golf in Beverly Hills, in the hospital where the stars die,” Jackson said.

People in the crowd stood to show that Calhoun once gave them jobs, or free groceries, or helped them in other ways.

“Judge Mathis” star Greg Mathis said those people dotting the overflow crowd at the True Divine Baptist Church ceremony are the true measure of Calhoun’s success, not his ranking among the nation’s richest black entrepreneurs.

“The evidence is in,” Mathis said. “The real value and worth of a person is how much they can contribute to society.”

Former Congressman Jesse Jackson Jr. talked about how much Calhoun loved Montgomery and how he wanted more for the city. He called for a separate Montgomery African-American Chamber of Commerce that would work with the existing Chamber, an idea he said Calhoun advocated.

Jesse Jackson attends the funeral service for Montgomery businessman and entrepreneur Greg Calhoun that is held at True Divine Baptist Church in Montgomery, Ala., on Friday October 19, 2018.

Entertainer Steve Harvey was a close friend and business partner of Calhoun’s for years. He traveled with Calhoun to the hospital last week and then sent his private jet to bring the family to Los Angeles when Calhoun’s condition worsened. Harvey struggled to speak at the pulpit Friday, his voice failing as the crowd urged him on.

“The reason I know he was great is because I’m looking at y’all in here today,” Harvey said. “What he was to me, I bet he was the same thing to a whole lot of you.”

Many of those in the crowd shared similar stories about Calhoun’s influence.

“He was a great example of what you can do with hard work and determination,” Tuskegee Mayor Lawrence Haygood said.

“I believe he was an inspiration to many, many young people,” west Montgomery developer Lee Willcoxon said.

Longtime state legislator John Knight said he worked with Calhoun for years to try to improve life for people in the area.

“I certainly hope that this will be a living example for young people to get involved, to really be involved in economic development in the business community, to make a difference,” Knight said.

Steve Harvey is overcome with emotion as he speaks during the funeral service for Montgomery businessman and entrepreneur Greg Calhoun that is held at True Divine Baptist Church in Montgomery, Ala., on Friday October 19, 2018.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. said most heroes get lifted on to the shoulders of the crowd when they accomplish something great, but that Calhoun was a different kind of hero.

“We’re on Greg’s shoulders,” he said.