Officials at Peach State Bank & Trust in Gainesville said Abit Massey had refused on several occasions to allow them to host an event in his honor, but they said they finally went against his wishes and held an appreciation day for him anyhow.
Massey, the President Emeritus of the Georgia Poultry Federation, told the dozens of people who showed up in downtown Gainesville Thursday night that he was glad they ignored him.
"Gratitude is the best attitude," said Massey. "I'm very grateful to all of you who came."
Massey peppered his speech to the crowd with humor.
"Several people asked me if I was retiring, and the answer is no. I didn't know exactly what to expect [tonight], but it was a little bit of a shock when I drove up tonight and saw a Memorial Park Funeral Home van," said Massey.
There was no need for Massey to worry. Jerry Ward with Memorial Park was there to cook dinner for the crowd - a chicken dinner, of course.
As part of the commemorative event, bank officials unveiled a bust of Massey, sculpted by Gregory Johnson of Cumming. The bust will be on permanent display at the Georgia Poultry Lab off Georgia 365 in northeast Hall County.
The sponsors for the Thursday night event were Peach State Bank, Mar Jac Poultry, Fieldale Farms, Tip Top Poultry, Ag Georgia Farm Credit, Tyson Foods and Wayne Farms.
