Born in Soddy-Daisy in 1928, Gene Elliott has been a force within the Soddy-Daisy community for nearly a century. He ran the Soddy Feed Store for 20 years, was Mayor of Soddy-Daisy for 6 years, and served as  Commissioner for 12 years. Yet, to talk to him, you’d never know he was one of the most accomplished citizens in town—Gene is a gentle soul who exudes a kindness that belies the breadth of his achievements. “On my first day running the Soddy Feed Store, guess how much we made—64 cents!” Gene said when asked about starting his business.

Before opening the feed store, Gene served in the military, where he was trained in radar school. He was deployed to Turkey where he searched the airwaves for Russian missile transmissions. Of his time in Turkey, Gene said with a laugh, “I bet I’m the only person in Soddy-Daisy to swim in the Black Sea!”

After his time in the service, Gene returned to Tennessee and earned his Master’s of Education from Vanderbilt University and taught Chemistry and Physics in Soddy-Daisy for 6 years. “Teaching wasn’t for me,” Gene said, “I decided it was time for a change.”

When his time in the classroom ended, Gene opened the Soddy-Daisy Feed Store, which he ran for 25 years before his retirement. When asked about his interests away from his career, he said “well, my weaknesses are rabbit hunting, crow hunting, and the bottle collection.”

Since the 70’s, Gene has collected glass bottles. The majority of them were bottled by Coca-Cola, but Gene has bottles of all makes. One of the jewels of the collection is a bottle from the original Soddy Bottling Company. Of this bottle, Gene said “you probably don’t see many of these around any more.”

Since his retirement, Gene spends most of his time at home—on property that has been in his family for generations. “This land has been in my family for 200 years,” Gene said of his home, “and the original house that still stands is nearly 100 years old.”

Gene has two sons, Sam and Jeff, and was married to his wife, Ruth Davis, for 60 years before she passed. When asked why he was proud to be from Soddy-Daisy, Gene said “because I was born here, and I know everyone here—it’s a great place!”