10/08/2026
Our Lala. And he really is all of ours.
Our history-maker. Our neighbor. Our community servant. Our friend. Our joyful smile-bearer who always reminded us, “It’s all good.”
He didn’t just say it. He meant it. He lived it. He insisted on it.
The world came to know and love our Lala in 2016 when alternative rock band MUTEMATH chose him as the subject of their music video for the song “Monument.” The video featured his home and a museum he built there that documents his life and beautiful love story with his beloved Louise, his wife of nearly 60 years. Soon after the video’s release, CBS News featured him in its “On The Road” series. Then came a trip to the Ellen DeGeneres Show. And the flood of both traditional and social media stories followed. It was all good.
Eventually, he made time for me on my little show on WCBI. ☺️ That’s where we took this photo.
But long before this – many decades - Lala was supporting me and other young people in Starkville. That’s part of his enduring legacy. He helped organize the Community Band, a group of middle and high school students in the Starkville School District band program. We’d meet for practice at Second Baptist Church on Saturdays, learning beautifully arranged hymns and Negro Spirituals. And then Lala and the other leaders would book us to play at churches, community events and nursing homes. We didn’t know it then, but he was teaching us to be community servants. It was all good.
But that’s not all. For years, he and Ms. Louise would host huge graduation celebrations in their backyard for seniors. This went on for many years – long past his own son’s celebration. And those parties were EVERYTHING. I remember going as a junior high student who couldn’t wait until my year! A special tradition of the party was having the seniors form a line - and one by one the graduates walked up to his gazebo to get a slice of cake. Mr Lala would serve the cake and say with that big bright smile say, “We wish you well.” It was all good.
Over the years, we enjoyed seeing that same big bright smile around town. He’d roller skate on the MSU campus. He drove the SMART Bus. He danced at weddings. Always the light and life in the room. And it was all good.
Our Lala’s legacy will live on. I personally will be forever grateful for his support, love and encouragement. We will miss him. We will cherish his memory. And no matter what’s swirling around us, we’ll remember his mantra.
So long, Lala. It’s all good.
