Louise Spivey still remembers the day Tom Maynor was introduced to her at the Canton Chamber of Commerce in 1964.

“Our executive director had retired, and I hadn’t had a boss for a few months,” she recalled. “As secretary of the chamber of commerce, I knew the board had hired someone, but this day, I had this nice man walk up to my desk and say, ‘Tell me everything I need to know about Canton,’ I started spouting off everything I knew. Then, all of a sudden, he started smiling, and I knew that was my new boss.”

“He was awesome, such a joyful person,” she adds.

Spivey also describes the day she and Velma Taylor, a Madison County resident, discussed the need for something positive in their community – a tourist attraction for the town. The two decided to hang the artwork of about a dozen local female artists on the fence surrounding the courthouse to draw attention to the square.

The ladies sold everything they had painted that day, and by the time Tom Maynor and his wife Ann moved to Meridian in August of 1968, The Canton Flea Market was well on its way to becoming the big event it is today.

“They told him it wouldn’t work, but he was so pleased when it did,” Ann Maynor said.

“That’s just one example of how Tom’s perseverance,” she added. “When he saw a need, he was determined to fill it.”

Mr. Maynor passed away on Aug. 16 in the presence of his family. Services were held , Aug. 21 at First Presbyterian Church with The Rev. Rhett Payne officiating.

‘At the time, Meridian had no such group’

Mr. Maynor joined the Mississippi Industrial Foundation as an economic developer. In 1977, Maynor started his long banking career going to work for Merchant and Farmers Bank, which later became Deposit Guaranty, then First American, then AmSouth Bank.

In 1993, at the age of 53, Mr. Maynor suffered a stroke. Through a slow recovery at Methodist Rehabilitation Center in Jackson, he regained skills and learned to adjust to his new life, especially not using his left arm.

“After Tom stayed a month at the Methodist Rehabilitation Center in Jackson, they dismissed him, telling him to go home and find a stroke support group,” Ann Maynor says. “At the time, Meridian had no such group.”

After leaving rehab, Mr. Maynor came home and started the Meridian Stroke Support and Education Group, convincing the chief executive officer of then-Riley Hospital to be a sponsor. More than 25 years later, the group still provides stroke survivors and their caregivers with emotional support and understanding.

In 2002, this inpatient rehabilitation center, now located at Anderson Regional Medical Center’s South Campus, was named in honor of Mr. Maynor for his work with stroke survivors.

The Tom C. Maynor Rehabilitation Center is recognized all over for its intensive rehabilitation and 24-hour care. In addition, the center excels in helping patients achieve maximum function, exceeding national benchmarks on multiple measures.

Katherine Bryant, a national advocacy consultant for the American Heart Association, was AHA Government Relations Director for Mississippi from 2008-2019. She explains that Mr. Maynor worked as a volunteer with the American Heart Association long before 2008.

“He and Ann were advocates that represented the state at AHA national lobby days in Washington, D.C.,” she said. “They advocated for increased funding for the National Institutes of health and better care for stroke survivors and their caregivers for many years. Tom Maynor understood policy and what was necessary for policy change. But, more importantly, he understood the strength of his story and his experience and how sharing that was necessary for the fight to make our state healthier and to improve the quality of stroke care for Mississippians.”

“Mr. Maynor was a true gentleman, scholar, business leader, a man of profound faith and champion of those with physical and neurological infirmities,” Anderson Regional Medical Center said in a statement. “He gave unselfishly and unsparingly of his time, energy, knowledge, and leadership to everyone he encountered.”

Although he dealt with the stroke at an early age, Maynor returned to work following his rehabilitation. Six years later, he tried to retire from the bank, but he soon found himself back at work for First State Bank until he officially retired in 2017.

‘You never forget when you meet a legend’

Wade Sims, past president of the Rotary Club of Meridian, says his friend will be sorely missed.

“He was one of our most loyal and consistent members,” Sims said. “He loved telling his stories on request. With both hands pressed firmly on the podium and absolutely no notes, he would have the entire club laughing at his well-rehearsed stories.”

Rhett Payne, the pastor of First Presbyterian Church, described Mr. Maynor as a “fallen oak.”

“You never forget when you meet a legend, and the world is richer for his presence.” Payne said, describing Mr. Maynor’s impact on the church. “Not only was he a faithful member, but he also served as an elder and was given the distinctive recognition of Elder Emeritus for his 40 years of devotion.

Mr. Maynor was known for calling every single church member on their birthdays, recalled Marc Ransier.

“I will certainly miss those birthday calls,” Ransier said. “He was a prince of a man who is now in the presence of his king.”

Susan Whitehead, another church member, talked about the “birthday man” and his calls, but she also remarked what a kind and thoughtful person Tom Maynor was.

“He was a man of many hats, and if he was your friend, he was your friend for life,” she said. “He was always concentrating on the person to whom he was talking. He was a man of grace and patience. I have sat behind him on many Sunday mornings, and I loved to hear his ‘amen’ when the choir would sing, or someone would speak.”

‘He was a wonderful friend’

Mr. Maynor’s group of friends, The Lacy Bottom Marching and Chowder Society will miss their roundtable meetings at Weidmann’s Restaurant on Fridays.

What began as a group of 15 community leaders meeting for lunch soon evolved into a tradition that lasted for more than 40 years.

Wink Glover, one of the oldest members of the group, chuckles as he recalls Mr. Maynor when he created “membership cards” for the men, signing the cards himself and adding the signature of an imaginary secretary, Bo Derek.

“He was a wonderful friend; there was always laughter when we were with Tom,” Glover said. “He loved to regale us with his stories. He was a good man.” 

Perhaps, Mr. Maynor’s favorite story was the one he told on his birthday, called “It Started with a Yes!”

Here, he told the story of attending Belhaven College and meeting a cute young freshman named Ann Mangum, a fellow student from Waynesboro.

The young Maynor followed her to the middle of campus and asked her to go to the state fair with him. As he later recalled, “She said ‘yes,’ and 60 years later, here we are!”

The Maynors’ children, David, Carroll Ann, John, and Alice, along with ten grandchildren, can attest to their father and grandfather’s loving presence.

“He lived and walked by faith,” Alice Derrick posted on her Facebook page. “He helped so many people in so many ways.”