‘Greatest Memphian of all time': Former mayor reflects on relationship with Fred Smith
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Former Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland is reflecting on his time spent with FedEx founder Fred Smith, who died on Saturday.
Strickland, a two-term mayor of the city, interacted with Smith often and on various projects.
'Such a unique, remarkable person that we've been blessed to have here in Memphis,' Strickland said. 'One of the honors I had as being mayor was getting to interact with Fred on a fairly regular basis.'
Strickland says while he's shocked and saddened by his passing, he reflects on the business titan's remarkable impact.
'He is absolutely the greatest Memphian of all time,' Strickland said. 'I mean, think about 30,000 people in this area who work for FedEx. It's the largest private employer in the state. I remember when I would go to Mayor's conferences and we would talk about big employers. Thirty thousand is beyond belief for one city and one area, and he's allowed generations of Memphians to live the American dream.'
City leaders offer condolences following Fred Smith's death
Smith did so while also giving back.
'From the FedEx Forum to the FedEx Institute at the University of Memphis, every good thing in Memphis for 40 or 50 years involves him or his family or somebody at FedEx,' Strickland said.
But his influence includes more than just donations to countless groups.
'And then on just a personal level, advising and mentoring so many people at FedEx and outside of FedEx, I took his advice all the time,' Strickland said. 'I remember I asked his advice on economic development, and he told me, 'Take care of your meds and eds,' meaning you're higher education facilities and you're medical facilities because they're going to be here for you. I put that into practice, and St. Jude wanted to expand, and they needed $25 million to greatly improve the sewer system down there in the Pinch [district]. We signed onto that immediately.'
Strickland offers his advice to continue Fred Smith's legacy.
'Strive to be the best you can be, because he did and he achieved greatness. Now we may not be able to achieve or equal his greatness for sure, but we can be inspired to do our best, in our profession, in our education, in our personal lives, and as a community, engaged in our community. He excelled in all those areas,' Strickland said.
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