LEXINGTON, Ky. (FOX 56) – It might sound out of the ordinary to have your birthday party at a Home Depot, but not if you’re Jim Greenup.
Greenup has been walking the halls where doers get more done on Harrodsburg Road for more than 30 years.
Jason Thomas, the store manager at Home Depot on Harrodsburg Road said, “To hear the stories, where else are you going to hear that these days? You’re not and so for our kids, especially we have 16 and 17-year-olds that work for us that have gotten to know Jim. Not too many people get the opportunity to meet someone from WWII.”
The staff has thrown Greenup a party for the last six years. He said he never thought he’d live to age 96, but he’s so glad he did, and he’ll never forget the day he started exercising at the store.
“Well, I was walking at the Turfland Mall until they tore it down, and there’s no place else to walk. I didn’t want to go to Fayette Mall, so I was in the neighborhood and thought, I’ll stick it out here,” said Greenup.
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His biggest accomplishments in life are being married for 75 years and volunteering to serve on a submarine in the Pacific during World War II at the age of 17.
“I wouldn’t give up the experience for nothing. I thought I learned stuff in school, but it taught me more by being in the service, said Greenup. He met his wife Charlie, when she was 8 years old. He said it just kind of happened, they were together all the time and when he got back from his first deployment, they got married after she graduated high school,” Greenup said.
Greenup remembers asking his day to sign to buy him a car or to go to the Navy. Sitting at the dinner table, his dad said you’ll probably live longer if you serve our country.
He is now proving that his dad was right.
“It’s the best birthday party I’ve ever had. I mean, it was amazing. I wasn’t expecting this, but I never will forget it, that’s for sure,” said Greenup.