End of an era: Priest brothers set to shut down Sasser gas station

SASSER – Before October comes to an end, the opportunity to pull into the J&P Service Center here will have become a thing of the past.

Since 1959 residents of Sasser and travelers on State Highway 82 have pulled into the full-service station on the south side of the road. And while few drivers under a certain age today have had the opportunity to take advantage of a full-service gas station experience, those who have gotten their tanks filled at the J&P pumps understand the concept all too well.

The moment you pulled up to the pumps, Johnny or Paul Priest have been there to greet you with a smile and ask what you need. They pumped your gas, checked your oil and tires, and cleaned your windshield.

Needed a cold drink, candy bar, snack? Got a flat tire, bad battery, or loose fan belt? They’ve always had you covered. Heading to your hunting camp and need a few items for repairs? Need a shovel, axe, or mower blade? Problems with your mower, tiller or generator? The Priest brothers have, for decades, been your go-to guys.

For more than 40 years the brothers have been taking care of customers at the Service Center. Both started working there after school and ending up buying the business form K.W. Anthony in 1984.

“We’ve both worked here most of our lives,” Paul Priest said. “It’s been a journey and it’s blessed us. We’ve survived this long. It’s just time to give it up.

“For 37 years, we’ve worked 60 hours a week. In the beginning we had payments to make, so a lot of times we put in 70 to 80 hours a week. We had payments to make and we needed the money. Not saying I’m rich now, but when you owe the bank every month, you need the money to pay ‘em. That’s the way I was brought up. If you owe somebody, you pay ‘em back. Back then a handshake meant something. This day and time it’s a little different.”

As the brothers prepare to close their landmark station, they will be one of the few businesses that operated entirely on a paper account ledger system. A green book of paper account ledgers sits between the cash register and the credit card scanner in the station. Customers settled their accounts on a monthly basis.

“That’s the way old towns always operated,” John Priest said. “All that went away; everything’s debit or credit cards now. This younger generation can’t come in here and buy a drink without putting it on a debit card. I guess I’m from the old school; I like to have a little money in my pocket.

“Credit card machines can go down, and we can’t accept it. Ours goes down every now and then. Several times, out-of-town people will come by, and we put gas in their car. They hand me their credit card and I come in here to run it and it’s down. They didn’t have money. Some will end up paying later. We give ‘em a name and an address, and they mail me a check back. Some don’t. But I done my part and let ‘em go on down the road. Computers are fine, but pencil and paper always works.”

The brothers are currently selling off the tools of their trade and any inventory remaining at the Service Center. Standing in front of the station looking across the highway, John Priest reflects on the changes the decades have brought to Sasser.

“When I was little boy, there was a cotton gin where the water tank is,” he said. “I remember bringing cotton there as a little bitty boy. There was a peanut place down there. They tore most of that down years ago. Across the road, there were two other service stations. They’re gone now. This was two lanes when I was a boy.

“Over the years, local people supported us through thick and thin and kept us in business. We appreciate that.”

Staff Photos: Tom SeegmuellerStaff Photo: Tom Seegmueller

Staff Photo: Tom Seegmueller