Dr. Jesse J. Lewis Sr., Birmingham Business Legend, Turns 100

By Barnett Wright | The Birmingham Times Birmingham business legend Dr. Jesse J. Lewis Sr., who turns 100 years old on January 3, 2025, is sitting quietly inside his Smithfield, Alabama, home talking about not what he’s accomplished over the past century but what’s ahead. “I haven’t done enough exercise, but I’m working on that,” he told The Birmingham Times in a nearly two-hour interview at the home he has lived in for nearly 50 years. “It’s not as easy as it used to be.” It’s all about stamina, Dr. Lewis said. “I’ve never been great. I’ve always been good. I’m average, but I do it good enough. Whatever I start, I do it good enough. Whatever it is I’m doing, I work at it hard. “I play golf with some guys that play like [world champions],” he continued. “I just beat them, but I beat them because I work at it and they don’t work at it. … I’m good at developing some stamina for whatever it is I have to do.” One thing Dr. Lewis hasn’t had the stamina—or patience—for is a 100th birthday party. His wife, Brenda, wants to throw one for him. He doesn’t want one....