02/21/2026
My team thought it would be best for me to share a little of my personal history with Aaron instead of writing something formal from the company socials, so I’m going to try to fit 20+ years of memories into this in a way that hopefully makes sense.
Aaron was larger than life in many ways, and it’s understandable that he has taken center stage in his passing the same way he did in life. While it’s appropriate to focus on Aaron here, we lost four amazing men last week, and I don’t want that to be overshadowed.
I first met Aaron when he and Lydia were living in a single-wide in Franklin. A mutual friend told me I had to meet him and took me over to his house. When we arrived, he was mowing the lawn in his usual white t-shirt and blue jeans. He was a youth pastor at a local church, and I was barely into my 20s, trying to find my way in life and not doing a great job of it. What I did not know that day was that Aaron would completely change the trajectory of my life.
I went on to lead worship in the youth group he pastored. He would always say, “I told them they could change the world, and they believed me.” I think he told people that his whole life, whether they were kids in a youth group or business owners trying to build something bigger than themselves.
I was there with a group of guys helping Aaron install the first lift in the barn. We had no idea what the future held. He was already an inspirational figure, but only God knew the impact he would one day have. That lift in that little barn would birth something incredible.
A few years later, Aaron had opened his second location in 100 Oaks and his manager quit about two weeks after opening. Not knowing that, I asked him how I could make more money. He took a chance on me and hired me to run the new shop. I had zero automotive experience and only a couple of years of management under my belt. I had no business running a shop. I do not think I fully grasped until much later how big of a chance he took on me and how much he believed in me.
Over the next four years, we took that shop to 2.5 million in annual revenue. More important than the numbers, he showed me what it looks like to believe in people before they believe in themselves.
Aaron was a hero, a mentor, and a friend, and he left an indelible mark on my life. I am forever changed by the man he was. I hope I spend the rest of my life telling people they can change the world the way he told me. The best way I know to honor him is to believe in people the way he believed in me.
