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Michelle was left in shock. \u201cBut I\u2019ve never known PawPaw to drink,\u201d she had replied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Decades later, on March 29, 2024, Michelle, the granddaughter of Willie B. Davis, married Chad, the grandson of B.H. Sanders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOur family has really gotten a good laugh from this story that Chad\u2019s granddaddy brought moonshine to my pawpaw while he was in the hospital. I called my uncle, Danny Ray Davis, to get his version, and he remembers it well,\u201d Michelle said. “B.H. knew Willie B. was a moonshine man \u2014 as did most \u2014 however, they had mounds of respect for each other. I guess at some point, they just agreed to disagree on some things. We could all learn a lot from that \u2014 respect and forgiveness take you far in life with others.\u201d Willie B. was born in Rutherford County in 1907, and his family moved to Shelbyville soon after. By the time Michelle came along, her beloved PawPaw was a changed man. He died in January<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Michelle said, \u201cHe initially had a stroke, but he had emphysema, which eventually took him home to the Lord, where he longed to be. He was a loving and Godly man. He walked down the aisle with me at a church revival when I was 12 because I wanted to be saved. His love for the Lord and his family has always been an example to me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to local history ledgers, the Sanders family moved to the area around B.H. was born in 1923. He served as a tank driver during World War II before becoming a \u201cbody shop man.\u201d He died of lung disease in October 1984.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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\u201cMy granddaddy used to call me \u2018Rooster\u2019 because I would get up so early,\u201d Chad recalled. \u201cHe had a lot of patience when dealing with me as a kid. He was very laid-back, patient, and kind. I don\u2019t think I ever heard him raise his voice. I watched how he was with my grandmother. If I can be half the man he was, I have accomplished something.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chad isn\u2019t just following in his granddaddy\u2019s footsteps, but in his father\u2019s as well. He is a third-generation \u201cbody man\u201d and owner of Sanders Family Body Shop at 1683 Madison St.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He said, \u201cAvery, my dad ran the body shop at Cannon Chevrolet, just like my granddaddy did. Later, my dad opened his own body shop, and I began working there when I was 11 years old. A lot of the Sanders men did body shop work. It\u2019s what I\u2019ve known my whole life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Although Chad and Michelle attended high school together, when their paths crossed years later, Michelle said it was \u201cperfect timing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cGod certainly knew we needed each other,\u201d she said. \u201cWe are best friends, and God certainly blessed us. We have five children \u2014 two girls and three boys. We have seven grandchildren, one of whom was born just a year after we were married. We always try to celebrate birthdays, Christmas, and other milestones to stay connected. We also get to see our grandchildren on Sundays at church, and that itself is such a blessing.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n When it comes to staying in touch with extended family, the Sanders family decided a few years ago to make annual reunions a priority. They get together every Thanksgiving to share old black-and-white photos and to swap stories, such as the one about Sheriff Sanders delivering moonshine to Willie B. at the hospital. The Davis family gets together each Christmas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe hope that our families never forget where they came from,\u201d Michelle said. \u201cTry to learn your family history. Ask questions. Find out where you came from. Look at old pictures. You don\u2019t have to think or be just alike to get along or to like someone. We should learn to agree to disagree. We all need to find forgiveness in our daily lives and should always show love. Holding on to bitterness only hurts you in the long run, but forgiveness will release that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the end, B.H. Sanders and Willie B. Davis didn\u2019t see eye to eye on everything, but they didn\u2019t let that stand in the way. They chose respect. They chose friendship. And those choices have shaped two families for generations and helped kindle a love story that will last forever. GN<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u201cWhen your pawpaw, Willie B. Davis, was younger, he used to make moonshine.\u201d Michelle leaned closer, looking puzzled. \u201cAre you serious, Nanny?\u201d \u201cBack in them days, \u2018fore he worked at the highway department here in Bedford County, your pawpaw was what they used to call a \u2018dynamite man\u2019 for Tillett Brothers Construction. Well, one day […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":25213,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6,75],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25212","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-feature","category-shelbyville"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/shelbyville\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2026\/06\/3-3-1024x683.jpg\")