BRIDGE CITY — 58-year-old Jesse Darrel Gregg of Orange was struck by a Dodge truck traveling northbound on Highway 87, near State Highway 62 Wednesday morning. Gregg was crossing the highway in Orange County just north of Bridge City when he was hit. He was pronounced dead on the scene.
Harry Goleman got to know Gregg through Winfree Baptist Church, where they both attended. He said Gregg was someone lots of people in town noticed, whether it be riding his bike around or playing his guitar on the side of the road.
Goleman said if you let him, Gregg would talk, and he had an opinion on everything. Gregg didn't have much, but Goleman said he always made the most of what he had.
"If you open your heart to people, you learn more about them," said Goleman.
Not many people got to know Gregg, but Amy Burris-Smith said he made a huge impact on her life when he walked into her store four years ago.
"You know, he had a scruffy beard and everything and you might've just kept on walking by and not even given him a minute of time, but when you got to know him he had a heart of gold," said Burris-Smith.
Burris-Smith said although Gregg didn't have a lot of money, he'd spend what he had to buy her lunch. When she got married, Gregg couldn't afford a gift but he wrote her a song and played it for her. She said that gift meant more to her than anything money could buy.
Burris-Smith said Gregg loved to play his guitar, and loved learning new songs. She said he knew a little bit about everything, and would sit and talk with her for hours.
"I'm glad I took the time to know him because I'm a better person for it," said Burris-Smith.
Burris-Smith said when she heard the news of his passing it hurt in a different way, because he didn't have a lot of people. She went on to say that it opened her eyes to the number of people we simply pass by that, given the chance, could've made a true impact on our lives, like Gregg did in hers.
"I'm glad that I stopped and gave Jesse a chance, and I'm glad he gave me the chance, I hope it made us both better people for it," said Burris-Smith.