It’s a Monday morning in Paducah, and as the sun is rising, so is a group of men. As they dress, they are already anticipating what they’ll talk about today. They gather their lawn chairs and their pop-up tables, and they head out.
Because when the sun comes up each day, these men will start arriving at Hardee’s restaurant in Lone Oak for their morning fellowship. It’s been like this now for at least a decade, with folks coming and going, sharing breakfast and their opinions on current events and politics, and catching up on how their families are all faring.
When the COVID-19 pandemic began in the spring, the local Hardee’s that had served as the meeting place for this group for so long was forced to close their dining room.
It could have been the end of their mornings together.
But this is a group of guys with lifetimes of knowledge and ingenuity between them. They were simply not going to let this obstacle stop them from the time they enjoy so much together.
“When COVID hit, we decided just to tailgate,” says Jeff Estes, a longtime breakfast group member and a retired electrician.
“We made sure it was okay with the manager, and then we just started going through the drive thru to get our food and sitting in our cars and trucks, talking through the windows.”
“When the weather got better, we decided to bring some chairs and sit outside.”
Now, on any given day, there may be up to 20 people social distancing on the parking lot of Hardee’s, sharing their mornings and the talk of the day.
“We’re a bunch of old, retired guys from all stages,” Jeff says.
“We have real wealthy people, we have guys like me who worked their whole life, and we have some that are still working.”
“Most of the time, we talk about work, current events, COVID, our families, and politics.”
Michael Kaufman, a recently retired law enforcement officer, believes the group is made more interesting by their diverse backgrounds.
“Every one of us is from a different walk of life,” he says.
“I’m a retired cop; we have former pipefitters, construction workers, and farmers.”
“The number of years of experience we have is amazing. The knowledge is what really amazes me. There’s a lot of intelligent people there.”
It’s knowledge and intelligence that both men say comes in handy for their discussions.
“We try to get every world problem solved before we leave each day,” Jeff says.
Since both Jeff and Michael are retired, they value the social outlet that the group provides.
“Most of the guys have worked all their lives and are used to getting up early,” Jeff says.
“For many of them, it’s the only social activity they get in a day because they don’t have friends to go out and eat with like they did when they were working.”
“We can’t sit at home and talk to people on the telephone because that’s just one person, and most of the time, we’re getting one-sided news on the television,” he says.
“It’s good to get out and see what other people think and get a feel for how the world is actually going.”
“To isolate people is not good,” Michael agrees.
“You’ve got to have social contact to keep your mind sharp, and I think a way that we can stay sharp is to communicate with each other.”
While the pandemic has closed many channels of interaction, Michael and Jeff believe this group has drawn closer.
“All the guys bring their fruits and vegetables from their gardens and we share those around,” Jeff says.
“There’s a 92-year-old guy there; he still drives, and he comes and eats breakfast with us. We all look out for each other and help each other in and out of our vehicles if we need it.”
“We’ve become a close-knit family, just a bunch of guys getting together to talk about everything,” Michael says.
“We enjoy each other. That’s what it’s all about.”
Since the group has moved outside, the increased exposure has yielded some surprising growth and opportunity to meet new people.
Not only is the group visible to passersby because of their lawn chairs and tables, but with Michael’s help, they proudly display their patriotism for all to see each day.
“The flag means a lot to many of us,” Michael says, noting that he brings five different flags for the group each day.
“It’s just a patriotic thing for us to do.”
“We are trying to do our share of bringing this country back together.”
The flags and the tailgate atmosphere have been enough to attract new people to join in on the morning visits, some long-term and others just for a short time.
“We’ve had people from Nashville who were passing through, and some ladies joined us recently and asked if they could come back again,” Michael says.
“We welcome anyone. You get to know people real quick in this group.”
When tomorrow dawns, very little will be certain in life. But one thing very nearly will.
The men and women who gather at Hardee’s will still be rising to meet their days together, talking about what has happened in the world, sharing news of their children and grandchildren, and sharing the food they’ve grown themselves. And they’ll still sit surrounded by evidence of their immense patriotism.
“It’s an exciting two hours for me every day,” Michael says.
“I look forward to it. We all do.”
