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Funeral Monday for Lewis Gardner, Founder of Crackerbox Food Stores

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Lewis M. Gardner Jr., who founded the Crackerbox Food Stores chain of convenience stores and sold it to Valero in 2012, died Dec. 22 at National Park Medical Center in Hot Springs. He was 71.

Born in Georgia, Gardner later lived in Monticello and Hot Springs. Nicknamed “Boss Hogg,” Gardner and his son, Lewis Ray, founded Crackerbox Food Stores in 1976, after agreeing to build a store in Wilmar for a friend who then backed out of running it.

By 2012, when they struck a deal with Valero Retail Holdings of San Antonio, Crackerbox operated 32 convenience stores from Russellville to Dermott with 285 employees. Gross revenue in 2011 of $246 million placed the company on Arkansas Business’ list of the state’s largest private companies.

Gardner also founded Screaming Eagle Transport, which was not sold with the stores.

His funeral is scheduled for 1 p.m. Monday at Stephenson-Dearman Funeral Home in Monticello. A full obituary is available on the website of Stephenson-Dearman Funeral Home of Monticello.

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