February is Black History Month, and in celebration of its beginning we had the honor of sitting down with Eugene Miller of Miller Brothers Rib Shack. Gene’s Restaurant has been open on East Morris Street for 40 years, and for each one of them, he gives glory to God. It’s a privilege to share his story that starts in Dalton where he faced challenges as a young black man – including being chased up the street by rock-throwing kids while trying to walk home from school:
“If you look around during the springtime, you see colors everywhere: red roses, pink roses, yellow roses. It’s obvious God loves color. Color is beautiful. The world would be boring if it was all white or all black. When I was young, I thought it was normal for black people to sit in the back of the bus or to use the colored bathrooms. I was used to it. One day, I thought, ‘I’m gonna use the white water fountain and see what it tastes like.’ I was scared, but I tried it. And guess what? It tasted the same as the colored fountain.
It’s always been a challenge being black, but that just meant I had to work hard. I worked the same job for 10 years, but I knew God was calling me to do something else. I just didn’t know what. One day, my father told me to talk to my brother about what to do – and that’s how the Rib Shack came to be. We had been cooking ribs every Saturday on our front lawn right on Tarver Street. People would smell the cooking and come eat, then throw the bones all over the yard. When we didn’t cook, they’d say, “Gene, why didn’t you cook this week?” Everyone loved the cooking so much that we decided to make a living out of it. I quit that job and we started the restaurant.
40 years later, we’ve seen our ups and our downs, but we’re still here. Now, I use my restaurant to share my faith and teach our young generation that they can be successful, too. If you look around the restaurant, there are pictures on every wall of historical people and moments in Black History. These young kids need to know where they came from, and where I came from. It was difficult being black in Dalton, but now things have changed so much. We’re now a more loving and diverse community that celebrates people of color, instead of throwing rocks at them walking from school.
I’ve lived in Dalton my whole life and have always been able to see the opportunity. I try to tell the young generation that you don’t need to leave Dalton to have a successful life. If you look around Downtown and on Block 79, it’s not people my age opening businesses and bringing life back to our community – it’s the young generation. That’s why we must build up our children and remind them to not only dream but follow those dreams. The opportunity won’t land in your lap, but it is here in Dalton all you have to do is go find it.
I’m grateful to God and to all the wonderful people here in Dalton that helped keep my dream alive and going all these years. Thank you to everyone who encourages me, and even those who remind me of where I came from. I hope my story inspires the young folks to invest their dreams here in Dalton, especially those people of color. If I can do it, you definitely can do it too! It’s always been a challenge being black, but I never let it stop me.”