The History Behind the Owner
Darrin Holmes is the President of Colony Corporation of Alabama Inc dba J.R. Holmes Oil,
but he started out at the bottom of the ladder.
Handyman
He has been around the oil business since 1970, working
with his father, Don W. Holmes, until his father retired in 2012. Darrin started out sweeping floors in the warehouse, painting the fence around the property, unloading package stock from trucks, and pumping gasoline at our first full service gasoline station in Bessemer, Alabama.
Tank Driver
Eventually, his duties moved to delivering petroleum products to local service stations in the area and many commercial accounts in and around Bessemer.
Sales Rep
Over his many years in business, he has gained extensive knowledge in the lubricant industry recommending products from automotive to mining. He became a sales representative and began learning more about the service station business and later the trend moved to convenience stores and commercial fuel industry.
Vice President
While building the knowledge of what it took to run a family business and taking on more responsibility, he became Vice President of Holmes Oil Company, Inc. He was the overseer of branding and operations of many convenience stores in and around Alabama.
Family is the most important thing to Darrin
Throughout his years of business, he has learned family runs deeper than blood!
Darrin and wife, Rebecca
He is married to his high school sweetheart, Rebecca. Together, they have one daughter, Brittany, who takes care of the daily duties to keep the office running. Additionally, he is blessed with three grandchildren who make him giggle everyday while they homeschool and learn the business also.
Family is very important to him and he enjoys spending time with them as much as possible. Pictured above are his grandsons helping out at the business. Darrin and Rebecca plan to, one day in the future, pass the legacy on to their family and watch the company continue to grow.
In his spare time, Darrin enjoys fishing and swimming with his grandchildren. He also loves exploring old cars that bring back memories from years past.
If you were to ask his employee’s what Darrin is like, well, they would say:
- “It’s never a dull moment listening to his stories and cracking jokes.”
- “He truly is always there for his employees and cares about them like family.”
- “He is a great person to work for.”
Come Meet Us
We would love for you to stop by one of our 3 locations.
When the journey gets tough…
“I always look towards the hill and I imagine a cross being there and it reminds me of the sacrifice Jesus made for me. I then realize my current situation is OK and I stay focused moving forward”
— Darrin Holmes