Scott Wiley is my name, I’m 78 years old. My family moved to Neptune Beach from High Point, North Carolina, in 1956. I attended Atlantic Beach Elementary, Fletcher High School, Montreat Anderson Junior College in Black Mountain, NC, and Jones Business College. My father operated his own car dealership on Main Street in Jacksonville for 25 years.
During my college years, I worked for my father while attending day classes at Jones Business College. There, I met Becky Jones from Lakeland, Florida. We dated for about a year and married on June 22, 1968. This summer Becky and I celebrated our 56th wedding anniversary.
My career path at the beach included working for Terry McCue Real Estate, Ocean State Bank, Bank of America, Brumos Motor Cars (Porsche & Mercedes dealer), and currently a Realtor at Berkshire Hathaway Home Services.
Music has been a passion of mine from an early age and I self-taught myself to play the guitar. In 1962, I became a member of the Fletcher High School’s rock band, the Rhythm Rebels, as their rhythm guitar player. When the Rhythm Rebels disbanded, I formed the Jacksonville Beach Boys and we played nearly every Friday and Saturday night throughout my junior and senior years until I graduated in 1964.
A great memory I have is on many occasions we had to use a substitute drummer. Our go-to substitute was always Butch Trucks who later became the drummer for the Allman Brothers Band. I continued playing while attending Montreat Anderson College. After Becky and I were married I was asked to join The Ramblers (a local Folk band) as their bass player. We were regulars playing at the Tradewinds in St. Augustine.
I also developed a passion for auto road racing, earning my Sports Car Club of America Regional Competition License in 1972. I raced at Daytona International Speedway and Sebring. My interest in racing was influenced from many years working at Brumos Motor Cars/Brumos Racing #59 owned by the late Peter Gregg, a four-time winner of the 24 Hours of Daytona. Having been at Brumos Motor Cars has given me so many great memories. Being around racing legends Peter Gregg, Hurley Haywood and our General Manager Bob Snodgrass is something I will never forget.
One surprising fact about me and Becky is that we were members of the Harley Owners Group. I owned a Harley Davidson Ultra Classic for 12 years. During that time, we attended numerous Daytona Bike Week events and participated in many organized rides around the area. Our most memorable experience was attending the 2006 Black Hills Motor Classic Rally in Sturgis, South Dakota.
In 2009, as one of the founding members, I was elected President of the beaches First Coast Republican Club. Elected officials and candidates for local, state and national offices were either guest speakers or attended our monthly meetings at the Casa Marina. During my 10 years as President this gave me the opportunity to attend several political events. I was fortunate to serve as an alternate delegate to the 2012 Republican National Convention and Becky and I attended Governor Scott’s Inauguration Ceremony and Ball in Tallahassee.
I had the privilege to serve the residents of Neptune Beach as a City Councilman for a total of 18 years, first elected in 1971 at the age of 23. At the end of my public service in 2020, the Florida League of Cities recognized me with the Mayor John Land award for 25 years of dedicated service to the City of Neptune Beach.
My days are pretty busy. I’m still politically involved and a Board Member of McKenzie’s Beaches Boys & Girls Club. Becky and I are active with Neptune Baptist Church and volunteer for B.E.A.M. I can usually be found most mornings at one of my favorite places, Ellen’s Kitchen or Grumpy’s Restaurant. I have witnessed many changes in Neptune Beach but I hope the character, beautiful beach, and family-friendly neighborhoods never change.
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Mike is a native First Coaster and was a leading figure in surfing and skateboarding for most of his life. After promoting music for many years on the local music scene, Mike now brings a unique perspective to FirstCoast.Life as a contributing writer.
