Louis Joseph Montesi, a Memphis native who ran a Midtown grocery store for 36 years, died of heart disease Saturday at Bright Glade Convalescent Center. He was 78. Montesi was related to the family that founded Montesi's Supermarket, a local chain that once dotted the Memphis landscape. But Louis Montesi ran a different store. His was Montesi's State Food Store Number 2, and it stood at the corner of Jackson Avenue and Watkins Street. Louis Montesi Jr., a general sessions criminal court judge, said his father had the same values as his Italian ancestors: a strong work ethic and an equal dedication to family. "He was a very simple man," the younger Montesi said. "Family and work - he dedicated his time to those two things. He had a great work ethic and he just loved his family." Montesi Sr. graduated from Christian Brothers High School in 1937 and served 4 1/2 years in the Army. He spent 22 months overseas during World War II in four European campaigns and earned four medals. He was an usher at St. Mary's Catholic Church for many years and was active in the men's club at St. Therese-Little Flower Catholic Church. He was a communicant at St. Louis Church. Montesi, the widower of Dorothy Rice Montesi, leaves two daughters, Madeleine Farwell and Teresa Sorrels, both of Memphis; another son, Michael Anthony Montesi of Round Lake Beach, Ill.; three sisters, Julia Wheeler, Mary Spinosa and Lillian Cara, all of Memphis, and 11 grandchildren. The family asks that any memorials be sent to the Regina M. Montesi Memorial Scholarship at the University of Memphis or to charity. Services will be held at 10 a.m. Monday at St. Louis Church, with burial in Calvary Cemetery. (Published in The Commercial Appeal 3/2/1997)