Columbus Southeast Lions

From Brick Streets to Barstools: How Timm and Sue Gall Became the Heart of Columbus’ Southend

“They’ve served beer—but more importantly, they’ve served their community—with heart, grit, and the kind of love that makes a Lion roar.”

By Maggie Gall-Maynard

Long before German Village became the city’s jewel of restored homes and red brick charm, Timm Gall was already here—living the history that others would one day pay dearly to move into. His roots run deep. Timm’s grandfather emigrated from Alsace-Lorraine to German Village to work in the brewery business. Today, the Gall legacy lives on not just in the red bricks beneath our feet—but in the soul of the Southend, where Timm and his wife, Sue, have consistently helped build something far more valuable than property: community.

This year, the Columbus Southeast Lions Club proudly recognizes Timm and Sue’s decades of service to others by honoring them with the Donna Bates Lifetime Service Award—a fitting tribute to two people whose lives embody the Lions’ mission: “We Serve.”

A graduate of South High School, Timm’s 1965 jacket hangs proudly inside the Hey Hey Bar and Grill, the second oldest operating bar in all of Columbus. After graduation, he was drafted into the Vietnam War. Timm served in Vietnam as a paratrooper in the 101st Airborne Division (2/502 B Company) from 1968 to 1969.

Meanwhile, Sue Overbey (now Sue Gall) was putting herself through nursing school at The Ohio State University, waiting tables at Plank’s Garten on High St. to cover tuition and cost of living. In 1970, a love story started brewing as Timm and Sue’s paths crossed at Planks, a hard-boiled egg was gifted—and the rest is Southend history.

In 1981, the couple purchased the Hey Hey Bar and Grill, a historic watering hole with Prohibition-era roots that gave it its memorable name. Timm continued working long shifts at The Columbus Dispatch as a pressman—logging countless hours (finally retiring after 48 years)—while Sue, also working countless hours, took over the day-to-day operations of the bar. Sue introduced her famous sauerkraut balls, and they quickly became nationally recognized in the Midwest Living Magazine and a National Geographic book.

But food, beer and hard work ethics were just the beginning. Timm and Sue have made the Hey Hey what it is today. The Hey Hey has served as more than a bar—it has been a second home for many. It has hosted memorial services, numerous engagements, a wedding and even has ashes placed in the bar as a final resting place—proof of the deep connection regulars have to the place and the people behind it.

Musicians have always had a home at the Hey Hey, from local bands to legends like the late Sleepy LaBeef, the 25th inductee into the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. It’s a place where music and memories have always inter-twined. And over the past several years, Timm and Sue have opened the Hey Hey’s kitchen to several businesses, trying out brick and mortars, given the opportunity to spread their name and serve delicious food.

In keeping with their reverence for local history, Timm and Sue restored parts of the historic building to reflect its origins—reopening the original windows and installing historical plaques inside the bar that celebrate Columbus’ rich baseball legacy. The Gall’s devotion has kept the Hey Hey alive through thefts, recessions, a global pandemic, and gentrification.

The Galls transformed the Hey Hey into a community hub, organizing and hosting countless fundraisers over the years. Sue, known to many in the 80’s as her alter ego “Moolah”—a red-zebra-striped, wig-wearing mud wrestler—raised well-earned funds in “Ugly Bartender” contests for the Multiple Sclerosis Society.

They’ve also raised funds for Veterans Honor Flights, a cause that Timm feels passionate about; founded and helped run the Michael Curran Memorial Golf Tournament; organized numerous bar walks for Nationwide Children’s Hospital; hosted unique events like “Wiggin’ Out Wednesdays” for the Susan G. Komen Foundation; donated sauerkraut balls annually to In Christy’s Shoes; sponsored Southend baseball teams and countless other worthy causes.

Timm and Sue have given south-enders in need jobs, homes to live in, and fresh starts. They’ve helped patrons get sober (The Hey Hey was a perfect place to find folks who needed the help). Through many of their efforts, they sometimes have been taken advantage of, but this has never deterred them from helping the next person.

Timm was raised in the spirit of service, especially to the Southeast Lions organization that shaped his family’s community life. As a child in grade school and junior high, he often joined his dad, Harold Gall, and his uncle Irvin Wirth—better known as Uncle Happy—to sell Southeast Lions newspapers at Dave Wood’s Marathon Station which was located at Whittier St. and Parsons Ave. At eighteen, before being drafted, Timm went door-to-door with Marc “MAB” Borst, raising money for the Southeast Lions and their community efforts. After returning home from Vietnam, Timm proudly revived the tradition with MAB and they continued until the organization no longer went door-to-door.

Today, Timm and Sue proudly host the Southeast Lions’ meetings at the Hey Hey. An eye glass donation box sits in the middle room, ready for anyone who wants to give the gift of sight. Sue serves as the club’s official “roarer,” closing meetings with her signature spirit and ferocity. Together, the Southeast Lions work year-round to make a difference—picking up litter along Parsons Avenue, assisting at the beloved Easter Egg Hunt at Schiller Park, marching in the Stonewall Columbus Pride March, visiting schools to share the Lions’ message of service and more.

Timm and Sue’s support and community participation goes outside of the Southeast Lions and outside of the Hey Hey walls. Every Memorial Day, Timm, with several Southend Lions members, placed flags on every veteran’s grave at St. Joseph’s Cemetery from about 1969-2020. He is an active member of the St. Mary Parish and most notably of all, he is the resident Santa for the annual German Village tree lighting at Frank Fetch park. When the Columbus Maennerchor was in need, Sue traded her time in the Hey Hey for cooking and managing the Maennerchor restaurant, bar, event and catering services until they sold the building to the city.

Timm and Sue Gall are more than bar owners. They are storytellers, humanitarians, Southend supporters and heroes. They’ve served beer, but also served their community—with heart, grit, and the kind of love that makes a lion roar.