Small town within commuting distance of the Memphis refinery (Germantown: good schools, shop)

[The3lowes]

My husband works for an oil refinery in the midwest. We are considering a move to the south. We are looking for a safe small town with good schools. Would need to be within a 25 minute drive of the Memphis refinery. We are not familiar with Memphis, so I don't know how far industry spreads into the surrounding areas.
Other things that are important to us are good hospitals, a selection of churches to pick from, and access to both indoor and outdoor recreation. I am sure with a city the size of Memphis we will be able to find those things within a reasonable distance of wherever we end up.
Thanks in advance.

[chuck1229]

Originally Posted by The3lowes

My husband works for an oil refinery in the midwest. We are considering a move to the south. We are looking for a safe small town with good schools. Would need to be within a 25 minute drive of the Memphis refinery. We are not familiar with Memphis, so I don't know how far industry spreads into the surrounding areas.
Other things that are important to us are good hospitals, a selection of churches to pick from, and access to both indoor and outdoor recreation. I am sure with a city the size of Memphis we will be able to find those things within a reasonable distance of wherever we end up.
Thanks in advance.

Collierville TN 38017 about 25 miles to the refinery.

[JoeCartpath]

Valero is on the far western edge of the city - right next to McKellar Lake/Mississippi River. Depending on time of day, I don't think there are any small towns in TN that would be within a 25 minute commute. Memphis and it's suburbs cover a LOT of land area! Of course, that depends on your definition of a "small" town. Collierville and Germantown may or may not fit your definition since both are really just suburban extensions of Memphis - you really can't tell when you leave one and enter the other if you don't see the signs.

You might also consider places such as Marion Arkansas (but forget about West Memphis), or Hernando MS. Those are about the only places that I really consider "small towns" that are within the driving range you desire.

Both are close enough to Memphis that hospitals won't be a problem - Memphis has a world class medical center. Churches are everywhere - this is, after all, the Bible Belt! Hernando is close to a couple of lakes if that's the type of recreation you're looking for...

[The3lowes]

I've been doing research for awhile and several times have ended up looking into Hernando. Does anyone have any (additional) input on Hernando?

[Chris Balducci]

On the Arkansas side is Marion, which is northwest of the refinery. God bless.

[Dawn10am]

Marion, AR. Small town with decent schools, and about 20 min from the refinery. There's really not much to do and no real shopping to speak of, but it's a pretty nice small suburban town.