Micro Biz News ~
The South O Bones Micro Story
Red, White, Blue, and a Little Green
by Samantha Blum, contributing writer
July has a way of making stories feel a bit bigger. Maybe it’ s the fireworks. Maybe it’ s the Red, White, and Blue flags on porches, the cookouts, the heat, the nostalgic songs, the barefoot kids, and that feeling in your throat that reminds you this country has always been full of people trying to find their own way to freedom.
Now, 250 years later, Missouri’ s legal cannabis market is creating space for stories that once seemed impossible. One of those stories is about a microbusiness named South O Bones LLC.
South O Bones, based in Ray County, is a Round 1 Missouri microbusiness with a cultivation and manufacturing license. Owner Jesse Greco leads the team, with Mitch Alexander as a founding member, Chad Burnett as facility and cultivation director, and Philip Spruell as head of cultivation. South O Bones brands, Prism and Flow State, reflect the same approach to cannabis. Prism stands for the full range of cannabinoids and terpenes, while Flow State highlights both its water-based growing style and the intense focus required to grow great cannabis. cannabis world long before legalization. Greco grew up around that world, before there were labels, licenses, testing, or dispensaries.
His father passed during COVID and never got to see his only son awarded a legal cannabis license. That sits heavily with Greco, but it also gives the name its meaning. South O Bones is not just a clever business name. It’ s a tribute to Greco’ s roots and a means of honoring his father’ s legacy by entering the legal field, a field he never had the opportunity to experience firsthand.
And yes, Greco laughs about people loving to call them,“ the SOBs.”
That little bit of personality fits the whole story, because Greco’ s road into the microbusiness program was not some perfectly mapped-out corporate plan. He served in the Air Force as a Security Forces member, working alongside the Army and conducting fieldwork after enlisting in 1999. He was in Korea when 9 / 11 happened, then later went to Germany and supported operations connected to Desert Storm. At the end of his support of the“ War on Terror” operations, Greco was awarded the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, along with numerous other medals and decorations.
Some of his service he can speak about, and some of it he simply cannot, and that boundary deserves respect. What he can share is that he is a disabled veteran, and that status opened the door to Missouri’ s microbusiness program.
The funny thing is, he didn’ t even know about the first microbusiness lottery.
The South O Bones team( left front); Founding Partner, Mitch Alexander, and Veteran CEO, Jesse Greco.( Right front); Cultivation Director, Phillip Spruell, with Facility Director, Chad Burnett.
But before Prism, before Flow State, and before legal cannabis was even a dream, there was Bones, the name behind South O Bones.
South O Bones means a lot to Greco. The name is a tribute to his father, known as Bones. His father was a Marine who served in Vietnam, came home, and was part of the legacy Cheech and Chong
20 JULY 2026
One day, his cousin noticed his disabled veteran plates on the wall and told him about a cannabis microbusiness lottery he could enter. Greco’ s reaction was basically,“ No kidding? Let’ s try it.” At the same time, he was just days away from a second interview with the Lafayette County Sheriff’ s Office, ready to return to law enforcement. Then the lottery came through for him. He was awarded the second license drawn in District 5.
Life has a way of lighting a fuse when you least expect it.
Greco also credits Boston Dickerson of Vivid Cannabis for helping him. Dickerson sponsored the application, guided him through the process, and remained available even when things got tough. Greco says he wouldn’ t be here without that support. In an overwhelming industry, having someone to answer calls, reply to texts, and offer advice makes a big difference.
Chad Burnett’ s arrival at the company feels like something out of a movie.