My dad was born on Feb.12, 1927 and passed away on May 1, 2018 at the age of ninety-one. He was raised on a small farm outside of Trenton in a farming community commonly referred to as the plantation. Dad was the youngest of five children. He was raised to work hard and earn his own way. My granddaddy looked to daddy as the leader of the boys especially when it came to the farming business that my granddaddy owned. At the outbreak of WWII, my dad’s older brother was called into service to defend our country. When my dad reached the eligible age to be drafted, his name was called to serve. My granddaddy told my dad since he was the only male child left at home he could get out of being drafted to stay and work on the farm. Apparently, this was a clause put in during wartime back in those days. My dad told granddaddy that he would serve our country. If he wasn’t drafted, they would go down the street and take one of his neighbors. He figured he was no better than anyone else. Dad proudly served our country in the US Army during WWII. He served in Battery B 903rd Field Artillery Battalion. He received a WWII Victory Medal. He and three other veterans were honored in Jones County as outstanding veterans. Dad was chosen to represent the county veterans with a bronzed casting of his right hand to be displayed in the North Carolina Veterans Park in Fayetteville. The three other veterans’ hands were cast in concrete and displayed along with veterans representing all 100 counties.
My Dad’s Philosophy: Dad believed in serving his country. He took the attitude of John F. Kennedy as outlined in one of his famous quotes, “...ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.” Dad believed in sacrificing for our country. My dad said,” I would do anything I can for this nation to keep it free. I feel we’ve got the greatest government and the greatest nation on earth.” He appreciates all the sacrifices of our military personnel and he especially honors those who sacrificed their lives for our great nation. Leave your comments below.