The owner of a local funeral home is commemorating Memorial Day by honoring the service of Jones County veterans and their families.
Gray Memorial Chapel and Crematory owner Scott Walston said he had the idea in mind of purchasing pavers for veterans served by the funeral home for some time. Being able to pair the unveiling of the pavers with a Memorial Day celebration at the Jones County Veterans Memorial takes the event to another level.
The Memorial Day ceremony will take place at 10 a.m. May 30 at the memorial next to the Jones County Courthouse, located at 110 South Jefferson Street in Gray.
Walston said 25 pavers with the names of Jones County Veterans will be unveiled. He said 21 of those pavers were veterans who had been served by Gray Memorial Chapel since its opening in 2018.
The other four pavers had previously been sold by the Jones County Veterans Committee.
Walston said the donation of the pavers was a way to honor the veterans they have served and another way they could serve their families.
The owner said he was aware of the pavers but did not realize until recently that the pavers could be purchased to honor living veterans as well as way to remember and honor the deceased.
Walston said his father was a WWII veteran, which makes honoring veterans personal for him.
“It’s compelling that we have a generation that knows what war is but don’t understand the sacrifice of those who have served,” he said.
The owner said he was not aware until later in his life when he came upon an article in The Macon Telegraph that his father was a war hero. The newspaper article does not show a date, but he believes it was published in 1945. The article is about a letter written to his mother from a general under whom his father served.
The article commended Pvt. Walter Fox Walston for distinguished action under fire, specifically saving the life of a fellow soldier who was wounded.
“With total disregard for his personal safety and acting without orders, he succeeded in saving the life of a fellow soldier as well as valuable equipment,” the article stated.
Scott Walston said the article helped him understand more about the sacrifice his father made during his military service. He said his father experienced consequences from that service and spent a year undergoing treatment for what was then called ‘shell shock’ before he was able to return home.
“We don’t want to forget the sacrifices that we now benefit from,” he said.
Walston’s father suffered a massive stroke in 1974 and died in 1979. The owner said he believes people today have the opportunity to control their own destiny.
“We want the community to know we respect the sacrifice of those who have served. They deserve all the recognition we can give,” he said. “That’s why we are doing this.”
Staff members who notified the families about the pavers said they were appreciative, and several became very emotional.
Walston said he considers the pavers another way to show gratitude and support for the families who allow Gray Memorial Chapel to take care of the ones they love the most.
“It’s the right thing to do,” he commented.
Hart’s Memorial Day celebration
Hart’s Mortuary Jones County Chapel is remembering veterans on Memorial Day with a program featuring Capt. William A. Robinson, USAF (retired), who is a former prisoner of war.
That event begins at 11 a.m. at 307 Pecan Lane in Gray.
Robinson and his crew aboard a HH43B helicopter were shot down during a rescue mission during the Viet Nam War, and he spent seven and a half years as a POW.
