While rain dampens this Veterans Day, Clayton County is remembering the sacrifices of those who served the nation.

In Morrow, the Veterans Day ceremony was moved indoors. In Forest Park, a wreath was placed in front of the war memorial at City Hall. And in Jonesboro, 132 American flags and crosses, some showing signs of wear, lined the entire block across from Historic Main Street. Each cross bears the name of someone who died in service to the country, or of a deceased veteran with ties to Jonesboro. You can find each name in the table below the photo. Those who served in two different wars are listed under each war.

Memorials to 132 veterans line Main Street in Jonesboro, GA on Veterans Day, November 11, 2022. (Photo: Robin Kemp/The Clayton Crescent)
WAR/SERVICE BRANCHVETERAN
Civil WarWilliam T. Roberts I
WWI
Otis Cater
W.M. Henderson
M. Everett Day
Buddy Meeks
Henry P. Roberts
Walter Fryza
WWIIHelen S. Swint
Robert C. Gibbs
Joseph A. Stone
Lacy Huie Jr.
Gilbert F. Tyler
Stanley S. Boak
Jack Stephens
James H. Brantley, Sr.
C.E. Speir
Calvin T. Bruce
Milton S. Bruce
James S. Bruce
Royal Fauscett
George Purdy
Carl L. Whitlock, Sr.
Cecil Babb
Paul E. Seay
James C. Rowell
Tom Hand
Jack W. McNair
Robert G. Boyd
Walter Simpson
Willard L. Divins
Wesley Echols
Ganes A. Miller
Lofton Lee Hill
Wilber L. Harris
James C. Cottingham
Wesley G. Cottingham, Sr.
Calvin Bunn
Samuel P. McCullough
Harold Hooper
Clover L. Jones
L.C. Williamson
Wymon Simpson
M.L. Smith
Edward Varner
Joseph Smith
Paul Fauscett
William L. Sims
Robert E. McMullen
W. W. “Billy” Clarke
Ben “Hut” McCullough
J. Ross Palmer
Bill Stephens
Carroll McBrayer
John A. Suder
Hoke S. Cartledge
Blakeley R. Swint
George L. Legg
B.B. Mauldin
William A. Powell
Murray P. Boak
Trenton J. Alford
George H. Hill
Richard Stephens
Charlie E. Walden
Pope A. Roark
Robert L. Samples, Sr.
Henry S. Lee
Dean Cartledge
James R. Lane
Apolinar R. Orona
William J. “Jim” Hill
Travis D. Vaughn
George Purdy
Walter Smith
William H. Lindsey
Charles (Red) Kellow
Paul S. Weiner
Charles A. Wenz
KoreaCharles Smith
Homer A. Vincent
C.F. Roberts
William B. Harris
Paul E. Seay
Lamar Minton
Roland J. Ledet
Carlton J. Ledet
A.J. Ledet, Jr.
Henry Earl Manning
E. Lindy Krebs
Travis L. Cantrell
George H. Mack
Marvin C. Hasty
James Montgomery
John A. Suder
William W. Mitchell
Robert F. Swint
J.B. Boyd
Herbert C. Roper
Andrew J. Crawley, Jr.
Michael Messick
Palmer Underwood
Vietnam
p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px ‘Helvetica Neue’; color: #454545}
Charles L. Williamson
William “Bill” Jones
Ed Rawls, Jr.
Wilton B. Robertson
John A. Stone
Benny Fauscett
Donald F. Wiegmann
Randall Green Sr.
SSG Robert E. Bruce
Sherrel “Smitty” Smith
Roger J. Watson, Sr. 
Douglas Hembree
Willie A. Brown, Sr.
Fred E. Padgett
Joel R. Swint
Wallace Crews
Jerry R. Walden
Gary Patton
Walter E. Fryza
Bobby Ray Gardner
Stepney Shedrick
Samuel D. Walden
Desert StormSSG Robert E. Bruce
U.S. ArmyElbert R. Thompson
David E. Barron
James L. Jay, Sr.
Michael H. Messick
U.S. Air ForceAnthony F. Lotti Sr.
George W. Smith
U.S. NavyRobert Uzee
U.S. Marine CorpsByron “Butch” Hand
U.S. Army ReserveLuther W. Maddox

Clayton County’s Veteran of the Month is U.S. Army PFC Rudolph Valentino Wesley of Forest Park, who turned 100 on November 6. He recently was honored at the Board of Commissioners meeting. Wesley, known to friends and neighbors as “Mr. Rudolph,” served honorably in the late stage of World War II,  in the last group that was deployed in January 1943.  While serving as a Police Patrol escort for troops leaving the area, Wesley was blown up in an ammo dump but survived. In September 1945, Wesley was honorably discharged as a war hero.

Other Veterans of the Month since last Veterans Day include:

November 2021
MSG Stanley L. Coleman

U.S. Army Reserve, U.S. Air Force Reserve (ret.)

December 2021
Sgt. Sammuel B. Platt

U.S. Marine Corps (ret.)

January 2022
1SG Edith B. Murphy

U.S. Army

February 2022
SGM Herman Turner

U.S. Army (ret.)
Bronze Star

March 2022
Sgt. Delorestine Alston Ross

U.S. Army

April 2022
Chaplain Deborah A. Powell

U.S. Air Force, U.S. Air Force Reserve

May 2022
SSG Diane Hanna

U.S. Army, U.S. Army Reserve, U.S. Army National Guard, U.S. Air Force National Guard (ret.)

June 2022
GY SGT Chris Leighty

U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Marine Corps Reserve
Navy and Marine Corps Parachute Insignia, U.S Army Ranger Tab

July 2022
NCOIC Ed Taylor

U.S. Army (ret.)

August 2022
Col. Kathaleen Frances Harris

U.S. Army, U.S. Army Reserve (ret.) Legion of Merit

September 2022
1LT M. Allan Vigil
U.S. Army
Bronze Star, Army Commendation Medal

October 2022
Col. Mitch Johnson

U.S. Army

Here are some more of our local veterans, both living and deceased. Feel free to e-mail your loved one’s service photo, rank, and branch of service and we will add them to the collection. Please advise of any errors and we will correct them.

Thank You For Your Service, Clayton County

SSG Sandra Givens Scott

U.S. Army

SFC Edward J. Scott

U.S. Army

SFC James C. Kemp

U.S. Army

MSG Sparkle K. Adams

U.S. Air Force

Pvt. Mickey Garber

U.S. Army

H. Drew Andrews

U.S. Army

TSgt David A. Vollmer

U.S. Air Force

MSG (Ret.) Patricia Baisden

U.S. Army

SGM (Ret.) Carlton D. Holloway

U.S. Army

Arthur Hughes

Georgia Army National Guard

SGM Eddie Turner

U.S. Army

SGM Wilbert Jordan

U.S. Army

SFC Jeff DeTar

U.S. Army

SSG (Ret.) Bonita E. Crawford

SUPSGT (Ret.) Mike Glanton

U.S. Army

Perla Glanton

U.S. Army

Col. Samuel Edward Seetin, Jr.

U.S. Army

Lt Col (Ret.) Charley James

U.S. Air Force

AT2 Calvin (Bev) Blount

U.S. Navy

Mickey (Michelle) Bruce

U.S. Coast Guard

Sgt. Leroy Travis

U.S. Army

SSgt Clarence L. Burnough

U.S. Marine Corps

PFC Mose Ensley

U.S. Army

Col. (Ret.) Brad Beasley

U.S. Army

SFC (Ret.) Victoria Taylor

U.S. Army

Maj. (Ret.) Ida Weiner

U.S. Army

Col. (Ret.) Wes Weiner

U.S. Army

Sgt. (Ret.) James Toth

U.S. Army Corps/Army Air Force

John H. Pierce

U.S. Marine Corps

Harry E. Williams

U.S. Army

Cpt. Jamie Carlington

U.S. Army

Drill Serg Larry W. Bussey

U.S. Army

SGT Preston Thurman

U.S. Marine Corps

Sgt. (Ret.) Charles Cooper

U.S. Army

SP4 Victoria Storey

U.S. Army

SGT Regina Holsey

U.S. Marine Corps

SFC (Ret.) Willie J. Jackson

U.S. Army

PO3 Ivan C. Baldwin

U.S. Navy

SP5 Gary Fambrough

U.S. Army

MSG Rodney Dean

U.S. Army

SrA Thomas Pough

U.S. Air Force Reserve

E-4 Héctor Gutierrez

Georgia National Guard

SSG Gerrian Hawes

U.S. Army

Sgt. Robert Hawes

U.S. Army

R. Daniel

U.S. Air Force

D. Ramos

U.S. Army

D. Whitehead

U.S. Marine Corps

J. Cruzelon

U.S. Army

A. Morgan

U.S. Air Force

S. Johnson

U.S. Army

E. Ellis

U.S. Marine Corps

R. Meehan

U.S. Army

M. Malone

U.S. Marine Corps

A. Coley-Hebron

U.S. Marine Corps

J. Askew

U.S. Marine Corps

A. Holmes

U.S. Army

SSG Anthony Smith

U.S. Air Force

SPC 5 Marion E. Hutchinson

U.S. Army


In Memoriam: Clayton County’s Fallen


World War I

Pvt. Tom Bennett
Sgt. George C. Burnett
Cpl. Tom Frank Gardner
PFC Clarence Henderson
Pvt. Brewster Jackson
App. Seaman Albee Lewis Mitchell
PFC William Henry Mitchell
Pvt. Alton L. Rowden
Pvt. Clark Smith
1 Lt. David King Summers
PFC Cloyed H. Swaney

World War II

Pvt. William O. Adamson, U.S. Army
Pvt. John E. Anderson, U.S. Army
PFC Charles L. Awtrey, U.S. Army
TSG James C. Brown, U.S. Army
TEC5 Robert E. Crawford, U.S. Army
Pvt. Jack W. DeLay, U.S. Army
1 LT Latham Denning, U.S. Army
PFC Robert L. Gilstrap, U.S. Army
TSG Paul W. Haney, U.S. Army
Cpl. Matthew L. Heard, U.S. Army
TEC5 Arlin H. Hodges, U.S. Army
2 LT Ernest C. Hyde, U.S. Army
PFC Isaac D. Kimberly, U.S. Army
1 SG Jamison C. Maddox, U.S. Army
Sgt. Henry D. McLeroy, Jr., U.S. Army
Sgt. Glenn Naylor, U.S. Army
TSG Charles L. Peacock, U.S. Army
PFC John D. Phillips, U.S. Army
Sgt. John A. Poindexter, Jr., U.S. Army
TSG William J. Reagin, U.S. Army
SSG Francis E. Scott, U.S. Army
Pvt. Lloyd R. Taylor, Dr, U.S. Army
Maj. Harwell P. Tilley III, U.S, Army
TEC5 Earl Warner, U.S. Army
TEC5 Frank S. Wilson, U.S. Army
Cpl. Thomas E. Brown, U.S. Marine Corps
PFC Daniel H. Cates, U.S. Marine Corps
AD 3c Thomas William Moss, U.S. Naval Reserve

Korea

PFC Rufus Brown, Jr., U.S. Army
Cpl. Glenn Monroe Ketchersid, U.S. Marine Corps

Vietnam

Maj. Joseph Adrian Bishop, U.S. Army
Sgt. Thomas Lee Banks, U.S. Army
SP4 Daniel Lee Brock, U.S. Army
SP4 Johnny Ray Bryson, U.S. Army
PFC Stephen Manton Campbell, U.S. Marine Corps
SP4 Daniel Lee Chamblee, U.S. Army
Cpl. Alonzo Carlton Collier, U.S. Army
WO1 Robert K. Everest III, U.S. Army
Cdr. Frank Eugene Fullerton, U.S. Navy
1 LT Walter Murrah Gibson, U.S. Army
Sgt. Claude Vernor Giles, U.S. Army
PFC Thomas Graham, Jr., U.S. Army
WO1 Benjamin Wayne Haire, U.S. Army
Lance Cpl. Ray Wesley Hesterlee, U.S. Marine Corps
Cpl. Robert Milton Johnson, U.S. Marine Corps
SP4 Melvin Lipscomb, U.S. Army
WO1 Johnny F. Long, U.S. Army
Cpl. Marvin Lacy Mayo, U.S. Army
Sgt. David Carroll McCranie, U.S. Army
PFC Wayne Houston McKinley, U.S. Marine Corps
PFC Johnson Minnitee, Jr., U.S. Army
PO1 Dan Baker Norton, U.S. Navy
Cpl. Robert Jerry Padgett, U.S. Army
1 LT Raymond Alan Powell, U.S. Army
PFC Carl Wayne Pritchett, U.S.Army
Lance Cpl. Rocke Darrell Ramsey, U.S. Marine Corps
SP4 Kenneth Douglas Smith, U.S. Army
1 LT Thomas Trammel Staples II, U.S. Army
WO1 William Thomas Wallace, Jr., U.S. Army
Lance Cpl. Jerry Gordon Waller, U.S. Marine Corps
Cpl. Philip Warren Weaver, U.S. Army

Gulf War (Desert Shield/Desert Storm)

Pfc. Charles S. Walker, U.S. Army

Operation Iraqi Freedom

SPC4 Justin Robert Jarrett, U.S. Army

Operation Enduring Freedom

SFC John Curtis Beale, U.S. Army National Guard
SPC Anthony Marquis Lightfoot, U.S. Army
MSG Mitchell Wayne Young, U.S. Army

Robin Kemp is executive editor and CEO of The Clayton Crescent, which she founded in 2020. She has worked for Gambit, CNN, The Weather Channel, Clayton News, Henry Herald, and numerous freelance outlets....

Leave a comment