Honor and Respect – Part 1 of 2

JD funeral from WRDW

I want to first say that I am a very proud mother this morning, and if I thought these others posts were hard to write they were nothing compared to these two. This is not the post I wanted to write by the way. It has been a rough and trying week for everyone in our family with emotions running everywhere. I was only able to see parts of the funeral and processional on TV Thursday and I could not be along the route like I would have liked, but it was amazing to witness the outpouring of love and respect coming from what seemed to be everywhere. There were not enough seats at the church and many stayed home in order to allow others a place. The night before the funeral, flags were placed along the route leading to the cemetery. As the processional made its way, you could see people lined up along the entire route so they might pay their respects and say goodbye. Again, this is as close as it gets without being a member of our blood family. There were people waving flags, some holding signs and posters, many with heads bowed, all to give honor and respect for someone who gave his life for someone else. There is no greater act than this. It could have so easily been my husband or someone else we know lying in that casket today. All of this was also a way for the community to give honor and respect to those who still put their lives in harm’s way every day thanking them for their continued service. There are so many people who give honor and respect to others, being not selfish and desiring nothing in return, but this event has brought out some of the worst in people and I am sorry to say that my daughters have witnessed it firsthand.

I wanted to share part of the funeral message:

“What makes a hero? Someone brave or strong? Someone fearless or noble? I have heard that J. D. Paugh was a hero. Was that because of the way he died or the way he lived? Maybe both. But this service is a celebration of life, not death. This service is a celebration of hope, not despair. This service is a celebration of peace, not violence.”

“J. D. was a Peace Officer,he was a law enforcement officer, he was a hero. What makes a Hero? The making of a hero is day after day doing what is right. Even when you are tired. Even when you are going home late at night and the day has been long but your duty tells you, someone might need me. And you go. …”

“What makes a Hero? When children say, ‘He grilled food for us in the apartment complex.’ ‘He was a good cop, I liked him.’ When a child says, ‘I’m going to miss Deputy Paugh.’ What makes a Hero? It is an ordinary guy who is willing to do extraordinary things when duty calls.”

“What makes a Hero? Truth, Right, Pure, Admirable. And you may be saying, Why do Heroes die? Why are we here? Why is this such a senseless act of violence? Why questions must be asked but in the end they are a one way road to nowhere. I challenge us all to change our grief question from Why to What. What do we do, now that this has happened? What can be done to honor the memory of J. D.? What can be done to comfort J. D.’s family and friends? What are my favorite memories of J. D.? What J. D. stories could I tell and keep on telling.”

“What would J. D. want us to do? I think J. D. would say, ‘Be your own Hero?’ And What makes a Hero? It is an ordinary guy or gal who is willing to do extraordinary things when duty calls.”

“Thank you [to all officers]. Thank you for working holidays when the rest of us are with our families. Thank you for going through doors when you don’t even know what’s on the other side of that door.”

“… He served honorably and faithfully, answering the call of duty when he was needed … we will not forget him. We will not forget his dedication and the debt that we owe.”

Hundreds were at the church (over a thousand) and hundreds more lined the way with still more at the cemetery. It was staggering at how many people came out to say goodbye. It was there that JD was placed on a horse-drawn carriage for the last leg of the journey. But, wait, I have to tell another part of the story. One of the most touching things is the story about his motorcycle. It had been retrieved and ‘spiffied up,’ put back together although bullet holes were still visible. There was a processional Wednesday to take it to the funeral home and even then, people were very reverent as it passed along. It was made complete by adding his empty boots much like the missing rider honor for high ranking military in the US Army and US Marines.

His bike did not leave his side until it left the cemetery after JD was laid to rest. A large ladder truck from the fire department flew a giant American Flag—it was all so touching and pulled at the heartstrings. There were several honor guard groups (for lack of a better term). One was the Patriot Guard; there were bagpipes; taps were played; guns were fired in salute; the state patrol flew a missing man formation over the cemetery with their helicopters…on and on. So many people have been touched by this man and this funeral is just a very small thing that could be done to repay him for his 17 years of service and to show honor to his family (both blood and fraternal).

These are just some of the heart-wrenching things, but I think the hardest was his last call to duty (WRDW NEWS 12):

At approximately 2:12 p.m. Thursday, the following statement came over the scanners:

“Dispatch to T-31, Dispatch to T-31

Dispatch to Dept. James D. Paugh, Unit T-31

Dispatch to Car 1

Deputy James D. Paugh, Unit 31 is 10-85 from service

His job here is done but never forgotten.”

By the way, car 1 is the sheriff and this is last time JD’s call number is forever anounced as it was retired from service. I cannot read this without crying heaping balls of tears, and if you thought police officers were all tough with no heart, you should have seen them there at the cemetery. I don’t think there was a dry eye anywhere. Part 2 of this post tells just why I am a proud mother.

Happy Gardening and may everyday be filled with peace and happiness!

Note:  Some of the quoted info was taken from WRDW – NEWS 12. I want to say they have been very supportive through this and I have to thank them for showing the funeral on TV and the internet. They could have been after news ratings but from what I have seen, they have been there for the entire community and we thank them. The bike photo was found at MSNBC photoblog credited as being from the Augusta Chronicle.

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