Last three grand marshalls in the series of Grand Marshall’s of Saturday’s Veteran Parade SFC Jason U. Basinger, Retired, a Cannon County High School graduate,
served two
deployments to Iraq as a member of I and F Troop, 278 Armored Cavalry
Regiment, TNARNG
located in McMinnville, Tennessee. Jason started his military service in
1992, by serving in
the Active Army for three years. He completed Army Basic Training at Fort
Jackson, South Carolina
followed by a duty assignment at the National Training Center, Fort Irwin,
California where he was
assigned to the Army Transportation Corp.
After Active Duty, Jason entered the Tennessee Army National Guard and was
assigned to I Troop, 3/278 Armored
Cavalry Regiment as a Bradley Fighting Vehicle crew member.
2004-2005 I Troop 3/278 ACR was deployed in support of Operation Iraqi
Freedom where Jason served as a Bradley Fighting Vehicle Section Leader.
Due to his Bradley operational experiences Jason served as a Bradley
Training Instructor at the Army National Guard Regional Training Site for
two years.
Jason returned to McMinnville when I Troop 3/278 ACR was changed to F
Troop, 278 Armored Cavalry still located in McMinnville.
2008 F Troop 2/278 ACR was deployed to Baton Rouge , Louisiana on a
humanitarian Mission due to
damaged caused by Hurricane Gustav.
2010, F Troop 2/278 ACR was deployed to Iraq for the second time with
Jason serving as a Convoy Escort Security Platoon Leader.
2013, Jason retired from the Tennessee Army National Guard with twenty
years of service. He is married to
Jennifer Kennedy Basinger and they have a daughter Marin. He is the son of
Annie L. Barton and Col John U Basinger, USA, Retired. Jason’s military
service medals include the Meritorious Service Medal, Bronze Star
Medal(Meritorious), Army Commendation Medal and the Army Good Conduct medal.
CONGRATULATIONS TO THE FOLLOWING INDIVIDUALS.
OUR GRAND MARSHAL FOR 2015 (THE BAILEY FAMILY – FLOYD
BAILEY,JR., U.S. AIR FORCE; MARK BAILEY, U.S. MARINES; KIM
BAILEY, U.S. NAVY.) The Army Grand Marshals are Jason Basinger, served
in Afghanistan, Frank B. Walkup, III. Vietnam, and Curtis Fort, served in
Vietnam.
The Navy Grand Marshal is Paul L. Reed, served during WWII;
The Marine Grand Marshal is Pete Parker, served in Vietnam. The Air Force
Grand Marshal is Paul Curless, served in Vietnam. The Coast Guard Grand
Marshal is Robert Virgil Young, in honor and memory. The POW/MIA Grand
Marshal is Louis E. Hillis, served in Korea and was captured as a POW. The
Civilian Concerned Citizen Marshal is Harold Patrick, Mayor or Woodbury, a
great supporter of the Veterans of Cannon County.
HONOR OUR VETERANS
THOSE WHO SERVED AND THOSE WHO ARE STILL SERVING
BY Colonel Jim Stone
There are no more WWI veterans in our country. The WWII
veterans are going to the big battle field in the sky at 1500
a day. In just a few more years there will be no WWII
veterans left in our country. We need to honor these men and
women now, for their sacrifices for this great country. And
we need to honor the men and women who served after WWII and
those serving today. So, when you see a veteran shake their
hand and tell them thanks for their service. And, don’t
forget to remember the 61 men listed on our monument in front
of our Courthouse. They paid the supreme sacrifice by giving
their lives for our country. And quoting Tom Nichols, “These
were young men, they never had a chance at life. They never
returned home. Most of them never got married, had children
and grand children. They paid it all for us.” When you see
one of the family members of these men tell them how much you
appreciate their service and their sacrifices. It is because
of the brave men that we can say that we live in the greatest
country on this earth.
Just a side note: This is my 23d year conducting the Veterans Day
Program at the Cannon County High School and the Veterans Day
Parade. These 23 years have been a wonderful experience and a great honor
for me and all of wonderful folks who have supported these
events over the years. All the credit goes to brother Tom Nichols.
Brother Tom called me 23 years ago and asked if I would help honor
our Veterans in Cannon County. I said that I would give it a shot.
Through the years brother Tom always would laugh and say, look at
all the fun we are having.
But, the amazing thing about this story is, brother Tom Nichols is
not a Veteran. He wanted to be one and tried to enlist but medical
reasons kept him from being able to sign on. He remembered the
soldiers when they were on maneuvers in the 40’s, all over middle
Tennessee, and he wanted to be a soldier, like many of the young
boys. We wanted to defend this great country. Brother Tom was, and still
is, a Concerned Citizen for the Veterans of Cannon County.
Because of Tom we have honored our Veterans of Cannon County and
preserved our proud history and heritage.
God Bless our veterans. And God bless Tom Nichols for his leadership,
vision, and concern for honoring our veterans.
Thank you Brother Tom for your service to Cannon County.
Our Veterans Day Program at the Cannon County High School is Friday,
November 13th and the Veterans Day Parade is on Saturday, November 14th.
Come on out and let our Veterans know how much we
appreciate them, for all of this wonderful freedom we enjoy in the
greatest country in the world.
Mr. Curtis Eugene Fort, a Veteran of World War II, had been named the U.S.
Army Grand Marshall for the Cannon County Veterans’ Day Parade by the
Hilton Stone American Legion Post 279.
Curtis was born in Olive Branch, Mississippi on October 30,
1927 and passed away at his home in the Woodland Community of Cannon
County, Tennessee on October 14, 2015 following a protracted fight with
cancer. He lived most of his life in around Memphis, Tennessee, serving as
a Police Officer for three years with the Memphis Police Department and 26
years with E.H. Crump and Company, the south’s largest insurance agency,
retiring from Crump as its Credit Manager and Assistant Vice President and
as President of the Memphis Association of Credit Executives. Following
the deaths of his wife, Betty (Davis) Fort, and his oldest son, Curtis Fort
Jr., Curtis moved to Cannon County to be closer to his remaining children
and lived in the Woodland Community since 2010.
Curtis enlisted in the U.S. Army on November 5, 1945, six
months after Germany unconditionally surrendered to the Allies, in order to
follow his three older brothers into military service. After Basic
Training at Fort Knox, Kentucky, Curtis boarded a Liberty Ship for Europe
and was assigned to the 22nd Armored Field Artillery Regiment which was
reflagged as the 22nd Constabulary Battalion in February 1946. During most
of Curtis’ duty in Germany, he served as a Supply Technical
in the Battalion S-4 (Logistics) staff section, processing requisitions,
picking up and distributing supplies, and managing the daily supply
operations of the battalion. However, these were tense times between the
U.S. and Russian sectors of Occupied Germany and Curtis found himself
driving the duty officers to the boundary between the zones to resolve
conflicts with the Russians. On several occasions the Russians would greet
the Americans along the boundary with a few shots fired over their heads.
Curtis also participated in helping the relocation of the
Jews, who had survived the Holocaust, as they boarded trains for the trip
to the new State of Israel. He also aided the new German Government Police
in their hunt for and capture of Nazi’s, and took advantage of his free
time to go and watch the Nurnberg Trials.
Though Curtis saw no combat during his 29 months of duty in
the US Zone Constabulary, his brothers participated in extended combat in
the European Theatre of Operations with two serving in General Patton’s
Third Army and the older brother serving with the Intelligence and
Reconnaissance (I&R) Platoon, 394th Infantry Regiment, 99th Infantry
Division. The 99th Inf. Div. took the brunt of the German offensive at the
Battle of the Bulge and the I&R Platoon, 395th Infantry Regiment stopped
the German advance for over 24 hours at the Battle of Lanzreth, Belgium
until being forced to surrender due to running out of ammunition. The
members of this platoon, including Curtis’ older brother, spent the
remainder of the war in POW camps. This action distinguished this platoon
as being the most highly decorated unit of World War II and led to the
writing of the book, “The Longest Winter” by Alex Kershaw and a History
Channel documentary. Curtis was very proud of his and, mostly, of his
brothers’ service during World War II and would say: “I and my brothers
served a total of 12 years, 4 months, and 1 day in World War II, earning 6
Battle Stars, 2 Purple Hearts, a Bronze Star, and a Presidential Unit
Citation.
After his honorable discharge from the U.S. Army, Curtis
joined and was an active member of the American Legion, serving in Posts at
Covington, Collierville and Woodbury, Tennessee. His work with the
American Legion included serving coffee and conversation at the VA
Hospital, placing flags along parade routes for Veterans’ Day and
Independence Day parades, conducting community outreach to veterans, and
serving in Honor Guards. In addition to his service in the American
Legion, Curtis was an active member and servant in Central Church in
Collierville and both Plainview Baptist and First Baptist Churches in
Woodbury, Tennessee.
Mr. Curtis Fort serves as a bright and shining example of
patriotism, courage, and dedication to his God, his Country, and his fellow
man!
Concerned Citizen Grand Marshal
Harold Patrick resides in Woodbury. He has lived in Cannon County
his entire life. He is married to Sue Mitchell Holt Patrick and they have
three children, Pam Cunningham, Patti Shook, an Grant Holt. Harold and
Sue have seven grandchildren.
Harold has had a variety of jobs working at the box factory, Pat’s Drive
In, Davis’ Service Station, WBRY radio as a sports announcer, and Colonial
Shirt Factory, where he rose through the ranks to purchasing agent. He
began his community service in 1975 when he first ran and was elected as
Cannon County Commissioner, and served in that position until he was
elected Cannon County Executive in1986. He was re-elected to that same
position in 1990 and again in 1994. After resigning that position in
1997, he was appointed to the Clerk and Master position after being
appointed by Chancellor Bob Corlew, where he served for 13 years, retiring
in 2010. In 2008 he was elected as Mayor of the Town of Woodbury, and
still serves in this position. He has served the citizens of Woodbury and
Cannon County for over 40 years.
Harold helped to acquire industry while he was County Executive to
include the Crane Interiors and Global Industries. He has served as the
Treasurer of the Lions Club and County Chairman of the American Cancer
Society. He was inducted into the Cannon County Sports Hall of Fame in
June 2012 for his many years of sport casting on radio the Cannon County
ball games.
