A Gentleman & A Soldier

Written by: Esther

After we moved to Marion from New York in 1975, my cousin Prescy, who came to help when our daughter Nikki was born, remembered that she and our relatives had a pen pal from Ohio.

We contacted our parents right away and gathered more information about him. His name was Delbert Smith, and guess what? He lived here in Marion, Ohio.

He was in the USAF who served in the Philippines. My cousin and I thought of him (whom we never met) as a "faceless" good man, a man who my family lost contact with for 20 years.

When my relatives came to visit us, we set up a reunion. It was awesome!

He was a tall (6' 4"), good-looking guy, with a military bearing, even after many years since he served his country. He showed us all the letters & momentos he received from my family. The letters were well-preserved and we had a great time reading them.

He was also a very caring, loving and smart educated man. He believed in good education. My cousin Prescy now a physician in Little Rock, Arkansas, and I will never forget his financial help during our early schooling.

It was a great joy that I and my family had the chance to return the favor with our time and love when he got sick & lived alone at the Marion Square Apartments until he rested in peace.

After his funeral, we also had the chance to meet other members of his family and friends in our home. We found out that after coming back from his military service, he became a respected educator & taught English & Spanish. He was also a musician and played piano in his church.

I salute him for his love to God, to his country, and his sacrifice to his fellowman.

I am blessed to have known and met a gentleman, educator and a soldier!