All scans by Kenneth Randolph Taylor

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These badges belonged to my father, a veteran of the United States Air Force.

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Scan by Kenneth Randolph Taylor

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The stamp on the back of the photograph indicates the date of May 4, 1964.

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This is post #1150 of ORIGINAL POEMS AND FAMILY HISTORY BLOG.

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Scan by Kenneth Randolph Taylor

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Chattooga High School, Summerville, Georgia

Scans by Kenneth Randolph Taylor

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Chattooga High School, Summerville, Georgia

EUGENE STODDARD TAYLOR, JR. (1928-2012)

Eugene Stoddard Taylor Jr., 83, of Summerville, Ga., died Thursday, January 12, 2012, in the local nursing home.

A native of northwest Georgia, he was born to the late Eugene Stoddard Taylor, Sr. and the late Adeline Wright Taylor on May 22, 1928. Mr. Taylor was a member of the Presbyterian Church, served in the U.S. Marines during Korea, and was a retired attorney-at-law.

Surviving are daughter, Elizabeth Taylor Archer of Chattanooga; son, Eugene S. Taylor, III of Atlanta; granddaughter, Hannah Archer; and grandson, Jamie Archer.

Graveside service will be held Sunday, January 15, at 2 p.m. in the family lot of Summerville Cemetery with Rev. Mike Penson officiating.

The family will receive friends Sunday, January 15 at the Funeral Home from 1 p.m. until the hour of service.

Earle Rainwater Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements for Mr. Eugene Stoddard Taylor, Jr.

Source = http://www.chattanoogan.com/2012/1/13/217245/Taylor-Eugene-Stoddard-Jr.-Summerville.aspx

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Eugene Stoddard Taylor, Sr. (1890-1944) was the elder brother of my grandfather, John Dodson Taylor, Jr. (1905-1976).  Thus Eugene, Jr. (1928-2012), and my father, John Dodson Taylor, III (1943-2014), were first cousins.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

Image Source = Kenneth Randolph Taylor

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This is an undated photograph of the John D. Taylor, Sr.-Jr., house in Summerville, Georgia.  It seems to come from the 1960s.  The car is a 1959 Mercury which my grandfather, John Dodson Taylor, Jr. (1905-1976), bought in 1962 or 1963.  The Volkswagen belonged to Eugene Stoddard Taylor, Jr. (1928-2012).  The context seems to be a family reunion.

This was the house into which my grandfather, John D. Taylor, Jr., entered the world in 1905.  My grandmother, Nell Barrett Taylor spent most her life there also.  My father and uncle grew up there, and my mother, sister, and I lived there for a time.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

Above:  My Grandmother, Nell Barrett Taylor, with My Father, 1943

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EULOGY FOR JOHN DODSON TAYLOR, III (NOVEMBER 21, 1943-OCTOBER 30, 2014)

MARTHA MCDONALD MOORE CHAPEL, MAGNOLIA MANOR, AMERICUS, GEORGIA

NOVEMBER 2, 2014

Before I departed Athens last Thursday, I posted a notice of Dad’s impending death in the Facebook group of my parish, St. Gregory the Great Episcopal Church.  Many of my fellow parishioners expressed sympathy and informed me of their prayers not only for me but for my family also.  One person commented on my Facebook page that I am a “living tribute” to Dad.  That thought had not occurred to me, but may the sentiment be accurate.

Each of us carries the legacies of other people, extending back into generations immemorial.  Much of Dad’s influence is evident in me, from my bookish ways to my preference for classical music.  Most important, though, are lessons in faith and mere decency, which he taught primarily via a pattern of mundane deeds.  Among my earliest memories is one, from the late 1970s, of him preaching and mentioning the “presence of God.”  I, being a concrete thinker at the time, was confused, for I saw no wrapped packages with tags reading “To Ken from God.”  I see clearly, with the benefit of hindsight, how many presents (even some in wrapped boxes) God gave me via Dad.  The best such gifts, however, are intangible.  And they are for the benefit of others, not just myself.  Dad taught me that also.

Now he belongs to the Church Triumphant.  This being All Saints’ Sunday, a verse from “For All the Saints” is doubly appropriate:

O blest communion, fellowship divine!

We feebly struggle, they in glory shine;

Yet all are one in thee, for all are thine.

Alleluia.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

NOVEMBER 1, 2014 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF ALL SAINTS

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These were my prepared comments.  I remained close to them as I extended them.–KRT

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http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2013/12/27/the-long-goodbye/

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