Jay World War II veteran remembered

The city of Jay in Delaware County had a Veteran's Day parade Friday. The community turned out to honor its veterans and did something extra. They honored a World War II veteran who went off to war

Friday, November 11th 2005, 9:49 am

By: News On 6

The city of Jay in Delaware County had a Veteran's Day parade Friday. The community turned out to honor its veterans and did something extra. They honored a World War II veteran who went off to war and never came home.

News on 6 reporter Rick Wells was there for the special honors for PFC Eugene Hutchison. June 6th 1944, the Allies landed on the beaches of Normandy, thousands of US, British and Canadian troops stormed ashore.

Among them PFC Eugene Hutchison, he was in the 300th combat engineers. He was one of thousands who died. Eugeneâ€™s son Ron Walker: "He was on a ship going into Normandy; the ship hit a mine and was blown up." Eugene Hutchison is buried with thousands of others in a US military cemetery in France.

Ron Walker was five months old when he father was killed, they've never met. Some folks in Jay thought it right to honor Eugene Hutchison at home and thought Veterans Day the perfect time to do it. So they gathered on a hill top after the parade for a short memorial. Ron Walker: "They thought it would be appropriate to set a marker for him here, since he went to war and never came home."

Family and veterans taking time to honor the memory of someone they never knew. They brought pictures of a young man in his prime, the flag that covered his casket and his purple heart. There were kind words and tears.

A stone marker set next to his mother's grave and honors befitting a soldier. Ron Walker: "It's almost as if my dad has come home after all these years." On a hill top spot where his spirit can rest.