Three pillars of the community who recently passed away — Jerry Heston, Bob Morgan and Bill Stroud — were remembered for their contributions by Delaware County commissioners at their meeting on Thursday.
The brief meeting started with a moment of silence, and each commissioner commented about the three men.
“The county has lost three good people who did so much and did a lot of good things,” said Jeff Benton. “They represented the way that the county’s public sector and private sector work so well together.”
“They were three stalwarts, and you look at the examples they give to us today about community service,” said Barb Lewis. “We will remember all three for a long time.
“We were all a little shocked when Monday evening Jerry Heston passed away, after having been at our meeting last Thursday,” said Gary Merrell. “The board of elections acknowledged the service he’s done for the county, and we’ve talked about other things he’s done for the county. It meant a lot to him. Jerry will be missed.”
Jerrold E. “Jerry” Heston received a certificate of appreciation from the Ohio Secretary of State’s Office at Delaware County commissioners’ meeting on Feb. 25. With his wife, Sue, by his side, Heston was praised for his community service at the meeting by commissioners, county officials and the county board of elections, and he received a standing ovation.
“I’m so thankful that we were able to honor Jerry before he passed,” Lewis said. “Having him here was very moving, and auditor (George) Kaitsa was over because Jerry had worked for the auditor, too.”
“The recognition was well-deserved,” Benton said.
Heston died Monday in Grady Memorial Hospital. He was 75. Visit Robinson Funeral Home at www.robinsonfuneralhomeinc.com for more information.
“We learned yesterday of Bob Morgan’s passing,” Merrell said. “Bob was evangelical about people with developmental disabilities, and the role that he played there was certainly important to our county.”
The longtime superintendent of the Delaware County Board of Developmental Disabilities, Robert R. “Bob” Morgan, died Tuesday. He was 70 years old.
Morgan retired from the superintendent’s job in May 2015 after serving in the role for more than 31 years. He lived in Lewis Center. “Along with Bob’s many civic and business responsibilities, he always found time to play Santa Claus for all those who believe,” his obituary states.
A memorial service for Morgan will be on Saturday, March 5, at 2 p.m. at Snyder-Rodman Funeral Home, 1510 W. William St.
William C. “Bill” Stroud died on Feb. 27. He was 72. Stroud was co-owner of the Brown Jug Restaurant from 1977 to 2008. His online obituary at www.robinsonfuneralhomeinc.com said Stroud “was a member of Celebrate Delaware and its successor Main Street Delaware, serving as its founding president.”
“Bill was the owner and manager of the Brown Jug Restaurant for decades, and was instrumental in saving The Strand (Theatre),” Benton said. “That was one of his proudest accomplishments. It was so touching that his name was in remembrance on the marquee.”
“Bill Stroud is a person that is a landmark for the county, I don’t know how else to say it,” Merrell said. “I went to the visitation (Wednesday) night, and it was amazing the people that were there. It comes as a celebration of Bill and all he’s done for the county. He was a great guy.”
