By Ken Wyatt
Under legislation approved by the Michigan House of Representatives, portions of M-60 in western Jackson County would honor area men killed in three wars. Rep. Sarah Lightner, R-Springport, introduced House Bill 5089, which would rename three stretches of the highway as follows:
M-60 from Emerson Road to N. Cross Road would become the “WWII Veterans Lynford Graham, Melvin King, and Vernon Smalley Memorial Highway.”
M-60 from N. Cross Road to N. Main Street at Concord would be the “Vietnam War Veterans Timothy Ballinger, Robert Jenks, and James Morgan Memorial Highway.”
M-60 from N. Main Street at Concord to Van Wert Road would be designated the “Operation Iraqi Freedom Veteran Donald Wheeler Jr. Memorial Highway.”
The changes are conditional in these respects: 1) The legislation now goes to the State Senate for its consideration, and 2) signage for the highway would be under the Michigan Memorial Highway Act, which requires that the cost of each sign be privately funded before installation, so that no taxpayer funds are used.
According to the state’s 2019 Guidelines for Memorial Highway Signing information sheet, the cost ranges from $3,800 to $4,700, depending on the highway’s status as a freeway or nonfreeway. M-60 is a nonfreeway, according to the state’s definitions of both terms. The location of the signs is determined by the Michigan Department of Transportation. If the legislation is approved and signed by the governor into law, implementation would only take place if families of the deceased veterans followed up with the funding.
The names of the first three men are listed among many others listed on the World War II Veterans Memorial in Jackson. The reason these were chosen for memorial signage is that all three were from Spring Arbor, Concord and Homer areas – all M-60 communities.
– Lynford A. Graham, born in Spring Arbor Township, served in the 134th Infantry Division with the U.S. Army. On Sunday, April 8, 1945, Sgt. Graham and four others were on a reconnaissance mission across the Rhine–Herne Canal. While crossing the canal in a paddle craft, they were fired on by the enemy and forced to jump into the canal. Two of the men got to shore safely. Sgt. Graham did not. He was originally reported missing in action. About a year later, the family was notified of his death. In 1952, his remains were returned to the family. Graham’s daughter, Linda Al-Sindi, worked for Morning Star and The Salesman for years as a graphic designer.
– Melvin L. King was born in Ohio. When he enlisted in the U.S. Navy, however, he was a resident of Homer, Michigan. Serving aboard the USS Navajo, Navy Petty Officer Third Class King was reported missing in action and was ultimately declared dead on Sept. 12, 1943. He is listed on Tablets of the Missing at Honolulu Memorial, Honolulu, Hawaii.
– Vernon Lynn Smalley was born in Concord and graduated from Concord High School in 1931. He built and operated a service station on M-60 in Concord. He enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1942, attaining the rank of sergeant. While serving with the 4th Infantry Division, Sgt. Smalley was deployed to Germany in 1943, where he was killed in action in 1944. He was believed to be Concord’s first fatality of World War II.
The names of the Vietnam War casualties are the three Concord area men killed in that war. The most recent of the casualties is that of Donald Wheeler Jr., the first Jackson County death in the Iraq War. A Concord man, DJ (as he was called – short for Donald Jr.) was a graduate of Lumen Christi High School. He was killed on Oct. 13, 2003, in Tikrit, Iraq. He was the oldest of 12 children.
His father, Don Wheeler, lives at Swains Lake and was taken a bit by surprise at news of the legislation. He was pleased, for as he pointed out, he wants his son to be remembered.
DJ, like many young men, was hugely impacted by the 9/11 attacks. He told his family, “I need to be fighting this evil.” And that is how he came to be serving in Iraq that fateful day when the Bradley Fighting Vehicle he was in was hit by a rocket propelled grenade. DJ was in the turret and was killed instantly.
The three Vietnam deaths are recounted in Don Winchell’s book, “Vietnam Veterans of Concord, Michigan.”
Robert (Bobby) James Jenks was killed on March 2, 1968. A Spec. 4, he was serving with the Riverines of the 9th Infantry Division in the Mekong Delta. During an operation, he was hit in the stomach. He was taken from the scene alive, but subsequently died. He was a brother of Halsey Jenks, long-time Concord village president.
Timothy (Tim) Ballinger died on May 24, 1969. He was with the 1st Infantry Division and had been in Vietnam only 56 days when he was killed. He was on a recon-in-force mission with his unit when the company encountered Viet Cong. He was fatally wounded by fragmentation from an enemy rocket-propelled grenade.
James (Jimmy) Mark Morgan was killed in action on Jan. 10, 1968. He had been in Vietnam 242 days, making him a seasoned soldier. He was on a search-and-destroy mission in Que Son Valley. During the maneuver, Sgt. Morgan was mortally wounded.
Wheeler, Jenks and Morgan are buried in Maple Grove Cemetery in Concord. Ballenger is interred in the Litchfield Cemetery. Of the WWII casualties, Smalley and Graham are buried at Maple Grove Cemetery. As mentioned above, King is listed on the Tablets of the Missing at Honolulu Memorial, Honolulu, Hawaii.
