BY NICKI MAYO
Family and friends bid a final farewell to a fallen Western New York soldier. Thirty-year-old Sergeant John Shepherd Jr. was laid to rest in Buffalo Tuesday afternoon. Nicki Mayo tells us how Shepherd’s spirit lives on through the lives he touched around the Queen City.
The Patriot Guard stood watch outside Saint John Baptist Church as family and friends came together to remember Army Sergeant John “Jay” Shepherd Jr.
The 30 year old Buffalo native was killed December 10th in a car accident in Germany, after serving a tour in Afghanistan.
“In a land where people are shooting at you constantly and danger is all around. God brought him through that,” said St. John’s Pastor Michael Chapman to the congregation. “And then to lose him in this type of way is unimaginable,” Reverend Chapman added.
“In a land where people are shooting at you constantly and danger is all around. God brought him through that,” said St. John’s Pastor Michael Chapman to the congregation. “And then to lose him in this type of way is unimaginable,” Reverend Chapman added.
Jay leaves behind his wife Alexandria and five year old son Brian. Local soldiers are helping the Shepherd family through this traumatic time.
“It doesn’t matter whether he fell in harm’s way serving his country or if he fell domestically, we’re just helping them out with their grieving,” said Sgt. 1st Class Nathan Dolson. The Amherst 98th Division Casualty Assistance troop is working with Shepherd’s wife and son. Another soldier is tending to Jay’s parents emotional needs.The military remembers Jay as a decorated soldier who earned 17 medals in the United States Army. Family and friends say Jay was a devoted father, son and husband who always put family first.
“He had become someone who would lay down his life for his family, his friends and his country,” said Buffalo’s Joyce Chapman (No relation to the pastor). Chapman watched Jay grow from a boy to a man.
“I just saw him change. When he called me on the phone I didn’t know who he was. He said ‘Hi Ms. Chapman, this is Jay.’ I said Jay who? His voice was so deep,” Chapman said.
Chapman says Jay’s voice matured after graduating from Riverside High School in 1997 and joining the Army in 2004. She was surprised to get a phone call from Jay overseas.
“It was remarkable! I was in awe at the change in this quiet little boy to this brave young man who was going to make a career in the service,” Chapman added.
Jay’s family was his inspiration to stay in the army. Before the accident, Jay sent his father a letter letting him know how much he loved him.
“There was a connection there. Even though he was all the way in Germany there was a connection,” said Columbus Brown Jr. who says he watched Jay become a role model for young Buffalonian men.
“I look back over my life and I ask myself. ‘Did I get a chance to tell my father that I love him?” said Brown. “Did I get a chance to tell my father that he’s my hero?’ Jay had an opportunity to do that,” he added.
Jay was scheduled to return to Afghanistan for another tour in the spring.
