April Jefferson Award Winner: Patriotic Volunteer Crew from Grafton

BRIDGEPORT, W.Va (WDTV) - Once a month, WDTV and Antero Resources award one deserving community member with a Jefferson Award. For the month of April, we’re honoring a patriotic crew of volunteers from Grafton.

The volunteers are from Grafton, and they make sure the city’s veterans are properly remembered.

With it’s annual Memorial Day Parade and by being home to the West Virginia National Cemetery, the city of Grafton is well-known for honoring our veterans.

At the city’s four corners intersection you’ll find the American Legion Isle of Flags, an area of remembrance and respect for all vets.

The grounds are supervised by these men, an all-volunteer group that makes sure the flags, plaques and other displays of respect are properly maintained.

David Robinson is the Commander of American Legion Taylor Co. Post 12. He says that the area makes a difference.

“This lot honors all veterans, particularly the ones who gave the ultimate sacrifice. There’s a lot of folks that drive through Grafton and they see this and they say ‘What’s that?’and they stop and they’ll just walk around. There’s not any concessions here or anything like that. It’s just static displays. People come and read the signs. Sometimes the city gets letters that say your lot looks so well. Or our Legion Post. We’ll get a letter saying it’s wonderful that you do that. Thank you,” Robinson said.

Crew member Tim Gerkin says that it’s a labor of love, honor and respect for his fellow volunteers.

“There’s a lot of guys in the ground that don’t have the ability to come out here and do anything like this,” Gerkin said. “We just respect them for what they’ve done for us.”

Robinson says that the crew saw a need and decided to act.

“The reason we started taking care of it a little better years ago is because it was getting neglected,” Robinson said. “The lot was in disrepair. It’s a monumental task for this crew of volunteers and they care of it. Outstanding job.”

Robinson says the Isle of Flags shines bright for Grafton.

“We’re pretty proud of our little town and our veterans,” Robinson said. “We want to make sure they get recognized. That’s why we do this.”

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