Georgia Magazine - November 2023 - 38
Hometown HEROES
By Amber Lanier Nagle
Jack Baggett: supporting veterans,
overseas missions
I
n 1949, 15-year-old Oscar " Jack " Baggett of Douglasville
tried to join the U.S. Air Force, but his mother refused to
sign the permission forms.
" So two years later, I joined the Navy, and my mama signed
the paperwork that time because times were so hard, and there
were no jobs here, " Baggett says.
Baggett was assigned to the USS Surfbird. He worked on
three-man crews to navigate 40- and 60-foot wooden boats to
sweep for mines in the waterways of Korea, the Philippines,
China, Japan and Borneo.
" The mine division did not provide hearing protection for
us, and due to the [noise levels of the] guns on the ship, I
suffered permanent hearing loss, " Baggett says. " When I was
discharged in 1956, [Navy officials] told me to go to the VA
[Veterans Administration] and file for disability, but I refused.
I was able to work, and I wanted to work. "
After he returned home, his hearing continued to decline.
Still, he ran a service station; worked for Lockheed Aircraft Co.
in Marietta for 20 years; became a licensed auctioneer and
launched the first auctioneer's school in Georgia; ran for
secretary of state in 1982; built commercial buildings throughout
Douglas County; ran a newspaper (the West Georgia Tribune);
and raised four children.
Baggett also got involved with Disabled American Veterans
and the American Legion, where he helped raise funds to build
Post 145 in Douglasville, rose to the rank of colonel and trained
at the National Service Officer School in Indianapolis. He will
soon celebrate his 70-year affiliation with the American Legion.
" [As an American Legion service officer], I did whatever I
could to assist veterans in need, especially disabled veterans,
because I understand what it means to have a disability, " he says.
" I helped them understand their benefits. I personally drove
people to the VA and helped them get services and benefits
owed to them. If a veteran or [a veteran's] family was hungry, I
helped them get food. "
Baggett also is a Mason and a Shriner and has helped local
missionaries collect clothing and shoes for people in need in
other countries.
" Jack Baggett has done so much for so many, and so much
of it he has done in a quiet, behind-the-scenes way, " says Rachel
Terry, who helped Baggett publish stories from his life in 2018.
" He cares about people and finds joy in helping others who are
truly in need. "
" Sometimes I think about all I've done in my life, " he says.
" I didn't sit on my rear end. I worked hard, and I helped others,
and it has been such an honor! "
Amber Lanier Nagle is a freelance writer living in Adairsville.
38 Georgia Magazine November 2023
AMBER LANIER NAGLE
Georgia Magazine - November 2023
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Georgia Magazine - November 2023
Contents
Georgia Magazine - November 2023 - Intro
Georgia Magazine - November 2023 - Cover1
Georgia Magazine - November 2023 - Cover2
Georgia Magazine - November 2023 - Contents
Georgia Magazine - November 2023 - 4
Georgia Magazine - November 2023 - 5
Georgia Magazine - November 2023 - 6
Georgia Magazine - November 2023 - 7
Georgia Magazine - November 2023 - 8
Georgia Magazine - November 2023 - 9
Georgia Magazine - November 2023 - 10
Georgia Magazine - November 2023 - 11
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Georgia Magazine - November 2023 - 37
Georgia Magazine - November 2023 - 38
Georgia Magazine - November 2023 - Cover3
Georgia Magazine - November 2023 - Cover4
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