Members of the Soddy-Daisy community, especially the veterans, lost one of their biggest supporters with the May 25 passing of WV Roberson. The U.S. Army veteran served in the Korean War, and was best-known for his efforts in the community to recognize and show appreciation for others who have served the country.
Each year, Roberson and volunteers placed hundreds of white crosses on the lawn at City Hall in remembrance of local veterans who have passed away. Every Veterans Day, he planned a free lunch for veterans at First Baptist Church of Soddy-Daisy, where he was a member since 1948 and served as a deacon.
In order to hold the lunch free of charge, he solicited donations from local business owners, including Home Folks owner Rick Hall, who has contributed food for the event for the past six years. Hall also hosted a free meal for a group of World War II veterans four years ago whom Roberson had brought together after finding a plaque listing their names that had been hung in the old post office.
"He did a lot of it out of his own pocket," Hall said of Roberson's organization of the free meals for vets. "He had a big heart; I've never seen anyone so passionate about the vets. I want everyone to know how much he loved this community. I can't say enough about him and how much we're going to miss him."
Hall said another thing that struck him about Roberson was the love he had for his wife, Linda, and Hall was also touched by how much she supported him in his many volunteer efforts. The couple often ate at Home Folks, and Hall recalls several occasions when he'd stopped by their table to visit and Linda would step away and WV would say, "You know, I have the best wife in the world."
Roberson was one of the most active members of American Legion Post #107, said Legionnaire Roger Busse, participating in projects such as the Toys for Tots drive and flag retirement program, as well as regularly visiting veterans in nursing homes.
"Anything related to veterans or the community as a whole, he was there to perform and do what's necessary to help out," Busse said.
He was also passionate about his family, and the city of Soddy-Daisy, which he helped incorporate in 1969. A member of the Soddy-Daisy High School Class of 1955, Roberson was instrumental in planning class reunions. When he was inducted into the Soddy-Daisy Hall of Fame in 2016, he closed his acceptance speech by saying, "God has been so good to me. I just thank God he put me in Soddy-Daisy."
Linda Roberson said that as her husband became too ill to drive, he would ask her to drive him through Soddy-Daisy, just to see what was going on in his little town.
"He loved being out and about," she said. "He was a very outgoing person and knew most everyone here. I always said, if you didn't know him when he met you, by the time you left he'd know you real well."
Last year, she said, WV wrote out notes of how he organized the annual veterans luncheon so that someone else could carry it on, and that Roy Rector, who has helped to organize the event in the past, will be using those notes when it comes time for the event this November.