Ford Motor Company, the West Tennessee Veterans Coalition, the Veterans Honor Guard of Parkers Crossing, elected officials and community leaders gathered today, November 8, 2025, for a dedication ceremony for the new van honoring veterans.
The Veterans Honor Guard of Parkers Crossing is an all-volunteer group of veterans that perform military honors at funerals based on the Department of Military guidelines.
“The previous van used for transport to funerals had over 300,000 miles on it and was experiencing serious mechanical problems,” said Ford Community Relations Manager Marianne Dunavant. “Ford was proud to pay for the new van so they can serve their mission of honoring our veterans.
The van honoring veterans participated in the veterans parade at 11:00 am and the ceremony followed at the Carl Perkins Civic Center parking lot in Jackson.
In addition to Dunavant, Mary Ross with the West Tennessee Veterans Coalition and Air Force Chief and Honor Guard Chaplain Spurgeon Smith participated in the dedication ceremony.
Also in attendance were State Senator Ed Jackson and State Representative Chris Todd of Madison County, and State Representative Brock Martin of Carol County. Jackson and Brock represent Henderson County where the Veterans Honor Guard of Parkers Crossing is based.
“I can’t thank the Ford Motor Company enough for this gift to this hard working group of veteran volunteers,” said Senator Jackson, who noted he is an Army and Tennessee National Guard Veteran. “This gift could not go to a better, dedicated, veteran group and I’m proud to be a part of this dedication ceremony for the new van.”
Ford has a long history of supporting service members, veterans, and their families. Ford began to hire disabled veterans returning from WWI in 1922, shut down civilian vehicle production to devote all our assets to military production during WWII, and actively recruits and hires military veterans and their spouses today, through partnerships with Vet.Jobs.org and MilitarySpouseJobs.org.
