John Walker is a thankful man at 101 years old. He will turn 102 on March 17, 2021. The storied life of the Army veteran centers on his wife, Gladys, whom he celebrated 75 years of marriage with in December 2020, and the family they built —three children, Constance, John Jr., and Darlene, seven grandchildren, 14 great grandchildren and three great, great grandchildren. Gladys Walker died on Dec. 8, 2020, 2½ months after turning 100.
A month later, John Walker transitioned into Palliative Care and Hospice, the same program that cared for her. For John Walker, that means living in Hampton with Darlene, who savors every moment they spend together. “I don’t know how we would have made it without Riverside,” she offers.
“Everybody has been so kind, so compassionate, caring and giving. It was a blessing to have them here when my mom transitioned. I don’t know what I would have done without them. I appreciate the entire staff at Riverside.”
Born in Hampton, John Walker resided in Phoebus most of his life. He spent four years in the Army, rising to buck sergeant followed by 37 years as a heavy equipment operator for Langley Air Force Base. Prior to deploying to Scotland during World War II, he recalls his sendoff from President Roosevelt, who gave each soldier a copy of the New Testament.
“He told us we were the best dressed military in the world with the best equipment and we had nothing to fear but fear itself,” Walker says. But Walker recalls a divided military —African American soldiers were not easily accepted.
“The German prisoners were actually fed before the black troops when it was chow time,” he says. John Walker shared with his children memories of racial riots that pitted black and white soldiers against each other.
“He told us things we didn’t learn in history class,” Darlene Walker says.
John Walker was once bitter about it, but his life changed in 1947.He attended a prayer meeting where he accepted Christ.
“I used to be a bad man,” he says. “I thank the Lord for giving me my life.” Ask Darlene Wilson about her father and she talks about his faith. Sundays were spent at Emmanuel Chapel Church of Christ Holiness in Hampton; her father remains the only living original member.
“We grew up in a Christian home,” Darlene says. “I never saw my dad smoke, drink, curse. He was a loving dad.” Admittedly the teenager in her didn’t always want to spend full days at church from Sunday school in the morning to an evening service that followed their traditional at-home roast beef supper.“ But it made us better children,” she says. “It instilled in us how to love unconditionally, how not to judge. Daddy and I were still going to church every Sunday until the coronavirus came along.”
John Walker met his wife Gladys in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, prior to going overseas for the war. She asked him to buy her a 5-cent Coke. “I don’t have 5 cents in my pocket,” he told her. “Well, I could buy you a Coke,” she suggested. “I’ll take a 15-cent beer!” he responded. The Walkers married on Dec. 4, 1945. Granddaughter Chanda chose that date in 2020 to marry her husband, Demetrius.
“She hasn’t spent one night at home with her husband; she’s chosen to be here for my dad,” Darlene says. “Chanda’s my rock. Sometimes he listens to her better than me.” Constance and John Jr., both of whom live close, also visit their father frequently and help care for him. John Walker feels especially blessed for the staff from the Riverside Palliative Care and Hospice. He works with the same certified nursing assistant who cared for his wife and it’s comforting to him that he once knew the great, great grandmother of his regular nurse. “I just love them both” he says
As for turning 102, John Walker is grateful. “I never thought I would make it,” he says. “I’ve been blessed.
Today is a day that Riverside Health will remember forever. March 9 marks exactly one year since Riverside Doctors’ Hospital Williamsburg received the first documented COVID-19 patient for Riverside Health.
In the year that has followed that first case at Riverside, our team members have continued to safely provide care to COVID-19 patients, as well as other patients and residents across the system.
To all our team members, we are grateful to you. You are the heroes that continue to live out our mission to care for others as we would care for those we love.
Together we are #riversidestrong
