90’s Club

Mildred Kelly Allen, age 94, was born in 1914. Her parents were Mathew Clyde and Ruby Ellis Kelly. Mildred was one of three children including Bessie and Annie.

Her family lived and operated a farm in the far north end of Jasper County on what is now known as the Aldridge farm. In 1919, when Mildred was only five years old, her father was killed in an auto wreck.

After heavy rains, her father was returning home one night and due to these rains the bridge over Pope Creek on Highway 11 north had washed away, his auto crashed into the creek and he was killed.

His wife operated the farm for a while but finally moved to Monticello and built a home on West View Street across from the old school building. In fact, the school building was being constructed when they moved.

In 1934 Mildred married R.E. “Gene” Allen, Jr., a local rural mail carrier. “Gene” had just returned from serving in the U.S. Army Tank Corps in Europe where he suffered from severe frostbite while in his tank at the Battle of the Bulge.

They had one son, Robert Clyde. Mildred has been a “stay at home mom” for all of her married life. She is now in the “Retreat” Nursing Home and is very well cared for and seems to be in good health. Clyde, her son, and Marilyn, his wife, visit her regularly. You might want to visit her and congratulate her on her achieving age 94.

John Marion “Pooch” Stone is 90 years old, born in 1919. Marion was born by the first “C” Section performed in Jasper County by Dr. F. S. Belcher on the kitchen table at his Grandfather Stone’s home. He is the only son of John A. and Estelle Loyd Stone and one of two children including Helen his sister.

He attended Bethel School from 1925 to 1932 and then went to the Monticello High School until graduation in 1936. From here he attended and graduated from Young Harris College with a degree in bookkeeping in 1938.

He said the tuition there at the time was $70 per quarter which included room and board. He said his father had a hard time coming up with the money each year since this was in depression time.

After finishing high school in 1936 he hauled cotton for J.S. Wilson for a while and in 1940 went to work for Oscar Holland at Monticello Hardware as a bookkeeper. He was then drafted in the U.S. Army, being the first person drafted from Jasper County. He went in for one year but stayed over six years serving in the European theatre. He went in at Omaha beach on “D” Day plus 3 and he also served in the Battle of the Bulge where he received the Purple Heart Medal.

Upon returning from army service he married Helen Millen and they had three children; Lee, Ann and Jay who all married and gave them seven grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

He went to work again for Holland Chevrolet and later came to work for J.S.Wilson Insurance Agency as agent and also did public tax work. He later was hired as a full time rural mail carrier where he later retired. Give him a call at 706-468-6120 and congratulate him.