JONESVILLE – Services for Richard C. “Dick” Daggett, 87, of Wildsville, La., who died Sunday, Oct. 5, 2008, will be at 10 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2008, at First United Methodist Church, in Jonesville, with the Rev. Dave Carlton, the Rev. Jimmie Pyles and Tom Barrett officiating.
Music will be performed by organist Rena Pitts and soloist will be Buzz Scott.
Burial will follow at Evangeline Cemetery, in Wildsville, under the direction of Young’s Funeral Home.
Visitation will be from 5 to 8 p.m. today at the church where he was a member and served for many years.
Capt. Richard C. Daggett was born on Jan. 12, 1921, in Medford, Mass., the son of Fred L. and Mildred Daggett. He served in the China-Burma-India Theatre during World War II as a fighter pilot. He was then assigned to the Chinese-American Composite Wing. Capt. Daggett was a part of the famous Flying Tigers and his objective was to interrupt supply lines by strafing and bombing trains and boats along the rivers. During a routine strafing run, he encountered enemy fire and was forced to eject from his plane. He found himself wounded and far behind enemy lines. After 30 days of evading enemy forces, he was back in Allied Occupied China.
Capt. Daggett received many awards including the Purple Heart and Air Medal. He married Mrs. Eula Routh Wurster Daggett during the war. After the war, he and his family moved to Newton, Mass., where he owned and operated Daggett Chocolate Company. He later returned his loving wife to her home of Jonesville where he worked as a farmer until he retired.
He was preceded in death by his wife; and his parents.
Survivors include three children, Candy Ford and Rod Daggett and wife, Penny, all of Wildsville, and Linda Barrett and husband, Tom, both of Vienna, Va.; eight grandchildren, Ella Ruth Young Spinks, John Davis Young Jr., Sarah Louise Young Spinks, Lindsay Elizabeth Barrett, Stephanie Routh Barrett, Fred Rodney Daggett Jr., Betsy Lee Daggett and Ginny Calhoun Daggett; seven great-grandchildren, Garrett and Gentry Spinks, Caroline, Davis and Will Young, Clinton and Bennett Hanchey; and a number of cousins and many friends.
He will be remembered as a great husband, dad, and grandfather.
Pallbearers will be John Davis Young Jr., Fred Rodney Daggett Jr., Roy Spinks, Clint Hanchey, Kenneth Dean Foster and Scott Stanford.
Honorary pallbearers will be Charles Craddock, Ike Robertson, Shelby Trisler, Jack Bonner, John Holloman, J.W. Calhoun, Patrick Calhoun, Russell Purvis, David Purvis, Vernon Wilcox, Leonard Wilcox, David Shively, Pat McCaughey, Richard Shober, Oscar Craddock, Dr. William W. Turner, Carvel White, Roger Arnold, J. Dodd Brooks and Jerry Smith.