Alton Dale Jordan
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Marshall lost a great man today. Retired Assistant Chief of Police, Alton D. (A.D.) Jordan, (MPD), passed away on Sunday, May 1, 2022, after a long and courageous battle with cancer.
Funeral services will be held on Friday, May 6, 2022, at 2:00 p.m., in the Chapel of Downs Funeral Home. Interment will follow in Colonial Gardens Cemetery. A visitation will be held from 6:00-8:00 pm on Thursday, May 5, 2022, at Downs Funeral Home.
Pallbearers will be the Marshall Police Department Honor Guard. Honorary Pallbearers will be the Honorable T. John Ward, Retired Federal Judge; Honorable Sam Baxter, Retired District Judge; Honorable Ada Brown, Judge, Justice Fifth District Court of Appeals; Capt. Joe Stanfield, Retired MPD; Capt. Bobby Metcalf, Retired MPD; Larry Grace, Tommy Finley, Remaining MPD officers and MPD Old Guard members.
A.D. was born on March 10, 1942, in Muskogee, OK to his parents Alton and Erma Mae (Carlton) Jordan. He is survived by his loving wife of 34 years, Judy (Courtney) Jordan; Children, Julie and Ronnie Simmons of DeBerry; Steve and Jerita Jordan of Karnack, brother, David and wife Janet Jordan of Oklahoma City; and brother, Phillip Jordan of Austin.
Grand-children Stephen and Brittany Jordan of Harleton; Bo and Leslee Jordan of Ft. Jackson, South Carolina; Jordan and Heath Hayes of DeBerry; and Haden and Baleigh Simmons of Hutto. Great-grandchildren, Trinity and Blakely Jordan, Lyla Jordan and Bradley Wayne (B.W.) Hayes. Special mother-in-law and father-in-law, Maxine and Clarence Shulse of Marshall. Preceding him in death were his father and mother, brother Billy Joe and sister-in-law Nova of Virginia.
A.D. was raised in the small West Texas town of McCamey where he attended school and was active in football, baseball and shot put in track. After graduating in 1960 he soon entered into military life where he proudly served his country in the US Marine Corps Reserves for 6 years before being honorably discharged.
After relocating from McCamey to Marshall he joined the Marshall Police Department on July 6, 1965. He soon enrolled in the East Texas Police Academy in Kilgore where he successfully completed numerous aspects of training in the study of Techniques in Law Enforcement, Criminal Justice and Police Procedures. He also attended Panola College earning a degree in Applied Science. Expanding his law enforcement education and skills was important to A.D. and he excelled in numerous other training opportunities in an effort to be the best he could be in his profession. Over the years he moved up through the ranks at the MPD and went on to receive numerous awards and certifications, including the G.O. Cooper Award in 1972 and Officer of the Year in 1976, just to name few. Also, in 1972 he graduated in specialized training conducted by the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs (BNDD) in Washington D.C. The young man who became a police officer simply because he needed a job, quickly discovered he had found his calling in the profession he loved and honorably served with the Marshall Police Department for 30 years 8 months until his retirement in 1996 as Assistant Chief of Police.
After retirement he became a Court Security Officer with the US Marshals Service, Eastern District of Texas, serving 11 years in the Federal Court system. In 1997 he graduated from the Department of Justice, US Marshals Training Academy in Atlanta, Ga. In 2002 he was presented an award for Outstanding Dedication, Professionalism and Service Above and Beyond the Call of Duty to the US Marshals Service, Eastern District of Texas. During his tenure as Lead CSO it was his honor to provide security to numerous attorneys, Federal Judges and their staff.
After leaving the Marshals Service in 2008 he worked for Brannon Motors Inc. where he served for 8 years as General Manager and Sales.
A.D. was a Christian and longtime member of St. Joseph Catholic Church. An avid golfer, he spent countless hours on the golf course playing the sport he loved with his golfing buddies, winning numerous trophies and tournaments throughout the years. He enjoyed attending functions and events for his children, grand-children and great-grandchildren, supporting them in whatever endeavor it might be. He was a wonderful husband, father, grand-father, great-grandfather and friend. He loved his family and was incredibly proud of them, as they were of him.
He was an exceptional man who will continue to inspire those he leaves behind and will always live in the hearts of those who loved him. He was strong willed and maybe even just a little stubborn. His presence was always noticed and his absence always felt.
Anyone who knew A.D. will tell you that he displayed strong morals, a fist of iron handshake, was fiercely loyal and although not perfect, (though his family thought he was), he lived his life with remarkable character, honor, integrity and principals. He was a man's man. Valuable traits he passed onto his children, grand-children and great-grandchildren.
A "no non-sense" personality, he was a force to be reckoned with, when need be, but was known and highly respected for his professionalism and fairness, both on the job and off. There were no gray areas with A.D. when it came to right or wrong. A man of few words, but when he spoke, one quickly understood he meant business and many discovered the consequences of not taking him seriously. He was our Patriarch and mentor to many, and we are all better for having known him. All these traits together made him the great man that he was. When such a person leaves us, they take a piece of our hearts with them. He will be deeply missed.
Though he earned himself several nicknames over the years, (some we can't print here), we say farewell to "Pee Paw", "Sugar Lips", "Booger Red", "A Cop's Cop", "Sledgehammer", "Call #202, "Buford" and "Chief", as he was often called by his officers and friends.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials be made in his honor to the Marshall Police Officers Association Scholarship Fund at P.O. Box 1461, Marshall, TX 75671.
"For he is God's minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God's minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil." Romans 13:4