My hero is my dad, Ross Dover.

He served in the military in his youth, but that’s not what made him so special in my eyes.

He was born in Tennessee but spent almost his entire life in Slater-Marietta and Dacusville. Over the years, he was a volunteer firefighter, one of the founders of the original Farm Show, and second-generation owner of a successful family business.

He was also father to me and my brother, grandfather to my six children, and was able to meet the first of his great-grandchildren.

I don’t think there was anyone in town he wasn’t friends with. If you weren’t friends when you met, you certainly were by the time you parted.

A flag sponsored by Dover Cylinder Head in memory of Ross Dover will be displayed at location C-13 throughout the 2024 Upstate Field of Honor®.