‘Rest in power’: Bridge renamed in honor of late Sheriff James Clemmons

HAMLET — Sheriff James Clemmons’s memory has been officially enshrined in a bridge named in his honor following his sudden passing in August 2021.

The North Carolina Department of Transportation held a dedication ceremony Monday morning at the Cole Auditorium where Clemmons’s former colleagues and loved ones spoke about the impact he had on the community he served for more than 30 years.

Clemmons was first hired as a patrol deputy for the Sheriff’s Office in 1989, and was then promoted from Lieutenant to Captain, and then to Major before being elected Sheriff in 2011. He passed away due to natural causes on Aug. 5, 2021, according to county officials.

The renaming of the bridge was included in the 2021-2022 state budget which was signed by Governor Roy Cooper on Nov. 18, 2021. The bill stipulates that the bridge south of Rockingham along U.S. 1 that crosses the U.S. 74 bypass near the Citgo and Hardee’s will be renamed the “Sheriff James E. Clemmons, Jr. Bridge.”

Sen. Tom McInnis explained that the honor of having a bridge named after you is typically reserved for law enforcement officers who are killed in the line of duty, so getting this approved was no easy task. McInnis, who has brought forth legislation to have bridges named after two other individuals, including former Chief Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court Henry Frye of Ellerbe, said he had to start with presenting the idea of naming a bridge in honor of Clemmons to the Transportation Committee, which he co-chairs.

”It has to be a very, very, very, very special individual to be able to be put on that short list to be able to have their name put on a bridge outside of a fallen officer, but when I brought this matter before the Transportation Committee it was a unanimous vote,” McInnis said. “When I brought this issue before the House of Representatives, it was a unanimous vote on the floor and it was a unanimous vote before the North Carolina Senate, and of course, it was signed into law his excellency, the governor of North Carolina, the reason being because everybody knew the reputation of James Clemmons.”

In life, his reputation led him to leadership positions at both the state and federal level. Clemmons served as president of the North Carolina Sheriffs’ Association from ‘18-‘19, chaired the Executive Committee from ‘19-‘20, and was a vice president of the association from ‘14-‘18.

Clemmons was named to President Donald Trump’s Presidential Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice in January 2020, which was formed with the goal of “exploring modern issues affecting law enforcement that most impact the ability of American policing to reduce crime.”

Then in July 2020, Governor Roy Cooper appointed Clemmons as a sheriff representative to the new North Carolina Task Force for Racial Equity in Criminal Justice, which has since put out 125 recommendations for best practices for law enforcement for the state.

Clemmons represented the Association on the North Carolina Sentencing and Policy Advisory Commission where he was very active on the Legislative Committee. He was also a part of the team that produced the Association’s “Report on Law Enforcement Professionalism” released in October 2020 which came out of a desire to ensure the “protection of the rights and safety of all citizens” following the death of George Floyd in police custody.

Chief Deputy Jay Childers read remarks from current Sheriff Mark Gulledge, who expressed regret that he couldn’t be there due to a recent illness but assured the crowd gathered that he was there in spirit. Gulledge, who was appointed to fill Clemmons’s post after many years working as chief deputy under him, said that the naming of this bridge after Clemmons symbolizes the role the late sheriff played in the community: a bridge builder.

“This special event is something that Sheriff Clemmons’s family and friends can cherish for many years to come, knowing and understanding that he was not just a sheriff but someone who is loved and is missed dearly,” Gulledge wrote. “It will also serve as an everlasting reminder to our county and the communities within the service and sacrifices Sheriff Clemmons made through his continued acts of kindness and compassion towards others.”

Childers, who worked with Clemmons for his whole career, shared his own story of Clemmons’s impact on his life, saying that Clemmons encouraged he and his wife to foster a child. They adopted their daughter when she was two months old and she’s three now.

“I think it about it so much, he’d always say, ‘bring my baby by to see Uncle Clem,’” Childers said, adding that he’s got several pictures of Clemmons holding the child and her sister, who had suffered from abuse, at a child abuse march held by the Department of Social Services. “At three years old, when she comes home she’ll say, ‘Daddy that’s me and the sheriff! That’s me and the sheriff!’ She wants everybody to know that’s her and the sheriff — he’s just touched my life so much.”

“To the family, please know that you’ll always be a part of the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office, his picture will always hang in there,” Childers continued. “Today, the office is still there, and from time to time, as the men can tell you, sometimes you’ve just got to walk in there and make that peace.”

Lois Jones spoke of the experience of helping Clemmons get elected to the position of sheriff and accidentally putting him in a situation where he had to withstand a barrage of criticism from would-be constituents. She said that, as a candidate, he was someone who understood what the people needed, and was able to “calm the storm” that day and likely win some votes.

“By the time he finished the people eased up. They weren’t all on board that day, but before it was over with they loved Clem just like we loved Clem,” Jones said.

Boyce Bostic, a close friend of Clemmons, shared the advice that Clemmons gave him when he got a promotion to go work as the maintenance supervisor in a community that was to known to have “a lot of problems.” Clemmons asked him how he knew that, the answer to which was from talking from other people, and Clemmons said “go judge for yourself and take care of your people,” Bostic recounted.

“He had no hatred in his heart, he loved everyone — this guy, people just don’t know …,” Bostic said, trailing off. “I’m just glad that we’re able to name a bridge after Clem that’s traveling east and west in the gates to heaven.”

Dobbins Heights Mayor Antonio Blue said that he was among those who spoke to Clemmons the night before he passed, and recounted one of the times that Clemmons stepped up to address a crisis in Dobbins Heights. There had been an arsonist setting fires around town, and one night at around 2 a.m., the suspect set an abandoned home on fire that was next to the home of a family that included a handicapped person.

Blue said he was “furious” at the situation and was in tears because he feared he would lose somebody that night. He called Clemmons at that early morning hour and Clemmons put his mind at ease, saying they would catch the guy, and they did.

“We got more than we deserved in Richmond County because he gave it all. James Clemmons gave it all to us,” Blue said. “You think, 2 o’clock in the morning, you call him and he gets up and he came right over and that was him. All. The. Time … He belonged to you all, we got it all.”

Blue closed with the story of a talented basketball player who was asked by Martin Luther King Jr. what he had to say about the civil rights movement, but the young man didn’t have an answer. Then King received a note from him, which included a quote attributed to William Blake: “I sought my soul, but my soul I could not see. I sought my God, but my God eluded me. I sought my brother, and I found all three.”

“James Clemmons was. That. Brother!” Blue said emphatically, pounding his fist on the podium.

Patricia Clemmons, the late sheriff’s ex-wife, read a revised version of the poem she wrote him when he was first elected sheriff, entitled “God’s Chosen Vessel.”

“James, you are God’s chosen vessel charged to lead us and to help heal our hurt and lame. You brought unity to all our communities by working together hand in hand,” Patricia read. “Your journey is over now Sheriff James Edward Clemmons Jr., so darling, continue to take your eternal rest. Richmond County loves you, and appreciates you, because you were there, you treated people right, and you always did your best. We will continue to honor your legacy by each of us shining our own bright lights. We will continue to work together as citizens of Richmond County and do what we know is right.”

“Thank you for being a part of all of us and for giving us your unconditional love,” she continued. “Rest in power. Rest in power. Rest in power, Sheriff James Edward Clemmons Jr. as you continue to watch over us from above.”

The closing speaker was Clemmons’s son, James Clemmons III, who spoke for the grieving family saying they’re going to make it — one day at a time — and everything is going to be alright. He described the fact that a bridge was being named in his father’s honor as “wild.” As a young man, Clemmons III said he would get frustrated that his father had to be on security on Christmases or during football games, when other fathers were with their families.

“He worked so hard to get where he needed to be and it’s not until now that I’m older that I understand,” he said. “It’s all worth it.”

The younger Clemmons closed by reading one of his father’s favorite poems, included below:

“The Bridge Builder”

by Will Allen Dromgoole

An old man going a lone highway, came, at the evening cold and gray, to a chasm vast and deep and wide. Through which was flowing a sullen tide the old man crossed in the twilight dim, the sullen stream had no fear for him; but he turned when safe on the other side and built a bridge to span the tide.

“Old man,” said a fellow pilgrim near, “You are wasting your strength with building here; your journey will end with the ending day, you never again will pass this way; you’ve crossed the chasm, deep and wide, why build this bridge at evening tide?”

The builder lifted his old gray head; “Good friend, in the path I have come,” he said, “There followed after me today a youth whose feet must pass this way. This chasm that has been as naught to me to that fair-haired youth may a pitfall be; he, too, must cross in the twilight dim; good friend, I am building this bridge for him!”