Jayhew Miller Squires, Jr.

Jayhew Miller Squire, Jr., 77, of Spivey, Kansas went to meet his Lord on Aug. 30, 2024.

He was born Oct. 2, 1946, in Rushville, Indiana to Jayhew M., Sr., and Sarah Hoff Squires.  At the age of 18, he married the love of his life Gloria Jean Martin on March 26, 1965 at St. Paul's Christian Church in St. Paul, Indiana.  There were three children born to this union.

Jay was a member of the Southern Baptist Church of Pratt, Kansas.

Before going into the army, Jay's father and grandfather taught him carpentry.  His occupation was a carpet layer and he built houses.  The place where Jay worked closed down because the union was forcing the issue of making them pay higher wages so the owner decided to go ahead and retire.  After that he had a problem in finding decent work so on March 28, 1966, he joined the Army and served 15 years.  He graduated from the North American School of Conservation in 1974 and from 1996 to 2000 he owned and operated a Phillips 66 and Napa Auto Care in Pratt.  He was the preferred vendor for the Southern Pacific Railroad until they moved to another location taking 400 families from the community.  He was the Chief of Firing Battery at Ft. Riley, Kansas and fired the bi-centennial salute for America's two hundredth birthday to the 1812 Overture.

In February of 1976 he accepted Christ as his personal Savior and September was sent to Camp Pelham, Korea on the DMZ, he served as an advistor for the Rock Army for six month of that tour and was promoted to Sgt. E-7.  He said, "Paul has his Arabia and I had Korea!"  While serving with them, his unit was attacked and he was found 3 days later laying at the bottom of a ravine, having been shot, with torn ligaments in his leg and double pneumonia and in and out of consciousness and went into a coma.  Random units of North Korean's passing would shoot into the bodies making sure they were all dead.  Finally an American unit came by and he was found and transported to the Seoul Hospital, he was the only survivor.  He returned to the states after his tour was over in Ft. Riley, Kansas as Chief of Firing Battery, until his discharge in 1980.

After returning to his home in Indiana he answered the call to ministry and went to Louisville, Kentucky to get his school at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary graduating in 1985.  His professors voted that his name be placed in the Official Register of Outstanding Americans-Volume 1986 Special Edition of Southern Baptist Leaders.  A volume was placed in the Libraries of all Southern Baptist Seminaries.

He was licensed to preach in 1982 at Calvary Baptist Church in Greenwood, Indiana and ordained in 1983 at the New Highland Baptist Church in Brandenburg, Kentucky.  In 1984, the church gained recognition for having the fastest growing Sunday school in the State of Kentucky, where he pastored for 4 years.  While there, he finished his schooling in 1986 and went into the mission field as a church planter starting 2 churches in the State of Kansas.  He was also an interim pastor several other works that were started in the Harper and Anthony areas.

He was preceded in death by his grandparents, Bernard and Florine Hoff; his parents and a grandson Tristin Allen Squires.  He is survived by his wife Gloria; daughter Audra; sons Scott Squires and Jayhew M. Squires III and his wife Connie; sisters Linda Spencer and Nancy Biddle; brother Eddie (Victoria); grandchildren Cynthia (Keifer) Burch, Megan (Tanner) Hoyt, Aisha Squires, Damian (Ashley) Squires, Sierra Squires, Roslind Finlay, Raven Squires, Jersey Squires, Taylor and Katie Feldhausen; great-grandchildren Collin, Madison, Carson, Katie, Linda and Penelope.

Funeral services will be 10:00 a.m., Saturday, Sept. 7,2024 at the Livingston Funeral Home, Kingman.  Friends may call from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., Tuesday thru Friday at the funeral home.  Burial with military honors will be in the Maud Cemetery, Cunningham, Kansas.  The service will be live-streamed on the Livingston Funeral Home Facebook page.

Memorials may be made with First Southern Baptist Church of Pratt or Pratt Interim Health Care, both in care of Livingston Funeral Home, 1830 N. Main, Kingman, KS  67068.