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“Moving on.”

He sat up in the chairman’s seat for years, gavel at the ready, voice booming as he led the Hamblen County Commission through decisions big and small.

He served with the confidence that only comes with decades of experience.

“Moving on,” he’d intone, swiftly shepherding the agenda forward without the need of a microphone to be heard in the far corners of the courtroom.

Well, now Stancil Ford – former state representative, former chairman of the Hamblen County Commission, has moved on.

Ford died early Friday morning. He was 90.

His friend, coworker and fellow public servant David Purkey said Ford was key to his political success.

“To say that Stancil was a political mentor to me would be an understatement. After the passing of County Executive Paul Bruce in 1995, it took 8 votes from the County Commission to be appointed – I received 8 on the first round and Stancil was one of them,” Purkey said. “We spent the next 16 years strategizing to make this County better in his role as State Representative and Commission Chairman.”

Born in 1932, in the throes of the Great Depression, he grew up to follow his older brothers into military service. Henry Ford joined the Army Air Corps in 1943, serving in World War II. Harold Ford served two years 1950-1952. Just as one Ford brother left Korea, another arrived, Stancil served from 1953 to 1954.

He headed to Korea and ended up in transport, driving a truck to the front lines every day full of ammunition.

Then a cease fire came and his job was to deliver prisoners of war back to North Korea.

“That is an experience I will never forget,” Ford told the Tribune.

Ford spent his professional career working for AT&T, retiring after 40 years, but it was public service that was Ford’s true passion.

“Stancil truly enjoyed serving our county as an elected official more than anyone I know,” said Hamblen County Mayor Bill Brittain. “He knew how to get things done at both the county and state levels. He cared about our community and worked hard to make it the best it can be.”

It was when Brittain was first elected to public office as County Trustee, that he came to understand Ford’s dedication.

“Stancil was also a good teacher for a new generation of courthouse officials who took office in 1994-95,” he said. “He helped teach us about how county government works, and he encouraged us to provide services efficiently and effectively. He was one of our mentors who taught us many lessons.”

Ford is the longest serving County Commissioner Chairman with a total of 15 years over two separate stints. Ford served 28 years on the Commission.

During his time on the commission, Ford was instrumental in bringing 911 services to the county. In 1987, he was a founding member of the Morristown-Hamblen County Emergency Communications District and served 18 years as chairman.

He was instrumental in shepherding hospital bonds through the County Commission for Morristown Hamblen Hospital’s needs.

He also served 12 years as chairman of the Hamblen-Morristown Solid Waste Board as well as the state’s Private Probation Services Council.

Ford also served four terms in the General Assembly, 1994-2002, as state representative for the 10th district.

He was elected by his peers as Assistant Minority Leader in the General Assembly.

During his time as state representative, Ford secured funding for capital improvements for the Walters State Community College R. Jack Fishman Library, the science building, police academy and Great Smoky Mountain Expo Center.

He helped obtain funding for major road improvements to the extension of State Highway 160 at Interstate 81, Exit 12 and the construction of Merchants Greene Blvd.

He also secured a $300,000 state grant to purchase safety equipment for the Hamblen County Volunteer Fire Departments. He was instrumental in working with Panther Creek State Park to steer the necessary funding for building the Scenic Overlook, which was named in his honor decades later.

“I owe Stancil Ford a lot of respect and appreciation,” said former Tennessee Gov. Don Sundquist at the dedication of the Honorable Stancil Ford Overlook. “He’s just a wonderful human being and I’m glad to be here on this day. Stancil is a man of courage. When you’re in elective service, if somebody will say he or she always did what was right, then you’ve got a pretty good person you’re talking about. And Stancil always did what was right.

“When I needed him, he was there. I’m sure this community; this is representative of how the people in this community view him. I’m sure it will be said that Stancil was always there when we needed, no matter what position that he held.”

That the overlook, with perhaps the most majestic view in Hamblen County, is named in Ford’s honor is appropriate. There, his name and his memory will look out over Hamblen County and beyond for generations to come.

“This is such a great honor,” Ford said at the dedication. “As I look behind me. Only God could create a scene like we have before us. I’m so honored to have this site to carry my name. I want to thank the people of Hamblen County for allowing me to serve 30 plus years in local and state government. It’s meant so much to me.”

He is preceded in death by his wife Dorothy, parents Joe and Eliza, brothers Henry and Harold Ford and sister Maragaret Harrington.

Ford is survived by his daughter Kathy (Gordon) Lewis, who was at his bedside, and granddaughters Kayla (Cole) Moore and Kellie (Jonathan) Brazeal and great-grand daughter Addison Grae Moore.

Mayes Mortuary is handling the arrangements which were not ready by deadline but Purkey said, when the end was near, Ford gave some instructions on how he wanted things to go.

“He called me not long ago about speaking at his funeral. ‘Only the funny stuff, nothing sad,’” Purkey said. “I’ll truly miss this ole lion of County and State government. As President Teddy Roosevelt said, ‘the credit belongs to the man in the arena…’ Stancil lived that life and more.”