“He was a great man that’s for sure,” Jones said. “He had one thing in mind when he got on the Veterans Commission and that was serve veterans and their families and I think everyday that’s what he worked for, to ensure we were doing the right things for veterans.”
The board, an arm of county government, offers emergency cash, helps veterans navigate the Veterans Administration system, arranges and pays for transportation to medical appointments and finds local services for everything from legal issues to marriage counseling.
Jeffers was appointed in 2015 by former Butler County Common Pleas Court Judge Patricia Oney and reappointed by Judge Noah Powers.
“Tom was a good man, a good veteran, he was real leader on that organization, he was well thought of,” Powers said. “He’ll be sorely missed.”
When Jeffers joined the board there was so much bickering and infighting they didn’t get much done — dysfunctional was how they were described. Everyone points to him as a catalyst who helped turn tide.
It had gotten so bad Butler County Prosecutor Mike Gmoser called for a special meeting — Jeffers had only been there a couple months — and blasted the board for inertia, questionable travel policies, trashing a $10,000 salary survey they commissioned and other issues.
One of Jeffers’ first big initiatives was to reintroduce the salary cap — the idea fell flat previously — for board members.
The five-member vet board gets a new or reappointed member every year, and that person would automatically get a 2% raise over the last new appointee’s salary. Jeffers said he didn’t want the salaries to continue to go “up and up and up.” So the members have made a flat $8,868 annually since.
“That proved he was in the job to help veterans and their families,” Jones said. “How many people do you know take a job and say let’s freeze our salaries and never raise them, because that’s what we’re here for.”
Jeffers and Jones were also responsible for introducing a new dental plan for veterans. Executive Director Mike Farmer said the two “split the county” in half seeking dentists who were willing to participate in the program. Farmer said of all Jeffers’ efforts, “he started blazing trails as soon as he came on.”
The veterans board and staff is made up of all veterans. Farmer said Jeffers made sure the staff were as well cared for as those they serve, regularly checking in with each of them.
“He has been instrumental in getting the outreach and the success of our office where it is today,” Farmer said. “And his efforts with the staff have been paramount to really create this unique environment like no other place to work in the county. Tom was one of a kind.”
The current board works together as one and has increased the number of veterans served from 4,808 in 2013 to 6,673 in pre-pandemic 2019. Even in 2020, when no in-person appointments could be held with veterans due to the coronavirus, the board served 5,792 vets.
Commissioner Chuck Weber was the next appointee after Jeffers. “Stability” was the word he used to characterize Jeffers’ biggest contribution to the board.
“He was the original guy from the transitional group, when we went from not too good to what we are today...,” Weber said. “He was always an unemotional voice where he would get to the bottom line and get to a good or bad and his was a voice of guidance for all of us.”
Before he retired Jeffers was a terminal manager for Rush Transportation, an American Legion member for over 30 years and Commander of the Durwin-Schantz American Legion Post 138 for the past two years. He was a lifetime member of the VFW and the AMVETS. Last year he was inducted into the city of Hamilton Veterans Hall of Fame.
First Vice Commander of Post 138 Ken Calihan told the Journal-News Jeffers was “like a father” to him.
“He was just a great man, he served his country, he served his community and most of all he served all veterans in need,” Calihan said.
A visitation will be 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday at the Brown Dawson Flick Funeral Home, 1350 Millville Ave. in Hamilton. The service will follow immediately after.
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