Editor s note: This story was originally published on June 28, 2015, in the Indianapolis Star.
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. It s behind this door. That s what I ve been told. It s a chair, red molded plastic on cheap metal legs, and it wouldn t fetch two bucks at a garage sale unless it was this chair, the chair, the one Bob Knight threw across the court in 1985 against Purdue.
The chair is stored deep inside Assembly Hall, down this hall, behind this door, and I m thinking this chair – the chair – deserves better. Better than this. An anonymous door, black metal, unmarked and unremarkable.
Treasure, buried in an unmarked grave.
On Friday, Dec. 25, 2020, Jeff Dillard, loving husband and father of four children, passed away at age 61.
Jeff was born Aug. 24, 1959, in Griffin, Georgia, to Floyd and Doris (Newsome) Dillard. He received his degree in Zoology at Duke University in 1981. He started a small engine repair business in Littleton, and then started working at the Halifax County Health Department in the Environmental Health Section. He was credited with 31 years of service to the health department upon his retirement in November. On December 28, he would have celebrated 18 years of marriage with his wife, Diana.
Jeff loved watching his Duke Blue Devil basketball team and NFL football. He was an avid stamp collector and enjoyed this hobby with his father-in-law, Reid Hinson. He also loved music and singing.