Ferillo: A salute to an American hero

It is a most difficult task to bid farewell to my friend of 30 years, John S. Rainey. So I won’t. It is far better to say “Thank you, John, for your service to your country, region and state you loved and served so well.”

We first met to plan the Vietnam War monument in Columbia’s Memorial Park in 1985. He introduced himself as “a combat veteran and a lifelong Republican.” As a Vietnam veteran myself, I figured one out of two was good enough for me.

From that day forward, we shared many causes but rarely voted for the same candidates. His excellent education and passion for reading classical literature, history, biographies of American leaders and daily newspapers online from across the country were routine practices. He was rarely uninformed. A formidable attorney with a passion for justice, respect for public institutions and abiding appreciation for all those who have worn the uniforms of the armed forces, he worked on dozens of projects to memorialize in bronze sculptures forgotten soldiers, oppressed minorities, all those whom he felt deserved recognition for their gifts to their communities and nation — particularly those who, in Lincoln’s words, “gave their last full measure of devotion.”

What gave him trouble were the divisions that continue to hold South Carolina back: gaps in quality race relations and income disparity; petty partisanship; lapses in ethics; and voter and donor apathy.

He raged about those who sat on their hands and their wallets, knowing that the damage from that these considerable blind spots are all around us.

The challenges he has bequeathed to all of us are simply stated but require heavy lifting: restoring integrity and civility in public discourse; a statewide conversation about race and reconciliation; action, not words, to educate all the children of all the people. I challenged those who attended his memorial service to “Rise up, South Carolina, for you are late to the fight to change the trajectory of our future.” But I say to you today that it is never too late to do the right thing.

When I think of my fallen comrade, I recall the epitaph of U.S. Sen. James Louis Petigru, who is buried in St. Michael’s graveyard in Charleston:

Future lives will hardly know a great life

This simple stone commemorates —

The tradition of his Eloquence,

His wisdom and his Wit may fade

But he lived for ends more durable than fame.

His Eloquence was the protection of the poor

And the wronged,

His learning illuminated the principles of Law —

In the admiration of his Peers,

In the respect of his People,

In the affection of his Family,

His was the highest place …

His dignity and simplicity

His brilliant genius and his unwearied industry

Unawed by Opinion

Unseduced by Flattery

Undismayed by disaster

He confronted Life with antique courage

And Death with Christian Hope.

In the great Civil War

He withstood his people for his country

But they did homage to the man

Who held his conscience higher than their praise

And his country

Heaped honors on the grave of the Patriot,

To whom living,

His own righteous self-respect sufficed

Alike for Motive and Reward.

And so it was for John Rainey: soldier, scholar, public servant, South Carolina’s conscience and indispensable man. And an American hero. Who, pray God, will take his place?

This story was originally published March 29, 2015 at 5:00 PM.