‘His memory and legacy will continue.’ Columbus coach dies after court named in his honor
Jay Wilson was so beloved at Veterans Memorial Middle School, the court in the gym was named in his honor four months ago as he battled stage 4 pancreatic cancer.
Wilson, who was the school’s only athletics director, head football coach and girls basketball coach since the north Columbus school opened in 2007, has died.
He was 59.
The school announced his death Tuesday on its Facebook page.
“Coach Wilson was a beloved member of the Veterans Memorial family as a teacher, coach, and mentor,” the Facebook post says. “His memory and legacy will continue to be a part of Veterans Memorial and our community. We ask that you keep The Wilson Family in your thoughts and prayers at this time.”
Visitation will be from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday in McMullen Funeral Home. The funeral service will be at 2 p.m. Friday in Britt David Baptist Church, where he served as a deacon and a Sunday school teacher.
Wilson was an educator for 25 years, all in the Columbus area, teaching history and physical education. He taught for two years at South Girard School in Phenix City, then in Muscogee County for six years at Blackmon Road Middle School and 17 years at Veterans.
According to his obituary, Wilson also was educated in Columbus, graduating from Hardaway High School in 1983, Columbus College with a bachelor’s degree in business administration in 1987 and Columbus State University with a bachelor’s degree in middle grades education in 1999.
He worked at Liberty National Insurance before becoming an educator.
Survivors include his wife, Tracy, a physical education teacher at Brewer Elementary School, and three children.
“He is one of the humblest and hardest-working individuals I have had the pleasure of meeting,” VMMS principal Robert Ogburn told the Ledger-Enquirer before the court’s dedication ceremony in January.
No wonder the VMMS staff elected him as the school’s Teacher of the Year in September.
During its November meeting, the Muscogee County School District board unanimously approved Ogburn’s request to honor Wilson. In his letter to superintendent David Lewis and the board members, Ogburn said the news of Wilson’s diagnosis “has been devastating” to the school family.
Wilson’s commitment to the youth of Columbus went beyond school. He coached baseball and softball and umpired for Pioneer Little League.
“It is evident to anyone that is fortunate to come across Coach Wilson’s path that he is dedicated to serving students and athletes and has given many years of his life in service to them,” Ogburn wrote in the letter. “Beyond the field and the court, Coach Wilson’s main priority is instilling life-long lessons and values in order to help his students and athletes grow into respectful, hardworking, and compassionate individuals. He truly has a way of connecting and building relationships with students that is rare to come by; whether it be through humor, kindness, or sternness.”
