George Raymond Scruggs
George Raymond Scruggs
April 21, 1913~June 23, 1949
George Raymond Scruggs, the son of George Washington Scruggs and Zula Lee Venable, was born April 21, 1913 in Seadrift, Texas.
He was reported as having died June 23, 1949, in the Dominican Republic.
On June 19, 1949, Scruggs, a radio operator and engineer; John W. Chewning, pilot; and Habat J. Maroot, co-pilot; landed their PBY aircraft in the bay at Luperon, Dominican Republic, to deliver supplies and soldiers in support of the resistance against the Dominican dictator, Trujillo.
After their aircraft was destroyed by Dominican military forces, they attempted to escape overland to Haiti.
Captured by the military, they were tortured and executed on direct orders of Trujillo and buried in an unmarked grave on a hill overlooking the bay.
Chewning and Maroot were disinterred in August 1949, but George Raymond was left behind.
The burial site was forgotten until the director of the memorial museum of the Dominican resistance, Luisa De Pena, learned in June 2015, that more resistance fighters were buried at Luperon.
After searching the area for three months, the burial site was located.
On Sept. 27, 2015, the remains of George Raymond Scruggs and Alejandro Serda were recovered.
Subsequent DNA testing on remains confirmed they were those of Scruggs.
The long search for his father by son, George G. Collins, of Horseshoe Bay, ended on Dec. 17, 2015, with the return of the remains to Texas.
George Raymond Scruggs is survived by: his son, George G. Collins of Horseshoe Bay; grandson, Richard Collins of Irvine, California; granddaughter, Regina Dehm Carter of Tulsa, Oklahoma; grandson, Brian Dehm of Crawford, Texas; granddaughter, Catherine Dehm Jung of Johnson City; granddaughter, Lisa Dehm of San Antonio, and many more grandchildren.
On Saturday, Jan. 9, 2016, George Raymond Scruggs will be buried the third and last time at Lakeland Hills Memorial Park.
May he rest in peace in the arms of God and the Texas land of his birth.
