Mayor Jamie Mayo and the Monroe City Council are pleased to join Community Affairs Director Robert C. Johnson, event organizer Marvin Dearman and special guests to announce and invite the public to the unveiling and dedication ceremony for the Joe Delaney monument. The event will be held at 1:00 pm Saturday, June 27, 2020, at Chennault Park, located at 8475 Milhaven Road, Monroe, LA. Special guests will include Carolyn Delaney (Joe’s wife) and his extended family from Haughton, LA, Barry Rubin (Kansas City Chiefs), and Al Miller (Joe’s former Coach at Northwestern State University).
About Joe Delaney
Joe Alton Delaney, a native of Haughton, LA, was a track star and two-time All-American football player at Northwestern State University. He was a 1981 second round National Football League draft pick of the Kansas City Chiefs – where he earned NFL Rookie of the Year and Pro-Bowl honors.
Delaney was known for helping others. Although he could not swim, on June 29, 1983, he did not hesitate to come to the aid of some kids screaming for help in the middle of a pond. Joe Delaney jumped into the water to help save the lives of three young men at Chennault Park in Monroe, Louisiana. Delaney and two of the young men drowned that day, one survived.
President Ronald Reagan recognized Delaney as a true American hero, and posthumously awarded him the Presidential Citizens Medal in July of 1983. Louisiana Governor Dave Treen posthumously awarded him the Louisiana State Civilian Bravery Award, and he was also recognized with the NCAA Award of Valor. To honor Delaney’s valiant efforts, a group of Chiefs fans came together to form the Kansas City-based Delaney37Foundation, which works with the American Red Cross to help teach young children how to swim.
Honoring A Hero
Marvin Dearman was the rescue diver who retrieved the bodies from the pond in Chennault Park on that sad day in June 1983. In February of 2020, the day after watching the Kansas City Chiefs win the Super Bowl, Dearman woke up with a vision to honor Delaney in a special way.
The Chiefs won the Super Bowl in the year of the 37th anniversary of Delaney’s death. Joe Delaney wore #37 while playing for the Chiefs. Dearman set out to raise money to secure funding for a monument honoring Joe Delaney’s life and heroic efforts at Chennault Park. Mayor Jamie Mayo and the Monroe City Council agreed to donate the use of land within the city park for the project. On Saturday, June 27, we will all be able to pay tribute to a wonderful and deserving Louisiana legend.
Special Note
All excess money raised will be donated to the Delaney37Foundation. Contributors to this project include City of Monroe, Holyfield Construction Company (Monroe), River City Ready Mix, American Crane (West Monroe), and Johnson Granite Supply (North Kansas City, MO).
