There are about 30 reporter’s notebooks divided into three stacks on the desk of the late Dallus Whitfield.
Each one is chock-full with names, (left to right, front to back) along with details about photos that eventually found their way to the pages and website of this publication.
That pile reveals volumes about the man behind the Canon camera, the man who filled those notebooks in a left-handed scrawl only he could decipher.
Dallus Whitfield understood the importance of spelling names correctly and turning even the most humdrum “grip-and-grin” photo opportunity into a memory-making image.
He was a master at his craft.
The longtime photojournalist died early Monday morning from cancer at a Nashville hospital.
The funeral service is 1 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 8 in the chapel of Sellars Funeral Home in Lebanon. Interment in Cedar Grove will follow the service. The family will be receiving friends at Sellars Funeral Home on Friday from 4-8 p.m. and on Saturday from noon until the service at 1 p.m.
Whitfield, 53, battled non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and underwent chemotherapy treatment last summer. He returned to work for a few weeks in October. The cancer returned a short time later.
Professional photographer
The son of Anita Stone Whitfield and the late Joe Whitfield, Dallus Whitfield was a proud 1987 graduate of Lebanon High School. He went on to earn an advanced degree from Middle Tennessee State University in 1991.
His photo coverage of tornadoes that struck Wilson County in March of 2020 received the Tennessee Press Association award for Best News Photo that year. It was one of many TPA awards Whitfield won during his career.
Whitfield joined the Wilson Post in July of 2013 after a long career at the Lebanon Democrat.
“After we started our company and purchased the (Wilson) Post, I spoke to a number of people in Wilson County and almost all of them mentioned that Dallus would be a great addition to our team,” said Dave Gould, the owner of Main Street Media and the publisher of the Wilson Post.
“We brought him on board right away and, to this day, it’s one of the best decisions we’ve made. He was also a huge help because of his institutional knowledge of Wilson County. It seemed like he knew everyone in the county and always had news tips and ideas.
“Dallus was also one of the nicest people you could ever meet. I never heard an unkind word about him, and I think it’s fair to say he was universally loved and respected.
Richie Bouton, a part-time photographer with the Wilson Post, remembered Whitfield’s dedication to photojournalism.
“There’s not many of us left,” Bouton said of his pal. “Photographers who went out at 1 a.m. and took pictures of breaking news, came back to the office, developed the negatives and rush-printed a photo because there was an empty space to be filled on the front page of tomorrow’s newspaper.
“Dallus and I both learned from the late Bill Cook that it’s not the best camera or the most expensive lenses but the eye of the photographer that’s important. You have to be able to see the photograph and Dallus was one of the best I’ve ever worked around. He was an incredible photojournalist and a great friend.”
Friends in Lebanon
Lebanon Mayor Rick Bell became friends with Whitfield when they were students at Lebanon High.
“For the last 30 years, Dallus been a fixture at every major event in Lebanon,” Bell said. “He’s a friend to everyone and everybody loved him. We’re going to miss him.”
As a photographer for the Wilson Post, Whitfield covered Bell’s 2019 bid for the mayor’s office.
“The night that I won, Dallus was right there. He was taking pictures,” Bell said. “To have one of my best friends covering that event was one of the highlights of the night really. We’ve known each other and been friends all these years. It’s like we shared that night together. He’s covered so many big events in Lebanon, and to have him there that night was special.”
Bell said that Chris Crowell, Robert Loftis and Billy Norton also developed a friendship with Whitfield in high school. Bell said that group would play backyard football and hang around the shop that Whitfield’s mother owned on the Lebanon Square.
“He’d work there, and we’d hang out on the sidewalk and talk,” Bell said. “I just think about all the good times we’ve had over the years. He’s going to be missed by everybody, but his family and close friends are really going to miss him.”
Lebanon Police Chief Mike Justice was another longtime Whitfield friend.
“Dallus was one of the first people I met when I moved here 30 years ago. He was working for the Lebanon Democrat at the time, and we struck up a friendship,” Justice said. “He rode in my patrol car, if not every day, at least four or five days a week for 20 years. He spent more time in a patrol car than most patrolmen.
“Dallus was a personal friend of mine and, basically, the godfather of my children. There is no finer person or soul in this world than Dallus. He’s just a special person. We’ll absolutely miss him.”
Whitfield was a founding member when the City of Lebanon launched put the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program in 2012. He was a reserve officer with the Lebanon Police Department and a CERT team member for several years.
Main Street Media graphics designer Mary Anne Ferrell knew Whitfield for years, having met him when they both worked for the Democrat.
“One of the stories I like to tell regarding Dallus, from many years ago a group of us had gotten together for lunch at a new Chinese buffet that had opened in town,” Ferrell said. “I was looking at a dish and said, ‘Hmmm, I wonder what kind of meat this is?’ Dallus happened to overhear, cocked his head toward me in that Dallus way, and said, ‘Mary Anne, do you really wanna know?’ ”
Family memories
Whitfield loved going to the movies, concerts (especially Elton John) and wheeling that barge-like Crown Victoria of his into Sonic for an iced beverage.
But above all, he loved his family. Dallus doted on his mother, Nita, and would spend hours talking about his brother, Kyle.
Wilson County Mayor Randall Hutto said he always respected seeing Whitfield with his mother when Hutto was working out at the Jimmy Floyd Family Center.
“I’d come out about 15 or 10 minutes to 8 and here Dallus would be following his mom in. That’s the kind of guy he was and that’s the kind of son he was. He would help here in and just be there for her,” Hutto said.
Whitfield also took photographs at Lebanon High basketball games when Hutto coached there.
“I would see him on the sidelines and on the court. He was always good. I knew when Dallus was there, he was going to capture the right moment. I still cherish those pictures today and saved every one of them,” Hutto said.
Whitfield was opinionated, but never let his way of thinking cloud his news judgment. It didn’t matter if the assignment called for him to rise early in on a fall morning to take photos at Sherry’s Run, to hang out at the Wilson County Fair for a photo page or stand in the hot sun to document a race at the Nashville Superspeedway.
Dallus Whitfield was a caring professional who earned the trust and respect of his colleagues and subjects alike.
For more reaction from the community and a look at some of Whitfield’s photos, see Wednesday’s Wilson Post.
The funeral service for Dallus Whitfield is 1 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 8 in the chapel of Sellars Funeral Home in Lebanon. Interment in Cedar Grove will follow the service. The family will be receiving friends at Sellars Funeral Home on Friday from 4-8 p.m. and on Saturday from noon until the service at 1 p.m.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.