More than 200 served at 10th annual D.T. Walton cookout in Macon

Deborah Mosley was waiting for a hot dog and hamburger lunch on Friday afternoon when her husband, who’d stepped out of the line for a few minutes, returned to surprise her with his new, close-cropped haircut.

“That looks so much better,” the 51-year-old Deborah Mosley told her husband, Mike Mosley, 52. “It’s so even!”

The haircut was a surprise for the Mosleys, who’d come only to eat lunch at Loaves & Fishes Ministry of Macon. On Friday, the ministry hosted the 10th annual Dr. D.T. Walton Memorial Cookout and Health Fair, offering free lunch, clothes, haircuts and health screenings to more than 200 people who are considered low-income or are homeless.

“We didn’t know about (the free haircuts),” Deborah Mosley said. “This is nice for everybody. ... This means a lot for a lot of people.”

The annual event is organized by the family of the late D.T. Walton, a Macon dentist who died in 2007 and had a heart for serving others, said his widow, Joan Walton.

“We’re trying to do as much for them on site today as we can,” she said. “(D.T. Walton) was a big supporter of Loaves & Fishes, and he tried to do for people who were not able to do for themselves.”

The Mosleys, both of whom are in poor health, are staying in a boarding house and have been waiting a year and a half for Social Security disability benefits, Deborah Mosley said.

“We can’t even buy blood pressure medicine every month or heart medicine because we have zero income. Zero,” Deborah Mosley said. “This helps out tremendously.”

When the cookout started at 11 a.m., dozens stood in a line that extended from behind the ministry to Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. About 15 volunteers served plates of hamburgers and hot dogs, baked beans and potato salad.

Each person was offered a hygiene kit that included a toothbrush and toothpaste, deodorant, body wash, hand sanitizer and more, Walton said. Navicent Health employees checked blood pressure and cholesterol levels, and a local barber volunteered to cut hair. Members of the Macon Chapter of the Links, Omega Psi Phi fraternity and members of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority helped prepare and serve the food.

“We serve usually about 150 to 200 every year,” said Joan Walton’s 39-year-old daughter, Joy Walton. D.T. Walton “had a special place in his heart for people who were down and out.”

This story was originally published May 13, 2016 at 1:59 PM with the headline "More than 200 served at 10th annual D.T. Walton cookout in Macon."