Deputy Keith Buford stood about 5-feet but left a tall impression in his 16-year career as a correctional officer at the Rutherford County Adult Detention Center.
Buford died Monday, Aug. 26 after a short illness. Funeral services are pending.
Several supervisors remembered Buford’s impact.
School Resource Officer Sgt. Irvin Turner enlisted Buford’s help several years ago when the SROs established an intervention program for students with behavioral problems or drug use.
Buford served as a liaison between the Reality Check program and the detention center where he took students on tours of the jail, chose inmates to talk to the students about how behavior and drugs landed them in jail and guided them in the boot camp aspect of the program.
Jail Administrator Kevin Henderson said Buford volunteered his time to help.
“He wore a campaign hat, marching the kids up and down like a drill sergeant,” Henderson remembered. “He was small in stature but he talked real tough.”
Detention Capt. Curtis Little said Buford was a good employee.
“He had good work ethics when it came to working here,” Little said.
Turner said Buford coordinated the jail tour. He asked inmates to submit an essay about why they wanted to be part of the program and interviewed them before choosing them to participate.
“When we did the jail tour, inmates would come in and do individual meetings with a group of kids,” Turner said. “When it’s in your face and the inmates tell real-life stories, I think that’s really impactful.
“You can see it in their eyes, ‘I don’t want to be here,’” Turner said. “Sometimes they need to see what reality would be like if they made a mistake.”
Buford was tough on the students, but at the end of the program, he always had a positive message for them.
“He really wanted to make changes in these kids,” Turner said. “He didn’t want them to end up here.”
Beyond the class, Turner learned Buford stayed in contact with the parents and their children. His church provided food for hungry families.
“He was a small man but he made a profoundly big impact on a ton of youths in Rutherford County and most of it was behind the scenes,” Turner said. “I will miss him dearly. That dude was just truly impactful, a little man with a loud voice.”
