PLATTSBURGH — Many inexplicable things, really cool and back-of-the-neck-hair-raising, have happened to those in the sphere of the late Dalton Rashad Criss, who was one of 40 Rose Bowl 2023 Floragraph Honorees in the annual January parade.
There was a chance meeting with a “Queensbury Dalton” as well as a revelation of the late Deacon Richard White Jr. at the Faith Tabernacle Missionary Baptist Church, which the Criss family attends in Glens Falls.
In another twist, Deacon White served in the U. S. Army (1955-1957), the same branch of service as Dwayne Parker, who was the recipient of Dalton’s heart.
Dwayne and Dalton share birth order as the youngest and only sons.
Dwayne is a pastor’s son, and Dalton’s maternal grandfather, the Rev. H.L. Simmons, is a minister also, and his paternal grandfather, Deacon Johnnie Lee Criss of the Allen Temple Missionary Baptist Church, was a civil-rights era Freedom Rider as well as a founder member of the Stuttgart Harmonizers in Arkansas.
Besides Dwayne and Dalton’s clergy connections, there is canine love.
Parker’s American Bully, Tsunami “Nami” has even been acting strange.
Some call it serendipity.
Some call it Fate.
Some call it a sign.
The Criss family calls it God.
Jan. 2, 2023
Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California.
Jennifer Demaroney, RN, UVM Medical Center Donation Coordinator:
“Last year, we went out to the Pasadena, California and Dalton actually had a floragraph on the Rose Bowl float. Dalton was a featured floragraph on the float for Donate Life. It was an incredible experience.
They take pictures of donors, then they decorate them in flowers. They completely cover them with organic material. It’s a photograph with flora, so it’s a floragraph.
This float won the highest award at the Rose Bowl parade.
It was an exceptional float. It was like a Chinese dragon, and it actually blew smoke out. It moved and blew smoke. It was top-notch.
We got to participate in putting the flowers on the float. We got to help build the float, which was pretty amazing.”
Dec. 1, 2023
Golden Corral, Queensbury.
Barbara Criss, Dalton’s mother:
“The day before (Plattsburgh State Gospel Choir Soulful Christmas Concert), we had went to church and met a guy named Dalton at Golden Corral. The guy had just started. He had a name tag on, but his name tag was kind of twisted.
I said, ‘Is your name Dalton?’
He said, ‘Yeah.’
I was like wow. He’s 21 years old. He just started at Golden Corral in Queensbury. He was there. I couldn’t believe it. It was almost like Dalton was saying, ‘Here I am. Here I am.’
This was after church.
I don’t know if it was karma or what. It was almost like God was speaking to me. The guy that we just funeralized that Friday, he was oldest Deacon of the church. He told Pastor (Dr. Joseph G. Ford) before he died that Dalton’s heart would come back to that church. The same day Dwayne entered the church, Deacon White died.
I couldn’t believe it. All this was happening. It was just so surreal. Not only Deacon White saying that Dalton’s heart would return to church, and then we go to dinner after church, and Dalton being there.
He had just started.
I was like, ‘Are you serious? Are you serious?’”
Dec. 4, 2023
Stewart’s, Peru
DWAYNE PARKER:
“Then, we stopped at a gas station. Dalton’s mom said, this is Dalton’s favorite drink. It was like a strawberry milkshake drink, and I loved it.
And I don’t like strawberry, really I don’t, but when I taste that, oh my gosh. It was heaven. I loved it. I loved it.
His mother gave me a heart, a rock. She found a rock in the shape of a heart, and the craziest thing about this rock is inside of the rock is a heart. I sleep with it every night.
Besides my son and daughter, God gave me my son and daughter, that’s the most precious gift that anyone has ever given me.
She gave it to me when we were leaving. I was telling her about my dog, Nami.
Dalton loved dogs. Danielle loves dogs. I have an American Bully (Nami, short for Tsunami).
My son and I went to go see my mom at her grave.
My son said, ‘Hey Dad, Nami acts different now. It’s like somebody’s in her.’
At first, I said, ‘Do you think it’s your Grandma?’
‘I don’t know Daddy, it could be.’
I think sometimes, it’s Dalton.
I think sometimes, it’s my mom.
I think sometimes, it’s my niece.
I think sometimes, it’s an old girlfriend of mine who looked out for me a lot.
It’s just Nami, she does some things that I know there are spirits in my home right now because she looks up to these spirits as if someone is playing with her.
My mom, she can’t be around dogs because of her allergies.
The only person I can think of is either my niece or Dalton.
My niece is short, so her head is not going to be tilted at an angle so high.
So I begin to think, maybe it’s Dalton?
I don’t know. I want to think that, so I leave it at that.”