Local honored in Mississippi

Jayton Allen Stahlhut may not be home for Christmas ever again, but his spirit of giving will live on and his genuine love for people will always be remembered in his last and final gift – the donation of his eyes for research.

Jayton, a 2022 Checotah graduate, had barely been married one year when he was tragically killed Aug. 6, 2024, after touching a live wire while inspecting power poles in Prentiss, Mississippi.

He left behind his extended family and the love of his life, his wife Erin, who so graciously shared his story.

See JAYTON, page A3 “Anyone who knew Jayton, knew how kind and compassionate he was,” Erin Stahlhut said. “There was never a doubt about what he would have wanted. So when they called me and asked if we would donate his eyes we said ‘Yes.’ Then this past week I got to honor my guy by traveling to Tupelo, Mississippi to place an ornament made with his picture on a Christmas tree. Every year the Mississippi Organ Recovery Agency puts Christmas trees up in different malls across Mississippi to honor organ donors like my husband. I was beyond thankful for our friends and family who also came with me for support.”

“Of course we were very emotional when we got the invitation to go and put Jayton’s ornament on a tree to honor him. He was always a selfless person and deserved for the world to know how amazing he was, even in death. So when he had his accident they were able to use his eyes for research of blinding eye diseases. Though it was difficult, it was still really cool to be able to go and see all the other selfless people on the tree with him.

“Jayton was a phenomenal human and he deserves to be honored, even if it was just by an ornament on a tree. He truly loved people and he never met a stranger. Most of all, he was always ready to help anyone, even if he didn’t have much either. He would do just about anything to make people laugh or smile.”

In the short 20 years Jayton was on this earth, he became a Cub Scout and earned the Arrow of Light. He was a member of the 642 Scout Troop at the Masonic Lodge and attended Brush Hill Baptist Church. He was also an Eagle Scout and had earned his 7 Palms (merit badges). He also attended Oklahoma State University before going to work for EXO as an inspector.

“Jayton was absolutely the greatest human I’ve ever known,” Erin said. “He cared about everything and everyone so of course even in death he chose to keep giving.”