Roy Jennings, Former Brotherhood Editor, Dies
By James Dowd
The Commercial Appeal
GERMANTOWN, Tenn.--A consummate journalist possessed of quick wit and keen eye, Roy Jennings was above all devoted to his family and his church, friends recalled Sunday.
A former reporter and editor for The Commercial Appeal who subsequently enjoyed a successful career in communications and public relations, Mr. Jennings died on Nov. 22. He was 83.
"He was a wonderful husband and father and he had friends everywhere," said his wife of 63 years, Marye Kirksey Jennings. "It didn't matter to Roy whether someone was influential or not, it was all about character."
After a decade at The Commercial Appeal, covering police and federal courts before being promoted to city night editor, Mr. Jennings left to work for The BrotherhoodCommission, which was an agency of the Southern Baptist Convention.
During his two decades with the organization, Mr. Jennings oversaw the editorial department that produced missions materials for more than 600,000 men and boys and coordinated news releases for the denomination. He also directed media coverage for two Billy Graham programs.
Mr. Jennings started the communications department at Baptist Memorial Hospital in Memphis and later established the public relations program at Baptist Memorial Health Care System.
"Roy was among the premier journalists in the Southern Baptist Convention and everyone respected him," said Jack Childs, a friend and former colleague. "Because of his newspaper background he knew about deadlines and he was clear about what he expected. If you got your work in on time, everything was great, but if not, then woe unto you. Fortunately, I never missed a deadline with him."
Bob Williams, who started work at this newspaper around the same time as Mr. Jennings, remembered him as organized, detail-oriented and a hard worker.
"Roy was very organized. Every day he'd have a list of things he had to get accomplished and he worked until he checked every item off that list," Williams said. "And every night when he left, his desk was clean as a whistle, which was not exactly the norm in the newsroom."
Mr. Jennings was on the board of the Tennessee Baptist Convention and served as a moderator of the Shelby Baptist Association. An ordained deacon, he was a member of Germantown Baptist Church and taught Sunday School.
"We always knew when Roy was teaching classes at church because we'd come in the room and he'd have all the chairs arranged in a circle so that everyone could see one another," said James H. Bostick, a friend and fellow member at Germantown Baptist Church. "He was well-grounded in theology and loved to initiate discussions. We all looked forward to those forums because Roy was such a thought-provoking leader."
Survivors include his wife; daughter Gail Jennings of Roswell, Ga.; two brothers, Robert Jennings of Davis, Okla., and Richard Jennings of Lancaster, Texas; four sisters, Mary Jesseph of Oklahoma City; Carol Ann Shabbott of North Richland Hills, Texas; and Susan Croley and Shirley McLean, both of Durant, Okla.
The family requests that any memorials go to Okfuskee Creek Indian Baptist Church in Eufaula, Okla., or to Germantown Baptist Church.
Monday, November 26, 2007
The Commercial Appeal
GERMANTOWN, Tenn.--A consummate journalist possessed of quick wit and keen eye, Roy Jennings was above all devoted to his family and his church, friends recalled Sunday.
A former reporter and editor for The Commercial Appeal who subsequently enjoyed a successful career in communications and public relations, Mr. Jennings died on Nov. 22. He was 83.
"He was a wonderful husband and father and he had friends everywhere," said his wife of 63 years, Marye Kirksey Jennings. "It didn't matter to Roy whether someone was influential or not, it was all about character."
After a decade at The Commercial Appeal, covering police and federal courts before being promoted to city night editor, Mr. Jennings left to work for The BrotherhoodCommission, which was an agency of the Southern Baptist Convention.
During his two decades with the organization, Mr. Jennings oversaw the editorial department that produced missions materials for more than 600,000 men and boys and coordinated news releases for the denomination. He also directed media coverage for two Billy Graham programs.
Mr. Jennings started the communications department at Baptist Memorial Hospital in Memphis and later established the public relations program at Baptist Memorial Health Care System.
"Roy was among the premier journalists in the Southern Baptist Convention and everyone respected him," said Jack Childs, a friend and former colleague. "Because of his newspaper background he knew about deadlines and he was clear about what he expected. If you got your work in on time, everything was great, but if not, then woe unto you. Fortunately, I never missed a deadline with him."
Bob Williams, who started work at this newspaper around the same time as Mr. Jennings, remembered him as organized, detail-oriented and a hard worker.
"Roy was very organized. Every day he'd have a list of things he had to get accomplished and he worked until he checked every item off that list," Williams said. "And every night when he left, his desk was clean as a whistle, which was not exactly the norm in the newsroom."
Mr. Jennings was on the board of the Tennessee Baptist Convention and served as a moderator of the Shelby Baptist Association. An ordained deacon, he was a member of Germantown Baptist Church and taught Sunday School.
"We always knew when Roy was teaching classes at church because we'd come in the room and he'd have all the chairs arranged in a circle so that everyone could see one another," said James H. Bostick, a friend and fellow member at Germantown Baptist Church. "He was well-grounded in theology and loved to initiate discussions. We all looked forward to those forums because Roy was such a thought-provoking leader."
Survivors include his wife; daughter Gail Jennings of Roswell, Ga.; two brothers, Robert Jennings of Davis, Okla., and Richard Jennings of Lancaster, Texas; four sisters, Mary Jesseph of Oklahoma City; Carol Ann Shabbott of North Richland Hills, Texas; and Susan Croley and Shirley McLean, both of Durant, Okla.
The family requests that any memorials go to Okfuskee Creek Indian Baptist Church in Eufaula, Okla., or to Germantown Baptist Church.
Monday, November 26, 2007
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