John Earl Jennings' Obituary
John Earl Jennings passed away on August 25, 2022. He was born September
27, 1946 in Fayetteville, Arkansas to Dr. William Earl Jennings and Jean
Thompson Jennings. He lived in Rogers all his life and graduated from Rogers
High School in 1964 as a National Merit Scholar.
John attended the University of Arkansas, receiving a B.A. in Chemistry in
1969 and a law degree in 1972. He was the Managing Editor of the Arkansas Law
Review.
John practiced Law in Rogers with Eugene T. Kelley and James M. Luffman in
the 1970's and served for years on the Planning Commission, Civil Service
Commission, and the Museum Board. He taught courses in Law and Government
at the Northwest Arkansas Community College and bridge in the Rogers Adult
Education Program. He was President of the Rogers-Lowell United Fund Board.
He was appointed by Governor Dale Bumpers to serve as RURESA attorney for
Benton, Washington, Carroll, and Madison Counties from 1976-1979. In 1979 he
served as the Rogers Municipal Judge and continued until 1983 when he was
elected Circuit-Chancery Judge for Benton and Carroll Counties. In 1986 he was
elected to the Arkansas Court of Appeals where he served 16 years, serving as the
court's Chief Judge from 1993 to 1997, and retiring from the appellate court in
2002. Beginning in 2003, he worked as a mediator with ADR in Little Rock for 15
years, while also serving as Special Master of the Arkansas Supreme Court and as
Special Circuit Judge. He served as a judge in Ark. for 6 consecutive decades.
John was a longtime member of the Benton County Bar Association, the
Arkansas Bar Association, and the American Bar Association. He was a Life
Master of the ACBL since 1981. He was also a member of the ist United
Methodist Church in Rogers since 1958, as well as a member of the American
Chemical Society, Phi Delta Theta, and Phi Alpha Delta.
He is survived by his wife of 48 years, Rosemary Hubbard Jennings, sons
Jackson Jennings and Franklin Jennings and his wife Chelsea, grandchildren
Lillian, Edith, and Everest, brother Dr. William Cliff Jennings, and sister Mary
Lynn Jennings.
He was preceded in death by his parents, son William Henry Jennings, and
daughter Kristie Marie Jennings.
No funeral services are planned. At John's request, a private celebration of
his life will be held at the Kings River, a place that brought him joy and solitude.
In lieu of flowers, a small contribution to the The Rogers Development Foundation,
Judge J.E. Jennings Memorial Scholarship Fund at 317 W. Walnut, Rogers, AR 72756
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