| Obit For | Jack Curtis England |
|---|---|
| Headline | - |
| Text | Jack Curtis England, age 93, of Shell Knob, Missouri passed away on Monday, December 2, 2013 at the Mount Vernon Veterans Home in Mount Vernon, Missouri. Jack was born in Shell Knob, Missouri on June 6, 1920, to George H. England and Minerva Brock England. He grew up working on the family farm and attending public schools in Barry County.
After graduating from Cassville High School in 1938, Jack spent a year working with the Civilian Conservation Corps in Missouri, one of the first New Deal public works projects created to promote soil and environmental conservation and public service. With brothers Edward and Briar, Jack lived and worked in CCC camps throughout Missouri doing reforestation work, building wildlife shelters, stocking rivers and lakes, and clearing campgrounds. The Shell Knob Recreation Site on Highway YY is one of the local projects on which Jack worked in 1939. Following service in the U.S. Coast Guard and the U.S. Merchant Marines, Jack joined the U.S. Navy in 1942, and was trained as an Aviation Engine Mechanic at the U.S. Navy Great Lakes Training Station before being shipped to Australia with the 7th Fleet. He received an Honorable Discharge in 1945, and remained in the Naval Reserves until 1957. In 1950, Jack completed training at Spartan College of Aeronautics and Technology in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and was hired as an aviation mechanic by American Airlines where he worked until his retirement. Jack married Opal Willadean Dunlap, from Washburn, Missouri, on December 3, 1944. They lived in Barry County until moving to Tulsa, Oklahoma in 1950, where they raised three children, and were active in a variety of church, scouting and political organizations and activities. Jack maintained memberships in the Tulsa Masonic Lodge, National Rifle Association, the Republican Party, Veterans of Foreign Wars and the National Association of Civilian Conservation Alumni. In 1975, after retiring from American Airlines, Jack and Willadean returned to Barry County where they spent several years designing and building a home themselves near the original England family farm in Shell Knob. They were active members of the First Christian Church in Cassville and enjoyed family gatherings, school and CCC reunions, as well as travel throughout the U.S. to visit children and grandchildren. In 2005, Jack participated as a re-enactor in "The Trail of Tears: Cherokee Legacy" in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, where he was the oldest Cherokee descendant depicted in a documentary about the Cherokee removal to Oklahoma in 1838-39. In 2007, Jack moved to the Missouri Veterans’ Home in Mt. Vernon where he was active in the Resident Council until 2010. While living in Mt. Vernon, Jack looked forward to visits from friends and family, especially great-grand-daughters Ella Kathryn and Mia Jaymes, who made frequent trips to see "Grandpa Gramps." One of eleven children of George and Minerva, Jack was predeceased by brothers George England, Edward England, Joe England, Deering "Briar" England, Amos England, Baby Boy England and Charles England, and sisters Hildreth England Settlemire and Susie England Timmons. He is survived by sister Lily England Phillips, of Tehachapi, CA. Jack was also predeceased by wife, Willadean, in 2001 and son, James Edward England in 2012. He is survived by daughters Janice England (Bill) Watson of Spokane, WA, and Kathryn England (Lew) Aytes of Monterey, CA, as well as 7 grandchildren and 5 great-grandchildren. Funeral services will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, December 7, 2013 at the White Funeral Home and Crematory, Cassville, Missouri with Pastor James Weaver officiating. The family will receive friends from 11:00 a.m. until service time at the funeral home. Burial will follow at the Washburn Prairie, Washburn, Missouri with military graveside rights provided by Shell Knob VFW Post #2203. Memorial contributions may be made to the Arthritis Foundation of Eastern Oklahoma, in Tulsa, Oklahoma and entrusted to the White Funeral Home P.O. Box 890, Cassville, MO 65625. |
| Newspaper or Funeral Home | Cassville Democrat |
| Date | Dec. 2013 |
| Death Cert Link | - |
| Resource | White Funeral Home |
| Submitted by | Donna Cooper |
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