Mr. John James Mckenna

John (Jack) James McKenna, 89, local golf professional, formerly golf teacher at Valleybrook Golf and Country Club and owner of The Academy of Golf of Chattanooga in Hixson died on Wednesday, November 9, 2011. He was born in 1922 and schooled in Danville, Ill, where he participated in the band, the drama club and varsity basketball.

Following high school he and his family moved to Gary, West Virginia where his father was a United States Steel Mine Superintendent. Jack attained a basketball scholarship at the VPI extension at Bluefield College, Bluefield, W. VA. In 1942 he enlisted in the Naval Aviation Cadet program and became a navel aviator at Corpus Christi, Texas. He served in both the Caribbean and South Pacific area of operations and was discharged in 1946 as a Lieutenant in the U.S. Navy. Afterwards he attended DePaul University and Chicago Kent Law. He was in the Naval Aviation Reserve until 1949.

After five years of courtship, he married Eloise Hardin in 1954. He retired from General Motors after 36 years as a staff employee working as a consultant with Motors Insurance Corporation. He was transferred to Chattanooga in 1960 and to Raleigh in 1976 where he retired in 1987.

From his days as a caddy in the 30’s, Jack became interested in all phases of golf, particularly instruction. While living in Chattanooga in the 60’s, Jack and Jim McMurray turned the Hixson Golf Center on Saturday mornings into a free golf clinic for all junior golfers in the city. They also conducted a Junior Tournament at Valleybrook open to golfers from all over the state. This was a highly successful undertaking and it helped develop some of today’s finest players in Chattanooga. He loved teaching golf, especially juniors, and worked every day at golf until his death.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Thomas and Catherine Blake McKenna and a sister, Mary Catherine Basham.

Survivors are his wife of 57 years, Eloise H. McKenna; daughter, Mary (Robert) Hertel of Signal Mountain, TN; sons, David (Suzy) McKenna of Hixson, TN and Tom (Andrea) McKenna of Houston, Texas; grandchildren, Brittney McKenna, Olivia McKenna, Ana McKenna, Alex Collier, Carrie Hertel and Samantha Hertel; step granddaughters, Laura Brooker, Dana Hample, and Cindy Ball.

The family will receive friends from 4 until 8 p.m. Friday at the North Chapel of Chattanooga Funeral Home.

A funeral mass will be held 1:00 p.m. Saturday, November 12 at St. Jude Catholic Church with Father Charlie Burton officiating. Burial will follow at Hamilton Memorial Gardens.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to The lst Tee of Chattanooga, 2453 Hickory Valley Road, Chattanooga, TN 37421.Arrangements are by Chattanooga Funeral Home Crematory and Florist, North Chapel, 5401 Hwy 153, Hixson, TN 37343. Share your memories on line at www.chattanooganorthchapel.com.