Melvin “Mel” Jenkins

Born in New Orleans to Offa Lou (Harris) Jenkins and Melvin Allen Jenkins, Mel grew up in Norfolk, VA and always considered Virginia’s Tidewater region home. He attended and graduated from the University of Virginia in 1964. In 1976, he moved to South Carolina and met Nell McDow Jenkins, his wife of 48 years.

Throughout his career, Mel worked in local and national media, including time with the Federal Emergency Management Agency. He was deeply engaged in civic life – active in community politics, the Sierra Club, and the local Media Club. Mel loved his family, his dogs, and classical music. He had a strong sense of justice, and he loved learning history and discussing big ideas, always with the goal of understanding how to “bring people together.”

Mel is survived by his wife, Nell McDow Jenkins; his brother, James Allen Jenkins; and his children, Melvin Charles Stuart Jenkins (Samantha Sterba) and Nell Reed “Nellie” Crawford (Lindsay Crawford). He was a proud and loving “Grumpa” to four grandchildren – Baxter, Mary Nell, Marshall, and Ashe Crawford, all of Columbia, SC.

A memorial service will be held on Thursday, October 9, 2:00 pm, at Dunbar Funeral Home, 3926 Devine Street. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be sent to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) at https://action.aclu.org/give/now