Jan Johnson

JAN JOHNSON, 87, passed away on August 1, 2015. She was born in Shannon, MS on November 1, 1927, but lived most of her life in Olive Branch. Graduating from the St. Vincent School of Nursing in Jacksonville, FL, prepared her for an early nursing career in Florida. Married to Pete Johnson in 1950, Jan became active with the Chamber of Commerce of Key West, FL, where she received many honors and awards. In 1967, she and Pete moved to Olive Branch when Pete became manager of the Olive Branch Country Club. In 1968, she teamed with Scottye Davidson and opened the MidSouth Factory Outlet Men’s Store in downtown Olive Branch. It was a partnership that would last the rest of her life. They would later move their business to a larger facility on Highway 178 and then to their own MidSouth Center on Highway 305 in 1982. They became known all over the MidSouth for their TV commercials, always ending with “MidSouth Factory Outlet, Ten minutes out Lamar Avenue in Olive Branch, Mississippi, Ya’ll Come”. Their MidSouth Factory Outlet advertising put Olive Branch on the map and helped pave the way for the tremendous commercial growth in Olive Branch that is still growing. Jan served on the first Board of Directors of the DeSoto Economic Council. She served on the Committee of the Top 100 Leaders in Mississippi. She accompanied Governor Cliff Finch on a trade mission to Central America. She was invited to the commissioning of the U.S.S. Mississippi in Norfolk, Virginia. She served on president Jimmy Carter’s Image Committee. She was the first woman appointed a Mississippi Colonel on the Governor’s staff in 1976. She was instrumental in getting the Bill passed by Congress guaranteeing Equal Rights in Pay for Women. Jan is survived by one brother, Hansel Rogers of Oxford, MS; nieces, Catherine Rogers and Donna Kay Rogers of Jacksonville, FL, Peggy Jennings of Brandon, MS, Patsy Poe (Kelly) of Greenwood, MS, and nephew, Roy Rogers of Marietta, GA. Visitation will be at Brantley Funeral Home, Olive Branch, Wednesday, August 5 from 5-7 p.m. Funeral will be Thursday, August 6 at 10 a.m. at Brantley Funeral Home, with burial in Lee Memorial Park in Verona, MS. www.brantleyfuneral.com Brantley Funeral Home (662)895-2310