Curiosity caused me to click on ad for classmates after years of avoiding looking up old friends from my youth.  I never had the opportunity to attend class reunions for the 1973 graduating class at LR CENTRAL HIGH.  And what I discover, my old friend James standing next to me on page 149.
James always had something positive to say.  He was a kind, gentle and respectful person. Their were over 500 students in our graduating class. James was an outstanding  student. The last time I saw him was at graduation May 1973. RIP JAMES.
I thank GOD for his wonderful life and family.  Condolences to you all.

My condolences, as feelings of pain and bitterness become unbearable. It is my desire to convey a comforting thought based on the Holy Scriptures

Pastor Jennings was counseling me and my now husband before he passed. We enjoyed our session with Mr and Mrs. Jennings. They have been in my life as long as I could remember. They were my Uncle Jerry's Family Pastor. It is because of this I remember many childhood memories of bible studies in his house. The Jennings' Family was one of my first interactions with a Christian family who lived what they say. This practice trickled down to my Uncle's Family and my entire Owens family. It's with deepest love my husband and I express our love to the Jennings family.❤

To the Jennings family: As you grieve the loss of Pastor Jennings, you are not alone. When one weep, we all weep, & when one rejoice, we all rejoice. Sister Lottie, I'm reminded of a time when you and Pastor Jennings stayed at my apartment back in 2007 during a revival we had in Sharon, TN. Pastor Jennings was our Evangelist. I was so excited to have you all at my house that I could barely sleep at night. It was an honor and a privilege to house a COG pastor and his wife. We love you, and praying earnestly for you. 

Sis. Jennings, Jennings famiily & saints you are in my thoughts and I pray that God's grace will sustain you during your time of bereavement.

Matthew Chapter 5 Verse 4 "Blessed are they that mourn for they shall be comforted"

Our deepest sympathies to the Jennings  family. We are neighbors of Mrs Leola Williams and Willie Lyons was a classmate of Lottie at Notrhside HS Class of 1973 Memphis Tn.

"May Gpd continue to watch over the Jennings family"

To the jennings family

We would like to send our deepiest condolences to sis Jennings, children and congregation.our hearts and prayers are with you all.

Bro Antonio & sis Tanera chism
 

To the family of pastor Jennings,  I give to you our condolences; he was a true man of God and a excellent spiritual teacher which helped me learn a lot of things about the word, help me look forward to seeing and hear many of the youth Jubilee meetings; I thank him  for the many words of wisdom he shared with the  family and I  and those words would never be forgotten and he will truly be missed! I am very fortunate to have had him speak many wise things ...God bless you'll. ....

 CHURCH OF GOD FORT WORTH TX. 
 BRO. ANTHONY SMITH 

 II Corinthians 1:3-4

            We are praying sincerely for you, that God will comfort, strengthen, and sustain you.  Please do not fail to call on us for any assistance you may need.  We are only a phone call away.  You can all make it by God’s grace. 

 

 With Much Love & Concern,

 

Pastor Troy Jones

Pastor Troy Jones and Congregation 

We were deeply hurt by your incredible loss.  We know that God is the God of all comfort and we also know that the pain of grief doesn't wash away easily.  We want to encourage the family to take one day at a time, one step at a time.  God will help you and fight your battles for you.

with much love & prayer, Elder Renee and  Bro. Gino Milton -Church of God Joliet, IL

I was James' colleague in the History Department at Hendrix, and I wanted to pass along a tribute to him that I shared with my classes last week:

Anybody who took an education or history class with Dr. Jennings remembers that he was a quiet, yet resolute force for explaining and advocating for the power of education in the lives of young people. 

 And I want to honor that person and that force, which will continue in the students that he inspired and in the programs that he established for narrowing the education and achievement gaps for less privileged communities in this country. 

 He was a model for taking what we learn from history and actually doing something about it.

 So I wanted to take this moment to honor Dr. Jennings, and I hope that amid sad times like these, we’ll take some time to think about – and renew our commitment to – the higher purposes of education.

 

Best wishes,

Jonathan Hancock

Pastor Jennings will forever be one of the greatest teachers I had, in life and in spiritual matters. He taught me some of the greatest lessons I have ever learned about myself. I especially want to send my love and sympathies to Sis. Lottie, Lisa, and Larrisa, so sorry for your loss and sending love your way.

 

We love Bro. Jennings and appreciate his labors for God. The fruit of his labors will live on in the hearts and lives of many people, and while we will miss him, we are thankful for the good testimony that he left behind. Our prayers are with Sis. Jennings, the family, and the congregation in Forrest City. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 says, "Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation..." May God comfort you all during this difficult time.

With love and prayer,

Bro. and Sis. Carter
Church of God in Tulsa, OK

When I heard about James' passing, I was deeply saddened.  He and I had become friends during morning runs in the neighborhood at the same time.  I'm praying for the family.

To his family
From across the Atlantic ocean, I feel so sad hearing from the loss of one of my best Hendrix teacher in 1997. I have learnt a lot from him and will keep in mind his smile and his kindness. He was a precious help and gave me the taste for teaching today.
I pray for you here in France. 

It was with great sorrow that we received the news of our dear brothers passing.  Truly our loss is heavens gain.  The love and prayers of the saints in New Smyrna are with you now and in the times ahead.  May God comfort you and sustain you in this time of sorrow. 

Our thoughts and prayers to Sis Jennings, family, friends and the congregation during this time of sorrow.
May God bless and comfort you all.

Love & Prayers,
Bro & Sis Bryant Owen
Asheville, NC 

So sorry for the loss of Pastor Jennings.  The world's loss, but heaven's gain. Psalms 116:15 - Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.  Praying for the family, the congregation, and other's he left behind.  

To the Family of Pastor Jennings,

Our love and prayers go out to your family in your time of grieving
and we are but a phone call away if you need anything.

Prayfully
Bro Larry, Sis Ella and Family

I was very sorry to hear of the passing of Dr. Jennings.  You are all in my thoughts and prayers.

Dr. Jennings' death has greatly impacted in the Hendrix community. He was a positive force and great role model of goodness, kindness, academic excellence and professionalism. Our community joins with his family and his church in mourning and missing him.

James was a lifelong friend. I am deeply saddened by his death. Peace and Love.
Eric Spencer Buchanan.

I am so sorry about Dr. Jennings. Please know that I hold all of you in my thoughts and prayers. 

I was deeply increased by his life...and I was deeply saddened by your loss.

We understand the depth of grief when loosing a family member. Mere words cannot express the pain you are feeling right now. We all have to believe that God has a plan for our lives, including the length of our years and days here on earth. Our love of God gives us the power to reach out to the family and we know you will understand our deepest desire for you to all find a place of peace and comfort in your hearts. We were so blessed to have been able to spend a happy time with your family and share in the love and respect you all have for each other. Brother James has touched many lives and you should be so proud of the man he became and the people that were blessed to know him. God bless you all, Dr. Martien and Deborah Carroll, Hot Springs

Thinking of you & your family at your time of sorrow
no words can ease your pain but things will look different tomorrow.

James you will be missed

Just to think, it seems like only yesterday, the jennings family
shared their home with me, many years ago when i was very young.
his mom, aunt loretta, and his father (late uncle enloe jennings) took
care of me. At a time i can never forget, it was a time of need.


cousin
Veronica M.Dickens-Wheeler

October 27, 2015, the best teacher I ever had passed away.  Dr. James M. Jennings saw me before I saw me.  As a Secondary Education major at Hendrix College, my first course with Dr. Jennings was in 1994.  My mother had passed away at the beginning of my sophomore year and I had stayed home to try to glue my family together.  It didn’t work so I left and returned to campus in 1994.  Dr. Jennings drew the short straw and was assigned as my advisor.

I was angry, lost, pained, numb, and hurting.  Dr. Jennings, no matter the condition I was in when I showed up often late and after many no shows, held one on one advisor sessions where I was allowed to just be.  Slowly, being me helped me heal, find direction, and eventually discover the inequities in education, a primer to an understanding of power and privilege. 

I wouldn’t be the person I am today without this soft chuckle, directed questions, suggested readings, and complete and total acceptance. 

A handful of years later, I returned to my undergraduate institution to speak to the students in the very classroom I had my first class with Dr. Jennings.  It was in this classroom where I was introduced to Before The Mayflower: A Brief History of Black America by Lerone Bennett, and my head began to gather new information and question the historical education I had been fed that made me want to take action and be a better History teacher and tapped my heart to impact as many people as possible with the truth of systems of oppression.  Dr. Jennings sat in my audience while I spoke, and took notes.  He took notes about my message!

Several years after graduation, I was doing some research and came upon an article that Dr. Jennings had written.  I debated calling him, questioned whether he would remember me, felt silly, and reached out anyway.  He seemed to always be in his office, and like clock work, he answered the phone and we talked for hours about the state of education our country.  He was a good teacher because he was always learning.  I try to do the same.

Dr. Jennings was teaching a class when he said he was feeling over heated.  He left his classroom and returned to his office where he passed away.  In the days that have passed, students, colleagues, friends, and family have shared what a difference he made in individual lives and across education in the Delta of Arkansas.  He didn’t fix the education crisis in our country.  He did, however, make a difference.

The concept of Good Enough Now is exactly this.  We, as humanity, are responsible for who and how we show up (and don’t) and it is good and useful.  Sure there maybe improvements, edits, or learning’s that need to occur, but fundamentally, I believe we are good.  Our own self-limiting talk, excuses, fears, and the like prevent us from building, moving, growing, and living.  What if we are enough right now?  I believe we must do the best we can with what we have even if it is only some of the time.  Our time is limited and typically we don’t know how long we have.  With this understanding, we can become self-aware enough to accept our own good, bad, and ugly so to speak, and use our own lived experiences to try.  Now is the time to get started. 

If I love you, I have to make you conscious of the things you don’t see. 

James Baldwin

Dedicated to every teacher, instructor, and trainer out there that is trying and showing up as a parent, mentor, and educator to validate and witness those that don’t have the strength to do it themselves.

Thank you Dr. Jennings for leading the way.

To the Family of  Pastor, Dr. James Jennings,
The Caradines, Lyons, Lanier, and Williams' Families are sending our heartfelt condolences.  We are truly sorry for your loss.  We love you and praying, because Pastor Jennings was a friend to our family.
Quote: "Life is eternal, and love is immortal, and death is only a horizon; and a horizon is nothing save the limit of our sight." --R. W. Raymond.

Prayful,
Sis. Callie Caradine-Jones