Jack D. Pelphrey

Jack D Pelphrey, 96, of Springfield, Ohio, died Feb. 21, 2025, in his winter home of Fort Myers, Florida. He was born Jan. 21, 1929, in the Denver area of Johnson County, Kentucky, as the second of seven children of the late Don and Lavada Pelphrey (Reed). Growing up during the Great Depression in eastern Kentucky instilled him with the values of hard work, devotion to family and his Christian Baptist faith, which he held to steadfastly throughout his life.  As a young man, Jack worked delivering groceries and supplies to customers of his father’s grocery store by mule and later by truck. He graduated from Oil Springs High School in 1947 and married his classmate G. Evelyn Rice on Sept. 25, 1948. They began married life in Sitka, Kentucky, where they welcomed two sons to their family, Danny and David. Seeking better employment opportunities, Jack moved his growing family to Springfield, Ohio, near multiple other family members who had relocated to the Dayton-Springfield area. There they added a third son, Gary, to the family. Jack began work at Delco Moraine in Dayton, Ohio, and soon advanced to tool grinder.  In 1962, the family moved into Clark County, west of Springfield, purchasing a 1947 two-story craftsman home that Jack would lovingly maintain for more than 60 years. There the family welcomed their only daughter, Karen, and Jack and Evelyn became avid gardeners, growing and preserving many fruits and vegetables on their nearly one-acre property.  After nearly 35 years together, Jack lost his wife to cancer in 1983. Jack later met Evelyn Jean Myers (Wysong), who made and sold chocolate candy. They married on Oct. 12, 1985, blending their families and becoming loving Grandpa and Grandma to each of their many grandchildren. Jack retired in 1986 from General Motors, after many years of devoted service. In retirement, Jack and Jean enjoyed traveling, camping, gardening and woodworking, and were active members of the Forest Valley Free Will Baptist Church, volunteering yearly at Camp Caleb Christian Youth Camp in Flatgap, Kentucky.   Beginning in the late 1980s, Jack and Jean became “snowbirds,” spending the winters at their mobile home in Fort Myers, Florida, where they collected and crafted with seashells from Sanibel Island and attended Southwest Baptist Church. They continued gardening and hosting large family Thanksgiving-Christmas gatherings at their Springfield home until shortly before Jean’s death in 2019.  Jack was preceded in death by his parents; his first wife G. Evelyn Pelphrey; his second wife, Evelyn Jean Pelphrey; four brothers, Carroll, Joe, Donald Ray and Leroy Pelphrey; a sister, Naomi Conley; and a grandson, Travis Hoffman.  He is survived by his sister Mary Alice Johnson; sons, Danny (Karen), David (Judy), and Gary (Ruth) Pelphrey; daughter Karen L. Gill; stepdaughter Cheryl (Garry) Warner; stepson Leon (Robin) Myers; grandsons, Roger, Brian, Ryan, Stephen, Chris, Phil Pelphrey, and Andy Myers; granddaughters, Kristina Relph, Kandace Gill, and Alyson Myers; 23 great-grandchildren; nieces, nephews and other relatives.  The family will receive friends during a visitation, 2-4 p.m., Sunday, March 2, at Richards, Raff and Dunbar Funeral Home. A memorial service will be at noon, Monday, March 3, at Forest Valley Free Will Baptist Church, 1821 Troy Road, Springfield, Ohio. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Forest Valley Free Will Baptist Church.