Jerrold Frederic Hearn's Obituary
Jerrold Frederic “Fred” Hearn, 71, incredible husband and grandfather graduated to heaven on December 30, 2009, after a courageous nine-year battle with cancer. The visitation will be held Sunday, January 3 from 3 until 5 p.m. A service will be held 1 p.m., Monday, January 4 at Memorial Park Funeral Home. Fred was born on January 1, 1938 in Laurel, Miss to Robert and Irma Hearn. He moved with his family to Memphis in 1953. After attending Treadwell High School the fall semester of his junior year, he transferred to Southside High School, where he excelled in sports for the next year and a half, lettering in basketball, baseball, and football. He played shortstop on the 1954 Southside State Championship team earning All-Memphis honors. While playing quarterback on the 1954 football team, Fred was voted the Southside HS Outstanding Team Player, selected to the All-Memphis team, selected by the Memphis Quarterback Club as the Prep Player of the Year and earning Honorable Mention honors on both the High School All-Southern Team and High School All-American Team. At the conclusion of the 1954-55 school year, Fred received the John Trust Memorial Award as the Memphis Prep League Best Athlete. He went on to quarterback on scholarship at both Ole Miss and MSU. He married his high school sweetheart, Elizabeth Ann James on December 31, 1955. He later earned a Masters Degree in Education. He served as a coach and teacher at Southside HS before taking a position with the Board of Education. He left the board after 19 years of service to work as a senior training specialist for FedEx. He designed and created the package tracking system which is still in use today. He retired from FedEx in December 2000. He enjoyed making others smile and to know him was to love him. Fred loved life! He had a happy, congenial positive outlook on life that was contagious. He was a connoisseur of sports, music, and good books. He was a Christian and loved the Lord Jesus. He was a devoted and selfless family man. To say that he will be missed is a gross understatement. He was a man of principle, high ideals, and integrity who taught his children much. Preceded in death by his mother, father, and sister, Gay, he is survived by his loving wife of 54 years, Ann; daughter, Jo Beth; sons, Fred, Jr., and Jeff; son-in-law, Robert Hooker; daughters-in-law, Cindy and Vicki Hearn; brother, Phil and sister, Bobbie Patterson; 11 grandchildren, 10 great-grandchildren and many nieces and nephews. Memorials may be sent to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital or the charity of the donor’s choosing.
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