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1914-2009
Jack Melville Carpenter, 95, died peacefully in his Dayton, Nev., home Sept. 7, 2009.
He was born March 19, 1914, in Decherd, Tenn., the youngest of five children of William H. and Nellie (Landis) Carpenter. He was raised in Osawatomie where he attended school graduating from Osawatomie High School in 1933.
He became a “printer’s devil” as a young man, learning all the aspects of the newspaper and printing trade. After graduating from high school, he attended trade school at nights and became proficient in the operation, repair and maintenance of Linotype machines. He was proud of his reputation as one of the fastest and most accurate Linotype operators in the Midwest.
He was united in marriage to Jewel Radcliff in 1934 at Osawatomie. He then worked for a Kansas City publishing house while attending business school at night. Later, he worked for a series of small town newspapers in Kansas, Tennessee and Illinois. In 1942, he moved his family to Fallon, Nev., where he worked for the Fallon Standard. He and Walter Cox later became co-publishers and owners of the Mason Valley News in Yerington. He was elected to the Yerington City Council, served as president of the Nevada Press Association, and was appointed by Gov. Charles Russell to the Nevada Economic Development Commission. He and Cox also established and operated a Chevrolet dealership in Yerington until 1956.
Sen. Alan Bible persuaded him to join his Washington, D.C., staff in 1956 as his press secretary. Bible later made him his top aide (administrative assistant) in his D.C. office. During the 1960 presidential race, Jack joined the Kennedy-Johnson campaign, helping to orchestrate LBJ’s famous swing through the South on behalf of Kennedy. From 1962 through 1964, Jack and Jewel also owned and published the Sparks Tribune in Sparks, Nev.
In the 1964 presidential campaign, Jack again traveled throughout the country working on behalf of the Johnson campaign. After the election, he resumed his duties as Bible’s administrative assistant. He also actively campaigned for the election of many Nevada Democrats, including Bible, Gov. Mike O’Callahan and Sen. Harry Reid. After Bible retired in 1974, Jack served as chief of staff to Nevada Congressman Jim Santini until 1977, and then joined the American Mining Congress as its legislative liaison.
In 1989 he retired and moved back to Lyon County with his wife. He remained an ardent Democrat throughout his life and took great pleasure in conversing with people from all walks of life.
Jack was preceded in death by his parents; his wife of 65 years, Jewel, in 1999; an infant son, John in 1940; four siblings, Marthalynn Gustafson, JoNell Turner, William Carpenter and Margaret York.
He is survived by a daughter, Judith Spangler of Middletown, Va.; two sons, William L. Carpenter of Yerington and Joseph F. Carpenter of Carson City; several grandchildren and great grand-children; other relatives and friends.
Graveside services will be held at 2 p.m. Sept. 26 at the Osawatomie Cemetery under the direction of the Eddy-Birchard Funeral Home, P.O. Box 430, Osawatomie, KS 66064, (913) 755-2114.
Memorial contributions may be made to a worthy cause of one’s own choosing.
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