Jack

Jack Pardue came to work at Eveready in the 1950s. He was fresh out of the Army... had been in Korea fighting the North Koreans and Chi-Coms. He never said a word about Korea except that he didn't like anything about it.

Jack running our Harris LUH 14 X 20
not his usual Multi.

I remember those first days Jack came on board... skinny, lanky, and wearing a clean white Tee shirt, he was determined to learn how to be a pressman. He was taught to run the Multi-graph 1240, which became his main press.  This was a small duplicator, not a true "press" in printing terminology, however Jack was able to print up to three-color jobs in register on this small press.

If you want to picture Jack, just think of of Andy Griffith in one of the peak seasons of the Andy Griffith show. He was tall, had wavy hair and of course in later years had the shock of gray hair. He spoke slowly and deliberately. Everything with Jack was thought out, decent and in order.

He became part of the Eveready family. He got to know customers. He did whatever he could to do a good job as pressman, and also, in delivery or in good customer relations to further the success of Eveready Printing.

Gardner Smith was in charge of producing a monthly two color newsletter for Cheekwood-Botanical Garden & Museum of Art.  She and Jack became friends over the years so that she would bring in the copy and say "Jack, what accent color should we run this month?" or just "Well run whatever Jack likes." She never complained about his choice.

In the over 50 years Jack worked at Eveready, he hardly ever took a sick day, took short reasonable vacations, and worked at his slow but sure pace every day. In July of 2003 Jack spoke pleasantly in everyday conversation with Priscilla, then after eating lunch sitting at his press and by his table with his thermos and his coffee... there he passed away. Priscilla went back into the shop to speak to him, saw him slumped over, came back and got me. I immediately started CPR. She called 911. The paramedics were there within minutes, but he was already gone.

"The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace." I prayed in my head as I gave him CPR. I knew he wasn't coming back.

He loved his wife Peggy and his son Michael, was a member of the non-denominational Christian community church in his Ridgetop home, and a was great friend to me and my family.

CMS