WTH’s Ross remembered for compassion, humility

The funeral procession for James “JR” Ross left Englewood Baptist Church on Highland Avenue after the service honoring his legacy was complete.

It headed south and took a detour to bring him by Jackson-Madison County General Hospital and the offices of West Tennessee Healthcare – whom he’d work for 39 years for including the last seven as CEO – and back to Highland off Forest after taking him one last time by Kirkland Cancer Center.

It turned back south again on Highland, headed for the place of Ross’ raising – Chester County, where he was laid to rest.

But like many things in Ross’ life, his funeral service didn’t happen without much planning.

“This will be one of the easiest funerals I’ve ever preached,” said Ben Mandrell, the CEO and President of Lifeway Christian Resources and former senior pastor at Englewood. “When we talked about this service, JR was clear about what he wanted, so everything that happens here today, JR handpicked everything himself.

“So if you have a problem with anything, take it up with him on the other side.”

There were many chuckles in the crowd before the worship team from Englewood resumed performing a few more songs.

Steve Gaines, the senior pastor at Bellvue Baptist Church in Memphis and former pastor at West Jackson Baptist, appeared via video to speak on Ross’ behalf as he was pastor there when Ross became a member at West Jackson.

“JR was a prayer warrior who would show up every Sunday and listen to the sermon with notebook in hand taking notes,” Gaines said. “And then he’d go out during the week and live that sermon out.”

Ross’ cousin, Cathy, gave some family perspective as she and JR were two of 23 first cousins in the Ross family of Chester County.

“We were like a Black version of the family in the movie ‘My Big Fat Greek Wedding,’” Cathy Ross said. “Always having fun, always loud, always eating … it was always a good time.

“Most of you in this room know him as ‘JR’ or ‘James,’ but those of us in the family knew him growing up as ‘Jamie.’ And Jamie was an adorable little boy with curly hair that I always wanted to braid but he wouldn’t let me.”

He was an only child, but he was hardly ever alone because of how close the extended family was.

“We’d have sleepovers at our grandparents’ or one of the aunts or uncles, and they’d put as many kids as they could cross ways on the bed or beds to get more kids on a bed somehow,” Cathy said. “Then everybody else would sleep on the floor.

“Once he grew up and reached a certain level at the hospital, none of us ever visited the hospital without him seeing us before we left. He was a consultant on every medical condition – real and otherwise. And just like with all of you, he had the ability to make us think we were the most important person he could possibly be talking to at that moment.”

When he returned to the pulpit for his sermon, Mandrell was more emotional as he told a personal story that showed how important JR was for him early in his days as a young senior pastor at Englewood who’d just taken over for Phillip Jett, who cast a large shadow after serving more than two decades in leading Englewood.

The church had recently bought the Old English Inn for the purposes of possible campus expansion, and the hotel was still operated by some within the church. When Union University was hit by a tornado on Feb. 5, 2008, the church decided to let the Inn become a place where Union students displaced by the storm could stay for the rest of the semester.

That move actually forced a number of workers at the Inn to lose their jobs, and Mandrell was the one who would call a staff meeting and inform them of what was going on.

“I went to that meeting that night to face those people who were being told they were losing their jobs, and JR stood there with me and gave those present comfort and compassion,” Mandrell said. “He was there with me at the beginning and the last one there with me that night, and I never forgot how important his presence and help was to me that night.

“And in my first couple of years of stepping in to the position recently vacated Dr. Jett, who was loved by everyone in Jackson, JR had the super power to look into your eyes and give you the confidence you needed to accomplish the job you had to do. My only regret is I don’t ever remember a time when I told him thanks for that.”

The West Tennessee Healthcare community and others from Jackson and West Tennessee took the time to tell JR “thanks” and give the family their respects as the procession to the hospital was lined on both sides with those remembering the man who led 7,000 employees in helping the sick, injured and invalid of Jackson and West Tennessee.

Brandon Shields, brandon@jacksonpost.news