COLUMBUS
Jack O’Neal Pennington was born May 19, 1959. He was the oldest of three children born to Bernard W. Pennington and Alberta (Hammond) Pennington of Columbus, IN. Jack gained his wings this past Saturday, March 6, 2021 at Columbus Regional Hospital.
Jack is survived by his wife, Tammy (McNew); son, Elijah T. Pennington of Columbus; stepsons, Benjamin (Kelly) McNew of Bagdad, Cpl. Keegan McNew of Oahu, HI; KY; stepdaughters, Katelyn McNew of Louisville, KY, Olivia (Andy) McNew of Florence, SC. along with several grandchildren.
Jack was a passionate man. Anything he did, was done with 110% commitment. He had an early fondness for vehicles, beginning with bicycles that quickly blossomed into motorcycles and cars. If it had wheels and an engine, he was interested. His creative gifts were nurtured early on as he began custom fabrication and painting his bike in his parent’s garage on Central Avenue, which led to him doing the same for the neighbor kids.
Jack’s career paths were as varied and unique as he. He sold hardware and used cars. He opened Guns Unlimited Gun Shop and Sporting Goods in the Clover Center in honor of his Grandfather, Russel “Boot” Pennington. He began raising and training German Shepherds, another great passion. Life led him to California for a time where he did K9 training and patrol in a high-risk gang control unit. He came back to Columbus and made a career from grounds keeping and maintenance supervision.
For the last 25 years, Jack honed his skills as an automotive detailer working from his home DBA… A Touch of Class Auto Detailing. In December of 2019 another of Jack’s dreams came true when his son, Elijah, changed his career path to merge with his own to open an actual detail shop they would run together. Jack was so proud to hang a sign at 442 S Cherry Street and tell everyone his son was working in the detail business with him. Jack had passed his passion for automobiles on to Elijah in a “big fashion”.
Jack excelled at anything he ever did, and every interest quickly became a passion: art, track, karate, bikes, Elvis, motorcycles, cars, German Shepherds, engines, maintenance, gardening, oil painting, custom painting, hotrods and people. He had a heart of gold and really cared about people. He felt it was his lot in life to protect those who could not protect themselves and touched the lives of many. He was always willing to share his knowledge and passions.
His spirit was indomitable, his strength and attitude were unique and inspiring. His ability to make us laugh was unrivaled.
He did it his way and we loved him.
The funeral will be conducted at 11:30 a.m. Friday at Barkes, Weaver & Glick Funeral Home on Washington Street with Pastor Charles Kennedy officiating. Visitation will be from 9:30 a.m. until the time of service Friday at the funeral home. Due to pandemic restrictions, we are limited to 100 people in our funeral home. We do ask that visitors follow the social distancing guidelines once inside the funeral home and masks are required. A live stream of the funeral service may be viewed at 11:30 a.m. Friday at barkesweaverglick.com.
Burial will be at Garland Brook Cemetery.
Memorial contributions may be made to the family of Jack Pennington through the funeral home.
Online condolences and special memories may be shared with Jack’s family at barkesweaverglick.com.
