Jenwyl D. McLain, 87, died peacefully on February 9, 2014. Jennie will be laid to rest in Forest Hill East Cemetery at 2440 Whitten Road. Visitation will be held on Thursday evening between 5 and 7 p.m. Funeral services will begin at 2 p.m. on Friday. Jennie was born to sharecropper parents in Morrilton, Arkansas on October 12, 1926. She learned the importance of family while growing up in a Depression era household with six brothers. After her father moved the family to Memphis, she and her brothers attended Southside High School. All four of her older brothers, who were of age, served their country in the military during the 2nd World War. Jennie grew up in a large household like many households of the time that was long on mouths to feed, but short on money. What these families weren''t short on was a commitment to hard work, a love of their country, and a fierce loyalty to, and love for, each other. Though painfully shy around strangers, she entered the workforce as her children reached high school age, so that her earnings, together with her husband''s income, would allow both of her children to benefit from a college education. Ironically, her career gave her a sense of worth and independence as her kids finished college and began their own lives. She remained an employee of Dillard''s Department Stores until she broke her hip in a fall at home at the age of 82. With Jennie, her family always came first. There was no sacrifice that she wouldn''t make in the interests of her children. She was a kind and supportive mother and grandmother, a loyal wife, and a dependable co-worker. She was preceded in death by her mother, Clora Helen Milam, and father, Clarence Franklin Ferrell, as well as brothers, James Franklin Ferrell, Herbert Afton Ferrell, and Herbie Walton Ferrell. She is survived by brothers, Glendan Nathan Ferrell, Harvey Parnell Ferrell, Charles West Ferrell; her former husband, Roy E. McLain; her two children, Roy Jr. and Helen, and her grandsons, Paul Michael Lanning and John Allen McLain. The family requests that memorials be made to the Methodist Healthcare Hospice in Memphis.

Forest Hill East Funeral Home (901)382-1000