John "Jack" C. Deacon

John C. “Jack” Deacon, was born in Newport, Arkansas, September 26, 1920, to John and Marie Deacon, and he died peacefully at his home on July 15, 2011.

After his family moved to Little Rock, he attended Catholic High School for Boys, Little Rock Junior College and, afterwards, the University of Arkansas where he met his bride-to-be, Dorine Barrett, and was a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity.

He served his country in two tours of duty, first as a Captain in U.S. Army Intelligence during WWII and then as a Major in the Army, serving in the Pentagon during the Korean Conflict.
After serving in WWII, he finished law school at the University of Arkansas and moved to Little Rock, where he practiced with the Rose Law Firm. After his service in the Korean Conflict, he moved to Jonesboro to begin practice with his father-in-law, Joe C. Barrett. He was the founder and managing principal of the Barrett and Deacon law firm in Jonesboro and was proud to have practiced law with four generations of his family. He had a long and distinguished legal career, serving as President or Chairman of numerous local, state, national and international legal bodies and receiving numerous honors and awards recognizing the many achievements of more than sixty years of legal service.

He was particularly active in the Arkansas Bar Association, American Bar Association, and Commissioners on Uniform State Laws. Over the years, he served as President of the Arkansas Bar, President of the Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, and was on the governing board of the American Bar Association.

Civic service was something in which Deacon took great pride and undertook with a passion. He served in leadership roles for most of the major local civic organizations in Jonesboro as well as many state organizations. He was a founding member of the United Way of Northeast Arkansas and was a long-time Rotarian, serving as President of the Jonesboro Club and Governor for District 6150.
He was an active member of Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church and a member of the Knights of Columbus. He served for many years as Chair of the Board of St. Bernard’s Regional Medical Center, forging a loving partnership and friendship with the order of Olivetan Benedictine Sisters.
In the midst of this active service to and on behalf of others, Deacon found considerable time for his family, particularly traveling in the family station wagon on weekends to competitive swimming meets, where he almost always served as the official judge at the events. His service in that capacity was so extensive that Deacon was voted into the Arkansas Swimming Hall of Fame.
He was preceded in death by his brother, Bobby Deacon of Memphis and is survived by his loving wife of sixty-three years, Dorine Barrett Deacon; their four children, Marie Landon and husband Brooks, of Iowa City, Iowa, Barry Deacon and wife, Sherry, of Jonesboro, John Deacon and wife Myra, of Jonesboro, Rush Deacon and wife Debbie, of North Little Rock; sixteen grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.

Funeral services will be 10:00 Monday, July 18, 2011, at Blessed Sacrament Church with burial to follow at Oaklawn Cemetery with Emerson Funeral Home in charge of arrangements. Pallbearers will be members of the Barrett & Deacon Law Firm. Honorary pallbearers are Hugh Atwood, George Puryear, Jim Murray, Grover Poole, the Jonesboro Rotary Club, Craighead County Bar Association and the Knights of Columbus. Visitation will be from 5-7 Sunday followed by a Rosary.
For those wishing to leave lasting memorials, the family requests you please consider the Blessed Sacrament Church, 614 S. Church, Jonesboro, Arkansas 72401, the Arkansas Bar Foundation, 2224 Cottondale Lane, Little Rock, Arkansas 72202, or a Charity of your choice in memory of Jack Deacon.