Jean Ann Hill Churchill, 71, of Dickson, TN died on September 8, 2021 in Dickson.
She was the daughter of the late William Byron Hill and the late Mary Alice Carmichael Hill of Little Rock, Arkansas.
She is preceded in death by her husband John Hugh Churchill, also of Dickson, and her sister Carla Jane Boerman of Pleasanton, CA.
She is survived by son William H. Churchill (Emily), of Nashville, TN, daughter Mary Katherine Curcio (Michael), of Dickson, son Hugh O. H. Churchill (Gwen), of Fayetteville, AR, sisters Harriet Lou Casteel (Steve) and Billie Alice Rutherford (Skip), both of Little Rock, and nine grandchildren: Rosalind, Churchill, Edward, Margot, Timothy, Josephine, Emmett, Theodore, and Virginia Jean.
Born September 10, 1949 in Muskogee, OK, she moved to Little Rock with her family in 1962–next door, fatefully, to her eventual husband of 47 years. She attended Hall High School, where she became well known for the vibrant personality that would become her enduring trademark. Married in 1972, the Churchills lived in Oxford, England, and New Haven, CT before making their home in Conway, AR.
In Conway, Jean held positions in early childhood education and was an active member of the First United Methodist Church and several service organizations, including P.E.O. There, Jean was supported by a veritable sisterhood of extraordinary friends and was the heart of an active household brimming with laughter and mischief–much of which she instigated. She was “Momma Jean” to everyone who walked through her door.
In 2001, Jean and John moved to Washington, D.C., living–and Jean working–at the Kennedy-Warren, an art-deco building next to the National Zoo. There she reprised her nurturing habits, opening her heart and home to seemingly everyone. On any trip to the Churchills’ Kennedy-Warren apartment, one was likely to find an unlikely assemblage of people–an architectural historian, the building concierge, and the neighborhood butcher perhaps– all enjoying a gin and tonic at Jean’s invitation.
The Churchills’ final years were spent in Dickson, TN where Jean entertained grandchildren, hosted friends, admired birds, scored the games of her beloved Washington Nationals, and honed her near-encyclopedic knowledge of movies from Hollywood’s Golden Age.
An outdoor graveside ceremony will be held Saturday, September 18, 2021 at 1 pm at Walnut Grove Cemetery, east of Hector, Arkansas. In lieu of flowers, memorials should be directed to Hendrix College (in honor of John and Jean Churchill Memorial Projects) via https://www.hendrix.edu/makeagift/ or mailed to 1600 Washington Ave., Conway, Arkansas 72032.
