Roosevelt P. Jerrels is survived by his wife Shirley; children: Tony, Jeffery (Alesia), Barry & Shari Jerrels; step children: Brandon & Tamara Landis; Grandchildren: Randy Jerrels, Sheanni & Keanni Vanderbilt, Brandon Walker, and Mariah Hodge; Great Grandchildren: Heaven Ward, Honesty Hasson and Densell Harris; Jim Teeples, who RJ and Shirley looked upon as a son and a host of other family members and friends! RJ was preceded by his son Keith Jerrels in June, 2019.

 

RJ started life as the youngest of three children, the son of share croppers Walter and Josephine Jerrels near the small town of Sely, Texas.  He left Texas at the age of 15, riding alone on a train all the way to Los Angeles, Calif. where his mother had moved to after leaving his father some years earlier.  He graduated from Jefferson High School in 1950 and joined the Airforce.  After leaving the Airforce, he went back to school, took several jobs while marrying and starting a family with his high school sweetheart Harriet. They had five children together. He finally attended West Coast University and earned his BS in Electrical Engineering. Several years later, he met and married Shirley which grew into a 37 year marriage. They weren’t just husband and wife but best friends. RJ went from a barefoot sharecropper to an Aerospace Engineer. RJ was proud of his softball accomplishments, which included several MVP awards, numerous medals won at the Senior World Series tournaments and countless championships with his local team. He had a real passion for the game and worked very hard everytime he hit the field. He was smart, witty, funny, athletic, loving, patient, kind, and generous. He was, to put it mildly, a cut above.