John T. DeJarnette Jr.

John T. DeJarnette Jr., 86, of Columbus, IN, passed away peacefully on Monday, February 9, 2026. John was born on September 13, 1939, in Hardinsburg, KY to John T. DeJarnette Sr. and Regina Askins DeJarnette. He married Deborah Whisler on June 7, 1975.

John moved to Columbus and started a career at Cummins Engine Company and retired after 30 years of service. The start of his faith journey began at the St. Romuald School in Hardinsburg, KY. His Catholicism carried to Columbus at St. Columba Catholic Church, now St. Bartholomew Catholic Church, where he attended and was an usher for many years.

Legend has it that he was a great shot when hunting and always knew where the fish were biting. While coaching his kids for many years, he set a standard for winning and accomplished that with a great deal of fun, and several championships. John played softball for many years, during that time he met lifelong friends in the community – though his baseball career started many years prior to that.

In 1959, John was drafted by the San Francisco Giants organization where he played for two and half years in their minor league farm system. After that, he was given the opportunity to play in the major league spring season with the Giants. This brought about a Topps baseball card contract, which of course made his Hardinsburg family very proud. He loved telling the story of what he described as “the greatest circumstance of his life”, it was the time when he got to shoot pool with Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, and Sam “Toothpick” Jones after a game. He and Toothpick Jones beat Mays and McCovey in a 3/5 game series, which did not please Mays and McCovey, as you can imagine. In 2021, John was inducted into the Columbus Softball Hall of fame and a few years later he was inducted into the Illinois USA Softball Hall of Fame.

John was an avid Kentucky Wildcats fan. He looked forward to March Madness every year and we could always count on him having the best bracket in the family. John had a love for the New York Yankees and always talked about his admiration for Mickey Mantle.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, February 14, 2026 at St. Bartholomew Catholic Church with Father Nico Ajpacaja Tzoc officiating. Calling hours will be from 9 a.m. until service time Saturday at the church. John will be laid to rest beside his wife at Garland Brook Cemetery.

Memorial contributions may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

Survivors include his children, Susan Schwartz and Johnny (Davida) DeJarnette both of Owensboro, KY, Chanel (Dave) Gross and Glenn (Jenny) DeJarnette both of Columbus, IN; sisters, Carolyn Mattingly of Columbus, IN, Mary Ann (Chris) Skene of Hudson, FL; grandchildren, Sydney (Scott) Thompson, Derek (Julie) Gross, Haydon (Alex) Johnson, Caitlyn (Dane) Duke, Brooke Schwartz, Thomas DeJarnette, Emmy DeJarnette, Hutson DeJarnette, Kate DeJarnette, Annie DeJarnette; great Grandchildren, Kinsley Jo and Tristan Thompson, Decker and Clay Duke, Wren and Reece Gross, and Will Johnson.

John was preceded in death by his parents, John T. DeJarnette Sr. and Regina DeJarnette; wife, Deborah DeJarnette on March 7, 2020; brother, James DeJarnette.

Arrangements were entrusted to Jewell-Rittman Funeral Service & Crematory.