Starr Jenkins
Born in Chicago on June 1, 1925, Starr was 95. As first-born son of Beatrice (Starr) Jenkins and Newton Jenkins, Starr was given his mother's maiden name as his first name. A Welsh tradition.
Beatrice Jenkins was one of the earliest woman Architects in the United States, helping to design the capital of Australia while raising her children and supporting her husband's legal, banking, and political careers in Illinois. Newton Jenkins served as a Lieutenant in WW-I, was elected Chicago Alderman, and served as a lawyer represented numerous labor organizations.
Starr was preceded by his beloved spouse of 66 years, Stella Ann Jenkins; and by his mother and father, his sister Audrey Johnson and brother Hugh Jenkins.
Starr entered the Navy at 17 during WW-II, but was then given an appointment to West Point. Starr liked the Navy, and after 6 months at West Point found a way to leave the Army and return to the Navy, being stationed at Treasure Island in the San Francisco Bay. After Japan fell, to get soldiers and sailors home all who were honorably discharged were given 30-days to wear their uniform and take any military transport. Starr took the long way, hitching rides on B-17s, B-25s, and B-29s to tour the United States before settling in New Mexico to attend University of New Mexico, where he got his BA in 1948.
Starr was a writer seeking adventures to write about. He worked in the U.S. Forest Service as a Smoke Jumper fighting fires in Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Oregon, California. He was the 4-Corners State's Information Officer for the U.S. Forest Service. In the winter of 1950 riding a ski club bus, he met a beautiful blond. When she told Starr that her name was Stella, he took the fact that they had the same first name in different languages as a way to introduce himself. The bus broke down 5 times on the way to the ski run giving them plenty of time to get to know each other. Three months later, they were getting their marriage license, and met three other couples from that same unreliable bus doing the same thing.
Starr was a loving, strong, caring and tender Father ever present for his three children: Stewart Jenkins (Diane), Janet Jenkins (Bill) and Scott Jenkins; and a loving Grandfather for his three grandchildren, Sara Jenkins, Corinna Engel and Alisha Engel.
Starr got his master's degree at Stanford, and his Ph.D. back at UNM. In 1961 Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, hired him to teach English and Literature, a career he loved for 28 years. Summers, he frequently worked as a Park Ranger in Yosemite, bringing Stella and their children to live all summer in Yosemite Ranger housing. His article published in the magazine Nature about what needed to be done to control and offset environmental damage from overcrowding in Yosemite was picked up by the U.S. Secretary of Interior, who implemented all 14 of Starr's recommendations. Starr's non-fiction and fiction articles and stories were published in Look Magazine, Life Magazine, the Saturday Evening Post, Man Against Nature, and he published a number of books like Brothers in the Sky-49 about adventures smoke jumping.
Starr was an active member of the Retired Active Men's Club. Starr was a long serving Presbyterian Deacon. His services at First Presbyterian Church will be announced once the current pandemic has passed. Starr's family is grateful to Sylvia and Alysa for the care they provided Starr and his family during his infirmity. Starr's Family and Friends will miss him but are heartened by the knowledge that he will now rejoin his beloved Stella with the angels.
