Jay Allen Emmons

EMMONS, Jay A., age 76, of Centerville, passed away on Sunday, November 10th, 2019, surrounded by his family. A lifelong resident of the Miami Valley, Jay graduated from Belmont HS in 1960, part of the first class to attend Belmont for all four years. He attended college at the University of Dayton and spent the majority of his career as an independent insurance agent. Jay and a partner purchased the Rankin-Santee Insurance Agency in 1971. Jay became the sole owner of Rankin-Santee in the early 80’s and then merged it with the Pottinger Insurance Agency in 1985 and Jay remained active in the agency until his retirement in 2000.

Jay retired thinking he would play a lot of golf and work in his woodworking shop, but ended up helping his son Jeff launch an audio-visual company in Scottsdale, Arizona. Jay was a consultant working for Immedia for over a decade as he and Lola split time between homes in Arizona and Ohio. It meant a lot to him to watch Jeff find success as a business owner and he really enjoyed the time working with his son.

Jay never knew a stranger and would strike up a conversation anywhere at any time. He loved to tease people and family and friends knew he had a big personality with an ornery streak almost as wide as his stubborn streak. Always handy and a “Mr. Fix-it” for many, he loved building or repairing things in his basement workshop.

He was active in the Antioch Shrine for many years as part of their Shrine Motorcorps. He and Lola made many memories with friends on their Harley and traveled all over the U.S. to ride and compete. Jay was a sports enthusiast with a special fondness for the Ohio State Buckeyes and any and all teams that his grandchildren played on or activities they took part in. He did not always agree with the officials and coaches at those games and had been known to vocally show his displeasure. No matter if it was karate, soccer, softball, baseball, cross country, basketball, swim or football, he was the “Grampa” of any and all kids on the team. His love of sports came to him early as he played baseball with his older brother Jerry coaching his team. Jay was an avid bowler and racquetball player. Jay also played softball in an over-60 league, played pickleball into his 70’s and was an avid golfer until his illness robbed him of the balance and stamina needed to play.

Jay was preceded in death by his parents Hazel and Harry Emmons and his brothers Gerald and Eugene Emmons. He is survived by his wife of 55 years Lola (Hetzel) Emmons; his daughter, Jennifer (Greg) Karpinsky; his son, Jeff (Sara) Emmons; his grandchildren Ben, Kerry and Matthew Karpinsky; Grace and Ava Emmons and his constant companion, his rescue dog Whitney.

A memorial service will be held at 12pm on Wednesday November 27, 2019 at Routsong Funeral Home, 2100 E. Stroop Rd. Kettering. A visitation will be held prior from 10-12pm. A private inurnment will be held at David’s Cemetery. The family would like to thank Dr. Hirt, the staff at Centerville Primed family practice, and the nurses at Ohio’s Hospice of Dayton for all their care and support. Donations may be made to Ohio’s Hospice of Dayton, or the Shriners Children’s Hospitals.