Hubert “Joe” Pennington, 81, of Murfreesboro, Ark., passed away peacefully on Dec. 25, 2022.
Joe was born to Herbert Elmer and Etha Mae Shaw Pennington just minutes before his identical twin brother, Herbert William “Bill”, at the family’s home in Provo, Ark., on Sept. 20, 1941.
Joe was preceded in death by his parents; his wife of 57 years, Peggy May Camp Pennington; his brothers – Bill, Burnie, and Lester Pennington; and his sisters – Tursie Hipp and Ester Scoggin.
Joe is survived by one sister, Lottie Taylor (Phil) of Chico, Calif.
He is survived by his three children – Mike Pennington (Cora), of Chapmanville, W.V.; Becky Pennington (O’Neal Teel) of Wake Village, Texas, and Betty Parrish (Mark) of Murfreesboro, Ark.
Joe, who was called Papaw by his favorite people, was survived by his 10 grandchildren – Douglas Woodruff III (Kendra), Tabitha Markcum (Sean), Jessica Stout (Nate), Lauren Pianalto (Zac), Amber Woodard (Steve), Tiffany Pennington (Tripp Auxier), Chance Allmon (Kaitlyn), McKenzie Fagan (Caleb), Zac Parrish, and Ty Parrish (Dena). He is also survived by 16 great-grandchildren and a hosts of nephews and nieces.
Joe spent his childhood moving around various south Arkansas towns. He did not want his children to go through that so after a short stay in Murfreesboro in the 1960s, he decided to make Murfreesboro his home in 1970 when he built a home.
Joe was a mechanic by trade for the most part of his life. He owned several service stations in Murfreesboro through the years. His true passion was in his wrecker service. Even as his memory faded, Joe could still tell stories of the wrecker calls of his past.
Joe put his heart into his community by serving on the Murfreesboro Fire Department and Murfreesboro City Council. He served for a time as a Pike County Deputy and also a member of the Pike County Rescue Service and Dive Team.
Joe’s hobbies included hunting, fishing, geocaching, eating ice cream, spending time with his dog, Scamp, and watching Westerns on TV. Joe was of the Baptist faith. Before entering the nursing home he attended Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Murfreesboro. The family would like to thank the Murfreesboro Nursing Center staff for taking such good care of our dad for the past 5 years. We love you all.
Funeral arrangements are a graveside service on Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2022, at 2 p.m. at the Murfreesboro cemetery with Pastor Joe Kelley officiating. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Murfreesboro Cemetery.
