Jeanette Jenkins

Born September 20, 1965, in Bucks County Pennsylvania, Jeanette Koch Rice Jenkins lived a full and passionate life.

She completed a Ph.D in chemistry from SUNY Buffalo in 1990, displayed an uncanny ability to see into the souls of horses and dogs, and could grow anything from seed.

She is remembered fondly by many students and colleagues at Georgia Southern University where she taught as an associate professor 1990-2005. Her classrooms and labs echoed with the sound of laughter every single day. Her sharp intellect earned accolades in academics and her knowledge of chemistry kept her one step ahead of her doctors and nurses.

In 2004, she married the love of her life, David Jenkins, in a surprise wedding ceremony in their beautiful backyard garden in Statesboro, Georgia. Slummy friends with beer to share showed up expecting a barbecue and received an evening full of friendship and love to remember forever.

In a career-changing move to the North Georgia mountains, Jeanette and David ran a luxury cabin rental business from 2005 to 2020. She enjoyed the new challenges and loved helping people celebrate life milestones in the mountains. Jeanette is survived by a horse she loved dearly, Faith Elizabeth. They were as close as two souls could be. She loved horses, dogs, and birds and she discovered most of them had voices that she would animate for the rest of us. 

She is preceded in death by many she loved dearly, Scrappie “sack o taters,” Emma, Maxie “the very best one,” Bruiser “does anyone want a dog?” and Kirby, among others.

Jeanette was a true artist and she was blessed to be surrounded by creative and artistic friends. She had a special eye for nature photography enjoyed by many.

In addition to her loving husband, David Jenkins, Jeanette is survived by her mother, Dorothy Johnson, and husband, Leonard, of Albrightsville, Pennsylvania; father, Dennis Koch, and wife, Ann, of Quakertown, Pennsylvania; sister, Cindy Mench, and husband, Mark, of Quakertown; aunt, Nancy Hoffman, and husband, Donald, of Quakertown; aunt, Grace Koch, of Coopersburg, Pennsylvania; and niece, Alexi Wilsey, and husband, Brandon, of Pottstown, Pennsylvania.

Jeanette and David loved “The Princess Bride” and quoted it frequently.

“Do I love you? My God, if your love were a grain of sand, mine would be a universe of beaches.”

Arrangements were entrusted to the Finch-Cochran Funeral Home of McCaysville.

You may send condolences to the family and sign the guest register at www.cochranfuneralhomes.com.