John Donnelly

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Friday May 12 at 11 a.m. at Saint Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church for Mr. John Joseph Donnelly Jr. of Cookeville. Father Paul Nguyen will officiate. Interment with Military Honors will follow in Green Hills Cemetery in the Alpine Community of Overton County. John died suddenly Monday May 8, 2017. He was born September 14, 1953 in Boston MA to the late John Joseph and Eleanor Frances (Macomber) Donnelly. John was a member of Saint Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church; a U. S. Army Vietnam Era Veteran; a member of Cookeville American Legion Post 46, a former Putnam County Commissioner for District 5 where he served on the County Budget Committee and was Chairman of the Fiscal Review Committee. He was also a former president and Board Member of the Putnam County Habitat for Humanity, a member of the Putnam County Disaster Relief Assistance Team and the Upper Cumberland Education Foundation. John was a graduate of the City of Cookeville Police Academy and former President of the Cookeville Citizens Police Academy Alumni Association. He was employed in Sales with Builders First Source, Inc. and served on the Putnam Regional Planning Commission. Ambassador to the International Home Builders Association and a long time Board Member of the Homebuilders Association of the Upper Cumberland. A life-long sportsman, John enjoyed boating, kayaking and fishing. He was a fixture at Tennessee Tech sporting events and was an avid Tennessee Titans fan. He was also known in Cookeville for his cooking skills, serving not only his family and friends, but several large groups as well. He was an avid reader. In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his son, Johnny Donnelly. Survivors include his wife, Martha "Marty" Ann Norris Donnelly (whom he married July 26, 1980 in Alpine); three sisters and brothers-in-law, Anne and Steven McCormick of Sevierville, TN, Kathleen and Frank Marshall of Blackwood, NJ, and Eleanor and Joseph Sakhri of Herndon, VA; 7 nieces , April (Jason) Travis, Rachel (Val) Keehn, Dawn Holman, Mary Beth Norris, Shannon (Chad) Cobble, Bridget (Charles) Wiley, Erin (Gary) Cain, and 5 nephews, David (Sonya) Holman, Darin Holman, Jason (Cortney) Stephens, Ryan (Shann) McCormick, and Julien Sakhri; and several great nieces and nephews. Family and friends will serve as pallbearers. John's family will receive friends Thursday from 4 p.m. until 8 p.m. at Hooper-Huddleston & Horner Funeral Home. In Lieu of flowers, John's family suggest memorials be made to the Johnny Donnelly Endowment Fund, Tennessee Tech University P.O. Box 1915 Cookeville, TN 38503. Hooper-Huddleston & Horner Funeral Home in charge of arrangements (931) 526-6111. You may share your thoughts and memories at www.hhhfunerals.com. .