Teddy Jenkins was born in 1939 in Bakewell, Tennessee about 25 miles north of Chattanooga.
He graduated from Soddy Daisy High School in 1957 and attended Auburn University on a football scholarship, where he was a member of the 1957 National Championship team. He also played baseball at Auburn. In 1959 he decided to return home and marry his high school sweetheart, Marion Bashford, whom he is still married to after 59 years. While he was visiting the local college looking to enroll, he saw brick masons working on a building and knew that was what he wanted to pursue. A family friend who was a stonemason got him into the Bricklayer's Local #6 apprentice program. Over the next few years, he worked with various contractors in the Chattanooga area and began to do side jobs on the weekends. He partnered with Ed Johnson in the late 1960s focusing on residential work. A few years later, Teddy wanted to move into commercial work, so he started Teddy Jenkins Masonry with a couple of masons and laborers and began to do small commercial jobs.
As the 70s turned to the 80s, he began to do larger multi-story projects, and the company grew to 15-20 employees. His oldest son, Jeff, joined the business in 1985 after graduating from college. In 1988, the company moved from a home office to a new office in Chattanooga, TN. The 1990s saw the company grow to employ around 40 men, and they completed several million-dollar projects. Teddy joined the Chattanooga Masonry Association (CMA), the Masonry Institute of Tennessee (MIT), and the MCAA in the late 70s. He served as president, vice-president, and treasurer of the CMA. He attended many MCAA conventions, and always looked forward to learning new ideas and methods he would see at the conventions. His family is still active in these associations today.
In the mid-1990s, the CMA began a Masonry works in Public Art program, in which local artists would design a life-size 3- dimensional piece of art to be constructed of brick. These brick sculptures were strategically placed around Chattanooga to increase public awareness of the Masonry and Brick Industry. One of the first projects was a brick couch that was built near the Aquarium in Chattanooga. Teddy got his trowel out and worked for two days on the most photographed couch in Chattanooga. These public art projects continued for several years in Chattanooga featuring brick as an artistic medium.
In summary, Teddy has served the Masonry Industry in many ways including: training the future generations of masons, growing an ethical and quality business model, serving and leading within Industry organizations to promote and improve the masonry trade, and through civic contributions to his community. We hereby nominate Teddy Jenkins to be considered as a member of the Masonry Hall of Fame.
Teddy began his masonry career in the 1960's in the residential market. Several years later Teddy wanted to do commercial work and created what is known today as Jenkins Masonry, INC. He continued to grow his business with hard work and dedication throughout the years, all while raising a wonderful family that he considers his greatest life work. His company has grown into a third generation successful family business employing up to 100 people per year and doing up to 11 million in sales.
Teddy has served the Masonry Industry in many ways including: training the future generations of masons, growing an ethical and quality business model, serving and leading within Industry organizations to promote and improve the masonry trade, and through civic contributions to his community.
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