In Memory of Justin

Reprinted from the North Jefferson News, 5-4-2000


Link to The North Jefferson News web page.
www.njeffersonnews.com


Mt. Olive residents Roger and Tami Nash suffered a great loss last year.

Their 17- year-old son, Justin, was killed in a terrible auto wreck while on a short vacation trip with friends from the Gardendale Church of Christ.

On May 27, 1999, Connie Beddingfield and her nephew, Josh Beddingfield, along with friends Jeannine Crawford and Justin, were on their way back from Gatlinburg to Gardendale, when road construction caused traffic to stop on 1-75 south of Knoxville in Sweetwater, Tennessee. As they were waiting for the traffic to move, they were hit from behind by a tractor-trailer that did not stop, crushing them into the truck in front of them. All four were killed instantly.

How did Roger, Tami and their younger son, Bryan cope with such a tragedy? One way was to shift their energy into a project that would be both a tribute to Justin and a means of encouraging others. Justin was a very talented artist who left behind hundreds of cartoons and drawings. He also was very involved at church and was well known for his ability to express a spiritual message through his drawings. This gave his parents the idea of publishing a unique book that combined his cartoons with inspirational articles written by a diverse group of men that knew Justin. That group includes preachers and friends from this area, as well as others from as far away as Canada, Brazil, and South Africa.

Because Justin was to be senior this year at Gardendale High School, his parents want to share a copy of the book 'Enjoy Life, But Think Eternal' with each member of the graduating class of 2000. The free books will be given out at school soon. Roger Nash stated that he "hopes the book will encourage everyone who reads it to think about just how short this life is, and to consider the importance of their spiritual side." Roger and Tami self-published the book under the name JANCO Publishing. They learned after his death that he had used the name JANCO, which contains his initials, to request information and promotional materials from the Internet and thought it was fitting to use the company name that Justin himself had chosen. Any profits made from this book will be used toward future printings.