Mr. Bobby Joe Spann

It was the best of times the day Mr. Bobby Joe Spann came to work, a huge Prep win that has continued for 45 years! Bobby Joe had worked for Caldwell Manufacturing and was ready for a change. Lucky for us, a friend of his already working at Prep told him about an opening on the maintenance crew. Bobby Joe applied, was hired, and as we say…the rest is history!

A master “fixer of all things broken,”Bobby Joe is, and always has been, a true gentleman, consistently wearing an engaging smile and delivering a kind word to those in his path. For over four decades he has served every facet of the community with selfless dedication and a work ethic we should all strive to replicate.

Athletic Director Will Crosby says his father, Buddy, thought the world of Bobby Joe. After retiring from an esteemed coaching career, Buddy was head of maintenance and worked closely with Bobby Joe. Will recalls a time when Buddy and Bobby Joe were working on a broken piece of machinery that appeared fit for the graveyard. Several people observing their resuscitation efforts told them it was a lost cause. Later, Will saw Bobby Joe and asked if they had gotten the machine running. Bobby Joe very humbly said, “Coach, when me and your dad work on something together, there’s not a whole lot we can’t fix.”

Janet Smith, Prep’s first guidance counselor, remembers many days when she worked late. Bobby Joe would always find her before he left and say, “Ms. Smith, you are locked in and safe.” She recalls him as a good and faithful friend, as much to her as to Jackson Prep.

by Allyn Ray Director of Academic Support