Clarksville Now
Major Richard Jarrett, 75, of Dickson, Tennessee, passed on April 24th, 2021, at Alive Hospice in Nashville, Tennessee. He was born on March 22, 1946, in Macon, Georgia to the late Archie and Margie Jarrett.
Richard was a U.S. Regular Army Soldier and retired honorably from the Medical Corps after 20 years of service as a Medical Service Corp Officer. During his military career, he served in Vietnam from 1970-1971. He was assigned to a clearing company at Chu Lai where he served rotations as a field medic treating and extracting wounded warriors from active combat zones. Later he was assigned to medical support services at various military bases around the world and in Washington, D.C. During these various challenging times, his family and Protestant faith sustained him. He was awarded two Bronze Stars, a Meritorious Service Medal, an Army Commendation Medal, a National Defense Service Medal, a Vietnam Service Medal, a Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal, Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross Unit Citation with a Palm for his selfless and heroic service. Following his military career, Richard taught and served at the school as the school Principal in Middle Tennessee for twenty years. He graduated from Houston County High school in 1964, and from the University of Tennessee at Martin, UTM, earning a Master of Science, M.S. in Education in 1969 and later the Education of Science, Ed. S. Degrees. In his retirement, Richard continued to build upon the farm skills he learned from many kind Houston County farmers during high school consulting a close network of friends and fellow farmers. He was happiest with his family and working on his farm. His love of aviation started in his childhood watching flights at the air bases where his father was stationed.