Jena Stephenson

March 18, 2023

Jena Stephenson passed peacefully on March 12, 2023, following a long, hard-fought battle with pancreatic cancer.

Born in Panama City, Florida on October 24, 1957, to Sarah Alice (Worthington) and James Martin Stephenson, she joined her brother, George, in a happy and loving home – part of the Baby Boomer Generation following the Second World War. Her parents were owners of boat repair facilities in Panama City and St Petersburg, Florida.

Jena attended elementary school in St Petersburg, FL, middle school and high school in Marianna, Florida when her parents decided to become ranchers. After the family relocated to Panama City, she graduated from Mosley High School. She loved playing the flute, was captain of the Flag Corp and Secretary of the Beta Club.

She attended Gulf Coast Community College where she was a member of the Commodorettes, competed in several beauty pageants including Azalea Trail, and was a three-time finalist in the Miss Panama City Pageant.
Jena earned her bachelor’s degree in Communication Arts from the University of West Florida.

Jena very much enjoyed her professional career as a civil servant for the Army and Navy in Tampa, San Antonio and Pensacola – she was happiest when traveling to support military commands around the country as a public affairs and administrative officer.

Her lifelong love of cats was apparent to all – she volunteered at local shelters and was dedicated to the welfare of cats.

Jena loved to travel to and go on cruises with family and friends – all over the United States, the islands of the Caribbean, twice to Alaska and through the Panama Canal.

Jena’s brother George and his wife Pat miss her. Her nephews Dirk, and Stuart and his wife Marti, miss her. She was beloved by a large group of friends who miss her.

A Remembrance and Celebration of Jena’s Life will be held at Faith Chapel in Cantonment, Florida on April 4th, at 2 pm. In lieu of flowers, Jena’s family requests that donations be made to the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network

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Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under Obituaries