CAMDEN — John Allen Jenkins Jr., 83, of Camden, passed away suddenly at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, Mass., with his daughters by his side.

John was born in New Orleans, La., the son of John Allen Jenkins Sr. and Winafrid Stephens Jenkins. He attended Lenox School for Boys in Lenox, Mass., and graduated from Newman School in New Orleans, La. Upon graduation from high school, he completed a triple major awarding him Bachelor of Science degrees in physics and economics and a Bachelor of Arts in political science from Tulane University in New Orleans. He was a member of Pi Sigma Alpha, political science honorary society; Beta Gamma Sigma, commerce and economics honorary society; Delta Sigma Pi, business fraternity; Beta Pi, the oldest engineering honorary society; The Order of the Artus, economics honorary society; and Delta Kappa Epsilon, social fraternity. While at Tulane, he served in the United States Air Force - Special Weapons Division during the Korean War. Thereafter, he earned Master of Science degrees in physics and economics from the University of Chicago in Chicago, Ill.

Upon receiving his master's degree, John began his career with Union Carbide working on numerous notable projects around the United States, including the Manhattan Project in Oak Ridge,Tenn., and Los Alamos, N.M.; the American, British and Canadian development and production sites of the atomic bomb; the Sears Tower in Chicago, Ill.; Stone Mountain, the largest bas relief in the world located in Stone Mountain, Ga., depicting Stonewall Jackson, Robert E. Lee and Jefferson Davis. As part of his responsibilities as a distributor for Union Carbide, he often spent time on many oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico, consulting on special projects.

After living in nine cities in 11 years, he settled in 1960 in Jackson, Miss., where he met and married Linda Borden Bowman. They had two daughters, Avery and Winston. John built a career as co-owner of Jackson Welding Supply and later as vice president of Andres Welding Supply, both distributors for Union Carbide. He was a member of the Jackson Rotary Club, the University Club and the Capital City Petroleum Club. In 1987, he and Linda retired to Camden, where they eventually made this charming seaside community their permanent residence. John's time in Maine was spent actively involved in the Camden Rotary Club, Camden Yacht Club and the Coastal Mountains Land Trust.

John is predeceased by his beloved wife, Linda Bowman Jenkins; and survived by his two daughters, Winafrid Avery Jenkins of Portland and Claire Winston Jenkins of Boston, Mass.; his sister-in-law, Melba Bowman of Pensacola, Fla.; four nephews, Lawrence Jenkins of Phoenix, Ariz., Stephen Jenkins of Austin, Texas, David Jenkins of Houston, Texas, and Karl Mann of Chicago, Ill.; and 10 great-nieces and great-nephews.

The funeral service will be held Saturday, Sept. 7, at 11 a.m. at St. Thomas Church in Camden. In lieu of flowers, donations in memory of John A. Jenkins Jr. may be made to one of the following: Penobscot Bay Medical Center, 6 Glen Cove Drive, Rockport, ME 04856; Newman School, Winafrid S. Jenkins Scholarship Fund, c/o Sabrina Pilant, 1903 Jefferson Ave., New Orleans, LA 70115; St. Thomas Church, P.O. Box 631, Camden, ME 04843; or Coastal Mountains Land Trust, 101 Mt. Battie St., Camden, ME 04843.

Funeral arrangements are in the care of Long Funeral Home in Camden.