Jerry Pettis
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Jerry Lyle Pettis (July 18, 1916 – February 14, 1975) was an American politician and a four-term
Congressman A member of congress (MOC), also known as a congressman or congresswoman, is a person who has been appointed or elected and inducted into an official body called a congress, typically to represent a particular constituency in a legislature. The t ...
from
California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
from 1967 to 1975. He was also a rancher, teacher, aviator, religious leader, and businessman. Pettis was the first Seventh Day Adventist elected to
Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...
.


Political career

In 1966, he was elected as a Republican to the
U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...
, and he was re-elected in 1968, 1970, 1972 and 1974. He represented California's 33rd Congressional District until January 1975 and its 37th Congressional District thereafter.


Background and personal life

Educated in Arizona and California, he graduated from
Pacific Union College Pacific Union College (PUC) is a private university, private Seventh-day Adventist Church, Seventh-day Adventist liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Angwin, California. It is the only four-year college in Napa Cou ...
in
Angwin, California Angwin is a census-designated place (CDP) in Napa County, California, best known as the site of Pacific Union College. It is part of the northern San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 2,633 at the 2020 census. Its area code is 707. Its two Z ...
in 1938. He did graduate work at the
University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...
and the
University of Denver The University of Denver (DU) is a private research university in Denver, Colorado, United States. Founded in 1864, it has an enrollment of approximately 5,700 undergraduate students and 7,200 graduate students. It is classified among "R1: D ...
in 1939-1941 before becoming a businessman. He served in the
United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
and was a pilot for
United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. is a Major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Chicago, Chicago, Illinois that operates an extensive domestic and international route network across the United States and six ...
. He was a
Seventh-day Adventist The Seventh-day Adventist Church (SDA) is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sabbat ...
.


Death and legacy

Pettis was killed on February 14, 1975, when the Beechcraft Model V35B Bonanza he was piloting crashed near Cherry Valley, California, after he encountered adverse weather conditions.planecrashinfo.com Famous People Who Died in Aviation Accidents: 1970s
/ref> He is buried at Montecito Memorial Park in Colton, California. Pettis's wife, Shirley Neil Pettis, replaced him in the House when she won a special election on April 29, 1975. The Jerry Pettis Memorial Veterans Administration Hospital in
Loma Linda Loma Linda (Spanish language, Spanish for "Beautiful Hill") is a city in San Bernardino County, California, United States, that was incorporated in 1970. The population was 24,791 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, up from 23,261 a ...
, California, was so named in his honor. His congressional papers are located in the Archives & Special Collections at
Loma Linda University Loma Linda University (LLU) is a private Seventh-day Adventist health sciences university in Loma Linda, California. , the university comprises eight schools and a Faculty of Graduate Studies. It is a part of the Seventh-day Adventist educatio ...
. During the 1970s, the Jerry L. Pettis Memorial Scholarship was established and is awarded by the
American Medical Association The American Medical Association (AMA) is an American professional association and lobbying group of physicians and medical students. This medical association was founded in 1847 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Membership was 271,660 ...
Foundation to "students pursuing careers in science communications".


See also

*
List of United States Congress members who died in office (1950–99) There are several lists of United States Congress members who died in office. These include: *List of United States Congress members who died in office (1790–1899) *List of United States Congress members who died in office (1900–1949) *List ...


References


External links

*
Entry in the ''Biographical Directory of Congress''President Ford's statement on the occasion of his death
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pettis, Jerry University of Denver alumni Pacific Union College alumni 1916 births 1975 deaths Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in the United States University of Southern California alumni Accidental deaths in California American Seventh-day Adventists Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from California United States Army Air Forces pilots of World War II Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1975 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives