By Joel Spears

ROGERSVILLE — A champion of education, history and the arts in Hawkins County has died.  Ella Jo Bradley passed away on Tuesday, November 18 following a struggle with cancer.
    A lifelong resident of Hawkins County, Bradley was the daughter of the late Inez and John Leeper and wife of Andrew Thomas Bradley, Jr.    
    To her friends she was a vibrant force in education and the arts for Hawkins County, having developed special programs for mentally challenged and gifted children across East Tennessee. 
    A graduate of Rogersville's Swift Memorial College for African-Americans, her career began in 1952 as a teacher at a two-room schoolhouse in Hawkins County.  
    While she also obtained a masters degree in Fine Arts from East Tennessee State University, Bradley’s educational career reached a milestone in 2002 when she became the first African-American to serve on the Hawkins County School Board where she served as vice chairman.
    During her tenure in the education system she was recognized as a champion for students with learning disabilities, having organized and taught the county's first special education classes from 1965 to 1981.
    She also taught special classes for exceptional and artistic students in the 1980s.
    Bradley combined her life’s passions into published works when she became a poet and the author of several children's books, from which the sales benefited a children's theater she helped establish.
    Always involved in her community, she regularly volunteered to help various charities, schools and children's groups. 
    With a strong faith to guide her, Bradley was also an accomplished singer and musician who sang and performed Gospel and spiritual music, sometimes accompanying herself on an autoharp or the piano.  She was a member of the Rogersville First Baptist Church, where she sang with the choir and taught Sunday School.
    Her other accomplishments include: recognition as a charter member and past-president of the Parent Guardian Association at Greene Valley Developmental Center in Greeneville, past-president of the Hawkins County Retired Teachers Association and a member of Rogersville Lions Club, Saint Clair Ruritan Club, and American Legion Auxiliary - Post 231.
    Bradley was also an appointed Trustee by Governor Phil Bredesen and served on the Board of Rogersville’s Chip Hale Center, as well as the Hawkins County Foster Care Review Board.
    Most recently, Bradley established a tree park and dedicated a bronze sculpture in 2006 in the courtyard at Hawkins County School System’s Central Office. 
    The site was once home to her alma mater, Swift Memorial College.
    The sculpture features five young children climbing and playing on a tree — a fitting capstone to a lasting legacy.