Porterville, CA (August 31, 2017) – Porterville High School was pleased to receive a beautiful hand carved statue of a panther from 1967 alumnus, Jeff Jones
Thursday morning, Porterville High School was given an incredible gift that will surely become an icon on the campus for years to come. Jeff Jones, a Porterville Union High School Class of 67’ graduate spent the last few years designing, engineering, and creating a beautiful hand-carved mahogany panther for his 50th class reunion. After the reunion (being held this weekend) Jones has decided to donate the statue to the school.
“I have been a wood carver my whole life, and carving a statue like this for the school is something that has always been on my bucket list. The 50th class reunion seemed like the right time to make it a reality.” –Jones on what prompted him to create and donate the panther.
Weighing over 400 pounds the statue is carved from mahogany and sits on a fiberglass shell supported by a steel frame. Jones did all of the work himself which was documented, step by step by his wife and high school sweetheart, (PHS Class of 69’ alumnus) Jackie. She has also donated all of the photo documentation to the school so that the work that went into the creation can be shared as well.
After the Class of 67’ Reunion breakfast in the Panther Den, the statue will be put on permanent display in the Library Media Center.
Jeff Jones went to Ducor School, before graduating from Porterville Union High School. He then went on to Porterville College and in 1972 graduated from Fresno State with a degree in mechanical engineering.
He is currently the Senior Vice- President of E & B Natural Resources. He has worked in the Kern County Oil Industry for his entire career and has been recognized as a Distinguished Lecturer as well as the Production Engineer of the Year by the Society of Petroleum Engineers.