Six months after I met John Ruskey, I had the great pleasure and honor of meeting Wesley “Mississippi Junebug” Jefferson. “Junebug” has been the Quapaw Canoe Company’s shuttle driver since its beginnings. Before that, he adopted John into the great Blues fraternity and made him a member of the Wesley Jefferson Blues Band.
Today, we are in mourning. “Junebug” passed away last evening after a long struggle with cancer. His death leaves a great hole in our hearts. He was as good a friend as one could have, forever loyal and dependable, kind and courteous, funny and wise.
Wesley was born into a sharecropper family in a place he called “Stumpy-Knee-Dead’n-End, MS.” He was raised to be a keeper of the old songs, and lived in a way that is of the greatest traditions of a “Blues man.” He was simply an important and cherished classic in the home of the Blues, Clarksdale, MS.
For John Ruskey and the entire Wesley Jefferson family, this is a sad loss. He will be forever missed, but his spirit will travel with us in his songs, our cherished memories, and our loving hearts.
Peace be with you Junebug.
Sympathies and Condolences can be sent to
The Wesley Jefferson Family
737 Maple Street
Clarksdale, MS 38614
