John E. Mayfield

John E. Mayfield of Ashland City, Tennessee, grew up in Cleveland, TN. He graduated from Baylor School in Chattanooga, TN in 1970 and attended the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.

Through his own foundation, which he founded in 1996, John supports many local charities and scholarship programs. He also owned Mayfield’s Book Store for 27 years, where all proceeds from the used books support the John E. Mayfield Charitable Foundation. His generosity provides scholarship opportunities throughout Tennessee, Kentucky, and Virginia. John’s passion for philanthropy is exhibited through the many funds he has established, but was not without struggle. John once battled addiction and severe panic attacks. “So I started inviting God into my life and asking His will for me,” he says. “I believe my purpose in life is to do charitable activities.”

John is very involved in the Kiwanis Club, and was appointed to a three-year term as Kiwanis International Foundation trustee in October 2013. Since that time, he has been elected as Treasurer and currently President-elect. In addition to the scholarship support John has provided, he is also a member of the Founder’s Circle which is a Diamond-level 25 George F. Hixson Fellow and a Lead Gift donor to The Eliminate Project: Kiwanis eliminating maternal and neonatal tetanus, where he has distinguished himself as chairman of the Lead and Major Gifts Committee. He also is a Bo Shafer Fellow and Ted Osborne Fellow of the Kentucky-Tennessee District. In September 2012, John was honored as a Champion of Change by U.S. President Barack Obama for his advocacy and support of The Eliminate Project.

The John E. Mayfield Scholarship Fund at the College Heights Foundation was established in 2015 to assist non-traditional nursing students after Mr. Mayfield battled a health issue with a hospital stay. Everything the nurses did for him during that stay stood out, and he wanted to help those pursuing that career path.