Lola Jackson was born in Grand Bay, Alabama to Virginia and Jim Jackson. She married Sonny Reed in 1951; Sonny died in 1986. They lived in Chicago before moving to Minnesota, where Lola worked for the USPS. She was the first woman elected president of her local APWU, and first female president of the St. Paul Trades and Labor Assembly –AFL-CIO. Lola was chosen by Governor Arne Carlson as one of the twenty most outstanding women in Minnesota, and was chosen Senior Royalty by the St. Paul Winter Carnival Association. She was appointed to the first Police-Civilian Internal Affairs Review Commission, served on the Executive Board of the United Way, was an Arbitration Advocate for the Postal Workers Union, and was on the Board of Directors of the St. Paul Postal Employees Credit Union.
After retirement Lola moved to Washington D.C., becoming a business agent for American Federation of Government Employees. She met Bill and Hilary Clinton, and Al Gore, having dinner at the White House and Vice President’s mansion. She met her husband John Langford; they married in 2005. The couple moved to Wisconsin to be with family, there Lola volunteered for many organizations, started the local APWU retirement chapter, spent time at Pathfinder Village, and worked as a bus driver for Hudson Schools.
Lola was preceded in death by her parents Virginia and Jim Jackson, infant sister Daisy Lee, and husband Sonny Reed. She is survived by husband, John, and children, Tom Reed (Peggy), Sue Pearson (Scott), Joe Reed (Michelle), Jane Masterman (Robin), Jodi McManus (Bryon), Jeff Reed (Tracey), step-children Paul Langford (Janice), and Debbie Johnson (Mitch); siblings George Jackson, Hilda Hickman, and Gloria Jackson; 20 grandchildren; 19 great-grandchildren; and two great-great-grandchildren.
A Celebration of Life will be Saturday, September 25, 2021 at 1:00 PM with Visitation from 12:00 - 1:00 pm at Wulff Woodbury Funeral Home, 2195 Woodlane Dr, Woodbury, Minnesota 55125. (Funeral Home Capacity = 100)
For those who wish to view remotely, the service will be recorded and placed on the Wulff Woodbury Funeral Home Facebook Page for viewing as soon as service has ended, around 2 pm Saturday. Reception to follow. Mask wearing is required.
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.WulffWoodburyFuneralHome.com for the Langford family.
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