May E. Jackson

May was born at home on a farm near Laurel, NE, on 4/19/1928. The house was on land that was being rented by her parents and had no electricity, running water or central heat. Her parents were Danish Immigrants and she spoke only Danish until she entered kindergarten. She was proud of her parents and her Danish heritage. She had three sisters: Mary, Edie (deceased) and Edna.

Family activities off the farm were centered around their membership in the Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church. May's father served as head of the Sunday school for many years. May joked about the fact that members of her church group were considered the “Gloomy Danes”, since the elders frowned on things like dancing and playing cards on Sunday. As a young girl May was expected to do her share of work in the kitchen and with chores on the farm. She remembers being told by her mother to “get a chicken ready to cook”. This meant starting by chasing down the chicken and ending with plucking off the feathers. Later in life, May spent several years writing a detailed account of being raised by immigrant parents on a farm in Nebraska. The result was a 200 page book called “Recollections” that included historical data, a review of farm life, plus many old photos.

The family moved to a farm that her father purchased on the outskirts of Blair, NE, in 1945. It was here that she finished high school and graduated from Dana College. May was the first woman to graduate from Dana with a degree in Physical Education. She also majored in Biology.

She taught physical education and biology at middle and high schools in Nebraska, Iowa, Colorado and at 5th Army Headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany. It was in Europe that she fell in love with skiing. She also was an instructor in physical education at the University of Denver and Oakland University. It was at the University of Denver in 1957 that she met Glenn, her future husband.

After marriage, the family lived in Denver (where son Alan was born), Bartlesville, OK, (where son Mark was born), Ann Arbor and finally, since 1967, Rochester Hills.

May was very active in civic activities in the Rochester Hills area:

1) She taught tennis classes for hundreds of children and adults through RARA.

2) Was a member the first Rochester Hills Bike Path Committee.

3) Was a member of the Save Our Open Spaces Committee that helped pass the millage that funds the purchase of open land within the city such as Innovation Hills Park.

4) Was a member of the Rochester Hills Latch Key Committee that looked into the problems that faced children returning home from school to an empty house.

5) Sang in the Epworth Choir at St Paul's United Methodist Church.

6) Enjoyed singing to people who were living in Bellbrook Nursing Home.

7) Was the first Sports Director at the Older Persons Commission.

May, a born competitor, enjoyed playing sports that included tennis, golf, pickleball and volleyball and felt badly that competitive sports were not available to her during her high school days. For twenty years her family went fishing and camping in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area of northern Minnesota. She was an avid bridge player. She loved to sing and travel with her husband and good friends, visiting most of Western Europe, Scandinavia, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. She enjoyed photography and mountain hiking.

She was always available to help anyone in need and plunged into each task at full speed until her strength was sapped by disease. According to her husband, May's willingness to help him would many times end up her stopping work long enough to say: “Let me show you how you really should be doing this”!

May had the knack of being able to start meaningful conversations with anyone she met for the first time. This led to several lifetime friendships. She enjoyed discussions with people young and old. On trips overseas, she could be found talking with a stranger, even though she had a very limited knowledge of the local language.

Above all, May was a loving wife and mother, who was proud of her sons, daughter-in-law, Anne, and grandchildren, Ryan and Emi.