News

By Ron Hayes

    OCEAN RIDGE — William F. “Bill” Jackson, a resident of Delray Beach and Ocean Ridge for more than 20 years, died Sept. 21 at Wellington Regional Medical Center following surgery. He was 73.    “Bill was a wonderful neighbor. He always had a smile and a funny story to tell,” recalled his neighbor, Susan Carey. “He was our whole family’s favorite neighbor. He was our dog’s favorite neighbor, too, because she used to receive special gourmet treats from Bill in the mail. We all knew he cared about us and we cared about him, too.”
    Mr. Jackson also kept a fishing camp on Lake Okeechobee.
    “He was an electrician and carpenter by trade, but fishing was his main hobby,” recalled Marie Jackson, his “best friend and former wife” of 20 years. “He had a good sense of humor and enjoyed his children who visited each winter.”
    The two had been planning a river cruise of Germany and Switzerland in the fall, where Mr. Jackson served with the U.S. Army during the Korean War.
    Mr. Jackson was born June 18, 1938, in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. Following military service, he joined the electricians and carpenters unions, and owned his own construction company.
    He was a longtime member of the Elks and Moose clubs, and served as fire commissioner of the Wilton, N.Y., Fire Department.   
    In addition to his former wife, Mr. Jackson is survived by his children, Timothy Jackson, Mary Ann Dowd, Marlise Ford, all of Wilton, N.Y., and Lori McCann of York, S.C.; nine grandchildren; and eight great-grandchildren.
    A private Mass was celebrated Oct. 1 in Wilton, N.Y., where Mr. Jackson was interred at Maplewood Cemetery.