Sherri Slater
Thoughts on my Aunt Jackie
Every kid needs an Aunt Jackie in their life; for many reasons. First and foremost to set the example of what it means to be a ‘Lady’, beautifully coiffed and dressed to the nines at all times, whatever the occasion. Even to greet a bunch of rug rats spilling out of a fire red station wagon, all noise and bluster, skidding to an abrupt halt at the front door where she awaited you. You never ran into Aunt Jacks and Uncle Pete’s house. There was an unspoken law of decorum that was expected and in some magical way conformed to. Of course there were some obvious guide lines as in the roped off ‘white’ living room, that you could only look in on in total awe and wonder. This was in no uncertain terms Aunt Jackie’s room, and it looked like a movie set. I always imagined my Aunt Jack as the perfect 50’s model posing for the latest kitchen appliance presented by General Electric featured in a full page add in Look Magazine or Ladies Home Journal. She was a wonderful combination of elegance and efficiency. Aunt Jack was a doer and you always sensed she was on a mission, if there was a job to be done within her sphere of influence she was most likely doing it. When our mother was in the hospital or recuperating at Brook Haven or Christian Care you could always count on Aunt Jack to look in. She never stayed long but she always made the effort to check in. If life is about showing up and being accountable, Aunt Jackie led by example. She was beautiful, present and steadfast. And for so many years she and my Uncle Pete were synonymous, you never saw one without the other, and together they were present at almost every family function we had. I often thought how difficult a transition that must have been for my Aunt Jackie to continue on without her mate and yet as always she bore it with grace and a certain stoicism, to the outside world she never changed. Aunt Jackie was our beautiful Jackie Kennedy, and the world will seem a little off balance without her.
Her niece Sherri, Jessie’s daughter
