Obituary for Blanche Elizabeth Jackson
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Meeting ID: 829 2849 3918
Passcode: Jackson
In lieu of flowers, please make a donation in Blanche's name to the Honorable Arlene L. Robinson Scholarship Fund at Mount Carmel Baptist Church, Washington, D.C.
Blanche Elizabeth Jackson, age 99, passed from labor to reward on Tuesday, March 28, 2023, at Crescent Cities Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. She began her life on October 31, 1923, in what was then called Oak Grove, Virginia, the fourth of four children born to the late Clarence William and Virginia Mae (Lucas) Jackson.
Blanche received her early childhood education in a one-room school in Herndon, Va. She and her sisters, Gladys and Josephine, later pursued further study and vocational training in Washington, D.C.—Gladys in culinary arts, and Jo and Blanche in secretarial skills. In a flash of foresight, Blanche, a graduate of Armstrong Vocational High School, also took courses in cosmetology, earning her license and certification.
After working for just a few months as a clerk-secretary at the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and following a federal government reduction in force, Blanche put her cosmetology license to good use. She worked as a licensed beautician for numerous salons, including Williams, Arkana, Beakay, Battles, Mary’s, Madela’s, Catherine’s, and Lenore’s Hair Design, where she and fellow Mount Carmelite Rosia Lee Moses finished their formal careers in the hair business. In addition, in the early 1980’s, she and coworker Jeanette had opened their own shop, Mahogany Beauty Salon on New Hampshire Avenue in Takoma Park, Md.
At age 12, Blanche was baptized on October 5, 1936, by Rev. Edgar Newton at Oak Grove Baptist Church in Herndon, Va. She and her family were devoted members until her brother Dallas’s death as a teenager. The entire family relocated to Washington, D.C., and all except Jo united with the Mount Carmel Baptist Church at Third & Eye Streets, N.W. Blanche joined by Christian experience on March 1, 1948. It was only logical— the family lived right next door at 221 Eye Street.
As one of Mount Carmel’s oldest members, Blanche served in many capacities over the decades—vice president of the Magnolia Circle, co-founder with Catherine Wood of the Junior Chrysanthemum Flower Club, and the last original member of Sunday Church School Class #4, which had been taught at one time by Rev. Arthur Pace for whom the church library is named. Blanche also served actively as an usher for about 60 years, before arthritis forced her to take a seat. In the late 1970s, she served as supervisor of the Junior Usher Board, drafting her great nieces into service as well.
Blanche leaves to cherish her memory: nieces Carolyn C. Garnett and Brenda C. Height, great nieces Carla Garnett, Shannon Garnett, Venus (and Leo) Coley, and RoShawne (and David) Harrod, great grand nephews Dyson Coley and Justin Coley, great grand niece Kendall Harrod, and multitudes of extended family and friends.
OR
enter this ID and into your zoom application:
Meeting ID: 829 2849 3918
Passcode: Jackson
In lieu of flowers, please make a donation in Blanche's name to the Honorable Arlene L. Robinson Scholarship Fund at Mount Carmel Baptist Church, Washington, D.C.
Blanche Elizabeth Jackson, age 99, passed from labor to reward on Tuesday, March 28, 2023, at Crescent Cities Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. She began her life on October 31, 1923, in what was then called Oak Grove, Virginia, the fourth of four children born to the late Clarence William and Virginia Mae (Lucas) Jackson.
Blanche received her early childhood education in a one-room school in Herndon, Va. She and her sisters, Gladys and Josephine, later pursued further study and vocational training in Washington, D.C.—Gladys in culinary arts, and Jo and Blanche in secretarial skills. In a flash of foresight, Blanche, a graduate of Armstrong Vocational High School, also took courses in cosmetology, earning her license and certification.
After working for just a few months as a clerk-secretary at the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and following a federal government reduction in force, Blanche put her cosmetology license to good use. She worked as a licensed beautician for numerous salons, including Williams, Arkana, Beakay, Battles, Mary’s, Madela’s, Catherine’s, and Lenore’s Hair Design, where she and fellow Mount Carmelite Rosia Lee Moses finished their formal careers in the hair business. In addition, in the early 1980’s, she and coworker Jeanette had opened their own shop, Mahogany Beauty Salon on New Hampshire Avenue in Takoma Park, Md.
At age 12, Blanche was baptized on October 5, 1936, by Rev. Edgar Newton at Oak Grove Baptist Church in Herndon, Va. She and her family were devoted members until her brother Dallas’s death as a teenager. The entire family relocated to Washington, D.C., and all except Jo united with the Mount Carmel Baptist Church at Third & Eye Streets, N.W. Blanche joined by Christian experience on March 1, 1948. It was only logical— the family lived right next door at 221 Eye Street.
As one of Mount Carmel’s oldest members, Blanche served in many capacities over the decades—vice president of the Magnolia Circle, co-founder with Catherine Wood of the Junior Chrysanthemum Flower Club, and the last original member of Sunday Church School Class #4, which had been taught at one time by Rev. Arthur Pace for whom the church library is named. Blanche also served actively as an usher for about 60 years, before arthritis forced her to take a seat. In the late 1970s, she served as supervisor of the Junior Usher Board, drafting her great nieces into service as well.
Blanche leaves to cherish her memory: nieces Carolyn C. Garnett and Brenda C. Height, great nieces Carla Garnett, Shannon Garnett, Venus (and Leo) Coley, and RoShawne (and David) Harrod, great grand nephews Dyson Coley and Justin Coley, great grand niece Kendall Harrod, and multitudes of extended family and friends.