Mae Dee McConnell Jackson was born June 7th 1920 in Wild Horse, Oklahoma to Bessie and Dink McConnell. She was the only girl and the second born. She had three brothers: Dean, Cordell and Earl. Her childhood was spent between Tatums, Ardmore, Kansas City, and Tulsa where she graduated from Booker T. Washington High School in 1938. She was a YWCA representative for the State of Oklahoma in addressing race relations in the US. This work strengthened her resolve to be of service to others. While attending Langston University, she preceded Rosa parks in refusing to stay in the “Colored Section” at the back of the bus on one of the long rides she took each weekend back to Tulsa. Mae Dee later graduated in 1943 from Langston University in Oklahoma. Her home economics major led to a job running their early childhood development center for the following year.

Mae Dee was very bright and highly ambitious. However, Jim Crow laws at that time prevented her from studying at the graduate level in the State of Oklahoma. Her interest in fashion design motivated her to move to New York City to seek specialized training in fashion design at their top training institutes. She studied clothing design, draping, millinery, weaving, and other related textile arts at the prestigious Traphagen School of Design and Pratt Institute. During this time, she was accepted at Columbia University and eventually received a Masters’ degree in Education from Teacher’s College at Columbia.

Mae Dee worked briefly in the fashion industry before deciding that teaching young people was her true passion. Her education and extensive specialized training led to her becoming one of the first group of African American public school teachers to be licensed in the state of New York. She taught sewing and millinery in Jr. High School and was widely loved by her students. Her impressive annual fashion shows became heavily attended by colleagues, parents and the community. Many of her students stayed in contact with her throughout their lifetime. She taught in the New York City public school system for over 30 years; 28 of these years served at Ryan Jr. H.S., (P.S. 216) in Queens, New York.

She met her husband Eugene Jackson in high school and attended the Junior/Senior Prom on their first date. They later married on Christmas Eve in 1945 when Eugene returned to the U.S., joining her in New York, after serving in the army during World War II. They had two children, Anthony, who has preceded her in death, and Genée. Mae Dee passed away one month before their 65th anniversary.

Mae Dee was extremely devoted to her family, but never veered away from her commitment to serving others. She joined the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority in college and remained very active throughout her life, holding a Lifetime Membership. For many years, she worked within the Epsilon Pi Omega Chapter raising college scholarship money for underserved youth.

She was a champion of any cause related to youth; a member of the Board of Directors for the Queens Children’s Youth Shelter, and an active member of the NAACP, YMCA and Big Sisters program. She has received numerous community service awards for her work with these organizations. Unfortunately, illness in her later life prematurely ended her activities.

Mae Dee’s life was built around giving back to her community and service to others. She was a warm, loving, friendly and caring person to all who knew her. She was smart, creative, fiery, strong-willed and a spiritually-grounded visionary who left her world a better place. She is loved and will live forever in the hearts of many. She is survived by her husband, Eugene; daughter, Genée; her brother, Earl; three grandchildren, one great grandson and many loving cousins and friends. Family, friends, neighbors and caregivers alike recognize Mae Dee as a unique and precious gem.

The Family of Mae Dee Jackson would like to thank everyone for their love and support during this difficult period. We also ask you to consider donating to Alzheimer’s Research in her name.