Geraldine Eloise Gray

A beautiful life lived. A loving life shared. An indescribable future awaits—for Our Mother. Geraldine Eloise Gray, “Totsie,” Our Mother, was born on February 1, 1939 to Thomas and Lucille Jackson in Natchez, Mississippi. She was the middle child in a family of nine children, having four older and four younger brothers and sisters. In 1957, Our Mother married Leslie Theodore Roosevelt Gray. In 1958, the first of their six daughters was born in Chicago, Illinois. After their second daughter was born in Chicago, they moved to Denver, Colorado where she gave birth to her four youngest daughters. In 1973, Our Mother moved us girls back to Chicago where she was surrounded by her supportive and loving family. Mother worked very hard in the medical field in order to care for us girls. She made so many sacrifices, but she always assured us that she never regretted any of them and would do it all over again. Our Mother loved buying things for her grand and great grandchildren. She loved cooking for her daughters, and it made her so happy to talk with her sisters and brothers and nieces and nephews over the telephone. In 2005, Mother retired from Waterfront Terrace Nursing Home in Chicago where she worked for over 30 years. But, it was in 1991, when Our Mother’s life truly changed. For, it was in that year that Our Mother became one of Jehovah’s Witnesses, getting baptized in symbol of her dedication to Jehovah God. As years passed, Mother worked out in field service as much as she could, most of the time being only able to publish in the lobby of her senior residence. She even started a Bible study with one of the tenants. She couldn’t do much in the door to door ministry because of the difficulties she had with her allergies and back pain. We would later come to understand the real source of her so-called “allergies” and back problems. On April 6, 2016, our sweet, beloved Mother fell asleep in death after being diagnosed with melanoma in the same year. It was our honor and privilege to care for her and be with her to the very end. Mother was preceded in death by her father and mother, Thomas and Lucille Jackson; her granddaughter, Shanitra Gray; her sister, Delores Walker; and her brother, Roosevelt Jackson. Our Mother leaves to cherish her memories, all of her children: Carolyn Ann McGhee (Curtis), Sandra Dee Borum (Trevor), Sherry Rochelle Holmes, Michelle Elaine Gray, Geraldine Hill (Peter) and Leslie Ann Gray; her siblings: Lucille Coleman (“Tut”), Freddie Jackson (“Bay Ray”), Helen Kennedy (“Billie”), Berlin Jackson (“Lil Man”), Jimmy Jackson (“Bobby”) and Daisy McGee (“Peggie”); and a loving host of grandchildren, great grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and so many wonderful friends

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Geraldine Eloise Gray

February 1, 1939 - April 6, 2016