William Clyde Jackson

William Clyde Jackson, 91, died peacefully at home in Asheville, NC, on Saturday, December 21, 2013. He loved his Lord and was faithful in sharing his testimony. Bill was born in 1922, in Scranton, Pa. He was a World War II veteran, serving with the U.S. Army in the South Pacific from early 1943 until December of 1945. He married Freda Belle Cross in 1946, and they spent their honeymoon in New York City. They spent many years living and raising their family outside Scranton in a house near Hamlin which he built with his own hands, and which they occupied for more than 60 years. He had a long career with Erie Lackawanna Railroad and Conrail. Bill was a lay genius with woodworking and mechanics. His craftsmanship was evident in an outsized wood splitter he built and used, down to coasters he meticulously crafted from branches from trees. He was full of humor, delighting his grandchildren with his ability to wiggle his ears on demand and his famous rooster crow. His undying love for ice cream was legendary. Bill was preceded in death by his parents and by an older brother, Wendell Jackson. He is survived by his wife, Freda Belle, his children, Linda (Render Caines), Carol (Joel Belz), Lorraine (David Berger), Paul (Sharon); 17 grandchildren, and 48 great-grandchildren. A younger brother, Wayne Jackson, and a younger sister, Dolores Jackson McLain, also survive him. The Jackson family will receive friends at a memorial service on Tuesday, December 24, at 11:00 a.m. at Covenant Reformed Presbyterian Church in Asheville, NC, and again on Friday, December 27, at a memorial service at Grace Bible Church in Dunmore, PA. Arrangements are by Groce Funeral Home on Tunnel Rd. in Asheville, NC.