Person:Edgar Jackson (12)

A descendant tells me that "Edgar's father, Edgar Starkey Jackson, followed in his father's footsteps to become a Methodist preacher. He went east to attend seminary in New Jersey, not far from Rockaway, and after ordination, he served the Hempstead Methodist Church. His son, Edgar Newman Jackson, graduated from Hempstead High School in 1926. Neither of them knew of the Hempstead ancestor connection."

The descendants has also posted this on Edgar's memorial page at Find-a-Grave. "Author, Methodist pastor, chaplain in the United States Army Air Corps, clinical psychologist, healer and mystic. He developed the theory of the stages of grief and and the impacts of incomplete grieving on the physical body. Author of more than forty books, he taught seminars and courses worldwide."

Edgar's Autobiography, 'A Mystic Looks at Life' was published posthumously. It is available for purchase through several sources online.

The following is an excerpt from the "In Memoriam" published in the United Methodist New York Conference Journal in 1994. "The Reverend Edgar Newman Jackson, D.D. died Friday April 15, 1994 at his home in Corinth Corners, Vermont. 'Edgar was one of my models for ministry; he befriended and supported me in so many ways. I have wonderful memories of our years at Shelter Island. Through his writing and lecturing he supported and stimulated a host of people.'Rev. Matthew Gates. 'Certainly, Edgar was one of the great intellects and magnificent spirits of the second half of the twentieth century.' Rev. Joel Warner, Pastor, Lake Ronkonkoma UMC. 'I shall greatly miss Ed...he was the kind of Christian minister I had always hoped to be. In his shared insights and concerns, I came to appreciate the exceptional abilities and Christian dedication that characterized all of Ed's ministry. I thank God for his books, his service to the church and to so many needful individuals over the years. He has left both fond memories and thoughts in his many books that will long outlive him in continuing his ministry.' Rev. Lester Loder, Saranac Lake, NY.

Born July 8, 1910, the son of the Rev. Edgar Starkey and Abbie (Newman) Jackson in Cold Spring Harbor, New York. In 1932 he graduated from Ohio Wesleyan University where he later also received his Doctorate of Divinity. He continued his studies at Drew University, Union, the Divinity School and the William Allison White School of Psychotherapy at Yale (BD & MDiv), Columbia, the Postgraduate Center for Psychotherapy, and Oxford University. On June 12, 1934, he married Estelle Miller. They had three children, Edgar Duval Jackson (1935-1936), James Ward Jackson (1938-1972) and Lois E. Jackson of Corinth, VT.

His Father and Grandfather were both Methodist ministers. Dr. Robert Fulton of the University of Minnesota said, "He had a family tradition of service to his faith and he brought to the study of death and grief a towering and disciplined intellect as well as a compassionate heart. His pioneering book, Understanding Grief, was a call to action that gave birth to the 'death awareness' movement in the U.S. It not only laid the groundwork for our present understanding of grief and how we might cope with it , but also brought attention to the manner in which our society denied both the prospect and the reality of death. Because Edgar lived, thousands of men and women across this country - indeed throughout the world - have found solace in their grief and renewed faith in life."

Dr. Jackson was a member of the New York East, and New York conferences of the United Methodist Church and served parishes in Centerport NY 1934-36, Thomaston, CT 1936-40, Park Church, New Haven, CT 1940-42, Winsted, CT 1942-44, Chaplain, US Army Air Corps 1944-46, Newfield Church, Bridgeport, CT 1946-51, Mamaroneck, NY 1952-63 & 1964. His years in the Mamaroneck Methodist Church were a time of tremendous growth in that parish. The church grew physically through addition of a Christian Education building and increased membership. It grew spiritually through prayer groups and healing services, which helped to redefine the boundaries of the Christian community. In 1965 he left the parish ministry and served in a supernumerary capacity and in 1969 he retired. From 1965-83 Dr. Jackson served as an interim minister in Chelsea, Bethel, Rochester, East Barnard, St. Johnsbury, Thetford, Rutland, Fairlee, & Randolph, Vermont. During this time, he was also a visiting professor at The University of Minnesota, St. John's University, The New England Institute, and served as a consultant in crisis psychology at the Walter Reed Medical School.

Nominated by members of the Dartmouth Medical School Faculty, he was chosen as an Outstanding Educator of 1972. He has lectured at colleges, universities, and medical schools, as well as professional conferences and seminars throughout the United States and abroad. He was included in "Who's Who In The East" and "Who's Who In Education". In 1979 he received the Distinguished Service Award from the New England Institute of Applied Sciences in Boston, MA.

He served as a Chaplain in the Army Air Corps, Air Transport Division, in WWII, with stations at Camp Luna in Las Vegas, NM, London, Paris, and Athens. Immediately following the war he served on the Secretariat of the Vatican working in the distribution of relief supplies in Italy. Since that time he has continued to serve as a Technical Advisor to the Air Force, lecturing to chaplain's groups and assisting in the development of crisis management techniques.

Dr. Jackson, who has been called "the outstanding authority of our time on crisis management", authored more than 40 books on personal and group counseling. His pioneering work, 'Understanding Grief', published in 1957 and considered a classic in its field, laid the groundwork for the current approaches to grief and grief management. In this and many of his 45 succeeding books including;"Understanding Loneliness", "Understanding Prayer", "Coping with the Crises in Your Life", "Counseling the Dying", "You & your Grief", "Your Health and You", "Though We Suffer", and "Telling A Child About Death", his basic concern was to interpret the research of the personality sciences for use by members of the care-taking professions.

He was also the author of "Green Mountain Hero", an historical novel about the early history of Vermont recently republished by New England Press.

Dr. Jackson has served as a member of several national organizations in the care-taking professions. He has been a consultant for national committees such as the National Cancer Institute, National Funeral Director's Association, National Planned Parenthood, and the National Council of Churches. His early work with Dame Cecily Saunders of Great Britain helped to establish the Hospice movement in this country.

He was a healer. Through individual and group counseling and laying on of hands, he performed healing interventions in thousands of cases throughout the world. A stroke suffered in 1983 curtailed his travel and lecture activities, but he continued to write, authoring "Understanding Health", "Conquering Disability", and an autobiography, and to host conferences in his home through 1991.

Army Air Corps Chaplain, WWII

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2} Find A Grave
   Memorial# 30550224.
2.   Rootsweb chart of Jerry Bricker: bricker - benson wc.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi op GET db :1767980.
3.   Research of Lois E. Jackson (ljackson, add the at, together, add the dot, net).
4.   United States. 1930 U.S. Census Population Schedule. (National Archives Microfilm Publication T626)
   Floral Park, Nassau Co, NY.