Jacqueline Siegert

Jacqueline Siegert passed away peacefully on September 13, 2020 at Lorien Encore Turf Valley. This marks the end of a beautiful life filled with love. Jackie was born on July 19, 1929 in Baltimore, Maryland to parents Velma Pearl and George Emory Cook Strigle. She attended Forest Park High School, class of 1947, where she was pretty and popular. A hard worker, Jackie’s first job was at the age of fourteen as a volunteer candy striper at Lutheran Hospital. She would later be employed at Woolworth’s and Stewart’s Department Store where she would work throughout high school. After graduation she joined the C&P Telephone Company of Baltimore in the directory department and later as a customer service representative. In 1950, Jackie met Gene Siegert when he was only 19 and she 21. Gene knew immediately he had met the girl he would marry, though Jackie wasn’t at all sure. By then the Korean War had begun, and Gene had enlisted in the Air Force. He was not going to leave without marrying Jackie first. As would be his personality his entire life, he simply wore her down until she said yes. They were married on March 17, 1951, only days before he reported for basic training. They would spend the first two years of their young marriage apart when he deployed to Tokyo Japan. When Gene returned he was stationed in Columbus, Ohio where the couple lived together for his final two years in the service. Upon Gene’s discharge they returned to Baltimore and their lives began along the path of so many others’. Gene went to college on the GI bill and Jackie still worked at the telephone company. They bought a house in Arbutus, and then came babies, first a daughter and then a son. Gene took a job with Parke-Davis as a pharmaceutical salesman which would be his life’s career. A few years later they moved to the suburbs into a modest house in Elkridge. By now Jackie was a stay-at-home mom and driving the kindergarten carpool. They took vacations in Ocean City and enjoyed family picnics in their backyard. In 1966 with both children now in school, Jackie began working as a teacher’s aide at Elkridge Elementary school. She would work there until her retirement in 1994, seeing not only both her children through that school but also her first grandchild. She loved the kids, and more than that, she loved her coworkers. Those friends she made have been among the closest in her life. Love only grew over the years as Jackie and Gene welcomed two granddaughters, first Ashleigh and then Cameron, both of whom have wonderful memories of these fun and funny grandparents. Ashleigh’s husband Ben joined our family, and soon after there were two adorable great-grandsons, Jaxon and Brody. When Jackie and Gene retired in the 1990’s they had become “snow birds” and began splitting their time between St. Petersburg, Florida and Ocean City. They were vibrant, active, and happy well into their eighties. Life was good, and we often heard Gene say, “Not a bad life, Jackie.” But nothing lasts forever; we lost Gene in 2019. Now here we are at the end of something wonderful, remembering this lovely lady who meant so much to us. Jackie was a loving mother, a proper lady, and more than anything else, a strong woman. In times of hardship, of which there was no shortage in her last three years, she was known to say that there was no sense lamenting the things she could not change. There were other nuggets of advice she bestowed upon us; she warned us to “be careful what you wish for” and we have always tried to heed that warning, to accept what we have and not wish for more. We girls credit (or blame?) our love of shopping to her as she was the best. There was nothing she loved as much as a field trip to TJ Maxx or Kohl’s. She was stylish and sassy, rejecting what she called “old lady clothes.” She was a stickler for manners, a grammar fiend, and she put a fear in her daughter and granddaughters for even thinking of appearing in public without our lipstick. We called her a “tough old bird” and she took that as a great compliment. Her strength was tested to the limits during these last three years. As Gene, who had always taken care of her, declined into the depths of dementia, she made sacrifices to be with him and care for him. She weathered his loss with her usual stoicism and strength; she couldn’t change it. But the covid pandemic would prove to be too much for so many people, even Jackie. Having lost Gene only months before, she now found herself isolated for months on end, with visits restricted to seeing her family only through windows. She never complained, but as the pandemic has impacted so many elderly people, this situation took its toll on her as well. In the end, even after breaking her hip, having a stroke, and a subsequent fall, we are convinced that it was actually the covid isolation that caused her to give up. There are many victims of covid that will never be counted in statistics. We are grateful to have had the opportunity to be with her at the end of her beautiful life. Such a lucky lady, to have been loved and adored by her husband, children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. Such a lucky family we are to have had her in our lives for so many years. We can be happy that her life was full and wonderful and that her end was at least peaceful. Jackie is survived by her daughter Jeannine Siegert Ducey (Shawn), son Bruce Siegert, granddaughters Ashleigh Vanderhoof (Ben) and Cameron Ducey, great-grandsons Jaxon and Brody Vanderhoof, and many nieces and nephews, including both grand and great-grand. Burial arrangements will be private. Donations in lieu of flowers may be made to the National Breast Cancer Foundation at nationalbreastcancer.org for online donation or for a mail-in donation form. Online condolences may be offered at www.haightfuneralhome.com

Jacqueline Siegert

July 19, 1929 - September 13, 2020