Maria Elisabeth Jackson, (Marliesa) was born April 16, 1933 in Kaiserslautern, Germany to Johann “Hans” and Elisabetha Willems. They had six children.
She is survived by her brother, Manfred Willems and her sister Christel Willems (both in Kaiserslautern, Germany). She was preceded in death by her parents, and her brothers, Hans, Gunter, and Klaus.
Not long after high school, she traveled to New York and lived with an aunt for some time.
After returning to Germany, she met the love of her life, Reuben Lamar Jackson. They married in 1961 and were together until his death in 2001. Their first years of marriage took them to Bitburg, Germany and then Okinawa, Japan. Their son Roy was born in 1965. In 1970, when Reuben retired, they moved to Clearwater, FL where she remained until November 2021. She was living in Ocala, FL near her son until her death.
Marliesa enjoyed hosting dinner parties, tending to her garden (particularly her orchids), decorating her Christmas tree full of ornaments from all over the world, and of course the beach. Almost every Tuesday she could be found enjoying coffee and cake with friends whose company she cherished for over forty years.
She is also survived by her son Roy (Angela) and two grandsons, Ryan and Rhett, all in Ocala.
She passed away peacefully on April 30, 2022 in Ocala, FL at the beautiful Estelle Hospice House.
Services will be held at Veterans Funeral Care, located at 830 N. Belcher Road Clearwater, FL 33765 on Monday, May 16th, 2022 with a visitation at 10:30AM and service to begin at 11AM.
