Mrs. Earlee "Tiny" Jackson

JACKSON, Mrs. Earlee "Tiny" - Age 79, passed away Thursday, July 23, 2026 at her residence. Family hour 1:30 PM Friday, August 7, 2026, from the Chapel of Lawrence E. Moon Funeral Home, 906 W. Flint Park Blvd., with funeral service commencing at 2:00 PM. Interment Sunset Hills Cemetery, 4413 Flushing Rd, Flint, MI. Friends and pallbearers will assemble at the funeral home 2:00 PM Friday. Mrs. Jackson will lie in state in the Chapel of Lawrence E. Moon Funeral Home, 906 W. Flint Park Blvd. and may be viewed from 12:00 PM - 6:00 PM Thursday. Well...y'all know I wasn't about to leave here without having the last word. So before y'all start talking all that graveyard (choice word)...let me tell my own story !!! My name is Mrs. Earlee Jackson, but if you knew me, you knew almost nobody called me that. I was "Tiny." Funny how life works, because there wasn't anything tiny about the love I gave, the life I lived, or the memories I'm leaving behind. On July 23, 2026, at Jackie’s home, God looked at me, smiled, and said, "Well done Tiny...come on Home." Jackie’s home was mine too! Now don't get me wrong...leaving the people I love wasn't easy, but Heaven called my name, and I answered. I was born on June 27, 1947, in the countryside of Lincoln County, Arkansas “Star City” to my loving parents, Ellen Thomas Jackson and Washington Jackson Sr., who have now welcomed me Home with open arms. I was raised on the values of hard work, faith, and family. Growing up, we didn't mind getting our hands dirty. We picked cotton beneath the Arkansas sun, worked our family's farm, and lived off the land God had so graciously provided. The vegetables we planted became the meals we shared, and the work we put into the soil taught us lessons about patience, perseverance, gratitude, and the importance of providing for one another. You hear me? Looking back, I realize those early days shaped the woman I would become. They planted the seeds for my love of gardening, growing flowers, tending to plants, cooking for the people I loved, and believing that when you work with your hands and give from your heart, there's always enough to share. One of God's sweetest gifts to me wasn't something He gave later in life. He gave her to me the very day I was born. My first best friend, my beloved identical twin, and forever friend Earline. From the womb to womanhood, from childhood laughter to grown-folks conversations, we shared something most people could never understand. We didn't have to explain each other...we just knew. People always asked what it was like being a twin. My answer? A blessing!! Because no matter what life brought our way, I never had to walk it alone. I spent many years working as a Direct Care Worker, but to me, it was never just work. Taking care of people came naturally. If you needed help...I was there. If you needed encouragement...I had it. If you needed somebody to believe in you...you already knew who to call. Therefor, serving people wasn't my occupation. It was my heart. Now let's tell the WHOLE truth...I loved life! Not the expensive kind, but the real kind. Give me a yard that needed flowers. A garden that needed tending. Some vegetables and fruit to grow. A sick little plant everybody else had given up on...hand it to me! God blessed these hands with a green thumb. I could bring life back into almost anything. Just ask Jackie. Ya hear me? She'll tell you I could take one look at a struggling plant and have it standing tall again before you knew it. And if the sun wasn't up yet...Roy and I were probably already headed to the water around six o'clock in the morning with fishing poles in our hands. Those quiet mornings, peaceful conversations, and moments together...Lord, they were good for my soul. Speaking of Roy...God blessed me with a love that stood beside me for many, many years. Roy wasn't just my significant other. He was my person, my fishing partner, my road partner, my everyday companion. Thank you Mr. Roy Eickelberger for loving me through every season of my life. Listen, if y'all came over to my house...don't expect to leave hungry. That wasn't happening, because around me...”One eat...We ALL eat’. There was always room at my table and enough love to go around. What was I cooking? Oh, you already know. Pig feet, Chicken and dumplings, Buffalo fish; good Southern soul food that hugged your spirit before it filled your stomach. Then I'd probably reach for some peanut brittle, a Snickers candy bar, or some cracklings. Wash it down with a Pepsi maybe. Let's just tell the truth; a nice cold Budweiser! Oh and yes, I enjoyed my Red Man, Levi, Day's Work, and my W.E. Garrett & Sons dipping snuff. Look...God knew exactly who He created. I wasn't trying to be anybody else. Music stayed playing around me too. Turn on some Tyrone Davis, J. Blackfoot, or Johnny Taylor, and leave me alone for a little while. If "Just One Lifetime," "Too Many Memories," or "Everything’s Out In The Open" came on...you already knew I was somewhere smiling, singing every word whether I could carry a tune or not. Ya hear me? Now don't let me fool y'all into thinking I stayed serious all the time. Lord knows I liked to laugh, and Lord knows I spoke my mind. Some of y'all can probably still hear me saying..."(choice word) ya." Or..."Kiss my (choice word) because my (choice word) too good." And if folks started speaking recklessly, I'd shake my head and say..."Y'all talking graveyard (choice word)." You hear me? Now before some of y'all get uncomfortable...Relax!! God already knew my mouth before He called me Home. He loved me anyway. That's the same way He loves all of us. Perfect love; for imperfect people. If I had one thing I hope people remember about me; it wouldn't be the food, the flowers, the fishing, or even the jokes. I hope you remember how I made you feel. Loved, encouraged, supported, and welcomed; because that's what mattered most to me. I wasn't rich with money, but I was wealthy in people, and that's the kind of riches you can't leave at the bank. To my children; Rose (Harry) Ford, Jacqueline (William) Whitfield, Kelly Jolly, Brien (Tyesha) Jolly, James (Gwendolyn) Whitfield Jr, Jonas "Jon-Jon" Whitfield, and my niece who became another daughter to me, Ellen Jackson, thank you for allowing me the incredible honor of being your mother. From the moment each of you entered my life, you gave me a purpose greater than myself. You challenged me, taught me, made me laugh, tested my patience every now and then, and filled my heart with a love that only a mother can understand. If I wasn't always perfect, know that I always loved you perfectly and no matter where eternity has taken me, I will always be your Mama. You hear me? To all my grands, great-grands, and great-great grandchildren, there are so many of you that this home going program didn’t come with enough pages, but y'all know I love every single one of you, and if I started calling every one of your names, we'd be here until tomorrow. You hear me? Each of you knows who you are, holds a special place in my heart, and not one of you was ever loved any less than another. Thank you for allowing me the joy and privilege of being your grandma. Just know this, Grandma Tiny loved every last one of y'all more than words could ever say. To my sisters; Earline Jackson, my identical twin and everlastingly confidant, Rosie Moore, Pearl Mae Jackson, and my brother, Washington (Marguerite) Jackson, thank you for a lifetime of shared memories, unbreakable bonds, and a love that only siblings can understand. No matter where life led us, family was forever. To my nieces, nephews, cousins, extended family, neighbors, lifelong friends, and everyone whose life became a part of mine; this program really isn't big enough to hold all the names of the people I loved. The print probably already is “tiny”. So if you've ever shared a meal, a laugh, a hug, or a story with me; consider yourself included. You hear me? Thank you for loving me exactly as I was. Waiting to welcome me Home were my parents, Ellen Thomas Jackson and Washington Jackson Sr.; my sons Gregory Jackson, Leandrew Whitfield, and Edward Whitfield; daughter; Sherri Jolly, my grandchildren Simone Aldridge, DaQuarius Thomas, and DaMonica Jolly; my great-grandsons Zy'Aire Mitchell and La'Mar Mitchell; my brothers Lee Jackson and Cornelius Jackson; and many other loved ones whose embrace made Heaven feel even more like Home. To everyone gathered here, don't spend forever standing over my grave. Go fishing, plant some flowers, bring a struggling plant back to life, cook Sunday dinner, feed somebody who's hungry, love your family while you still can, play some blues music loud enough for me to hear, crack open a cold Budweiser, smile, tell one of my stories, laugh until your stomach hurts, and when you do, know that somewhere beyond what your eyes can see. I'm smiling too. Until God says it's your time...Live. Love. Forgive. And remember...One eat...we all eat. Whew!! Okay, I'm tired now y'all. I've fought a good fight, I've lived a full life, and now it's time for me to lay these earthly burdens down and finally get some well-deserved rest. Don't worry about me because He saw the best in me and I’m walking around Heaven. I'm Home!!!!!! You hear me…..?

Mrs. Earlee "Tiny" Jackson

June 27, 1947 - July 23, 2026