Margery Jackson

Margery Ann “Margie” Nail Jackson peacefully left this earthly life surrounded by her loving family.

Margie was born on April 17, 1936, in Winchester, Virginia, to Maurice Lee Nail and Pearl Winifred Lockhart. She was the oldest of three children, with younger siblings Helen Nail Clevenger and Maurice Lee Nail Jr. all deceased.

Margie loved school, learning, and children. While attending BYU, she met the love of her life, Shelton Ray Jackson. They both came from difficult and dysfunctional homes, and together they were determined to break the cycle and create a loving family of their own.

Margie and Shelton were blessed with six children: Martin, born in Provo, Utah; Julie, born in Petersburg, West Virginia; Shelley and Steve, born in Raleigh, North Carolina; and, finally, Alan and Mike, born in Murray, Utah.

Margie joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints when she was 17 years old. She was the 13th person baptized in Winchester, Virginia—a place that will have a completed temple in the next few years. Her faith and the Church were at the center of her life. She and Shelton attended the temple regularly, and after his passing, Margie continued to attend as often as she could.

Margie had a deep love for genealogy and family history. She often remembered dropping her children off at school and then heading to the genealogy library, where she would spend the entire day researching and working on family names. In her later years, one of her greatest joys was helping her great-grandchildren find family names so they could perform baptisms for the dead. It brought her tremendous happiness to see them carry on that work.

Margie loved to serve, especially when it involved children. She served faithfully in Primary and volunteered with LDS Social Services, where she interviewed prospective families for adoption. While living in Las Vegas, she spent countless hours quilting blankets to donate to the children’s hospital. She had a generous heart, and if one of her grandchildren mentioned that they liked something she owned, there was a very good chance it would soon become theirs. She knew all of her grandchildren by name and loved every visit, every celebration, and every opportunity to spend time with them.

Mom was also spicy and loved to tease. She had a wonderful sense of humor and was never afraid to have a little fun with her family. One of her favorite ways to stir things up was wearing her Kansas City Chiefs shirt into the homes of family members who were diehard Philadelphia Eagles fans. She loved them all enough to cheerfully give them a hard time.

Above all else, Margie loved Dad. After Shelton passed away, she spoke of him every day for four long years. She missed him deeply and longed for the day they would be together again. We are so grateful that she has finally had that reunion. We know it was beautiful, and we can only imagine the joy of seeing the love of her life again.

We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to the team at Canyon Hospice, and especially to Dani, her nurse, and Jeremy, her grandson. Although they didn’t have a crystal ball, they were there with compassion and love and helped make it possible for Mom to go home peacefully.

Margie is survived by her six children: Martin Jackson; Julie (Randy) Bodtcher; Shelley (Stephen Terry); Steve (Cheryl) Jackson; Alan (Tish) Jackson; and Mike (Laurie) Jackson. She leaves behind 24 grandchildren and 41 great-grandchildren, with 1 great, great-granddaughter who will always be part of her legacy. Numerous nieces and nephews that she loved to keep in touch with.

Margie leaves behind a beautiful legacy of faith, service, family, humor, and love. Her family was her greatest treasure, and the love she gave so freely will continue through the generations.

If you wish, in lieu of flowers you may make a donation to Hearts and Hands for Humanity Margie’s favorite charity. Hearts and Hands for Humanity provides life-saving water to schools and villages in East Africa. 100% of donations go to providing clean water wells to be established in the name of and in honor of Margie and Shelton Jackson.

Margie and Shelton traveled to Tanzania in 2021, where they fell in love with the children and the many people they met there.

Donate here:

https://heartsandhandsforhumanity.org/family-fundraisers/shelton-marge-jackson/

Funeral services will be held on Saturday, September 19, 2026 at 12:00 pm at the LDS Chapel at 1988 West 11400 South, South Jordan, Utah with a viewing from 10:00 – 11:30 am prior to the service. Interment at South Jordan Memorial Park Cemetery.