Her name is Jacqueline Ann Clark. She is my beautiful mother. Today August 2nd, 2019  is her birthday. She is 77 years old and she is the reason this blog is launching today. It was very important to me that this blog came out on her birthday.

She is the strongest, smartest and hardest working person I have ever met.  Up until about 9 months ago she had 3 jobs. She was a receptionist, a bookkeeper and a real estate agent.  She has had more than 1 job for almost my entire life. She has done everyone of those jobs to the highest standard.  At 77 she is still selling Real Estate.

Our mother is as  tough as they make them. She held me and my three sisters to the highest standards and would not accept anything less.  We were required to be polite. We were required to work hard.  We were required to treat everyone with respect no matter what their standing in life. We are all better because of it.  She is the toughest person(man or woman) that I have ever met, known or even heard of. Under her tough exterior though is the most generous and giving person you could ever imagine.

My earliest memory of her kindness and generosity was when we were just kids. The major newspaper in Boston is called the Boston Globe. Every year from Thanksgiving until Christmas the Globe has a section called Globe Santa. People write in and tell their stories. They are usually people who are going through tough times. Stories of widows, single mothers and struggling families who are  trying to pay their bills and worried about not being able to have a Christmas for their family. Every year our mother would send money in. She would ask us to give whatever we felt was appropriate. Me from my paper route and my sister’s from their babysitting money. Our mother would then add what she was going to send and would write a check. The Globe then dispersed the funds to all the needy families. This was one of my first memories of our mothers giving spirit.

She has probably helped everyone in our family financially.  She didn’t just give money. She would give our home. There was a foster boy who was having trouble in his living situation and he came to live with us for a while.  Her sister was going through a divorce and having a tough time financially. She and her 3 children lived with us.

Our uncle who went through a divorce later in life lived with us for a couple of years.  When her sister was dying and they were sending her to hospice. She would not hear of it. Her sister was brought to her house and she spent her final days with our mother.

She also fought for what was right.  When we were younger our elementary school was only about a mile away, but it crossed route 129. A very busy street with no sidewalks.   She fought with our town to get a bus to take the kids so they did not have to cross this street. These were children who were 5 and 6 years old.  She knew there were working mothers and fathers that could not walk their kids to school and she wasn’t going to have it. She fought the city and won.  

Our mother gave and donated all through the year, but Christmas has been the time that our mother really shined.  

My oldest sister worked for the Boys and Girls club as a director and she knew of families that were really struggling and she knew they would not have a Christmas.   My sisters and my mother went out and bought them gifts. They didn’t get little trinkets. My mother would dig deeper into the story and find out the ages of the kids and what was important to them. Then she would wrap all of the gifts and put them on their porch and ring the bell.  She would leave a note. Merry Christmas Love Santa. Nobody knew she did this except my sisters. She didn’t even tell me. I heard the story from my sisters.

She donates to Veterans Causes and Toys for Tots.  She has donated through The Giving Tree. She has been involved in fundraisers and charity auctions.  She has donated to hospice care. She has donated to youth centers for single mothers.  She has brought food and clothing for the needy. She has donated her time. She is the first one to get up to help and the last one to leave if anything needs to be done

This did not just happen one year.  This has happened all through our lives.  In fact just recently a client of hers who became a friend had her husband pass away.  Our mother did their entire Christmas. She got them all gifts.  She took care of the food.  Everything.   

It is in her nature to give.  I know I am missing many of the generous things that she has done.  This is for 2 reasons, one because she doesn’t tell anyone. The other is because she has done so many of them.  The crazy thing about it is that you don’t even notice her generosity sometimes. I think this is because she is always giving. 

One of her greatest accomplishments is that she has 3 daughters that are all as generous as she is.  All three of my sisters are generous, kind, and amazing women. They have all donated their time to things that are bigger than they are. They all help the less fortunate.   They are all amazing and I am proud to call them my sisters.  

It hasn’t stopped there though. She has made such an impact on all of our lives that she now has grandchildren who are doing acts of kindness.  Donating their time, energy, and money to causes greater than themselves and they did not get here by accident.  

If imitation is the biggest form of flattery she should be very flattered.

This site is dedicated to the person who has been the biggest influence in my life.  She is the smartest person I know. The most generous person I know. The hardest working person I know.  She is my friend, she is my mother and she is my hero.

I love you Mom. 

Love your favorite child (couldn’t resist taunting my sisters :)),

Greg