Sally Jean Jacobs

Sally Jean Jacobs, aged 72, passed away October 19, 2022 in Hickory, NC. Sally was born in Georgetown, Texas in June 1950, She was a wonderful person, devoted friend, loving wife, feminist, and environmentalist. She enjoyed family, friends, nature and travel. She had multiple sclerosis the last half of her life and it was this disease that took her from us. Sally’s body will be returned to the Earth by her family and friends.

Early Years

Sally’s family lived in the country and her early years were generally confined to school and the rural homestead but there was church on Sundays and regular visits to a family friend. Her most fond memories were times spent with her siblings and friends.

Around the home she would spend time alone, but she enjoyed playing with older sister June, and younger brother Alan. Sally followed June to North Texas State and was a lifelong friend. Vacations were taken together, many holidays were spent with June’s family and although Sally never wanted children, she enjoyed June’s boys and watching them grow up.

Family visits were to the farm of longtime friends of her parents. Sally and the farmer’s daughter would play for hours. Normal childs play, getting into mischief in the barns, fishing, swimming eyes wide open in the creek, and riding the family horse. Sally would smile when she would tell how they played cowboys and indians with the cowboy and indian on the same horse. Sally enjoyed this friendship for her whole life.

Education & Work

Sally graduated from Georgetown High School in 1968 and attended North Texas State University where she graduated, cum laude, with a BS in Elementary Education. During her sophomore year at North Texas State a friend introduced her to Brian Jacobs. Sally was “blown away” after their first date, telling her roommate “That’s the kind of man I want to marry.” The relationship may never have been quite that good again, but they dated for 2 years, married the week after graduation, and stayed together for over fifty years.

The newlyweds moved to the Dallas suburbs where Sally taught elementary school, and, three years later, to Minneapolis for Brian to attend graduate school. In Minneapolis Sally worked in day care, helping put Brian through school, and two years later they moved to Richmond Virginia where they remained until retirement in 2003 when they moved to Colorado.

Sally decided early on that school teacher would not be her chosen profession and in Richmond found work as a curriculum specialist at the Virginia Commonwealth University Library. This work was satisfying and she liked the diverse library staff. She was drawn to good listeners and sincere, considerate people, and found many among this group who became good friends.

After hard work and many long road trips to campus, Sally earned a Master of Library Science degree from Catholic University of America and became a Reference Librarian. In this capacity she helped students with their research and was one of the early users of a “gopher,” doing computer searches long before they became common as they are today. She stayed at the University for 25 years.

Family Travel

Family travel was infrequent, however, two trips expanded young Sally’s world considerably and made a lasting impression.

As a child, the family sailed on the Queen Mary to visit her mother’s family in England. Sally was intrigued by the people and liked the small villages, thatch roofed cottages, quaint shops, and the narrow lanes of the English countryside. A cousin Sally met during this visit noted that young Sally made a lasting impression with her engaging ways.

In her early teens the family took the Chevy station wagon to Colorado and Sally got her first view of the Rocky Mountains with their snowcapped peaks and flowing streams. Sally liked this beautiful state, chose Colorado for her honeymoon, and lived there for 20 years in retirement. She liked the expansive natural areas around their Loveland, Colorado home, where she would hike, trike, and kayak, the snowcapped mountain peaks constantly in view. The MS weakened her constantly during this period but she pushed herself constantly and never complained.

Hobbies & Travel

Sally and Brian tried a number of hobbies together. Sally was quiet and somewhat reserved but she wasn’t timid. She skied at night in the bitter cold of Western Wisconsin and she dove 100 feet to the reefs off Cozumel. She backpacked the Cloud Peak Wilderness of Wyoming and the Alpine Lakes Wilderness in Washington, sleeping beside frozen lakes and getting lost in the process. Sally liked this adventure and appreciated the beauty of these settings but she lacked stamina and eventually turned her attention to less strenuous activities. She liked to say that “the worm had turned.”

Sally was an extremely hard worker and threw herself completely into any project she took on, including the teaching aids she made for those few years of teaching and the first home built with an unfinished upstairs. Sally worked on all phases finishing this house but the louvered closet doors were her masterpiece. She was hard to please and was driven to get them perfect with five coats of finish before she was satisfied. Whenever they discussed this house, they would always smile and chuckle about those doors.

Sally liked to work outside and enjoyed landscaping their homes, the last home in Virginia her favorite. Located on 10 acres, Sally helped design this home and landscaped much of the acreage. She said the land was like a canvas, Brian framed the land with a traditional four board fence and she “painted” it with more than 260 plants, day lilies and redbud trees, her favorites.

When weather and lack of energy prevented her from working outdoors, Sally liked to read and would also listen to music with Brian. She read books by Deepak Chopra, The Jungle by Upton Sinclair, and writings of Noam Chompsky. Robert Reich, and Paul Krugman. She also liked regular publications from Jim Hightower, Public Citizen, The Sierra Club, Common Cause, and The Audubon Society. She preferred female vocals but also appreciated Brian’s Pink Floyd, Supertramp, and Bob Segar & The Silver Bullet Band.

Sally enjoyed international travel and “budget” trips began soon after college, visiting relatives in England, and camping in France, Switzerland and Austria. She could rough it in a tent but Sally valued her creature comforts, and as the budget for these annual travels improved, campgrounds gave way to “chambre” and “zimmer,” and hotels when these were no longer available.

Scandinavia and all of Western Europe were among the early trips. Later trips included Eastern Europe as well as New Zealand, Argentina, Chili, Russia, Greece, Vietnam and China. Her last trip was a cruise up the Dnieper River, stopping in Odessa, Kiev, Chernobyl, and the abandoned city of Pripyat. Sally visited countries on six continents, and sailed a number of oceans as well as the Mekong, Yangtze, Rhine, Danube, Elbe, and Nile rivers.

Early in 2022 Sally and Brian moved to Hickory, NC to be closer to loved ones. She enjoyed family visits in North Carolina but was only there a short time before she passed away. Sally is survived by Brian, her husband of fifty years; sister June, brother-in-law Tom, nephews Erik and Kevin; and brother Alan. She also leaves many lifelong friends and loved ones.