ALTAMONT — Jacqueline R. “Jackie” Warner was a woman of constancy.

She died in the same house where she was born on Altamont Boulevard. Her lifetime friends were neighbors there. She was a lifelong member of the Altamont Reformed Church and sang in the church choir for 70 years. Her memorial service will be held there on Sunday.

She loved the same man her entire adult life and, after her husband’s death, continued to love their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren until the day she died.

“She was both born into this world and entered into eternal life in the same house in Altamont,” her family wrote in a tribute.

She died on Monday, Nov. 11, 2019, surrounded by her family. She was 85.

“The most important thing she taught us was to love the Lord,” said her daughter, Laurel Warner. “When anyone was sick or had problems, she would pray for them. She wrote in her journal every day the people she prayed for.”

Mrs. Warner was born in Altamont, the daughter of the late Arthur and Edith Dorsett. Her mother was a “stay-at-home mom” and her father, in his later years, worked at the nearby funeral home, said Ms. Warner.

Growing up, Mrs. Warner was good friends with the neighbors and stayed friends her entire life, her daughter said.

She met the man who would become her husband, Vernon “Kelly” Warner, when she was a girl. “He was several years older,” said Ms. Warner. “And the joke was, she used to go roller skating, and he would help tie her skates for her.”

The romance started one night at a square dance at Pat’s Ranch in Altamont. The couple married in 1955 and their union lasted 46 years, ending only with his death in 2001.

“She moved across the street when she got married,” said Ms. Warner. Mrs. Warner later moved back to the house where she had been born.

As a mother, raising three daughters and a son, Ms. Warner said, “She was on the stricter side to make sure we did the right thing.” Her daughter added, “That was common in those days; she was always a nice person.”

Her daughter went on, “As she got older, she mellowed down … first with the grandchildren; now, with the great-grandchildren, anything goes.”

Ms. Warner gave this example: Her grandchildren knew they couldn’t touch the decorations in the house. But her great-grandchildren could move everything around and redecorate the house.

Religion was always present in the Warner household. Mrs. Warner taught Sunday school at the Altamont Reformed Church as well as singing in the choir. 

“The music was very important,” said Ms. Warner. “She had a beautiful voice. She was an alto and proud of it … It’s harder to sing alto than a soprano melody.”

One of Mrs. Warner’s favorite hymns was “Amazing Grace.”

Mrs. Warner was a constant knitter. She knit everyone in her family Christmas and birthday gifts.

“She knit sweaters for the kids when they were young and would wear them,” said Ms. Warner. As adults, she said, “We looked forward to Christmastime when she’d have a big box of hats and scarves and mittens she’d made, and we got to pick what we wanted.”

The Warner family, for summer vacations, went camping “all over,” said Ms. Warner. “We always made a point to go to St. Lawrence,” she said when asked about a favorite vacation venue.

Throughout her life, Mrs. Warner was eager to help her family. “Her last conversation was with one of my nieces,” said Ms. Warner. The niece had asked her Gram for advice on a difficulty she was having with her son.

Mrs. Warner comforted her with the words, “I went through that with my kids.”

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Jacqueline R. “Jackie” Warner is survived by her four children: JoAnn Depeaux and her husband, Dan; Scott Warner and his wife, Wendy; Kimberly Conklin and her husband, James; and Laurel Warner. She is also survived by 10 grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren, and several nieces and nephews.

Her husband, Vernon “Kelly” Warner, died in 2001 and her grandson Zachary Warner died in 2013.

“The family would like to thank Community Hospice for their assistance the past few weeks, Dr. Hedy Migden for both her excellent care as well as her true concern and compassion for Jackie, and all of her other physicians,” her family wrote. “Many thanks also go the Rev. Matthew van Maastricht of the Altamont Reformed Church for his genuine caring support to both Jackie and her family.”

Relatives and friends are invited to attend her Memorial Service on Saturday, Nov. 16, at 10 a.m. at the Altamont Reformed Church at 129 Lincoln Ave. in Altamont.

Memorial messages may be left at AltamontEnterprise.com/milestones.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Altamont Reformed Church Good Samaritan Fund, 129 Lincoln Ave, Altamont, NY 12009 or to Community Hospice of Albany, 315 South Manning Blvd, Albany, NY 12208.

— Melissa Hale-Spencer