Jackie Sue Cranor

Jackie Sue (Heckert) Cranor was born February 12, 1950 to Gladys Mary Heckert and Arthur LeRoy Heckert in Pocatello, Idaho. Her father passed away when she was little, so she and her siblings, Tamara, Carol and Randy were raised by their mother, Gladys, in a little brick house on Cahoon Street in Pocatello.

Jackie was a voracious reader and an avid athlete who loved to play sports like volleyball, basketball and baseball. She loved spending time with her granparents in Swan Lake, where much of her family lived raising cattle and farming. She spent many summers there exploring, helping around the ranch, moving hay and learning how to garden, cook and can food.

Other favorite childhood memories in Swan Lake included spending time with her family hiking Oxford Peak, swimming at Downata, gathering eggs, rounding up cows and playing games. Later in life she would return, once or twice a month, to visit and play Canasta with Grandma Gibbs, her Aunt Ruby and others.

Jackie went to school at Lewis and Clark Elementary and Alameda Jr. High School. She graduated from Pocatello High School where she was an outstanding student and participated on the drill team, the Indianettes, National Honor Society, Girls’ Council, Spanish Club and Pep Club. While at Pocatello High School she met the love of her life, Glen Cranor. After high school Jackie attended Ricks College before she and Glen were married on Sept. 5, 1969. They soon moved to Honolulu, Hawaii, where Glen was stationed as a Marine, at Camp Smith, FMF Pac, the USMC base located near Pearl Harbor. While living in Hawaii, they were sealed, and their marriage was solemnized on Sept. 16, 1970, at the Laie, Hawaii temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Glen and Jackie spent time living in North Carolina and Hawaii, eventually settling down back in Pocatello where Glen worked for the Union Pacific Railroad and Jackie went to work for Mountain Bell as an operator. She loved being a wife and mother to her children and was always active in her kids’ school and sports activities.

She spent much of her time volunteering in many different capacities at local schools and as a room mother and in PTA, eventually becoming the Chubbuck Elementary Volunteer Coordinator, working with parents, the PTA, administrators and local businesses to improve education and support the school. She later served as a 2 nd grade reading aide at Lincoln Elementary and as PTA President at Ellis Elementary where she was instrumental in getting the railroad crossing bars installed for increased student safety.

As her children got older Jackie decided to go back to school, earning scholarships to help her earn a Bachelor’s Degree in education from Idaho State University. She graduated with honors and along the way taught all her children about the value of education and hard work. She also liked to think that as a side bonus they all learned how to do their own laundry and cook.

After graduation from ISU, her first job was teaching 6 th grade at Bonneville Elementary School. While there she started and ran an intramural basketball program and quickly came to learn the valuable lesson that all students matter and have gifts and talents that she delighted in helping them find and realize. She loved being an educator and took special delight through the years talking about her students, their lives and accomplishments. It was always a joy for her to hear from someone she taught or to run into them or their families in the community.

Jackie taught school for 18 years in the 3 rd , 4 th and 6 th grades both at Bonneville and Indian Hills Elementary, where she made many lifelong friends. She loved education so much that after she retired, she determined to run for the Pocatello/Chubbuck School Board where she served for more than 12 years on the board, including a term as President.

During her time on the School Board she helped the district navigate numerous difficult situations including major statewide cutbacks in educational funding, boundary changes for the city’s high schools, the COVID pandemic, and the name change for her alma mater, Pocatello High School. Her leadership and guidance helped establish the New Horizon High School Building for at risk students, the construction of Iron Horse Stadium at Highland High School, new infrastructure for Century High School, a major renovation to Pocatello High School and the construction of Look-Out Stadium.

While on the school board, Jackie also served as board member of the Education Foundation, Head Start Committee, the District Curriculum Committee, the Capital Improvement Committee and the Key Communicators Committee. She was a regular in Boise for National and Idaho School Board Association Conventions and during the legislature where she earned the respect, friendship, and trust of governors, legislators and educators as a passionate advocate for children.

Jackie was a champion for those less fortunate and her tireless efforts to help the marginalized and underprivileged earned her numerous awards and recognitions including the City of Pocatello Human and Civil Rights Award in 2021-2022 and in 2021 she was inducted into the Idaho Education Hall of Fame.

Despite all her work and accomplishment with education, her greatest love and passion was in her home and with her family. She loved flowers and her home always had a garden and the prettiest flowers throughout the yard.  Memorial Day was always a special day for her and she made sure to prepare and place flowers on family grave sites all around southeast Idaho. She loved to entertain and was always the life of the party, organizing countless holiday parties with friends and family. She was an amazing decorator and always made her home magical for the holiday.

She was a excellent cook and family and friends were always the beneficiaries of her culinary talents. Whether for a big family get together or just treat for the grandkids, she could easily put together the most amazing and tasty treats. She loved learning how to cook new things and her family always looked forward to eating when Jackie cooked.

She loved spending time outdoors with her family, spending many summers camping in Island Park and traveling to visit family in Utah and Arizona. She particularly enjoyed spending summers in Island Park with her sweetheart, Glen, in their 5 th wheel trailer and made many good friends in the campgrounds there.

She was a devoted wife, mother and grandmother and an amazing example of faith and service to her family and friends. She was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and through the years served as president of the Relief Society at both the ward and stake levels, as a Young Women’s President and in many, many other callings and capacities to serve her fellow man. She and Glen also served together as missionaries on a service mission for the church with the particular emphasis of serving with the Institute Program. She loved to minister to others and often took Glen with her to visit, serve and deliver homemade treats to those she loved. In 2023 Jackie suffered a debilitating medical condition that would eventually take her life. In the months that followed she was an example of grace, kindness and perseverance, remaining cheerful and loving to the very end.

When she passed away peacefully on the evening of July 20, 2024, she was in her home surrounded by her husband, children and many of her grandchildren who felt privileged to be with her as she transitioned home to be with her mother, father and family who had gone before her.

Jackie was preceded in death by her father (Arthur), mother (Gladys), a brother (Dee), sisters (Carol and Tamara [Leighton]) and her son, (Chris). She is survived by a brother (Randy), her husband, Glen, sons Bud (Erin) and Jared, daughters Amber Moon (Jeff) and Elizabeth Davenport (Jeff) and her 13 grandchildren and three great grandchildren.

Throughout her life one of her favorite sayings was “of all things, love is a most wonderful teacher.” She leaves behind a wonderful legacy embodying that phrase and was a true disciple of Jesus Christ helping share His love with all who knew her.

Funeral services will be held on Saturday, July 27, 2024 at 11:00 am at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 4775 Hawthorne Road, Chubbuck, Idaho.  A viewing will be held prior, beginning at 9:30 am at the church.  Graveside service will be held at 3:00 pm at the Swan Lake Cemetery, 30360 S Cottonwood Road, Swan Lake, ID.

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