Obituary of Jacqueline Eileen Stamper

Jacqueline Stamper died peacefully in Rockledge, Florida on May 14, 2021, at age 95. Her son, Michael and his wife, Elizabeth, were at her bedside.

Jackie is survived by her son, four grandchildren, three great grandchildren, and her dear friend and care giver, Diane Campbell. She is predeceased by her husband, Kenneth, her daughter, Katherine, and her two sisters, Betty and Ruth.

She was born Jacqueline Eileen Thoelking on Christmas Day, 1925, in Middletown, Ohio. She graduated from Middletown High School. A fine violinist, she played in the high school orchestra and later in the Middletown Symphony Orchestra. Her favorite violinist was Jascha
Heifetz.

She set aside her violin career when she married Kenneth H Stamper and moved to Detroit, where he was a police officer. In Detroit she gave birth to and raised Michael and Katherine. She was kind and loving mother.

After her children were grown, Jackie took up embroidery. She continued this work when she and Ken retired to Lexington, Kentucky where she became a member of the Embroiderers’ Guild of America. She taught classes in needlepoint, cross stitch and hand embroidery. She was chosen as one of a hundred artists across the country to create a needlepoint decoration for the White House Christmas Tree. She was just as proud that her creations grace the trees and the walls of loved ones.

In 2010, following the death of her husband, she moved to Melbourne, Florida. Failing eyesight would force her to give up embroidery, but she never stopped being a loving mother and grandmother.

A celebration of her life will be held in the chapel of Buena Vida Estates, where she lived, on Monday, June 14 at 2 :00 P.M. In lieu of flowers, Jackie’s family asks that you make contributions to the Buena Vida Foundation.