MEMORIAL RESOLUTION FOR BOARD MEETING OF NOVEMBER 5, 2026
Title
MEMORIAL RESOLUTION sponsored by the Board of Commissioners celebrating the life of Reverend Merlon M. Jackson
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WHEREAS, Pastor Jackson was born in July 1949 in Arkansas to Robert Lee Jackson and Jennie B. Jackson and was raised on Chicago’s South Side. He graduated from Hales Franciscan High School in 1967 and worked at IBM for 38 years; and
WHEREAS, Pastor Jackson went on to earn multiple degrees, studying at institutions including Joliet Junior College and Northern Baptist Theological Seminary; and
WHEREAS, Pastor Jackson became Pastor of Christ Community Church, located at 743 E. 103rd Street, in 1995, where he served the Roseland and West Pullman communities of Chicago for 31 years; and
WHEREAS, under Pastor Jackson’s leadership, the church’s outreach ministry fed and clothed thousands of people every month. Through the church’s ministries and his partnership with organizations such as Chicago CRED, the outreach also opened second-chance opportunities for hundreds of people. Both the ministries and his community outreach efforts continue to serve and impact the lives of the masses on a weekly basis; and
WHEREAS, Pastor Jackson was a teacher at heart who loved to share all that he learned and studied with the masses. In addition to his weekly sermons from the pulpit at Christ Community Church, he served as teacher and co-host of the weekly CAN TV program Redeemed and Ransomed alongside Minister Eddie Davis; and
WHEREAS, Pastor Jackson’s ministry reached well beyond the pulpit. He served as Chaplain for the Will County Department of Corrections for over 15 years and as Chaplain for Princeton Senior Home for 20 years; and
WHEREAS, Pastor Jackson served as the Board Chair of Chicago Neighborhood Initiatives, Inc. (CNI), from 2010 to 2026, providing sixteen years of dedicated visionary, and steadfast leadership to the organization and to the community it serves; and
WHEREAS, Pastor Jackson’s leadership of the CNI Board was instrumental in guiding CNI’s catalytic development work in Pullman, including the Pullman Park mixed-use development, the establishment of the Method Products and Gotham Greens manufacturing facilities, the Whole Foods Distribution Center, and other transformative investments that have created thousands of jobs and brought lasting economic opportunity to one of Chicago’s most storied communities; and
WHEREAS, Pastor Jackson had a way of making every person believe they were special and important in his world. Your story mattered to him. Your challenges were worth conquering so you could live the life God called you to live. His work ethic was unmatched, and his legacy lives on through his children and the outreach ministry at Christ Community Church. Until his passing, he remained dedicated to the work he felt was necessary and important to the community and to the residents of Chicago at large; and
WHEREAS, the Reverend Merlon M. Jackson, Sr. beloved pastor, father, and grandfather, went home to be with the Lord in August 2026, at the age of 77; and
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that we, the Board of Commissioners of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago, on behalf of ourselves and our staff, do hereby extend our condolences to the family, friends, and community of Reverend Jackson; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that this Resolution be spread upon the permanent Record of Proceedings of the Board of Commissioners of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago and that a copy of same, suitably engrossed, be presented to the family of Reverend Jackson.
Dated: November 5, 2026