Jackie Cofield Obituary

Jackie Ward Cofield
November 14, 1945 - August 23, 2024
Jacquelyn (Jackie) Ward Cofield, a beloved mom, mother-in-law, grammy, wife, sister, partner, and friend, passed away peacefully on August 23, 2024, at her home in Windsor, California. Following a short, yet courageous, fight with pancreatic cancer, Jackie was surrounded by her loved ones as she passed on to what she adamantly believed would be her next adventure.

Jackie was born on November 14, 1945, in Worcester, Massachusetts. Shortly thereafter, her family moved to Berkeley, California, where she grew up in the Berkeley hills and attended El Cerrito High School (and she got a kick out of sharing with people that she went to school with the guys from Creedence Clearwater Revival). Jackie graduated from UC Davis in 1969 and went on to work as a clinical laboratory medical technologist, spending much of her career at Valley Memorial Hospital in Livermore, California. Towards the end of her career, Jackie made a huge change, leaving the hospital and switching gears to work at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, where she took great pride in working on the human genome project and as a biomedical scientist on the BASIS project, which took her to Washington DC, as well as Salt Lake City during the 2002 Olympics.

In the fall of 1969, Jackie attended a singles party where she met a crazy guy named Curt dressed in a Hawaiian lavalava skirt. In May of 1970, they would be married in Yosemite National Park. Jackie and Curt enjoyed 36 years of marriage before his passing. In their younger days, they enjoyed backpacking with friends, and continued their love of camping after their daughter Jessica was born, visiting various deserts and ancient Native American sites throughout the country. Jackie relished in taking endless photos of cactus and flowers and very few of actual people, which her daughter and husband teased her endlessly about. In addition to indulging in her daughter's love of Disneyland, Jackie was an avid skier and ice skater, continuing her love of skating until the end.

Jackie's warm presence and caring nature left an indelible impression on all who knew her. Her deep love for family and friends was evident by all who knew her through her kindness and generosity, always there to give a helping hand, a listening ear, a shoulder to cry on, or a partner to laugh with. Jackie's daughter Jessica, and her grandsons Evan and Kadin, were her greatest joy and she took pride in being the best mom and grammy she could be. She cherished countless mother/daughter trips, and loved her one-on-one time and the special moments with her grandsons. Her love of ice skating and camping filled her final years with joy. After the loss of her husband in 2006, she was thrilled to find a partner in Gordon, who showed her love and deep companionship until the end.

Jackie's passing leaves a void in the hearts of those who knew her, but her spirit will continue to shine and guide us in all that we do. Her laughter, love of life, and ability to make everyone feel special will be sorely missed but never forgotten.

Jackie is survived by her daughter Jessica Jones, grandsons Evan and Kadin Jones, son-in-law Mike Jones, and her partner Gordon Heihn, all of Windsor, California, as well as her brother Larry Ward, of Henderson, Nevada. Jackie was preceded in death by her husband Curt Cofield, and her parents Carlton and Phyllis Ward.

As we say "see you later" (not goodbye) to Jackie, we celebrate the life of a woman who was full of endless kindness and love to all she met. Jackie's memory will live on in those that she loved, as we hold her close in our hearts and remember the light she brought into our lives.

A service of remembrance and celebration will be held on Friday, October 25, 2024 at 2 p.m. at the First Presbyterian Church in Livermore, CA (2020 5th Street, Livermore), with a reception to follow in the Fellowship Hall at the church.

If you would like to make a donation in Jackie's memory, please do so at Lustgarten Pancreatic Cancer Research (lustgarten.org), or the charity of your choice.