Jacqueline J. Flood

Jacqueline J. Flood, 79, died unexpectedly Friday, September 27, 2019 from a stroke suffered two days earlier. Jackie was born September 11, 1940 in Wilmington, Delaware to Margaret Rowe Booge and James Eliot Booge II. 

She was educated in Catholic schools, first the Ursuline sisters in Wilmington followed by high school at Marymount in Tarrytown, NY and Rosemont College in Philadelphia. She was also a great supporter of Mt. St. Mary High School in Nashua, attended by all three of her daughters.

Jackie met her husband Peter in Beacon Hill in 1963 just after college. About a year later, they married in Wilmington, Delaware. The move was made to an old farmhouse in New Hampshire just in time for the arrival of their first child in 1964. Ever since then, Jackie has happily called Merrimack home and spent many happy and productive years, serving as a town councilor for several years and as an active volunteer with the Parks and Rec Department, where her most notable contribution was the development of a large piece of donated land into Watson Park. Jackie also volunteered for many years as “Mrs. Claus” with great good humor and was even the Easter Bunny at the egg hunt in the spring. 

 Jackie was a lively, fun and patient mother. Her tremendous intelligence, high energy level and famous wit led her to regard parenting 4 children as running a sort of pre-school. Her enormous vegetable garden was organic before that was even a thing and fed her active family of six every summer for 25 years. Every pet imaginable was permitted to join the family except a pony. Her home was always open to those in need, including, in the 60’s and 70’s, many “unwed mothers” through Catholic Charities.

Not surprisingly, around age 40, Jackie decided to pursue a career. Her work in real estate gave her tremendous satisfaction and many life-long friends, along with the flexibility to spend lots of time with her grandchildren, all 7 of whom she enjoyed without reservation. As they got older, they all learned to appreciate her special brand of humor and even to egg her on occasionally with riotous results. She was more likely to beat them at cards than to bake them cookies and they adore her.

Other pursuits that brought her great joy included travel, both here in the US and Canada and overseas. She derived as much satisfaction from the planning as she did from the actual trips! She was something of a card shark, and wouldn’t miss her weekly bridge game for anything. Jackie majored in studio art in college and drew and painted most of her life.  All through the 1970s she would draw beautiful portraits of children at the church fair at Our Lady of Mercy. She was the recording Secretary for the NAACP chapter in Manchester. She was involved with the American Stage Festival in Milford, where she and Peter had season tickets for decades. Later she was so pleased to be able to serve on the Board of Trustees. Jackie also served for a time in the New Hampshire State Legislature, proudly representing her community and serving on the Ways and Means Committee. She was an avid and active Democrat and well-known for participating (sometimes at a moment’s notice) in everything from coffees for candidates for state offices, to hosting presidential candidates overnight. She was awarded the Paul Harris Fellow Award by the Merrimack Rotary Club in recognition of her devotion to community service.

Jackie is survived by her devoted husband, Peter; daughter Jessica Leitz and husband Chris of Melrose, MA; daughter Susan McLaughlin and husband Chuck of Kennebunkport, Maine; daughter Deborah and husband Sergey Sevastyanov of Melrose MA, son Nicholas of Merrimack, and grandchildren Keegan, Nils and Duncan Leitz; Clare and Aidan McLaughlin; and Peter and Alexander (Sasha) Sevastyanov. Jackie was predeceased by her brother, James E. Booge III. Special mention also must be made of her brother in law, David J. Flood, and nieces and nephews, and her closest friends from early childhood with whom she shared a rare bond: Gail, JoEllen, Aline, Kay and Ginny.

All who loved and admired Jackie are welcome to join the family at the Bedford Village Inn Great Hall, on Thursday, October 10 between 4:00 and 8:00 pm to celebrate her life.

Jackie’s loyal and loving heart, her incredible energy and her common sense insights will forever serve as beacons of light along the way for those who love her, so very much.

“She shone on me like the sun.”

William Maxwell

Memorial donations in Jackie’s honor may be made to the Merrimack Rotary Scholarship Fund PO Box 181 Merrimack, NH.