Editor, Gazette-Journal:

Last evening I received word from Mrs. Linda Jackson that her husband and my friend, Pastor Michael Jackson, passed away early Saturday morning. Only a few weeks ago, I sat with him in his living room. We discussed our families, his cancer, and we prayed. After hearing all about my newborn son, Max, he yelled affectionately across the house to his wife: “Mother, we need another blanket.”

A week later, the two of them dropped by the Chick-fil-A with a gift for my son—a beautiful blanket knit by Linda. As I type this, it lies across the bed in my baby’s room. Linda wove a little of him into that blanket and we will cherish it.

My friendship with Pastor Mike began almost seven years ago. He appeared in my Chick-fil-A restaurant like a bolt of lightning. Anyone with eyes could see that this slender, 5’7” man had a personality that made him 6’9”. He was larger than life with a contagious smile that hinted he knew a ...