By Kevin Eigelbach
NKyTribune reporter
For her work supporting the crew and officers of dozens of submarines and missile cruisers, the United States Navy has twice given Burlington resident Jackie Kaye its Meritorious Public Service Citation.
Jackie “Mom” Kaye sits inside her Burlington home beside some of the many photos and other memorabilia from her 50 years of taking care of members of the U.S. Armed Forces. (Photos by Kevin Eigelbach)
An award from the U.S. Postal Service seems appropriate as well. Until declining health forced her to cut back this year, Kaye was sending 35,000 to 40,000 packages per year to sailors she’s informally adopted, the postage for which she pays herself.
On Aug. 13 at the Hilton Cincinnati Airport in Florence, the Rotary Club of Florence plans to honor her as its Rotary Citizen of the Year for 2018.
One of the club’s past presidents, Gary Griesser, nominated her for the award. He became interested in Kaye after he had stood behind her in line at the Burlington post office.
“She had a good rapport with the people at the post office,” he said. “They were going out of the way to provide her with good service. She had quite a few things to mail.”
Intrigued, he asked the postal workers who she was. Being involved in several patriotic endeavors himself, he made it a point to contact Kaye and listen to her story.
“It was fascinating to me that one woman and her husband made a lifetime career out of befriending Navy personnel and supporting them in that way,” he said.
Jackie “Mom” Kaye displays some of the many items she’s sent over the years in care packages to members of the Navy.
Kaye’s philanthropy began 50 years ago when she and her late husband, Norman, lived in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., a port that serves many Navy ships. Through an invitation from a friend, Norman became a member of the Navy League, and served on the welcoming committee for Fleet Week.
He talked with officers on the USS Boston, who told him that because the submarine carried nuclear missiles, the city of Boston wouldn’t allow it into its harbor. Jackie told the commander that Boston might not want them, but Fort Lauderdale did. She and her husband offered to adopt every crew member until the ship was decommissioned.
“We kept the promise,” she said.
Not only that, but over the coming years, they would adopt crew member of more than 32 nuclear submarines. On Christmas, Valentine’s Day, Independence Day and Thanksgiving, they would send each crew member a care package, which often included ornaments or other trinkets that Jackie made.
“Adoption” meant that the crews became like one of the family, and the Kayeses encouraged the sailors to call them Mom and Pop, just as their own six daughters did.
When their ships arrived at Fort Lauderdale, the Kayeses arranged for welcoming parties of local politicians, the Miami Dolphins cheerleaders, several high school bands and waitresses from Hooters. Jackie stayed up until 4 a.m. making leis out of plastic shopping bags that she would hang on the submarines’ conning towers.
The crews had a standing invitation to spend their four or five days of shore leave at the Kayeses’ four-bedroom home with a pool. Since submarines have a complement of 150 sailors, this made things quite crowded.
“There were bodies everywhere,” Jackie said. “It was even worse when two submarines docked at once.”
To help defer the costs of feeding these hungry sailors, Jackie developed a network of co-sponsors such as local food chain Publix and KFC, which provided meals for the crew members stuck on the boats.
The Kayeses also chaired the commissioning of two ships, the USS Hampton and the USS Leyte Gulf. For the latter event, Norman raised nearly $500,000.
After Norman died in 2001, Jackie moved to a condo in Darlington Farm, where her sister was also living.
The welcome mat in front of her door features the Navy logo and her condo is filled with photos of she and Norman with Naval officers. Her closet holds boxes and boxes filled with letters and official correspondence. Much of the memorabilia she’s accumulated has become part of the Mom and Pop Kaye Naval and NASA collection in the USS Silversides Museum in Muskegon, Mich.
Along with the sailors, Jackie’s also adopted seven astronauts, including Jim Reilly, who flew on three space shuttle missions. He credits her with persuading an admiral friend to get him into the Navy.
To the Rotary Club luncheon, she plans to bring a glass ball with a drawing of St. Basil’s Cathedral in Moscow etched inside. A Russian cosmonaut made it in space and gave it to Reilly, who gave it to Jackie.
Jackie proudly shows off a photo of Reilly on a shuttle mission with a photo of the Kayeses floating beside him.
Her husband was buried at sea, and one day, she will be too. Meanwhile, the 86-year-old hopes to inspire people to follow her example of “taking care” of members of the Armed Forces.
“Anyone can do what I do,” she said.
Contact the Northern Kentucky Tribune at news@nkytrib.com
