'Prairie Pete' honors late daughter through volunteer work at Rolling Meadows school
Through his work to honor the teenage daughter he lost through tragedy 13 years ago, Pete Jackson has become a beloved volunteer at Willow Bend Elementary School in Rolling Meadows.
Affectionately known as "Prairie Pete" at the school, he's a mentor to the young students and leads by example through his strong work ethic. On a recent weekday afternoon, he led a group effort to dig up shrubs along the school to clear an area for a new butterfly garden with a buddy bench in the middle.
"I think Pete inspires kids to love nature," said Willow Bend fourth-grade teacher Joannie Thomas, sponsor of the school's roughly 25-student Earth Club. "A lot of these kids don't get an opportunity to be outside and be out with nature. And when we go out to the prairie, they are like crazy. They love it."
Jackson, a retired biologist, accompanies the children to Emily's Prairie behind Willow Bend and Rolling Meadows High School. Dedicated in September 2014, the prairie is named for his 18-year-old daughter, Emily Jackson, who died in 2006 after taking OxyContin pain medication.
Jackson, Ty Lagoni, the city of Rolling Meadows and a group of local environmentalists restored a quarter-acre teasel- and buckthorn-covered site along Salt Creek to create Emily's Prairie. His nearly five-year connection to Willow Bend, part of Palatine Township Elementary District 15, began after Thomas heard he needed help maintaining the prairie.
"I'd like to see more kids be aware of their natural heritage," Jackson said during a brief break at Willow Bend. "And so there's this Earth Club here. These kids are just so open minded and you can kind of tell them about the prairie. And this used to be all prairie around where we live now. They don't even know what a prairie is, so you have to explain it."
In November, Jackson was lauded by District 15 with an award of merit in the community volunteer category.
When he was about to make his volunteering debut at Willow Bend, Jackson asked Thomas what he should do if the students inquired about the prairie's name. She told him to be upfront with the kids.
"Sure enough, the very first day I went into the classroom, 'Who's Emily?' Well, Emily was my daughter and unfortunately she passed away. 'Well, how did she die?' That comes up right away. I tell them she took someone else's medication and died accidentally. It was an accident," said Jackson, a former Arlington Heights resident who now drives about 25 miles from his Prairie Grove home to volunteer at Willow Bend.
The prairie visits with students remain good therapy for Jackson, reminding him of the times he spent in nature with his daughter.
Thomas said Jackson honors Emily's memory through his work with Willow Bend students.
"The kids are always interested in his story," she said. "And then when he tells that story, I think you need to be honest with the kids and tell them the truth. And sometimes the truth isn't a great story, but at least he's planted a seed in their head to think about that (prescription drug use) in the future."
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