Rachael Jackson Pennington

On Wednesday, May 28, 2025, Rachael Leigh (nee. Jackson) Pennington, beloved wife and mother of two, passed away at the age of 57 after a brief but valiant battle with cancer. She is survived by her husband, John Mark Pennington, and her children, Jackson Mark and Lily Grace Pennington.

A proud Florida girl, Rachael was born in Fort Myers on April 23, 1968, to her parents Michael and Shirley (nee. Kinsey) Jackson. The second of three siblings, she was adored by her little brother, Matthew Jackson, and her late older sister, Shelly (nee. Jackson) Brown. At the University of Florida, Rachael earned a BS in Journalism and was enthusiastically involved as a sister of Alpha Delta Pi. She went on to earn a graduate certification from the University of Adelaide in Australia. Rachael was introduced to her husband of 31 years while the two started their careers in New Orleans, LA. Mark and Rachael were married on May 7, 1994 on Upper Captiva Island, the house seat of the Kinsey family.

Rachael was brilliant, high-spirited, and innately nurturing; she excelled professionally as a journalist, a teacher, and an entrepreneur, but took the most pride in her calling as a mother. Her talents did not go unnoticed, and she collected children like barn cats (who both loved her with equal fervor). Rachael, known to many as Rae-Rae, is further survived by her “bonus daughters”: nieces Kinsey Rachael Brown and Madison Leigh (nee. Brown) Hobby, Bryanna Elizabeth Marcom, and Alaina Marie Morlock.

Rachael lived and loved with a unique ferocity: she travelled around the world; rode horses; climbed mountains; danced hand in hand with beloved friends; cooked for her family; read voraciously; spread the good word of The Lord; educated young people; gossiped enthusiastically, but graciously; caught tournament-winning fish; drank beer (occasionally to excess); sang Dave Matthews loudly and off key; laughed from her belly every time–and she did every single one of these things surrounded by the legions of people that she loved, and who love her still. Rachael’s memory, love, and laughter will live in us always.

Details regarding a celebration of life in Fort Myers, FL will be forthcoming on this website and will be shared via social media; we appreciate your patience as those arrangements are made. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that contributions be made to Alive Hospice Center in honor of Rachael’s memory–we are eternally grateful to the staff for their kindness and compassion.