Elizabeth Ann Green

Elizabeth Ann Green (nee Jackson) 6-29-35 to 7-28-19, was born in Fairburn, Georgia, to James Swann Jackson and Hazel Elizabeth Brock Jackson and was taken to Miami, Florida as a toddler. She lived in South Florida until 1999 when she moved to St. Augustine. She graduated from Miami Tech High and Barry University (magna cum laude) in Miami. She married Bobby Green in 1953, had three children and was divorced in 1968. In her youth she rode motorcycles at a time when most women did not, because they had to be cranked with your foot. No automatic starters in those days. She also learned to drive a semi tractor-trailer and travelled with her husband for a few years after they bought a big Mack tractor of their own and she saw a lot of the U.S that way.

Ann went to work in the criminal justice system in Miami in 1964. She started as a clerk in the jail booking office and at her retirement in 1995, was the Director of Criminal Justice Operations for the Administrative Office of the Courts in Dade County, Florida. In 1991 she was awarded a fellowship in court management at the Supreme Court of the United States. Ann served on the Governor’s Council on Victim’s Rights in 1989/1990 and received numerous awards over the years, such as employee of the year in 1987, the Dorothy Hicks award in victim’s services in 1993 and was co-author of the initial victim’s rights pamphlet distributed by police in Dade County. April 28th 1995 was declared Ann Green Day by proclamation of the County Commission of Dade County, Florida upon her retirement. During her thirty years with Dade County, two jobs were sometimes necessary to support her children, so she also worked part time in the pari-mutuel wagering industry for eight months a year for 20 years, working at Miami and Dania Jai-alai, Flagler and Biscayne dog tracks and Hialeah and Calder horse tracks.

Ann loved animals and surrounded herself with many who were in need over the years. She had horses for most of her life, from being on her high school equestrian team, showing her own and children’s horses, teaching riding lessons to beginners, breeding and training her own horses and simply enjoying many years of pleasure riding. She had her horse Gypsy for 29 years and her horse Gimlet (Gypsy’s daughter) for 21 years. Ann was a docent volunteer at Zoo Miami for 12 years, doing a variety of duties including Ecology Theater, tram tours, educational interpreter at various exhibits, animal food preparation and even cage cleaning. She also volunteered in Broward County at the Wildlife Care Center for 4 years, where she rescued injured wildlife and was volunteer of the year in 1996, and she also conducted garden tours as a volunteer at Flamingo Gardens for 4 years, and volunteered in the aviary there. Ann especially loved cats and was never without at least one. They just seemed to show up wherever she was and she rescued many, either by taking them in, or by having feral cats spayed or neutered and released.

Ann loved to travel and had done so extensively. She had been to every continent except Antarctica. Her favorite was East Africa due to her love of animals and to zoo sponsored trips. She was also very fond of cruises which allow you to take your hotel with you. She loved gardening and spent many hours working in her yard. In addition, she also enjoyed duplicate bridge, reading, crosswords and sudoku. Although she had many wonderful adventures, she felt that her foremost achievement and greatest joy was her large family, and is survived by her three children, daughter “Sam”, and sons Marc and Morgan, daughter-in-law Debbie, sister Nancy, eleven grandchildren (Kelly, James, Lucas, Bonny, Christopher, Cody, Shira, Beverly, Rachel, Casey, and Tyler,) along with their various spouses, fifteen great grandchildren, numerous friends of many, many years and of course her current cats. She was pre-deceased by her parents and sadly, by her great-granddaughter Chloe Furlong.

The family is fulfilling her wishes by having her cremated and in place of a funeral will be having a “celebration of life” in her home on Saturday August 17th at three o’clock to honor this amazing woman. If anyone has questions or needs directions can call (904)-797-7803.