A memorial service for Point Loma Nazarene University’s Daniel Jackson, a professor of music for 23 years, was held on campus over the summer to commemorate his life and the impact he left on the community. PLNU’s Instagram announced his death on July 11, following multiple battles with cancer. Some faculty in the music department said his death was sudden, leaving them with grief and an unexpected role to fill.
Jackson was a student advisor, music conductor and professor at PLNU. After beating cancer multiple times in the past, his death was unexpected, according to Bill Clemmons, PLNU professor of music theory.
Clemmons was a close friend of Jackson’s. He said he thought Jackson would beat cancer again, as he had done many times before.
“I was literally sitting in church with Dan one Sunday, and he was fighting for his life the next week,” Clemmons said. “His passing, for many of us, was very sudden. There wasn’t time to prepare; there wasn’t time to get ready.”
Due to Jackson’s sudden passing, the music department had to quickly find someone to fill his place. Clemmons said the interview process for the job would usually have begun in January, but with Jackson’s death occurring in the summer, they weren’t able to go through the usual steps.
Clemmons said that after receiving multiple applications from candidates who had known Jackson, the music department decided that the best option would be to hire Melva Morrison, who had worked with Jackson for about 10 years, hoping she’d continue his legacy. Though the position has been filled, Clemmons said the healing and emotional effects of Jackson’s death continue to be a work in progress.
Victor Labenske, PLNU professor of music, said the death of Jackson was shocking, but the PLNU community has come together to support Jackson’s family.
“I miss him every time I walk by his office,” Labenske said in an email interview. “We were able to reach out to [his] family and help them with a meal after the memorial service hosted by PLNU on campus. I know faculty members and spouses are staying close to Connie, his wife, as well during this time.”
The memorial service took place on Aug. 16 in Brown Chapel. Ben Wodarczyk, a fourth-year music and political science double major, who had Jackson as a professor for three years, attended.
Wodarczyk said that the music that filled Brown Chapel broke his heart.
“It hurt,” he said in an email interview. “There is nothing like hearing the entire Brown Chapel singing without having to use any microphones. The amount of people that Dr. Jackson was able to impact is breathtaking.”
Wodarczyk said at the end of the memorial service, the majority of the room stood up and sang “The Lord Bless You and Keep You,” a song the choir often sang in events. At the end of the 2024-25 school year, the choir sang the same song to Jackson before they left for the summer.
“The amens at the end of the song usually have us turn to him for direction, and turning and not seeing anyone hurt like a knife,” Wodarczyk said. “As much as it hurt, I’m glad I went. It hurt in all the right ways.”
Clemmons said that continuing Jackson’s legacy is one of the ways the music department has continued to honor him.
“You know, we don’t honor Dan by letting things fall apart,” Clemmons said. “Best honor that we can give to him is to see that the good work that he did is still vital.”
Clemmons said the great man that Jackson was continues to be recognized and remembered throughout the music department.
“His birthday was this past Wednesday,” Clemmons said. “I’m teaching in class, I’ve got my calendar out, we’re going through it, and of course, as they’re looking at my calendar there, it says ‘Dan’s birthday’ on it. And so there are things like that, that you just can’t avoid. And to be able to just stop in class and say, ‘What a blessing.’”
Olivia Roberts 
Sydney Brammer