Avis Clinton Royer – Jackson

Originally written by Lorraine, my first cousin once removed, in 2015. I have modified her original email story to smooth out the transitions while keeping the warm, personal tone of her memories.

Avis Clinton Royer Jackson was the youngest of four daughters born to Perry and Grace Royer in Marion, Ohio, in 1917. She grew up alongside her older sisters, Clara Pauline, Mabel Moreen, and Roberta Grace. While the girls were still young, the family made the monumental decision to leave Ohio for Los Angeles. They were seeking a more temperate climate to support Mabel’s fragile health, guided by the promise of help from an aunt already settled in California.

Tragedy, however, followed them. Mabel passed away in 1923, and only three years later, the family lost Perry. He had sat down for dinner and mentioned he didn’t feel well; by the time Grace (Mor Mor) checked on him in the bedroom, he was gone. Left to raise her remaining daughters alone, Grace turned their three-bedroom home on Monterey Road into a boarding house for county girls to generate an income.

As she grew up, Avis gained a reputation as the “wild one” of the sisters—though by today’s standards, she was simply full of life. She sang in a band in Lincoln Heights, which is where she met Harold “Pinky” Lyman. They married in 1936 when Avis was only 19, but the marriage didn’t last, and they divorced in 1945. It was during this time that she had a hysterectomy, meaning she would never have children of her own.

Avis eventually transitioned from working at a local school library to an office job at the Southern Pacific rail yard. It was there that she met Bert Ainsworth who worked as a freight clerk. They were married at the Santa Barbara Presbyterian Church in 1946 and lived in the house on Monterey Road, while Mor Mor moved into an apartment nearby.

Tragedy struck again in 1968 when Bert passed away from Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Bert is remembered to have a great sense of humor. To support herself, Avis took a job as a cashier at the Market Basket in El Sereno. A frequent customer named Bill Jackson took a liking to her, and the two were married later that same year. While she didn’t have children, she poured her love into her pets—her beloved dog, Oscar, and later, a cat she shared with Bill.

Despite the tension that often existed between the three sisters, I (Lorraine) always shared a special bond with Avis. We shared a sense of silliness that allowed her to truly relax and be herself around me.

Avis passed away from a brain aneurysm in July 1982. She and Bill had been out shopping when she decided to stay in the car because she wasn’t feeling well. By the time Bill returned, she was gone. Her vibrant spirit remains a clear and fond memory.