Obituary
Jacqueline Louise Cochran (Hatton), lovingly known as
Jackie, passed away on April
14, 2026, at the age of 80. She is survived by her husband,
Jerry Cochran, her
daughter, Marcy Bradbury (spouse: Darin Bradbury), and her
grandson, Dalton
Bradbury, who were the lights of her life.
Jackie was born on May 12, 1945, in Berkeley, California, to
Jack and Louise Hatton.
She was raised in Oakland, California, where she graduated
from Fremont High School.
During her childhood, Jackie lived with her mother, Louise,
and her grandmother Alene
in Oakland. She spent her summers in Winslow, Arizona, with
her father, Jack Hatton,
and his wife Anna. There, she developed a love for fishing
and waterskiing. From a
young age, she traveled independently on the Santa Fe Super
Chief train between
California and Arizona. Jackie’s mother later remarried Bob
Eilert and from that
marriage, Jackie got three siblings, Bob, Judy, and Barbara.
Jackie developed a strong work ethic early in life. At 14
years old, she began her first
job, earning $25 a week at Kwik Way Drive-In. She famously
devoted $17 of that weekly
income to having her hair done at Charles of the Ritz, a
downtown Oakland salon. She
maintained the ritual of having her hair done every Tuesday
and Friday throughout her
life.
Following her graduation from Fremont High School, Jackie
briefly attended Oakland
City College before making the spontaneous decision to
enlist in the United States Air
Force after seeing a recruitment billboard. She chose to
enlist in the Air Force because
it had the cutest uniform. She completed basic training at
Lackland Air Force Base in
Texas and was subsequently assigned to the Air Command and
Staff College at
Maxwell Field in Montgomery, Alabama. It was there, in 1964,
that she met her future
husband, Jerry Cochran, at an on-base bowling alley after
Jackie’s roommate
forewarned her about him. The two were married on January
16, 1965, in Crescent City,
California, and were married for 61 years.
In February 1967, Jackie gave birth to her only child,
Marcy. In true Jackie form, before
going to the hospital, Jackie had to have her hair done.
Shortly thereafter, she began a distinguished career in real
estate, earning her
salesperson license in 1968 and her broker’s license in
1970. Her childhood love of the
board game Monopoly heavily influenced her decision to enter
the profession. Over the
course of more than 50 years in Del Norte County, Jackie
built a reputation for
professionalism, unwavering integrity, and dedication to her
clients. She served as the
President of the Del Norte Realtors Association in 1976 and
was awarded Realtor of the
Year in 1981.
In 1976, Jackie and Gene Yarborough established what would
become a cherished
community tradition: the annual Third of July deck party.
What started as a small
cocktail hour on the deck of the Crescent City Cultural
Center soon grew into a
community event that today brings together generations of
Del Norte locals every year.
In 1991, her daughter, Marcy, married Darin Bradbury. In
1994, Jackie welcomed her
only grandchild, Dalton Bradbury.
Later that same year, another one of Jackie’s lifelong
dreams came true. As a child
growing up in city of Oakland, she always dreamed of having
a cabin in the woods.
Shortly after the birth of Dalton, Jerry began building
Jackie her dream cabin, not only in
the woods but also on the Smith River—exceeding her wildest
expectations. She
remarked that Jerry made her wildest dreams come true, but
he outdid himself with the
cabin.
Jackie will be remembered most for the way she cared for
others. She was a devoted
wife, a loving mother, and a deeply proud grandmother. She
had a gift for making every
holiday or life milestone feel special. One way she did this
is through her talents in the
kitchen—a skill that she learned from her mother. Through
her cooking, she kept family
recipes and traditions alive. Jackie was especially known
for her pies and loved baking
everyone’s favorites for special occasions. Peach pie for
Jerry, berry pie for Marcy,
lemon meringue pie for Dalton, banana cream pie for Darin,
pumpkin pie with extra
whipped cream for Blair, cherry cheesecake for Christmas.
Whether it was through her
cooking or through simple, steady gestures to make life
better, Jackie always showed
up for the people she loved, while also lending a hand to
people in need.
Jackie loved Motown music, playing blackjack and Monopoly,
good food, and time spent
with her family. Jackie will forever be remembered for her
vibrant personality and loving
heart—she was caring, generous, classy, witty, and possessed
an impeccable sense of
humor that she inherited from her father, Jack. While her
loss leaves an irreplaceable
void in those she leaves behind, her legacy lives on through
the stories of those whose
lives she touched. She left an enduring imprint on those who
knew her, and her memory
will continue to be honored through the family, friendships,
and community she helped
build. She will be forever missed but never forgotten.