Annie Lee was family

Annie Lee Jackson was hired in 1963 by Robert Pleus Jr. and Terry Pleus to cook and clean in their Windermere home. But through the next six decades, Lee Lee — as she was called by the couple and their eventual six children — became a friend, confidante and, most important, family.

Jackson, a longtime Orlando resident, died Sunday, Aug. 17, 2025. She was 92.

Terry Adkinson Pleus was 17 when her mother, Jane Geier Adkinson, hired Jackson as the family’s domestic help in 1960. The daughter and the employee became friends, and when Terry Pleus got married three years later, she “borrowed” Jackson one day per week to help around the house. When the Pleuses moved to Windermere and started having children — first Larry, followed by Robin, Michael, Maria, Melissa and Sean — Jackson’s weekly work increased to several days and, eventually, she was working for the family every weekday.

Jackson’s obituary described her as “a hardworking and compassionate woman who spent much of her life as a dedicated domestic worker. … Annie poured her heart into her work and home life with grace, humility and strength. She devoted her life to raising her children and caring for her family, always putting their needs above her own. Her love was steady, her guidance strong, and her presence a constant source of comfort and support.”

The Pleus children felt they belonged to her, too, and she loved them like they were her own.

“With every heartbeat and breath, she was our world as much as we were hers,” Melissa Pleus Torres said in a Facebook post. “She was our rock. … My mom and dad never would have survived without her. We were a lot. She kept us together. … She raised us, disciplined us and taught us so much. … Annie Lee was our second mom, grandmother and so much more.”

“We’ve never known life without Lee Lee,” Michael Pleus said. “What an amazing person dedicating her life to making sure we were taken care of and loved, and she did all that for us. She was a humble friend to the family and tried to help my mom every way she could, and she made sure we were raised right. … She was always trying to show people love and friendship and kindness.”

When Larry Pleus, the eldest, was about 4 years old, he slipped out of the yard and fell down an embankment into a lake.

“She saw it and swam to get him out of the water,” Terry Pleus said. “The amazing thing is, she didn’t know how to swim, but she didn’t think twice.”

“I owe my life to Lee Lee,” Larry Pleus said. “She was a very important woman to me and made me the man that I am today — because without her, I would not be alive today.”

Even the Pleus children’s friends loved Jackson. After Torres announced Jackson’s death on Facebook, her friends started commenting:

“I was always in awe of Annie Lee. She loved all of you, ran your household with incredible patience and dedication. She was such an amazing woman. My mom always said she wished she had an Annie Lee to help her!”

“When Lee Lee gave you a hug, it was like no other. You definitely felt the love from her entire being.”

“Remember we would come in from skiing with Robin, and she would always make us something to eat. One of the kindest, sweetest souls.”

Michael Pleus also remembers her generosity with his buddies. 

“I remember with my friends coming over, she took care of the neighborhood friends,” he said. “She never let us go hungry.”

Jackson worked for the Pleus family for about 50 years, relieving herself of her duties when her body could no longer handle the physical demands of housework and kitchen work. But even though her job was finished, that didn’t mean the friendships were severed. Jackson remained a part of the Pleus family until the day she died. 

She was present at many of the Pleus children’s weddings, taking her place in the family photographs. She was there to celebrate graduations and births as well.

Maria Harrington, one of the Pleus daughters, named her first child, Annalisa, in honor of Jackson.

Larry Pleus’ daughter, Mackenzie Alvarez, has her own fond memories of Jackson.

“I remember when I was a teen and we were getting ready to go to Mass and someone told me to ask Lee Lee if she could iron something for me. The ‘Mmmmhmmm, no, no, child’ was very quick. She’s like, ‘I work for your grandparents, not you. You can iron it yourself.’ I told her I didn’t know how to iron, and she taught me how to on Papa’s (shorts). Then she watched me iron my shirt and told me how to fold it to get the creases right. She also taught me how to fold a fitted sheet.”

Among Jackson’s duties were doing laundry, ironing, mopping, sweeping and cooking. She occasionally taxied the children to school, regularly listened as they confided in her and wasn’t afraid to inform their parents when they misbehaved.

“We weren’t easy; there were six of us, and we were a handful,” Michael Pleus said. “Lee Lee had that soft, loving but firm touch. You didn’t mess with Lee Lee. But she loved us and cared for us.”

She also taught the six many life skills through the years and stressed the importance of respecting others.

“She was like a second mom to me and (was) my best friend,” Terry Pleus said. “She was kind of my everything, my confidante, my enforcer to let me know what was going on with the kids. … She did everything for my husband, myself and my six children. Bob considered her the other important woman in his life.”

Besides the Pleus family, Jackson is survived by her five children, Stephen Sylvester Tate, Pamela Tate, Annette Rodgers, Vanessa Rodgers and Curtis Stevenson Jr., all of Orlando; 15 grandchildren; many great- and great-great-grandchildren; and siblings, Cherry Jackson, Lula Jackson, Jerry Jackson and Eric Jackson. 

Her sister, Willie Mae Williams, preceded her in death by three days. She also was predeceased by sisters Elijah “Chris” Jackson and Gladys Bodison; brothers Buddy Jackson and Bo Jackson; and two of her children, Terry Tyrone Tate and Tommy Lee Tate.