Jack Kirksey

Jack Edwin Kirksey was born on 21 November 1928 and grew up on the east side of Detroit. He attended Wayne State University in Detroit, where he met Patt, who became his wife.

He served in the United States Air Force and retired from it as a lieutenant colonel.

Kirksey began his working life in education and served as an elementary school principal. He was later director of probation at Livonia's 16th District Court and served as a trustee of Schoolcraft College.

From 1977 to 1984 he represented Livonia in the Michigan House of Representatives, and from 1985 to 1987 he was assistant Wayne County executive. He first ran for mayor of Livonia in 1987 and lost by 96 votes. He ran again eight years later and won, taking office in 1996. After two four-year terms he left office in 2003 because of term limits. Supporters persuaded him to run again shortly before the filing deadline, and he returned as mayor in 2008, serving until his retirement in 2015 at the age of 87.

His time as mayor brought significant commercial redevelopment, including the transformation of the Middlebelt Road corridor. He considered building the Livonia Community Recreation Center his biggest success, and named working with Wayne County on roads as his biggest frustration. He never used a written speech for his annual State of the City address, which regularly drew more than 500 people to Laurel Manor. He was a long-time supporter of the Livonia-Westland Chamber of Commerce and sat on its board in the 1980s and 1990s.

Kirksey and his wife, Patt, raised three children and lived in Livonia for more than 50 years. By the time he retired he was a great-grandfather. On leaving office in 2015 he said the couple were looking forward to travelling, and that it would be the first time they had taken a real vacation. Patt Kirksey died in 2021 at the age of 90.

Jack Kirksey died on 14 October 2026 at the age of 97. The news was posted early that day by the Livonia Republican Club and confirmed by the office of Livonia Mayor Maureen Miller Brosnan. No cause of death was made public.

The Livonia Republican Club wrote that the community was deeply indebted to him and his family for their years of public service, adding: "From a grateful city: we love you Jack!" Dan West, president and chief executive of the Livonia-Westland Chamber of Commerce, recalled his popular State of the City luncheons and said his wit and work ethic had made him a cherished mentor to many in Livonia. Funeral arrangements had not been announced at the time of the first reports.

Kirksey is remembered as one of the longest serving mayors in Livonia's history and as a familiar presence at ribbon cuttings and business openings across the city. The Jack E. Kirksey Recreation Center, renamed in his honour in December 2015 and reopened after a major renovation in 2026, carries his name. In 2016 he and Patt were named Livonia's First Citizens.