Page 10 January 20, 2022 EL SEGUNDO HERALD
ES Romance from front page
at City Hall. At the last minute, Jackson decided
to speak her truth, baring herself in front of a
crowd to honestly discuss the difficulties she
faces and the struggles specific to raising an
African-American autistic child in a world
fraught with tension.
When she left the stage, vulnerable and with
tears in her eyes, she felt a hand on her arm.
Jackson turned to see none other than Puckett,
who said only, “You are such a good mom.”
“I was like, ‘Who is this person?’” Jackson
says, “And I was absolutely smitten.” After
their chance meeting at the event in June 2020,
the two had minimal contact for another month
or so, save for the Facebook group.
In August, Jackson and another community
member, Cheryl Polsky, organized a local
book drive. Jackson offered her extra garage
space to hold donations, thinking only Polsky
would be seeing her home. Polsky started a
group chat to get the event organized and said
that she (Polsky) and Keith would be involved
in running the event. Not knowing the other
number was Puckett, Jackson’s immediate
response was to ask if Keith was going to
be at her house. Puckett says on his end that
when he read that, he knew there was no way
he would be missing this event.
When the answer was yes, Jackson went
Jackson and Puckett celebrate their El Segundo romance.
out and refreshed her pandemic look, getting
her nails done and styling herself. Puckett
shares that he decided to take his piece of his
mother’s advice, which is to give a smile if
you like someone. So at the end of the event,
when he was distanced enough, he lowered his
mask to flash her a smile. When she smiled
back in kind, Puckett knew there was a connection.
With the pandemic in full swing,
asking someone on a date proved a difficult
task. Before he even made it home from the
event, he got a call from Jackson.
“As we were texting, getting to know each
other, you know, he’s asking, ‘What are your
ten favorite songs of all time? And I tell him,
and I know my taste in music will not be
what he would listen to. There was a lot of
Michael Bolton,” Jackson laughs. When she
got in the car for their first date, she realized
all of her favorite music was playing. Puckett
had created the playlist the moment she told
him, and they still use it on dates sometimes.
The two got to know each other on distanced
walks, quarantined dates, and careful conversations
for the next few months. With Jackson’s
youngest having a weakened immune system,
the two had to be very conscientious of how
they interacted, sometimes going weeks without
being close to each other, walking on opposite
sides of the street.
After about a year of volunteering together
and going on long walks, the vaccine became
available to all. With the excitement of being
able to be around each other more safely just
around the corner, the two were both fully
vaccinated - and then Jackson’s mother suffered
a major health problem. She traveled to
Georgia for the rest of the summer to care for
her while Puckett watched her dog and checked
in on her from El Segundo.
Keith Puckett proposed to Genesis Jackson at Candy Cane Lane in December 2021.
Finally, after fighting so long for this relationship,
they got to take a trip together in October
of 2021. The two went for a week-long vacation
in Hawaii to spend some quality time alone.
This is the time that they both point to being
the moment they knew this was the person
they wanted to spend the rest of their life with.
Puckett planned to propose on Christmas
Eve or Christmas Day. Throughout the talks
the two had had about marriage, Jackson was
convinced that the timeline for a proposal might
be sometime in late spring, so Puckett knew
she would be surprised to see a ring during
the holidays.
Around that time, with Covid variants springing
up, Puckett wanted to take no chances with
his proposal. On the 22nd, the pair visited
Candy Cane Lane. He asked a passerby to
take their picture and then dropped down on
one knee.
“He caught me completely by surprise,” says
Jackson, “It was a wonderful surprise, and all
the kids were there.”
Now, Puckett is just finishing moving into
Jackson’s place. All three of their children are
thrilled to gain new siblings and enjoy being
around their soon-to-be step-parents. As for
Jackson and Puckett, they are just beginning
to plan an El Segundo wedding in 2023. •
All three of their children were present at the proposal.
Sports from page 3
jumper to give his team an eight-point lead
just before halftime.
El Segundo’s defense was brilliant in the
first half, but they were just getting started.
In the third quarter, they held the Saxons
scoreless until 1:29, remaining in the quarter
when Drew Mitsuuchi sank two free throws.
He scored his team’s only field goal in the
quarter’s final minute; by then, El Segundo
held a 38-27 lead.
In the fourth quarter, the Eagles stretched
their lead to as many as 17 points. Kelly teamed
up with Coulter for an easy layup to make it
41-28. Coulter’s two free throws in the next
possession gave his team a 43-28 advantage.
After North’s Kai Bradley sank his team’s first
field goal of the final period with two minutes
remaining, Preston Engle’s reverse layup extended
the Eagle’s lead to 47-30. Liam Endo’s
two free throws towards the end of the game
helped seal the victory, and the Eagles came
away with their Pioneer League opener win.
Coach March was happy with his team’s
effort on both ends of the court. He said the
team played with as much zest as if they
acknowledged the fact that they needed to
play this way for the remaining four league
contests. “With just a five-game league
schedule, every game is like playing two.”
Preston Engle led all scorers with 13
points, and Holden Coulter had nine points
and seven rebounds, while Farren Affel and
Nolan Kelly each scored eight points.
Remaining Home Schedule
With all of the schedule changes for each
sport, here is a tentative home schedule for the
basketball and soccer teams and girls water polo:
Thursday, January 20, girls water polo 3 p.m.
Friday, January 21, girls’ basketball 6 p.m.;
boys’ basketball 7:30 p.m.; boys’ soccer 3 p.m.
Friday, January 28, girls’ soccer 3 p.m.
Wednesday, February 2, girls’ basketball 6
p.m.; boys’ basketball 7:30 p.m.; boys’ soccer
3 p.m.; girls water polo 3 p.m. •
Liam Endo drives towards the basket. He was fouled on the play and converted two free throws. Preston Engle drives for two of his game-high 13 points as North’s Kai Bradley attempts to stop him.