CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) – An Academy Award-nominated movie that impressed viewers across the nation inspired students at Brainerd High School last Monday, when they learned the film has a local connection.
Mary Winston Jackson, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration engineer portrayed by Janelle Monáe in the movie “Hidden Figures,” is the late great-aunt of two Chattanooga practicing doctors and a retired insurance man, André Boaz said.
“I want students to know the sky is the limit. If you have a will and a desire, you can make it happen, said Boaz, a retired insurance compliance manager. He and his family lived at 5330 Lee Ave. in Alton Park from 1956-1981.
Jackson is Boaz’s paternal great-aunt and the aunt of his two siblings – local gastroenterologist Dr. Lonnie Boaz III and his older sister, internist Dr. Valerie Boaz, who works at the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Health Department.
Jackson, who died at age 83 in 2005, lived in Hampton, Va., but came to Chattanooga several times for weddings, funerals and family get-togethers.