Generations gathered at Mattie Jackson's home on Ormond Street for birthdays, Thanksgiving and Christmas. Jackson called out recipients of Christmas gifts from a stack of presents 5 feet tall, her daughter Sheryl Calhoun recalled.

Friday, the one-story home with a screened-in porch was a torched, blackened shell. The home and Jackson, a leader of the Summerhill neighborhood near Turner Field, were victims of arson, authorities said. No one was injured.

Ken Sugiura/ksugiura@ajc.com

Mattie Jackson, 86, holds onto a photo album that survived the Friday morning fire that destroyed her home. Jackson was born and raised in the Summerhill neighborhood, near Turner Field, and has been a neighborhood leader.

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"I just can't believe someone would dare to do something like this," said Jackson, 86.

Residents consider Jackson the unofficial mayor of the community, said Joyce Dorsey, president of the Fulton Atlanta Community Action Authority, of which Jackson is a board member.

At 5:26 a.m. Friday, Atlanta Fire Rescue was dispatched to fight a fire at a house under construction next door to Jackson's. When they arrived four minutes later, the structure was engulfed in flames, and the fire was spreading to adjacent homes including Jackson's.

Malcolm Jones, a neighbor on the other side of Jackson's house, said he looked outside and "couldn't see anything but red."

Both Jackson's and Jones' homes are total losses. The houses next to theirs also were damaged.

Atlanta Fire Capt. Cameron Dixon said an investigation led him to believe the fire was set intentionally. There are no suspects. Dixon announced a $10,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction. Informants can call 1-800-282-5804.

Jones escaped the fire with his fiancée and two children, but not much else.

"Terrible," said Jones, 45, who lost his job at the nearby Flowers Bakery in May. "I can't say anything other than that."

Nearly all of Jackson's possessions were lost. Among the salvaged items were a charred leather-bound Bible and parts of two torches that Jackson carried in the 1996 and 2000 Olympic Games torch relays.

Jackson has been chosen to participate in three Olympic relays for her leadership in the Summerhill neighborhood.

Jackson, born and raised there, said for now she will stay with relatives, but she will not leave her property on Ormond, where she has lived for 42 years. "This is

my home," she said.