Aggie Grad Honors Father with Scholarship
October 28, 2008
The Jerry R. Jones Memorial Scholarship Fund, established through the Texas A&M Foundation, will benefit Texas A&M undergraduate students pursuing degrees in biology with minors in neuroscience.
“The impact of watching my father die at a young 64 years of age from frontal lobe dementia and Alzheimer’s will be lifelong,” Jeff Jones said. “I felt by giving scholarships to those who might one day fight these diseases on the front lines or comfort those who have loved ones who suffer from them would be the right thing to do.”
Jeff Jones, who grew up in Tulsa and earned a bachelor’s degree in environmental design from Texas A&M, is co-founder and owner of Dallas-based Redwood Custom Homes. He said Aggieland always held a special place in his father’s heart, despite the fact that he wasn’t a Texas A&M graduate. With five Aggies — a daughter, a son, two nephews and a niece — in his immediate family, however, Jerry Jones was active in Aggie life and activities for more than a decade before his declining health prevented it.
“I wanted to honor my father’s life with something that reflected his unwavering support in giving my sister and me every opportunity to do what we wanted and to be successful in life,” Jones added. “By establishing this memorial scholarship in his name, it will be a living gift capable of continuing that support and giving similar opportunity, hopefully to hundreds of students who one day might fight, cure or comfort those whose loved ones are afflicted by these diseases.”
According to the Chicago-based Alzheimer’s Association, as many as 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s disease, a progressive and fatal condition that destroys brain cells and causes numerous problems related to memory, thinking and behavior. Today it is the sixth-leading cause of death nationwide.
“The faculty and students in the Department of Biology are grateful to Jeff Jones and his family for making it easier for our students to study neuroscience, one of the most complicated and fascinating aspects of biology,” said Dr. Thomas D. McKnight, professor and acting head of the Texas A&M Department of Biology. “This scholarship is an excellent reflection of the Aggie family at work, with former students helping out current students. I share the hope of the Jones family that, one day, one of our students will be able help minimize the effects of Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.”
Jones said he hopes that his decision will inspire others to create their own legacy of honor and opportunity through memorial giving.
“I hope it encourages other Aggies who have gone through similar experiences to come forward and give gifts that will continue to provide opportunities to others and allow them to honor their loved ones forever,” he explained.
As the scientific core of Texas A&M University, the College of Science provides the required mathematical and science foundations for all Texas A&M majors, teaching 20 percent of the university’s total semester credit hours, or one in every five classroom hours logged by its more than 48,000 students. The college annually conducts nearly $40 million in sponsored research in pursuit of scholarly knowledge and technical solutions that benefit the world.
