For more than half a century, Ruthe Jackson served Grand Prairie in many capacities – city council member, multiple terms as Mayor Pro Tem, environmentalist, business leader, Dallas county school board member, library benefactor, PTA leader, historian, and active church member. She was a member of more than 30 civic and philanthropic organizations, and of those, she was a founding member of 16. She was truly a force of nature. One of Mrs. Jackson’s most coveted national honors included being the first Texas recipient of the “Mrs. Lyndon B. Johnson Environmental Award”.
For 92 years, to know the self-proclaimed “little old lady in tennis shoes” was to love her. She was “braver than Dick Tracy” in tackling everything to which she set her mind, and is remembered fondly in many ways. “Mrs. Ruthe is the only politician I know that was loved by everybody,” said Grand Prairie Mayor Ron Jensen. “Nobody will ever come close to replacing Mrs. Ruthe.” Charles England, former Grand Prairie Mayor described her best when he once said, “She was a force of nature.”
We honor her legacy…….