Jarrell Franklin Mccracken

Jarrell Franklin McCracken November 18, 1927 – November 5, 2007 Jarrell Franklin McCracken passed away on November 7, 2007, after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease. Visitation will be Friday, November 9, from 4:00-6:00 p.m., at the family home. A memorial service will be held on Saturday, November 10, at 2:00 p.m., at Seventh and James Baptist Church. Jarrell Franklin McCracken was an optimist who loved life, his family, Word Incorporated, intellectual pursuits, Baylor, sports, flying, Arabian horses, tennis, golf, hiking with family in Colorado, sharing jokes, and the list goes on. He was born on November 18, 1927, in Wartburg, Tennessee, to Reverend Leonard Oren McCracken and Hazel Dean Rowe McCracken. The eldest of five children, Jarrell excelled in academics and sports, graduating with honors from high school and junior college in Dodge City, Kansas. It was in Dodge City that he discovered his talent for sports broadcasting. Jarrell continued sports casting at Baylor, where he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in communications in 1950. He earned a Master of Arts degree in religion in 1953. Jarrell mastered the radio technology of the day with remote play-by-play broadcasting from onsite wire reports, simulating live game broadcasts, often surprising his listeners that he was not actually at the game. Jarrell pursued his broadcasting career at Waco’s then new radio station, KWTX. Jarrell was an innovator in every facet of his career. He combined his academic and ministerial skills in 1951 when he added radio technology and narration to an article by his friend, Dr. Jimmy Allen, called “The Game of Life.” This was a tape-recording of an allegorical football game, complete with crowd noises and bands, plays, referees, and a scoreboard, creating an exciting simulation of life’s choices and conflicts in a Christian venue. Response to this recording eventually led to Jarrell’s founding of Word, Incorporated, a communications and publishing company that focused on religious music, literature, theology, and philosophy. Word developed into the world’s largest producer of religious recordings, books, and entertainment media. In 1953, Jarrell married fellow Baylor student, Judith Murray, and proceeded to make Waco their home. They had two children, Lisa and Tim. Jarrell believed in Waco as a city of opportunity, education, the arts, and as a wonderful place to live and rear a family. He served on numerous boards of directors, including the Waco Chamber of Commerce, Waco Symphony Association, YMCA, McLennan County March of Dimes, United Way, Waco Interfaith Conference, Waco-Madison Cooper Airport Advisory Board, Economic Opportunity Advancement Corporation, American Bank, Ridgewood Country Club, actively supported construction of the Family Practice Center, and many more entities and organizations. Baylor University held a special place in Jarrell’s heart. He championed its tradition of academic freedom and excellence, and maintained an active interest in its athletic programs. He served as president of the Baylor University Stadium Corporation in 1972 and as a director of the Baylor Ex-Students Association, now called the Baylor Alumni Association. Jarrell consistently supported and attended Baylor athletic events, particularly football, baseball, basketball, and track. In 2002, his “Baylor family” responded by naming the broadcasting booth in the new baseball stadium in Jarrell’s honor. As founder and president of Word, Jarrell maintained a family-like atmosphere, even as the company grew into the largest of its kind. In 1974, the American Broadcasting Company purchased Word and followed Jarrell’s request that it remain in Waco. Later, after the subsequent mergers of ABC with successive corporations, Word was eventually moved out of Waco. For fifteen years, Jarrell served both as director and president of the Record Industry Association of America. He also served on the boards of Harvard University Divinity School, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and the Southern Baptist Convention. He was a deacon at Seventh and James Baptist Church where he taught a college Sunday school class for many years. Jarrell received the Distinguished Alumnus award from Dodge City College in 1964 and the Communications Award from the Baptist General Convention of Texas in 1974. He was also honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Christian Booksellers Association in 1999. From 1969 to 1988, Jarrell and his family owned Bentwood Farm in Bosqueville, which evolved into one of the finest Egyptian Arabian horse farms in the world. Jarrell served as a director and president of the Pyramid Society of Lexington, Kentucky, a fraternal organization dedicated to the preservation of Egyptian horses. Due to Jarrell’s vision and foresight, with both Word, Inc. and Bentwood Farm, these organizations were, at one point in time, second only to General Tire plant as Waco’s most significant employer. Jarrell was known as a mentor to many of the young men and women who found their career path through his leadership. He appreciated people with talent, energy, and ideas, and believed in giving them room to grow and find their niche. Jarrell is widely considered to be responsible for building the platform of leadership within the broad-based religious publishing, music, entertainment, and communications industry that has directed the field for the past three decades. His geometric impact on the lives of associates, employees, faith-based customers, and industry leadership is incalculable. Preceding Jarrell in death were his parents and his brother, Samuel Rowe McCracken. Jarrell is survived by his wife, Judith, daughter Lisa and her husband, Tom Lacy, son, Tim, and his wife, Debbie, sister Eloise Randels and her husband, Richard, sister Linda Shobe and her husband Richard, brother Dean McCracken, sister-in-law Carmen McMillan, grandchildren Thomas Lacy, Jr., Melissa Lacy, Stephen Lacy, Justin Hale, Casey Hale, and numerous much loved nieces and nephews. Honorary pallbearers are Piers Bateman, Bill Carden, Francis “Doc” Heatherly, Dennis Hill, Bruce Howe, Cy Jackson, Kurt Kaiser, and Tom Stanton. In lieu of flowers, memorials in Jarrell’s honor may be made to Baylor Alumni Association, Seventh and James Baptist Church, Texas Sports Hall of Fame, or the Alzheimer’s Association, 6605 Sanger Ave., Ste #1, Waco 76710; Website: www.alz.org, or to the charity of one’s choice. The family invites you to leave a message or memory in our “Memorial Guestbook” at www.wilkirsonhatchbailey.com. Wilkirson-Hatch-Bailey