Grace "Louise" Allen Jackson

Grace Louise Allen Jackson, always called “Louise”, was born at home on the family’s first ranch in Bell County, Texas, on March 20, 1937. She died on August 21, 2026, in Tyler, Texas. Her parents were Robert King Allen, rancher and entrepreneur, and Mattie Gertrude (Darter) Allen, a teacher and homemaker. Louise was the big sister of one brother, Frank Winston Allen. As ranch kids, eventually living on the Allen ancestral ranch in Williamson County, Texas, they did everything together and remained good friends all their lives. Louise began first grade in a one-teacher school at age four. She graduated from Leander High School in 1953. She earned a B.S. in Elementary Education (1957), an M.A. in Curriculum and Instruction (1959), both from Southwest State University (now Texas State U) and an EdD in Curriculum and Instruction with a specialty in literacy, from the University of Wyoming (1965). She was a teacher all her working life, teaching third grade, fourth grade, and Title One Reading in elementary schools and as a professor of education at North Texas State University and the University of Wyoming. After early retirement, she lived in the Missouri Ozarks, where she began a second career as a writer of children’s books. As a result of that activity, she eventually received the Laura Ingalls Wilder Literary Award in 2022. Louise married Donny Ray Jackson (1930-2022), in Killeen, Texas, December 27, 1969. They had no children but enjoyed being aunt and uncle to many nieces and nephews. The couple liked reading, gardening, genealogy research, traveling in North and South America, riding bicycles for long distances, backpacking in the Rockies, and day hiking in the Ozarks. Louise loved to sing in church choirs, first as a Southern Baptist and, eventually, as an active member of various Christian Churches (Disciples of Christ), where she also served as a deacon and an elder, taught a College Bible Study class, and did many children’s sermons as well. Finally, Louise loved to talk! She was a professional speaker, a storyteller, and an eager conversationalist. She never met a stranger. She was predeceased by her parents, her brother, her husband, and many relatives and friends. Louise often said her greatest wish was that, in some small way, she could make a difference in the lives of others. And to that end, the family asks, in lieu of flowers, you find a way to do a random act of kindness in the weeks to come. An inurnment will be held on Saturday, September 26, 2026, at noon at Rochelle Cemetery in Rochelle, Texas.

Grace "Louise" Allen Jackson

March 20, 1937 - August 21, 2026