Brownwood’s Wanda Jackson has been selected by the HPU Women’s Club to receive the 2025 Yellow Rose Award. Jackson will be recognized at the club’s annual Yellow Rose Scholarship Luncheon, scheduled for Thursday, April 24, in the Beadel Dining Hall of HPU’s Mabee University Center. Table sponsorships are available for purchase.
The Yellow Rose Award is presented to an individual who is a leader with influence on others and has assisted in fulfilling the mission and vision of HPU.
Jackson was born and raised in a Christian home in the Dallas area. She met her future husband, Richard, in seventh grade and the two began dating in high school. They have been together for more than 70 years. After their wedding, she moved to Brownwood as he pursued his education at Howard Payne. She worked for J.R. Beadel for one year before having their first son, Don. Jackson then dedicated her time to raising their family and serving in their church.
The couple served in churches in Bangs, May, Bluff Dale, Cleburne, Sulphur Springs, Phoenix, AZ, and through 20 interim pastorates. In addition to her role as wife, mother and pastor’s wife, Jackson also taught Sunday school, Girls in Action and young adult women.
During their time in Phoenix, Pastor Jackson saw a need in the church for the preschool department and asked Wanda to serve. She began serving as director of preschool and for 12 years oversaw the preschool ministry that had up to 300 children on a given day. She saw it as a privilege to be trusted to care for and teach young ones about the love of Jesus. After the church hired a full-time director, Wanda returned to her passion of teaching young adult women in the church.
The couple moved back to Texas after 25 years in Arizona and made their home in Granbury and then eventually Brownwood. Jackson has a deep love for HPU and has supported the university, alongside her husband, in many ways through the years. She has served with the Christian Women’s Job Corps of Brownwood for more than 20 years as a volunteer, board member, and two-time board chair. The Jacksons are active members of First Baptist Church of Brownwood. They have three children, six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
At the luncheon, the Women’s Club will also honor the 2025 Yellow Rose Scholarship recipients. The Yellow Rose Scholarship Luncheon gives women from the community and friends of HPU the chance to acknowledge the honorees and to contribute to the Yellow Rose Scholarship Endowment.
Individuals interested in table sponsorships can visit www.hputx.edu/yellowrose or contact the Office of Advancement at 325-649-8007. The deadline for sponsorships is April 1; however, the popular event will have limited seating and those interested in attending are encouraged to reserve a table as early as possible.