Dr. John Wm. (Jack) Lancaster

His mother died shortly after his birth and he was nurtured and guided by his father’s sisters and their husbands: Mr. and Mrs. L. C. Hardie (Aunt Ella), Mr. and Mrs. James Larche (Aunt Bob), Mr. and Mrs. Lester Richardson (Aunt Ruth) and Mrs. Henry Stephenson (Aunt Frances). These circumstances largely shaped the direction of his life in creating a man of compassion and strength.

He graduated from North Dallas High School in 1941; during World War II, he was a submariner in the United States Navy, stationed on Midway Island; graduated from Austin College in Sherman, Texas in 1947; from Union Theological Seminary in Richmond, Virginia in 1950; and earned a Master of Theology from Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Austin, Texas in 1960. His continuing education was pursued at the University of Saint Andrews, Scotland, and at Princeton Theological Seminary in New Jersey. At Austin College he met Helen Landolt and they married in 1948, establishing a home where love and hospitality abounded.

He served as Pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, Bay City, Texas; the First Southern Presbyterian Church (now Central Presbyterian Church), Austin; and the First Presbyterian Church, Houston. Following his retirement in 1990, he served as Interim Pastor at Presbyterian churches in Austin, Columbus, Georgia, Raleigh, North Carolina and Nashville, Tennessee. From 1996 to 2004, he ministered as Director of Planned Giving and Endowment at First Presbyterian Church, Houston.

Among his many areas of ministry, he served on the boards of Stillman College, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, the Texas Presbyterian Foundation and was chairman of Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary; was the founding chairman of The Outreach Foundation of the Presbyterian Church USA, and was founding Pastor of Presbyterian School. Throughout his life he received several honors including the naming of Lancaster Center at First Presbyterian Church, Houston, which houses Presbyterian School; the establishment of the John Wm. and Helen Lancaster Chair of Evangelism and Missions at Austin Presbyterian Seminary; chosen representative of the Presbyterian Church U.S. at the meeting of World Alliance of Presbyterian and Reformed Churches in Paris and Geneva; Goodwill Industries Distinguished Citizen Award; and awarded the degree of Doctor of Divinity by Austin College, Sherman, Texas and Rhodes College, Memphis, Tennessee. In 1978, he became an outside director on the board of Variable Annuity Life Insurance Company, where he served as chairman of the audit committee and proudly became the board member with the longest tenure.

On the 24th of April 1984, Dr. Jack opened the U.S. Senate with prayer. In the Congressional Record, Senator Lloyd Bentsen states: “the Reverend Jack Lancaster has been my pastor. During that time, he has been more than a spiritual counselor for me and my family; he has been a trusted friend, a source of strength and wisdom and compassion for that large and diverse congregation.”

He was predeceased by his daughters, Elizabeth Lancaster and Christiana (T) Lancaster Reese, and is survived by his wife, Helen; daughters, Lynne Lancaster Quinn and husband Jimmy, and Lee Lancaster; and grandchildren, William Wood Quinn and wife Amy, John Lancaster Quinn, Davis Lancaster Reese, and Ana Graham Reese.

The memorial service is to be conducted at two o’clock in the afternoon on Tuesday, the 3rd of December, in the Sanctuary of First Presbyterian Church, 5300 Main Street in Houston.

Prior to the memorial service, all are invited to greet the family during a reception from noon until half-past one o'clock in the fellowship hall.

In lieu of customary remembrances, and in recognition of education and evangelism emphasized in Dr. Lancaster’s life, contributions in Jack’s memory may be directed to The Outreach Foundation, 381 Riverside Drive, Ste 110, Franklin, TN, 37064 (http://www.theoutreachfoundation.org); Presbyterian School at First Presbyterian Church, 5300 Main St., Houston, TX 77004 (http://www.pshouston.org/); or to Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, 100 E 27th St, Austin, TX, 78705 (http://www.austinseminary.edu/).