Ben Jackson

Benjamin Jackson, 41, went home to be with His Lord and Savior on March 7, 2015. He was born to Bill and Gerry Jackson on December 12, 1973 in Austin, Texas. Besides his parents, he leaves two sons, Tyler (18) and Heath (13) and their mother, Jennifer. He also leaves two brothers, Randy Jackson (Laura) of Springdale Arkansas and their children Ethan, Thomas, Ryler, Baxter and Esme, and Greg Jackson (Analucia) of Springdale Arkansas and their children Marjorie, Genevieve, Melody, Harmony and Felicity, and one sister, Julie Murphy (Blake) of White Salmon, Washington and their son Elijah.
Ben attended Plano schools and also Bethany Christian School. When he was 8, he joined the Civil Air Patrol. Ben played soccer and baseball and loved camping with his family. He joined DARS (Dallas Area Rocket Society) as a young teen and built and flew numerous model rockets. He spent six weeks in the Philippines with Teen Missions. In high school, he took all the academic classes but adored Industrial Arts. He loved working with his hands as well as his mind. Among other things, he built guitars out of cigar boxes and worked for a while framing houses. He was a 1995 graduate of the Fire Academy at Collin College and was also an EMT/paramedic, graduating from Metrocrest in 1994. He had been employed by the Wylie and Celina Fire Departments and had received Fire Fighter of the Year more than once and received several other awards as well. He was instrumental in beginning the Kid Zone program in Wylie. He loved music and usually was plugged into some kind of music player when he wasn't playing the guitar. As a young man, he held a part time job as a karaoke disc jockey. At the time of his death, he was doing volunteer IT work for the Men of Nehemiah ministry in Dallas and planning a missions trip to Haiti with them.
There will be a memorial service at Plano Bible Chapel, 1900 Shiloh Rd. Plano Texas on Saturday, March 21 at 10:00 AM.
In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to The Men of Nehemiah, 2010 Grand Avenue, Dallas Texas 75215 (website: www.themenofnehemiah.org )