Jane Ragsdale

1957 - 2025

Jane Ragsdale
01/04/1957 - 07/04/2025
Jane Ragsdale was one of those rare individuals who, at an early age, really grasped what life is about and then proceeded to live accordingly. Born January 4, 1957, in Houston, Texas, Cynthie Jane Ragsdale spent her too-short life selflessly serving her nuclear and extended families; her camp families in Hunt and around the world; her beloved First Presbyterian Church; and her community. She was a treasured leader and trailblazer who lost her life to the river she loved in the catastrophic flooding July 4th, 2025. She was 68.
Jane moved from Denton with her family to the Hill Country in 1966 when her parents purchased Camp Stewart for Boys. She spent her summers at Camp Mystic and Heart O' the Hills where her romance with summer camp began - first as a camper and later as a counselor where she learned about making camp magic. At Mystic, she earned the highest honors, Cup Girl and M Girl, and was tribe captain.
She graduated from Kerrville's Tivy High School in 1975 where she served as president of the student council as well as class president all four years. Then, like her grandmother and mother, Jane attended Texas Woman's University (TWU) in Denton, where she earned a BS in Spanish and a BA in journalism with a music minor. Later she earned her MBA from Our Lady of the Lake. During her college years, she served as editor-in-chief of the student newspaper, The Daily Lasso, and in 1978 was crowned Redbud Queen by her mother who held the same honor in 1963. Following graduation, she worked for the Denton Record Chronicle for a few months before taking off for solo travel in Europe, where she made many friends who followed her back to Texas to be counselors!
Jane's childhood dream was to run a camp. To make that dream come true, the Ragsdale family purchased Heart O' the Hills Camp for Girls in 1976. After college graduation, she followed in her grandfather's footsteps to become a journalist, securing a job as a foreign correspondent, working in Guatemala during the civil war, writing and translating newspaper stories. Her career later took her to Buenos Aires, Argentina, where she authored stories for La Nación and The New York Times. During those years, she spent the school months as a journalist and the summer months working at Heart.
Though she loved journalism, she missed the hills, the river, and summer camp, so she returned to Texas full-time in 1978 to become year-round program director at Heart O' the Hills where she spent the rest of her life. She became director and part owner of Heart in 1988. Here, Jane shared her love and kindness, her singing and guitar playing, and her nearly perpetual bright smile with thousands of campers and counselors. Her love of music was legendary – the guitar in her arms was as much her signature as her perpetual smile. That guitar, lost and later recovered from the floodwaters, will soon be restored. Because she loved her campers, she taught them how to change a tire and write a thank-you note, how to act silly and shoot a rifle, how to behave at high tea, and how to love one another in tangible ways. She and her husband Dick hosted weekly ice cream feasts for campers: their love of Bluebell was well-known! She made her campers, and really anyone around her, feel seen and listened to and valued.
She served her community – near and far. For many years, she volunteered with and served on the board of the humanitarian group, "Let Hope Begin Here," making yearly visits to serve an impoverished mountainside village in Guatemala. She served as an elder and sang in the choir at her beloved First Presbyterian Church of Kerrville and never missed a service when home. She was devoted to Schreiner University where she had just completed 18 years of service on their Board. And she spent many years serving the boards of local Chambers of Commerce, the Peterson Health Foundation, and The Ragsdale Foundation. Jane was past president of CAMP – the Camp Association of Mutual Progress, an organization cofounded by her father, and was serving on its legislative committee at the time of her passing.
Jane earned honors in camping and service. In 2022, TWU honored her with the Pioneer Trailblazer Award for lifetime achievement. In 2024, Jane received the national lifetime achievement award from the Camp Owners and Directors Association. She was honored with the prestigious Speedy Altman Award for wisdom, inspiration, and contributions to camping and children.
Jane loved and cheered on her family and friends and said "yes" to "could you help me…." before she heard the end of the question. As she recently stepped down from service at Schreiner, President Charlie McCormick summed it up, "Jane was never distracted; she always looked me in the eye; she exuded joy and delight, and most of the time there was a beaming smile on her face; and she helped this president – more than she knows – have confidence in himself and in this institution and she reminds us all through the practice of her life that – regardless of what may befall us – we are lucky indeed to be living in this place and in this time." She lived life to the fullest.
Jane is survived by her son, Silas Deen Howell and wife, Kimber; granddaughters, Scarlet and Hollis; stepchildren, Diane Howell, Dixie Lee Howell, Debbie Howell Hill, and Richard Howell III; sisters, Juli Ragsdale and partner, Levvy Carriker; Jody Gilliam and husband, Mike Mulcahey; brother, Silas B (Jeeper) Ragsdale, III and wife, Meredith; nephew, Silas B (Si), IV; niece, Catherine; mothers, Kathy Ragsdale and Dusty Gilliam and husband, Bill Nash; aunt, Joanna Coffey; uncle, Walker Coffey; cousins, Becky Baskin Ferguson and husband, Doug; Bo Baskin; Steve Baskin and wife, Susie; Joy Baskin and husband, Seth Winick; and Aylin Guvenc; many adoring cousins once removed; her stretcher bearers Cristi Lee Ahern, Molly Dale Crow, Louann Nadalini, Meredith Hill and Kathryn Brown Horner; and thousands of campers and counselors. She was preceded in death by her husband, Richard Lambert Howell; her father, Silas B (Si) Ragsdale, Jr; her brother, Jon Ragsdale and wife Janet; her aunt, Margaret Coffey; her aunt and uncle Joan and Pat Baskin; her grandparents, Sadie and Silas Ragsdale; Kate and RW Coffey Jr; and Lucille and Seaborn Byerly; and her cousin, JJ Baskin.
A celebration of her life will be held at First Presbyterian Church of Kerrville 2 pm Saturday, September 13, followed by a reception at the church. Guests are invited to wear cowboy boots in recognition of Jane's love for them! This service will be live streamed at the following sites. Church YouTube Channel: First Presbyterian Church Kerrville / Live, Church Website: https://www.fpckerrville.org/worship-online, and Kerrville Photo Website: Kerrville.LIVE.
A second 'Heart-centric" celebration is planned for September 20-21 at Camp Stewart. A vespers at 8 pm Saturday night and Sunday service at 10 am. Additional Information for this is available on the Heart website (www.hohcamp.com).
In lieu of flowers the family suggest memorials to the Jane Ragsdale Memorial Fund c/o GTS Alumni & Friends (501c.3), 612 FM 1340, Hunt, TX 78024 or Let Hope Begin Here (Guatemala) c/o First Presbyterian Church, 800 Jefferson St., Kerrville, TX 78028.
Friends are also invited to write Jane a last letter. These are private and will not be opened but released down the river at Cypress Hollow later. Mail by Sept. 15 to:
Jane Ragsdale
c/o Juli Ragsdale
612 FM 1340
Hunt, TX 78024
If you are willing to share your thoughts with others, make a copy to be reproduced in a book to be offered for sale at a later date, with all profits going to a Jane Ragsdale Memorial. Send to:
Jane Ragsdale
c/o Bailey McEachern
612 FM 1340
Hunt, TX 78024
The family would like to express heart-felt appreciation to the hundreds of campers and friends - and strangers - who have given their time, energy and equipment to help retrieve personal and camp belongings both for Jane and her beloved Heart O' the Hills Camp since July 4.
Condolences may be sent at www.grimesfuneralchapels.com.
Funeral arrangements are entrusted to Grimes Funeral Chapels of Kerrville.