Update:
The phone calls began to pour
in to the office of Parker County
Today magazine a little before 7 a.m.
Thursday, Jan. 20, 2011. It was the
morning after Jack Borden passed and
phone calls were already spreading.
People called wanting to know if the
rumors were true. “Surely not,” one
lifelong resident said.
What everyone really wanted to
hear was, “No. Of course it’s not
true. We talked to Jack just this morning and he’s doing great.” But, it was
true, as true as it was heartbreaking.
Everyone expressed shock at the
news.
Jack would have loved it. He was
102 and everyone was shocked that
he had died.
There was just something about
Jack that made people forget that he
was 102.
He never wanted to retire and in
the end, he never did.
“If I went home and started sitting
around, I wouldn’t last through the
year,” Jack said. “My work is what
keeps me alive.”
Jack was named Texas’
Outstanding Older Worker of the
Year in 2008, then, in 2009, was
named America’s Outstanding Oldest
Worker. He traveled to Washington,
D.C., to accept his award.
An Inspiration To His
Community
When Jack turned 100, almost the
entire town of Weatherford turned
out for a party at the Posse Club
given by Jamie Bodiford Brinkley.
They came back again for his 101st
and then his 102nd.
In late January of 2011, Jack
arrived at his law office as usual one
Monday morning. He saw a couple
of clients. Then, he began to have
breathing issues and John insisted
that he go to the hospital.
Jack was in good spirits. He told
friends he expected to be home by
Friday.
Doctors attempted to remove
fluid from his lungs with medication.
When that wasn’t successful, they
attempted a procedure to drain the
fluids from his lungs.
Two days later he died. John
Westhoff, Jack’s beloved nephew,
was by his side.
“Jack and his wife Edith never
had children, but they considered
most of Parker County to be members
of their family,” C.B. Borden, Jack’s
younger brother, said.
When asked how she was doing
a day after Jack died, his longtime,
faithful nurse and companion Rose
Stovall Paige said, “I have comfort in
knowing I had the honor to take care
of Jack Borden. And what a great
honor that was.”
“Jack was a great man,” said
C.B., Jack’s last surviving sibling, who
was 100 years old when Jack died.
“He had a great life. He liked people.
John said once that Jack had given
away at least $1 million worth of law
work. People would come by and see
him. They’d say, ‘By the way, while
I’m here, would you mind taking a
look at this contract for me?’ And
Jack would.”
A Community Bids Farewell
The spacious First Baptist Church
of Weatherford had a standing-roomonly crowd for Jack’s funeral. The
only thing that would have made it
all better would have been for Jack to
be able to attend that one last event
in his honor, for him to hear the
countless stories and eloquent tributes to him.
Jack would have enjoyed the great
irony of it all, how the entire community was shocked that Jack Borden,
the 102-year-old attorney, who was
still the toast of the town, was able
to shock everyone with his untimely
death at the age of 102.
“Jack’s life, while now part of
the tradition, history and past of
Parker County, is alive and well in
the present and lives in the lessons
he taught,” John said. “Those lessons
will also be reflected in the conduct
and actions of others in the future. It
is life examples such as that of Jack
Borden that has made Parker County,
Texas, and this country strong, now
and in the future.”
Over the years, John got a lot of
advice from his uncle. What was the
best?
“Be committed, be prepared, be
responsible and be relentless,” he
said.
The foundation that Jack set when
he began to build the law firm was
a strong one, and largely because of
that it continues to thrive. A bright
young lawyer joined the firm of
Borden & Westhoff last year and now
John Westhoff, who was once Jack’s
protégé, has a protégé.
DECEMBER 2015 PA R K E R C O U N T Y T O D AY
wife. We were best friends,” Jack
says. “Edith was the smartest and
most remarkable woman I have ever
known.”
Fondly remembered for her
intelligence and devotion to Jack and
to Parker County, she earned her
law degree without attending law
school. A gifted artist, she also was
instrumental in pre serving Parker
County history. Sadly, Edith was an
invalid for seven years before she
died. Jack said he prayed every day
that God would let him live long
enough to take care of her. And he
did.
The century mark
During a 2005 hospital stay for
a serious bout with pneumonia,
Jack saw vivid images while in a
delusional state. He remembers
walking up to a door and hearing
voices from the other side.
They told me to go back down.
They weren’t ready for me yet,” he
says.
Jack says that’s when he started
getting better. A few months later, the
Weatherford Chamber of Commerce
recognized Jack as Citizen of the
Year.
“So many people told me I should
have received it years before,” Jack
said, “but I told them I held out for
bragging rights. How many people
can say they were Citizen of the Year
at 95 or 96?”
Jack’s answer to those who ask for
his secret to a long life is simple.
“I know the good Lord has the say
on when you’re gonna die and when
you’re not,” he said. “And I don’t
know why He has let me live as long
as He has … but I’ve always hoped
I’m ready to meet my maker when I
do die.”
Jack doesn’t know if he’ll hit the
century mark, but the man who sells
him his wardrobe promised him a
free suit of clothes when he does.
In his signature good humor, Jack
laughs. “If nothing else, I’m living to
get my free suit.”
__________________________
65