Jeff

Jeff has always been a hard-working, kind, and devoted husband and father. He and his wife, Tracy, married for 25 years, have raised two sons, handsome young men of whom they are very proud. While providing for his family, Jeff has always been a very physical person, spending his career working in the oil fields, as a crew leader for the City of Fort Worth, and a lead truck driver for Penske. Those who know Jeff know he is a loyal and kind friend and an accomplished employee and manager.

Jeff has always been an avid outdoorsman. He quickly picked up any sport or outdoor activity. When Tracy first took Jeff home for Thanksgiving, he became the quarterback for the annual family football game from that year forward! Jeff also loved watching sports on TV and patiently taught Tracy and the boys the ins and outs of any sport they joined him in watching. Football Sundays were filled with amazing food Jeff grilled and lots of fun. In addition to sports, Jeff also loved taking summer fishing trips to Port Aransas with his friends and family. Once the boys were old enough to bait and cast their own rods, they rarely missed a summer fishing trip. A proud and involved father, he spent many years coaching his boys in various sports activities in the Benbrook area.       

Jeff's work as a crew leader and coach was dramatically put on hold when he was first diagnosed with stage IV throat cancer in 2018. It was a shock to this family with two teenage children, but they went to work on supporting Jeff through many months of treatment. After extensive treatment, Jeff's cancer became non-detectable by machine, and he was able to regain his physical strength after the tolls that chemo and radiation took on his body. Jeff's ability to defeat stage IV cancer was no small undertaking and left himself, family, and friends overjoyed that he had a new lease on life!        

The family rejoined their friends at the baseball fields at Western Hills Little League and actively participated in the Benbrook Middle-High School Athletic Booster Club. The family also made trips to west Texas to hunt dove, deer, and hogs as often as they could. Jeff and Tracy moved to their dream home in Hudson Oaks in May of 2020 to be closer to family. As both boys graduated high school and started their college careers, Jeff returned to truck driving for Penske and Tracy continued her work as a policy manager in the financial industry. Unfortunately, in the fall of 2023, they received the devastating news that cancer had struck Jeff's body again.      

Despite pursuing every treatment option, Jeff’s cancer spread, and his wife and boys took on the daunting tasks of providing his care around the clock at home. With Jeff unable to work, Tracy and their older son Devin struggled to work and provide Jeff with the best care possible. The family agreed that in addition to caring for Jeff, they wanted to ensure that the younger son Justin continued his education at Oklahoma State University.

Major surgeries led to lasting infection and hospitalization, but still, this strong man continued to fight to get better. However, in August of 2025, Jeff's most recent PET scan showed that his cancer was only spreading. It is at that time that Jeff decided to discontinue all life-saving treatments and spend the rest of his days comfortably and happily as possible in hospice at home.      

Jeff's illness and treatments have taken a tremendous toll on him and his family physically, emotionally, and financially. Devin and Tracy continue to provide 95% of his care at home with a wonderful hospice team that visits on a weekly basis. As the family was facing the holidays with depleted savings and very little income, Project 4031 was able to step in for them and cover their utility bills for the month of November. This caring gesture relieved stress for Jeff’s family and granted them even more reasons to be thankful this year.