Landry Award Recipient and Pastor of Prestonwood Baptist Church ...

and exhibit exceptional leadership,who are committed to servingothers in their community, and whodemonstrate integrity in their personallives. In addition, the proceeds raisedfrom the dinnergo to providescholarships forDBU students inCollin County.This year AliciaLandry, Dr.Kenneth Cooper,and MillieCooper servedas the honoraryco-chairs of theevent, and RonHarris served asthe dinner chairperson.Duringthe dinner, DBUalumna and nationallyknownspeaker and ventriloquistAmyJones providedentertainmentwith her friend,Rusty. In addition, DBU President Dr.Gary Cook gave a special welcomefrom the University and took the occasionto personally thank so many whohad prayed for his recovery from leukemia.Landry Leadership Award RecipientJack Graham serves as senior pastorof Prestonwood Baptist Church,one of the nation’s largest, most dynamiccongregations.With more than 28,000 members,Prestonwood continues to grow withfour weekend worship services, a midweekservice, Bible Fellowship classesand multiple outreach and communityministries that reach thousands. Nearlytwo years ago, the church openedMembers of the DBU Chorale, under the direction of Dr. Steve Holcomb, performed a specialmedley of patriot songs for the evening, ending with a stirring rendition of the song, “Here I AmLord,” which describes a willingness to serve the Lord through whatever avenue He may call.a second location—PrestonwoodNorth—in a burgeoning area 20 milesnorth of Plano. Prestonwood Northcurrently meets in a high school whileconstruction continues on a new facilityin Prosper.Dr. Graham has served two termsas president of the Southern BaptistConvention and as president of theSBC Pastors’ Conference. He continuesto be an active member of SBCleadership, currently serving on theSBC Executive Committee.He is a noted author of numerousbooks, including You Can Make a Difference,Lessons from the Heart, AHope and a Future, Life According toJesus, and Courageous Parenting, coauthoredby wife,Deb, and basedon their experiencesas parents.His most recentbook, Are You Fitfor Life?, was releasedin January2008.Graham’sministry is alsoheard and seenacross the countryand the world onPowerPoint Ministries.Throughbroadcasts, onlinesermons, ande-mail messages,he addresses relevant,everydayissues that areprevalent in ourculture and thatstrike a chord with audiences worldwide.Dr. Graham was ordained to theministry in 1970 and has receivedboth a Master of Divinity degree anda Doctor of Ministry degree fromSouthwestern Baptist TheologicalSeminary.He and Deb live in Frisco. Theyhave three children, Jason (married toToby), Kelly, and Joshua (married toKaytie), and one grandson, Ian JamesGraham.Dr. Jerry Carlisle (far left), pastor of First Baptist Church of Plano, and his wife, Dedi,along with Dr. Jim Denison (far right), teaching pastor of Park Cities Baptist Church inDallas, and his wife, Janet.DBU Alumna and Trustee Amy Jones providedentertainment for the evening with a special appearancefrom her friend, Rusty.DBU Report 3