Jean Sexton

Jean Tirey Sexton was unanimously chosen as the Tryall Fund’s first Emeritus Member, an honor recognizing her many years of dedicated service and lasting contributions to the Fund and the community. This special recognition reflects the Board’s deep appreciation for her enduring impact, and her wisdom and ongoing connection that continues to inspire and strengthen the Fund’s work as it moves into the future.

Born in Dallas, Texas, Jean earned a BBA degree from Southern Methodist University and studied at the Institut de Français in Villefranche-sur-Mer, France. In Dallas, she was deeply involved in volunteer work, serving as Head Docent at the Hall of State, where she composed scripts and trained other docents, and as a sound scribe for textbooks and broadcast news for blind children through the Junior League. She held leadership roles including President of the Junior Group of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra League, Kappa Kappa Gamma Jr. Alumnae, Less Filles Fleurs Garden Club, and PTA Board. Jean also studied classical piano and enjoyed tennis.

After moving to California, Jean became a member and later President of the UCSD Medical Center Auxiliary, and subsequently served as President of the Board of Advisors at the University of California Medical Center, San Diego. She and her husband, Rusty, have also been active in New Orleans, Louisiana, where they initiated a scholarship program through the Mandeville Rotary Club that has produced many graduates, and have been longtime supporters of the World War II Museum.

Jean first visited Jamaica in the 1950s and said it was “love at first sight.” Her happiest moments have been spent with her husband, their five children, and nine grandchildren on the “Island in the Sun,” which has been a cherished family home for decades.