The Dallas Cowboys are a family affair.
Jerry Jones is the unofficial representative of the team as the owner, general manager, and the individual all within the organization must report to, yet he involves each of his three children in significant positions.
Whether positively or negatively, Jones has ensured the Cowboys will stay under family ownership for the long term as the team works to return to Super Bowl competition.
Here’s what you should be aware of regarding Jones’ family, including the parents who nurtured him.
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Jerry Jones’ wife: Eugenia “Gene” Jones
Jones wed his college girlfriend, Eugenia “Gene” Chambers, in 1963. Gene studied at the University of Arkansas alongside Jerry, and she was crowned Miss Arkansas in 1960.
Although Gene does not hold an official position with the Cowboys beyond being a reliable presence beside her husband, she is involved within the organization by promoting interactions between the team and its supporters.
In addition to football, Gene is part of the board at the Meadows School for the Arts and the Texas Cultural Trust. She and Jerry are also involved in the Dallas Center for the Performance of Arts’ Founding Family Donor Program.
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Jerry Jones’ son: Stephen Jones
Stephen, the eldest son of Jones, is one of the prominent figures in the Cowboys’ management team, holding the positions of Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President & Director of Player Personnel.
Although Jerry serves as the general manager of Dallas, Stephen plays a vital part in acquiring players for the Cowboys and is expected to take over the team’s daily operations from his father in the future.
Similar to his father, Stephen enrolled at the University of Arkansas and served as a linebacker for the Razorbacks in the 1980s. He became part of the Cowboys’ organization soon after and has since become one of the leading voices in the executive team.
Stephen is wed to a woman named Karen and has four kids.
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Charlotte Jones Anderson, daughter of Jerry Jones
Jones’ sole daughter, Charlotte, holds the position of executive vice president and chief brand officer for the Cowboys.
Although Anderson was born in Arkansas in 1966, she took a different route from her father and older brother by enrolling at Stanford University and obtaining a degree in human biology. She initially entered the political arena as a staff member for a U.S. representative from Arkansas before moving on to the Cowboys.
As per the Cowboys, Anderson “has managed all business operations, strategies, and applications related to the team’s brand as seen by fans around the globe” over the past 30 years. This encompasses the organization’s well-known cheerleading team, which falls under her supervision. Furthermore, Anderson holds the position of chair for the NFL Foundation and chair of the National Medal of Honor Museum Foundation.
Anderson was in a 28-year marriage to David Anderson until their divorce in 2019. The couple has three children.
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Jerry Jones’s son: Jerry Jones Jr.
The youngest son of Jones, Jerry Jr., was born in 1969 and holds the position of executive vice president and chief sales and marketing officer for the Cowboys.
Prior to entering the family’s business, Jerry Jr. obtained a bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University and a law degree from SMU.
As per the Cowboys, Jerry Jr. manages “all of the club’s sales and marketing activities, including those aimed at the team’s dedicated fans and its business partners,” and is in charge of the franchise’s marketing and sales along with media projects.
Jerry Jr. was instrumental in the planning and creation of “The Star,” the Cowboys’ advanced training complex that debuted in 2016, and he spearheaded the development of the facility’s fitness center.
Jerry Jr. is married to a woman named Lori Lemon and has three children, one of whom was born from a prior relationship with actress Janine Turner.
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Jerry Jones grandchildren
Jones has 10 grandchildren — four from Stephen, three from Charlotte, and three from Jerry Jr.
Haley Anderson, the daughter of Charlotte, serves as a unique project manager for the Cowboys’ cheerleading squad. Notably, she spent over a year working with the Rams after they relocated to Los Angeles.
John Stephen Jones, the son of Stephen, is employed by the Cowboys in the role of manager for corporate partnership sales. He played as a quarterback at Arkansas for four seasons, having previously secured two state championships in high school. During his tenure with the Razorbacks, he threw 35 passes, resulting in two touchdowns and two interceptions while serving as a backup.
Paxton Anderson, the son of Charlotte, also participated in college football, attending the University of Texas as a wide receiver but seeing limited action from 2020 to 2023.
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Jerry Jones’ father: J.W. ‘Pat’ Jones
J.W. “Pat” Jones, the father of Jones, came from a humble background but eventually established his own insurance business and operated a grocery store called Pat’s Supermarket in Little Rock, Arkansas.
Pat hired Jerry as a leader at his insurance company, Modern Security Life, following Jerry’s graduation from Arkansas. Pat also established an animal safari park in Missouri, which continues to operate today as Wild Animal Safari, now owned by different individuals.
“My father was a pioneer in business, a person who transformed the way industries operated across three distinct areas – groceries, insurance, and tourism,” Jerrytold the Cowboys’ website.
Jerry began his career as an insurance executive, but he eventually took after his father and became an entrepreneur, launching several businesses before achieving success in the oil sector and buying the Cowboys for $140 million in 1989.
Pat passed away in 1997 at the age of 76.
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Jerry Jones’ mother: Arminta Jones
Arminta, Jones’ mother, was married to Pat for 56 years until his passing in 1997.
Arminta assisted Pat in managing his various business endeavors, as Jerry mentioned in her obituary, noting that she acted as her husband’s accountant, manager, and sales representative.
Jerry attributes his success to his mother’s intuition and focus on family. “She was an educator who taught you the most valuable lessons that couldn’t be learned in school,” he said on the Cowboys’ website following her passing.
Arminta Jones passed away in 2012, only a week following her 90th birthday.
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Where does Jerry Jones originate from?
Jones was born in Los Angeles, but his family relocated to Arkansas during his childhood. Jones enrolled at North Little Rock High School, where he served as a running back before graduating in 1960.
Following his time at the University of Arkansas, Jones and his family relocated to Springfield, Missouri, where the family’s insurance business found a new location. Jones began his professional journey with the company, and later returned to Arkansas to enter the oil industry.
Currently, the Jones family resides in North Texas, although Jones also spends time at a residence in Destin, Florida.
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