Thirty short years ago, Frisco was a one-stoplight town with a single high school and 6,500 residents. It was the kind of community where everyone knew everyone else and neighbors supported one another in times of crisis. And while Frisco’s population now tops 170,000 and the landscape boasts an impressive skyline, the heart of this city still beats with the compassion of a small town.
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It is the resolve to bear a neighbor’s burden that has become the driving force behind a concert to benefit Jason Carter, a 48-year-old Frisco native who is now facing the last stages of an aggressive cancer. The concert, planned for Friday, January 18, at Preston Trail Community Church, will feature musical artists with deep Frisco roots, including Grammy-nominated singer/songwriter Waylon Payne, Barefoot Nation (a Kenny Chesney tribute band), The Byron Dowd Band and Stacey Shope. Tickets are $35 each and are available
rat friscoforjason.eventbrite.org, with
rall proceeds benefiting the Jason Carter family. While the music will make for an entertaining night, concert organizer and Frisco native Christian Graesser says her hope is to pack out the 1,500-seat venue as an expression of love, support and celebration from the Frisco community for an unassuming family that has had an immeasurable impact on so many lives.
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Mr. Carter was born on February 18, 1970, to Don and Teddie Carter. “I have known Jason Carter since he was born,” says longtime Frisco resident Connie Yates. “He was born into our church family at First Baptist, and, back then, everybody knew everybody.” Mrs. Yates describes Mr. Carter as a cute little boy who grew into a quick-witted and intelligent teen, and matured into an exceptionally kind and compassionate man. Along with his wife, Kelly, Mr. Carter possesses a deep faith in God that has been lived out through a steadfast commitment to love and serve others in the Frisco community. “They are the most precious family ever,” Mrs. Yates says, and then references a verse from the New Testament Book of James: “They are doers of the Word, and not just hearers.”
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In the 25 years since the Carters moved back to Mr. Carter’s hometown to start their lives together, the family grew with the birth of sons, Kent, in 1997, and Evan, in 1999, and the adoption of sons Roberto and Oscar in 2016. Mrs. Carter taught in various Frisco ISD schools, Mr. Carter built a career in information and application systems security, the boys excelled in school and sports and the family was highly-active in their church community, originally First Baptist Church of Frisco, and later Preston Trail Community Church.
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However, 2018 would hold many difficult and unexpected changes for the family. In April, Mr. Carter was diagnosed with stage IV adenocarcinoma cancer of the esophagus. In June, he started treatment at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. In July, the family made the difficult decision to uproot their lives and move down to Mrs. Carter’s small home community of Edna, Texas, to be near her family and MD Anderson. Most recently, in December, hospice care was initiated.
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At the center of this storm, the Carters continue to respond with steady faith. As Mrs. Carter wrote on Facebook shortly after her husband was moved home to begin hospice care, “Please hear my heart: While this is breaking all of our hearts, and we still plead with the Lord to perform a miraculous healing, Jason and I have a peace and a joy knowing that he will be with the Lord. Jason’s relationship with Christ as his Savior is being completed, and that is what he was made for — to know the Lord and make Him known.”
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Please honor the Carter family and join Frisco Friends for Jason on January 18 at Preston Trail Community Church for a night of great music and a celebration of friendship. All proceeds benefit the Carter family. Tickets may be purchased and donations can be made at friscoforjason.eventbrite.org.W
