Known across the country as the face of the Texas Hereford Association, Jack Chastain is considered the driving force behind the Hereford breed in the Southwest.

An admired ambassador of the breed, Jack began his storied career more than 50 years ago when he was named the executive secretary of the THA in 1973. He has spent his dynamic lifetime promoting and supporting Hereford producers at every level from purebred to commercial breeders to Certified Hereford Beef markets. His ability to effectively network with all segments of the industry has been a binding force as the THA continues to be a national leader in junior and senior memberships and registrations.

As many put it, when you think of the THA, you think of Jack. He has played a huge role in elevating the national Hereford show at the Fort Worth Stock Show and in building its prestige. The Texas membership meeting at the Fort Worth Stock Show is a true testament to the Chastain family’s passion, enthusiasm and drive to better the THA and the breed.

Jack has traveled countless hours to sales and shows across the country to keep THA and AHA members at the forefront of the industry. In fact, when he first took office, he journeyed throughout the state to meet every producer in the THA membership to study their herds. When not on the road, he can be found in the Fort Worth office organizing the THA magazine and striving to get new members for the adult and junior associations.

Jack and his wife, Lyn, are recognized as some of the most generous and proactive youth supporters in the breed and are longstanding Texas Junior Hereford Association advisors. They have operated Mockingbird Hill Herefords since their marriage in 1975, and this year added their son, Lee, daughter-in-law, Candace, and their two grandsons, Jackson and Griffin, to the operation, now called Chastain Cattle Company. Their grandsons are the sixth generation to operate on land deeded to the Chastain family in 1853, and which has been home to Herefords since 1930.

Together, the family has built a legacy of Hereford cattle reaching far beyond their roots in Fort Worth. Their devotion to serving the membership and progressing the THA and the breed as a whole is unrivaled. Kyle and Michael Pérez of Pérez Cattle Company note, “When Jack finally decides to retire, there will be a hole as large as Texas in the association that may never be totally filled. There has never been anyone more deserving and dedicated to this great breed.”