Jerlyn Leigh Mardis

The life of Jerlyn Leigh Mardis, like the classic mosaics she loved, was composed of many precious pieces. To fully appreciate Jerlyn, we must first admire the many talents, traits, and passions that together made her the beautifully complex person she was.

Born in Ruston, Louisiana in 1949 to the handsome Gerald Mardis, and the bold, beautiful Lizbeth McLaren Mardis, Jerlyn grew up with the Louisiana spirit of love for family, friends, and good food. Gerald’s career as a petroleum engineer led the family to Cuero, Texas and Franklin, Kentucky before their 1960 move to Houston, Texas, Jer’s hometown for the rest of her life.

Young Jerlyn’s independent spirit shone brightly, like her curly blonde baby hair. She loved being a big sister to her brother Jaime, born in 1951. Lizbeth’s sister Peggy, who helped raise Jer, describes her as curious and fearless, with an early feminist bent, and a quest for knowledge and adventure. Peg and Jer became best friends for life, sharing adventures over many decades.

When her parents divorced, Jerlyn continued to excel in school while taking on many family responsibilities. Jaime recalls Jer’s rising before dawn to walk down Hillcroft and across Westheimer to Lee High School (now Wisdom High School). Jer’s savvy English teacher recognized her intellect and writing talent, urging her to apply to Rice University. That wise advice led to Jer’s 50-year relationship with Rice, as an undergraduate and graduate student, alumna, and faculty member.

Jerlyn arrived at Rice in 1967, ready to explore political science and English. Never shy or timid, she became the highly visible chair of Rice’s Student Center Board during the civil unrest of the late 1960s and early 70s. An invitation to activist Abbie Hoffman coincided with campus turmoil in 1970, when Jer worked tirelessly with students, faculty, and administrators in trying to maintain peace on campus. After graduation, she began her career at Zimmerman Advertising as an account supervisor. In 1975, she joined the City of Houston’s Department of Public Service as Assistant Director, regulating utilities and supervising seven divisions.

Jerlyn’s growing interest in business led her to Rice’s Jones Graduate School of Business, where she honed her skills in marketing, communications, and management, graduating with a Master of Business and Public Management (now MBA) degree in 1982. Her next two years at Stanford Capital Corporation included structuring real estate limited partnerships, and managing advertising, press, and investor relations.

Jer’s next step was a giant leap to entrepreneurship. She led Mardis & Associates, a strategic communications and marketing firm, for 40 years. Clients included Fortune 500 companies – Enron, Capgemini, Chevron – and many other large and smaller firms. In 1999, she partnered with David Merritt to found Applied Cognitive Solutions (ACS), a digital forensics company specializing in eDiscovery and computer forensics for law firms and corporations. As president of ACS, and a licensed Private Investigator with vast knowledge of data security, Jer became a popular expert speaker. She and David frequented tech industry events, including the High Technology Crime Investigation Association conferences; and, their favorite, the notorious DEF CON hacker/security gatherings in Las Vegas.

Simultaneously, Jerlyn began the career she loved the most – teaching. A faculty member at Rice University for 36 years, she taught at the George R. Brown School of Engineering and Computing, the Program in Writing and Communication, the Wiess School of Natural Sciences, and the Jones Graduate School of Business. She was also on the faculty at the University of St. Thomas, the University of Houston, and the Texas A&M School of Law. She especially enjoyed teaching international students, using fun, creative techniques to help build their English proficiency.

2023 brought two major accomplishments. Jerlyn created a Freshman Writing Intensive Seminar entitled “Wanderlust,” sharing her love of travel and writing with her students. She also accepted a full-time position with the Engineering Department’s new Master of Engineering Management and Leadership Program to build a communication program tailored to their specific needs.

Jerlyn’s personal interests were diverse and vibrant. Writing was her lifelong passion. She attended the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference in 1989, one of only 10% accepted. She wrote plays, poetry (including an annual spring poem), and fiction (including a romance novel), in addition to her academic writing. Also a talented visual artist, Jer studied painting with Texas artist Philip Renteria at the Glassell School of Art at the Museum of Fine Arts. Her creative sketches and whimsical creatures often illustrated her poems; a hand-drawn winged heart frequently served as her signature.

Theater was also Jer’s great passion. She worked with Theater LaB Houston founder Gerald (Jerry) LaBita in 1991 to create a bold new contemporary theater, housed in Jerry’s parents’ former grocery store in Houston’s First Ward. As a co-founder, secretary, board member, and ambassador extraordinaire, Jerlyn helped Theater LaB produce more than 150 productions from 1993 to 2018. In the 1990s, she also served on the boards of Main Street Theater Houston, and the Friends of Rice Players.

An intrepid world traveler, Jer and her Vibram-soled boots hiked hundreds of trails at U.S. national parks and mountains worldwide. Her souvenir pins filled a fishbowl. She mailed foreign-stamped postcards with eloquent travel notes to friends, including herself. Fluent in French and versed in Italian, Jer learned Spanish in her 60s in Rice’s immersive class. Her boldest adventure was a solo trip in 1995 to Antarctica. Braving subzero temps and 20 hours of sunlight daily as a passenger on a scientific research ship, she sailed through icebergs, made frigid wet beach landings, dined and socialized with the crew, and walked among penguins, one of her favorite creatures.

On travels and at home, Jerlyn prioritized good food – cooking it, savoring it, and especially sharing it with friends and family. She created exquisite menus to pair with her favorite wines – like the white Burgundy, Puligny-Montrachet; and the red Bordeaux, Chateaux Margaux. Her pumpkin pie and cranberry sauce were Thanksgiving musts; her boiled shrimp, blackberry cobbler, and coconut cake were legendary. She savored casual local fare – breakfast at Bellaire Coffee Shop, lunch at Seco’s or Miss Saigon, dinner at Goode Co. Seafood – as well as fine dining at many of the world’s best restaurants.

Jerlyn was her own person. In hippie times, she zoomed around Houston on a Honda 175, wearing a Woodstock Mexican fringe jacket. In the early 1970s, she represented Pillsbury’s Space Food Sticks, precursor to today’s energy bars, wearing an Instant Energy sash, a fuzzy white minidress, and silver go-go boots. Red was her color. She drove a vintage 1990 “super red” Corolla, spiffed up by David. Red leather boots were her favorite footwear. Evening attire was often a vintage Japanese kimono from her collection. Musical choices ran from Puccini’s Turandot to Elvis’ Viva Las Vegas. A voracious reader and viewer, Jer loved literature, mystery novels, vintage cookbooks, and vampire fiction. The TV series True Blood, cartoonist Edward Gorey, actor Bruno Ganz, the Reacher books and TV series, StarTrek, and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy were a few of her faves. Boudica, her beloved plush honey badger, was her spirit animal and loyal chemo companion.

The greatest love of Jerlyn’s life was her husband, David Merritt. When they first met at a Rice reunion, she casually suggested they meet up again, igniting 28 years of true love. The Seekers' "I'll Never Find Another You” is their song. They shared business and personal lives, a difficult combo they made look easy. David was Jer’s most ardent admirer, and her devoted caregiver 24/7 throughout her brave and difficult year of cancer treatment in 2024. Her sweetheart in good times and bad, in sickness and in health, he was there for her always, embracing her as she took her last breath.

Jerlyn was so well-loved. After her mother died in 1992, her lifelong relationship with Aunt Peg, Uncle John, and their family grew even stronger. Every Christmas, Jer and David drove to Jacksonville, arriving late, with a big cooler full of fresh boiled shrimp for dinner. Jer prepared meticulous vacation plans for Peg and John, including a trip to Italy they all took together. Bonds with Jaime and Tanya’s family also grew as their children were born and grew up. Jer became good friends with niece Janet, who now has two children of her own.

Best friends Beth O’Sullivan and Marilyn Miller also welcomed her as a full-fledged member of their families. For decades, she and David shared their good cheer, often making a pilgrimage to multiple tables for Thanksgiving, Christmas, birthdays, and holidays. Any day Jer was there, you knew you’d be passin’ a good time. The food was always delicious, good wine flowed, irreverently funny stories were told, the laughter was loud, and love abounded.

Jer is still at our tables. We may see her only in our mind’s eye, but her indomitable spirit will be with us forever. Admired by all, loved by so many, Jerlyn now lives on in the hearts of those who cherish each and every facet of the brilliant, beautiful living work of art that she was.

Jerlyn is survived by her husband, David S. Merritt; brother Jamie and wife Tanya Mardis; stepsister Elaine Duffy; aunt and best friend Peggy Thigpen; many nieces, nephews, and Godchildren; and best friends Beth O’Sullivan and Marilyn Miller. She was preceded in death by her parents, Gerald and Lizbeth McLaren Mardis; and her uncle, Dr. John C. Thigpen.

A celebration of Jerlyn’s remarkable life will be held at Cohen House at Rice University on April 9, 2025 at 5:00 PM.

Contributions in memory of Jerlyn may be made to Rice University’s student fund, The Rice Fund: https://giving.rice.edu/rice-fund, or the charity of your choice.