Jocelyn Levi Straus — a respected political fundraiser, tireless arts advocate and savior of the historic Majestic and Charline McCombs Empire theaters — died Saturday. She was 91 years old.
Known to many as “Joci,” Straus formed the Foundation for Cultural Arts in 1988 to restore and preserve the landmark theaters in time for the San Antonio Symphony to open its season there a year later.
She later established a scholarship fund through the foundation, a nonprofit called Las Casas, that has awarded over $1 million to college-bound performing arts students.
Straus funneled her many passions into the betterment of her community, said her son Joe Straus III, “from her transformative impact on the cultural and educational fabric of San Antonio to her sincere belief in volunteerism and civic engagement.”
But her highest priority, the former Texas House speaker said, was her family, “who witnessed her strength, her grace and her devotion to those closest to her.”
Political fundraising
Born in 1931 in Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania, Straus moved with her family to San Antonio at age 3, according to an obituary. Her father Malcolm Levi, a silk manufacturer who dreamed of becoming a rancher, purchased land on Old Blanco Road that is now Timberwood Park.
Straus attended St. Mary’s Hall and Mills College in California before marrying longtime family friend Joe R. Straus Jr. in 1952. They had two daughters, Jocelyn Selig and Susan Straus, and one son, Joe, who went into politics and served as House Speaker from 2009 to 2019.
A Republican Party fundraiser, Straus got her start in politics serving as a chairwoman for the Nixon Girls, a group of women who supported Richard Nixon’s presidential campaign, and as a party precinct chair.
After serving as the finance chairwoman for John Tower’s successful run for the U.S. Senate in 1961, Straus worked as the finance or fundraising chair for more than 30 state and federal political campaigns.
Straus also served as the Texas campaign co-chair and then as head of the finance committee for George H.W. Bush’s three presidential campaigns, starting in 1987. She later served on the national finance committee for George W. Bush when he ran for president in 2000.
Her last campaign role was in 2005, when she worked on her son’s first campaign for the Texas House.
Straus also was involved locally on issues in health care, education and supporting women in business. As the first board chair of the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, Straus helped recruit and build the school’s donor base and increased research spending to $124 million over her 17 years in that position.
Straus served on the board of the local United Way and led its annual campaign in 2004. She then created and served as the founding chair of the Women’s Leadership Council, now known as Women United, which today has more than 3,000 members in Bexar County and many more across the nation.
Saving the Majestic
Straus got her start collecting money for the arts as a 6-year-old girl living in Monte Vista, where she said she would sit near the ligustrum hedges of her home and ask people stepping off the bus to buy her stick-figure drawings.
About art, she said, “It opens your horizons and makes you more accepting of different things.”
Perhaps her greatest impact locally came when she effectively saved the 1929 Majestic Theatre from the wrecking ball after the City of San Antonio purchased the state and national landmark in 1988.
Attorney Frank Ruttenberg remembers giving Straus a tour of the dilapidated theater in an effort to recruit her to the cause. “She was one of those people that was very thoughtful, and she’s quiet a lot of time,” he said, taking her reserve to mean it was not going well.
“At the end of it, she said, ‘These theaters are absolutely beautiful,'” Ruttenberg said. “[She said] we really need to bring the performing arts back to San Antonio and we really need to save these theaters, and we need to do this for the city.”
From that point on, Straus stuck to it and was the “driving force” behind raising the money to restore the theaters, Ruttenberg said. Through a public-private partnership, she raised $4.5 million for the first phase of the restoration and another $14 million for both later phases and for the work to restore the Charline McCombs Empire Theatre, which was completed in 1998.
In a 2013 interview, Straus recalled inviting local leaders and philanthropists to join her for lunch on the Majestic stage, a fundraising tactic that proved successful.
Following that effort, the city named the downtown San Antonio district where the two theaters are located the Joci Straus Performing Arts Center.
In 2008, Straus asked Las Casas to establish an annual scholarship competition that has since awarded $1.2 million to performing arts students to pursue higher education degrees. Top winners are given an award known as the Joci, named to honor Straus for her contributions to the program.
Las Casas Executive Director Doren Fein said Straus will be remembered most by her for her kindness and as a role model. “She got things done but was always so gracious and kind and appreciative, and that really left a huge impact on me,” Fein said.
Straus’ commitment to the theater and the arts led to a presidential appointment to serve on the National Endowment for the Arts and as a member of the Texas Cultural Trust Council. She is the founder of the Texas Medal of Arts awards, which began in 2001.
Straus is survived by her husband of 70 years; her children and their spouses, Peter Selig and Julie Straus; and a sister-in-law, Debbie Straus. She also is survived by four grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
A memorial service is planned for Friday, Oct. 14, at 2:30 p.m. at Temple Beth-El, 211 Belknap Pl. It will be livestreamed here. The burial service is private.
