Jack Rains graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School in 1956. After receiving a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Texas A&M University in 1960, he served two years in the military while stationed in Galveston. In 1967, he earned a Doctor of Jurisprudence degree from the University of Houston, College of Law. Since graduation, he has received numerous honors, including “Distinguished Alumnus” from Texas A&M and The University of Houston and “Who’s Who in American Law.”
 
Rains founded and served as President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of 3D/International, a design and management firm. Under his leadership, this business venture grew to over a billion dollars in annual construction volume and was awarded the “E” Award for boosting U.S. exports by over four billion dollars.
 
Since 1964, Rains has called Houston his home, except for his temporary residence in Austin from 1987 to 1989 when he served as Texas’ 95th Secretary of State.
 
Before his passing, Rains was Of Counsel to the law firm Looper, Reed, Mark & McGraw and worked as a management consultant. He served on numerous public boards and founded and chaired the Harris County-Houston Sports Authority. This group led and provided for the construction of Houston’s new baseball stadium, Enron Field, known locally as “The House that Jack built.”
 
He ran unsuccessfully for the Texas Republican gubernatorial nomination in 1990. He lost to businessman Clayton W. Williams, Jr., of Midland, who was then narrowly defeated in the general election by the Democrat, Ann Richards, then the state treasurer.