ur Rotarian of the Day today is Don Wasson. Don was a high school athlete and a musician, but he declined a music scholarship to Kansas University in order to pursue a journalism degree from OU in 1960. He worked his way through college as a printer, and interned at the Tulsa World and Tulsa Tribune as a college junior. His first job out of OU was in the advertising department at the Tulsa newspapers.
Don left advertising to work for Ellis Fikes, owner of Fikes TV and Appliances, in 1963. He eventually bought that business in 1970. Don was one of the first Rent-to-Own retailers, and he sold out in 1983 when interest rates soared at 26 percent.
Since selling out of retailing, Don’s career has wandered into numerous fields: newspaper publishing, RV sales management in Claremore and Alaska, commercial fishing, and wannabe farmer. Currently, Don is establishing a quarter-section farm and hunting lodge in Kansas.
Don was invited to join Southside Rotary in 1967, when he was proposed by Charles N. Wynkoop. He was club president from 1974-75, and he was the founder of the Tulsa Sunrise Rotary Club in 1982. Don has been our district governor (2000-01), district trainer (2002-05, 2009), and the Council on Legislation representative for District 6110 in 2007 and 2010. He has attended 15 RI conventions, and was recently appointed Literacy Chair in Zone 31 by RI president John Kenny.
Don lives in Collinsville. He has three children and nine grandchildren. He loves to travel, fish in Alaska, and hunt quail and pheasants.
Don, welcome! It’s good to see you.
This Week’s Program
Clifton Taulbert
ur speaker today is Clifton Taulbert. He is one of America’s leading thought-leaders on the “Power of Community.” Time Magazine has recognized him as one of the nation’s outstanding entrepreneurs. Upon forming The Freemount Corporation, Clifton was a member of the initial team that introduced Stair Master Systems to the world. He is also a former banker and advisory council member for Bank-One, now JP Morgan Chase. He has been involved with the startup of numerous companies and organizations and continues to be called upon for his expertise in marketing.
Clifton was born in the Mississippi Delta: the wellspring for his literary contributions. In 1989, he authored the best-selling memoir, Once Upon A Time When We Were Colored, which was made into a feature film of the same name. Its success launched him into a career as an international speaker and world-renowned author. His growing list of literary works include: The Pulitzer-nominated The Last Train North, Watching Our Crops Come In, three award-winning picture books for children, the Little Cliff series, The Journey Home: A Father’s Gift to His Son, and he was the main contributor for Separate but Equal, a coffee table book publishing the photographs of famed photographer Henry Clay Anderson.
In 1995, he established “The Building Community Institute” to extend the reach of Eight Habits of the Heart, a book that contains timeless and universal principles that build and sustain Community to corporate, government, academic and other professional worlds. He believes that the Eight Habits of the Heart are essential for developing workplace leadership, embracing diversity, and delivering commitment and collaboration and mentoring. He has extended this conversation to educators through his most recent publication, Eight Habits of the Heart for Educators, a book already having a national impact since its release in March 2006.
As a keynote speaker, he has delivered his positive message to audiences such as: Lockheed Martin, Oklahoma Natural Gas, the U.S. Department of Justice, the FBI, the United States Supreme Court as a guest of Associate Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, the Bohemian Club, the Darden Graduate School of Business, Harvard University’s Principal Center, the Social Security Administration, the National League of Cities, the Federal Executive Institute, and many, many others.
Clifton has received a number of awards, including the 1996 NAACP Image Award, the National Arthritis Foundation Volunteer of the Year, Mississippi Institute of Arts & Letters, the National Jewish Medical and Research Center Humanitarian of the Year for 2001, and the 2005 SMEI International Ambassador Award for Free Enterprise. In 2007, he was honored as the recipient of the 2007 Arrell Gibson Lifetime Achievement Award by the Oklahoma Center for the Book – an affiliate of the United States Library of Congress.
Clifton and his wife, Barbara, of Eudora, Arkansas, live in Tulsa. They share the joy of their son, Marshall Danzy Taulbert, who is making his way in Hollywood.
Clifton, thank you for being with us today. The Rotary Club of Southside Tulsa welcomes you!
Southsider Quick Notes
Last week…
- Our ROD last week was Robert Reins, and our speaker was Rick Brinkley.
- Happy birthday to Larry Gilbert!
- Jim Netherton, one of our charter members, passed away last Wednesday. There will be a memorial service at 3 p.m. Saturday, July 25, at the Ninde Funeral Home on Peoria. Please keep his family and loved ones in your thoughts and prayers.
- Pat Riehle, Major Meek, and Kevin Best have all had to resign membership. Guys, best of luck to you, and we’ll miss you.
- Our next district governor has a goal of 6,110 members in district 6110 in the year 2010. We’ve made 15 teams, each responsible for getting one new member, in order for our club to meet its membership goal. We want 75 members total.
- Next week, our ROD is Tom Wilson and our speaker is Jan Skinner.
