Lloyd H. "Pete"
Hughes, Jr. ’43
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Year Awarded: 2012
Lloyd H. "Pete" Hughes, Jr., Class of 1943, studied petroleum engineering at the Agricultural & Mechanical College of Texas. He had a brief stint at Corpus Christi Junior College (now Del Mar College) before returning to A&M in 1941, but resigned to assist his family the same year.
He enlisted as an aviation cadet in 1942 in the wake of the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor. After completing the training courses, Hughes received his wings and commission as a second lieutenant. In 1943 he was assigned to the 564th Heavy Bombardment Squadron, 389th Heavy Bombardment Group at Lowry Field, Colo. The group moved to Europe, and then Benghazi, Libya, where the attack against the Axis oil refineries of Ploesti, Romania was launched. Hughes flew in the last formation at dangerously low altitude, and his plane received several direct hits that seriously damaged his aircraft. He continued to approach the target area, Steaua Romana oil refinery in Campina, with full knowledge of the consequences he faced, with his plane leaking oil and the ground ablaze. He continued to bomb the target area with great precision, even after the left wing of his plane caught on fire. He was the first Texas Aggie awarded the Medal of Honor.
Hughes was married to Hazel Dean Ewing. He passed away on August 1, 1943.
"Pete gave his life and the lives of his crew to carry out his assigned task. To the very end he gave the battle every ounce he had."
- Captain Philip P. Ardery, Commanding Officer, 564th Bomb Squadron
Dan Allen
Hughes, Jr. ’80
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Year Awarded: 2019
Alamo Heights, TX
With 39 years of experience in oil and gas exploration and production, Dan Allen Hughes, Jr. ’80 is the president of the Dan A. Hughes Co., as well as other oil and gas related companies.
Hughes graduated from Texas A&M in 1980 with a BBA in management. As a student, he was the outstanding freshman in the Corps of Cadets’ Squadron 7, commander of 2nd Group and a member of SCONA and Phi Gamma Delta.
After earning his degree from A&M and completing further studies in geology at Texas A&I University, Hughes joined his family’s oil and gas firm, learning the business from his father, Texas A&M Distinguished Alumnus, Dan A. Hughes, Sr. ’51.
An Outstanding Alumnus of Texas A&M’s Mays Business School, he has served on many advisory boards at A&M and was on the university’s presidential search committee from 2013 to 2015. His support of A&M has included being a major donor for A&M’s Berg-Hughes Center for Petroleum and Sedimentary Systems, Kyle Field redevelopment and athletic facilities, Corps scholarships and many other areas. He also serves on Texas A&M University-San Antonio’s advisory board.
He is a member of The Association of Former Students’ Century Club, with 23 years of giving. He serves on the 12th Man Foundation’s Champions Council and A&M’s Lead by Example National Campaign Council.
From 2013 to 2015, he was chairman of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission, on which he served from 2009 to 2015.
Service to his community includes raising funds for children’s charities in Bexar County, the Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research and the state’s purchase of Devils River State Natural Area.
"Dan has given of himself and his resources to not only support Texas A&M, but the entire state of Texas and his country. He is a man of integrity and vision. He is successful in business, but constantly looking for an opportunity to give back to the community and Texas A&M."
- Bill Jones '81
Weldon
Jaynes ’54
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Year Awarded: 2020
Arlington, TX
Jaynes was chairman, CEO and majority shareholder of Priester Supply Co., which he spent more than 40 years building into a prominent southwest U.S. regional distributor for electric and gas utilities. He also created Repcom International, a national telecommunication company.
He operated both companies with an all-Aggie board of directors and management team.
As a student, he was a member of the Corps of Cadets in Squadron 15. After graduation, he served in the U.S. Air Force.
Jaynes is a past president (now called chair) of the 12th Man Foundation, a recipient of its E. King Gill award and member of its Diamond Champions Council.
He helped to start and grow the 12th Man Foundation’s Major Gifts Department during his tenure on the organization's board of trustees.
He is an Endowed Century Club member of The Association, with 49 years of giving, and his support to A&M includes aiding MSC renovations, a Texas Turfgrass Research Education endowment, the Mr. and Mrs. L. Weldon Jaynes ’54 Sul Ross Scholarship, the Weldon Jaynes ’54 Presidential Endowed Scholarship and a Corps scholarship.
Jaynes is an A&M Lettermen’s Association Hall of Honor inductee and a past director of the Fort Worth A&M Club.
He and wife Judy give time and support to Trinity United Methodist and First Baptist Church in Arlington, Mission Arlington and the MD Anderson Cancer Center.
They have three Aggie children, Tracey ’85, Brian ’87 (married to Beth ’88) and Stacey ’85, and three grandchildren, Cameron ’10, McCall ’15 and Will ’19.
“I am forever grateful to have graduated into the Texas A&M Aggie Network. Aggies have been a major factor in all aspects of my life, from friends and family to career.”
- Weldon Jaynes '54
LTG Eivind H.
Johansen ’50
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Year Awarded: 1985
Charleston, SC
Johansen received a bachelor’s degree in General Business in 1950 and a master’s degree in International Affairs from George Washington University. Upon graduation, Johansen served in the U.S. Army and rose to the position of U.S. Army Deputy Chief of Staff for Logistics.
He served as Chairman of the Army Logistics Policy Council, Logistics Center Advisory Board and Military Logistics Council and member of the Board of Directors of the Goodwill Industries and the Army’s Logistic Management Center and School in Virginia.
Bernard G.
Johnson ’37
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Year Awarded: 1974
Dallas, TX
Johnson received a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering in 1937. After serving in WWII, he founded Bernard Johnson Inc., one of the largest architectural engineering firms in the Southwest United States. Through the direction of Bernard Johnson, the firm now has a staff of 250 professional and support personnel providing complete design services in all major disciplines. In 27 years the company has planned or consulted on projects totally more than $2 billion in construction costs. Clients including the United States Steel Corporation, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Atomic Energy Commission and Texas A&M have used his company’s services nationwide, in Latin America and in the Far East.
This donor of a $25,000 Texas A&M President’s Endowed Scholarship has also been honored with the Knight of the Holy Sepulchre by Pope Paul VI.
Bill
Jones ’81
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Year Awarded: 2022
Austin, TX
“I have tried to do all things such that anyone following me would have difficulty doing them better,” said Bill Jones ’81.
From the time he entered as a student at Texas A&M, Jones has displayed a dedication to excellence. He was named Outstanding Freshman in the Corps of Cadets, and would go on to become First Brigade commander and a Ross Volunteer. Not only that, but he served off the quad as both sophomore class president and president of the MSC Fall Leadership Committee. In each of these positions, Jones strengthened his leadership skills through service to others.
After graduating with a degree in business management, Jones enrolled at Baylor Law, earning his Juris Doctor in 1985. The early part of his legal career focused on litigation, dealing with complex business cases in both state and federal courts. Jones paused his time in private practice for three years to serve as general counsel to Gov. Rick Perry ’72. Now, Jones owns and is current principal of The Jones Firm, where he specializes in matters of public law and government relations. In addition, Jones manages a startup company: AFCI Texas LLC.
Jones has consistently risen to leadership — not only in his professional life, but also in his philanthropic service. Jones is a chairman emeritus of The Texas A&M System Board of Regents and a former board member of The Association of Former Students. He has served as commissioner of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Association, president of the Texas Young Lawyers Association, treasurer of the Texas Association of Business and as a member of the ERCOT Selection Committee. He is president of the Texas African American History Memorial Foundation, placing the Texas African American History Memorial on the state capitol grounds during his tenure.
Jones and his wife, Johnita ’83, have three children and two grandchildren.
“Bill reflects the best of A&M core values and is a role model for those that have come after him.”
- John D. White '70
Carol E.
Jordan ’80
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Year Awarded: 2020
Lexington, KY
Creator and executive director of the University of Kentucky’s Office for Policy Studies on Violence Against Women, Jordan has 37 years of experience in public policy, legislative advocacy, research, writing and development of programs addressing domestic violence, rape and stalking. She led expansion of the number of rape crisis centers in Kentucky from four to 13, and in 1996 was founding executive director of the Governor’s Office of Child Abuse and Domestic Violence Services. In 2002, Jordan created UK’s Center for Research on Violence Against Women; after a decade there, she created the university’s policy institute on violence against women, which led to the Office for Policy Studies. She also conceived the Women’s Empowerment Scholarship Program, a resource for abuse survivors.
She has received many awards and recognitions and served on numerous boards, task forces and commissions for nonprofits and state agencies.
She was the first elected president of Texas A&M’s Aggie Women Network, an Association constituent network she cocreated with K. Sue Redman ’80.
She is a Bronze-level member of The Association’s Century Club, with 32 years of giving, serves as the representative for the J. Irwin Jordan, Jr. ’53 President’s Endowed Scholarship and has made provisions for future gifts including a President’s Endowed Scholarship and the donation of her Aggie Ring and her mother’s sweetheart Aggie Ring.
“I began to love Texas A&M because of my father, and I entered the Class of 1980 because of my Aggie heritage."
- Carol E. Jordan '80
Richard
Kardys ’67
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Year Awarded: 2015
San Antonio, TX
Richard Kardys, Class of 1967, received a bachelor’s degree in government from Texas A&M University, where he was commanding officer of Squadron 8 and a Distinguished Student and Distinguished Military Graduate. He was a Ross Volunteer and member of the Ross Volunteers Firing Squad and groups including Town Hall and Election Commission.
He served as a JAG officer in the United States Air Force 1970-1976, and he is a 1970 graduate of the University of Texas School of Law.
Since 1980, Kardys has been at Frost Bank in San Antonio as the manager of Frost Wealth Advisors. He is a past chairman of the Texas Bankers Association Trust Financial Services Division. He is a Certified Trust Financial Advisor and a Certified Wealth Strategist and was named 2015’s Aggie Lawyer of the Year by the Texas Aggie Bar Association. Kardys has served as chairman and member of the board of The Association of Former Students and is an Endowed Century Club donor and he served as chairman and member of the board of the Texas A&M Foundation and is a member of the Legacy Society. He served on the Vision 2020 Campaign Leadership Council in 1998 and he has supported enhancements to the Clayton W. Williams, Jr. Alumni Center with a core value wall focused on respect.
Kardys is a past president of San Antonio organizations including the Federal Bar Association, Estate Planners Council and Hospice San Antonio. He is a trustee of the Texas Biomedical Research Institute and the Oblate School of Theology.
His Aggie family includes brother Kenneth Kardys ’71. Richard and wife Jessie Mathis Kardys have two sons, Clark Michael Kardys, M.D. ’99 and Christopher Tobin Kardys ’97, and three grandchildren.
"Richard's selfless nature is one of the most distinguishing things about him. In every gift, in every position and with every achievement, he has given from the most genuine place in his heart-and for all the right reasons.
- Buzz Miller '76
George D.
Keathley ’37
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Year Awarded: 2012
George D. Keathley, Class of 1937, studied agriculture at the Agricultural & Mechanical College of Texas after graduating from Cameron State School of Agriculture and Junior College in 1930 with an associate degree in agriculture.
He worked for the Soil Conservation Service in Lamesa supervising soil-erosion projects for the Civilian Conservation Corps before entering the service in 1942. In 1943, he was assigned to the 338th Infantry Regiment, 85th Division, where he was promoted to staff sergeant and was one of the leading noncommissioned officers in the 1st Platoon, Company B. Atop Mount Altuzzo, Italy, in 1944, Keathley volunteered to take command of two additional platoons whose officers had been killed in action. He led Company B in fending off an enemy counterattack, even after he sustained a mortal wound from an enemy hand grenade. He was the third Texas Aggie awarded the Medal of Honor.
Keathley and his wife, Inez, had two daughters. He passed away on September 14, 1944.
"I believe [he would tell students] to use their time there to learn and grow; to use the tools presented to you to make a difference in something that you are passionate about (as was his goal with farming), and because you never know what circumstances you might find yourself in, or where life might lead you, to take advantage of this opportunity to prepare yourself to make a difference somehow, somewhere.
- Dana McBee, George Keathley's granddaughter
Robert Earl
Keen ’78
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Year Awarded: 2018
Kerrville, TX
An award-winning singer/songwriter with 19 albums to his credit along with his most recognizable song, The Road Goes On Forever, he came up from the Texas folk scene to recognition as an Americana music pioneer, credited with bringing a new heyday to grassroots Texas music.
In 2012, he was inducted into the Texas Heritage Songwriters Hall of Fame; in 2015, he received BMI’s inaugural Troubadour Award for songwriting. He has raised, through more than a decade of benefit concerts, three-quarters of a million dollars for The Hill Country Youth Orchestras; he has returned to A&M to play benefits for those affected by Hurricane Harvey and the 1999 Bonfire collapse; and he has worked to support many other groups including the Make- A-Wish Foundation, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Kerrville’s Peterson Regional Medical Center, United Way- Hays County, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, The Boot Campaign, T.J. Martell Foundation, The Fisher House at Fort Sam Houston, Hill Country Alliance, Seton Fund, Carry The Load Foundation, TIRR Foundation, Texas Public Radio, Fine Arts Academy at Austin’s McCallum High School, BMI Foundation and many educational causes. He created the What Does Music Look Like To Me? art contest program in Kerrville schools.
Uniquely within the music industry, he provides his musicians and bandmates security by keeping them on salary year-round with insurance and retirement accounts.
Keen is a Diamond Century Club member of The Association with 29 years of giving.
His family includes his wife, Kathleen, and daughters Clara Rose and Chloe Grace, as well as his late uncle L.D. Puckitt ’44.
“I went into A&M under the impression that I was going to graduate and go into the oil business like my dad,” Keen said. “Instead, after having stolen my sister's guitar, I cultivated a group of friends within A&M, which nurtured my love and desire to create and play music.”
- Robert Earl Keen