Dr. Eddie Joe
Davis ’67
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Year Awarded: 2018
College Station, TX
As president of the Texas A&M Foundation for 23 years, 1993- 2016, Davis led three major fundraising campaigns that brought more than $2 billion in support to A&M. He also served as Texas A&M University’s interim president in 2006-08 after Bob Gates’ appointment as U.S. secretary of defense.
As a student, Davis was cadet colonel (commander) of the Corps; a Distinguished Military Student and Graduate; a student senator; member of SCONA and Alpha Zeta; and co-editor of Agriculturalist magazine.
Davis was an Army paratrooper in Vietnam, and before joining the Foundation, held every key financial position, including CFO, at Texas A&M and The Texas A&M University System, finally serving as executive deputy chancellor of the System. In 2012, he received the National Commonfund Institutionally Related Foundation Award from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education.
Davis has been part of A&M’s 12th Man Ambassadors, Brazos County A&M Club president and a speaker at some 30 Musters. He has served on the Bryan-College Station Chamber of Commerce board, as vice chair of the College Station Development Foundation, and with many other community efforts.
He is an Endowed Century Club member of The Association with 35 years of giving, is a Heritage member of the A&M Legacy Society and College of Education and Human Development and has given a Delta Gamma Foundation Lectureship.
His family includes wife JoAnn; two children, including Michael Davis ’98 (wife: Annette Davis ’99); four grandchildren; and siblings-in-law Russ ’80 and Debbie ’80 Kellen and Phillip Meuse ’62.
“Growing up, as an Aggie student and as a young manager at A&M, I thought people who became Distinguished Alumni were giants. Guess I either lowered the average, or proved that keeping your nose clean and working hard actually pays off,”
- Dr. Eddie Joe Davis '67
Kathleen Miller
Gibson ’81
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Year Awarded: 2018
Dallas, TX
The president and CEO of Southwestern Medical Foundation, she spent 25 years at Bank of America, where she held leadership roles in corporate banking, international banking, asset management, risk and commercial banking, and was president of Bank of America-Dallas; moving next to Citibank, she became president of Citibank Central US Commercial and Citibank Texas.
She was named to Profiles in Diversity’s “10th Annual Women Worth Watching” and by the Dallas Business Journal as a “Top 25 Industry Leader in Women in Business.” She has been Chair of the Board for The Association of Former Students and a trustee of the Texas A&M Foundation, the 2018 campus Muster speaker and a Fish Camp namesake.
As a student, she was elected to Student Government for four years, serving as vice president for academic affairs her senior year, and was in Who’s Who in American Colleges and Universities, SCONA and the Century Singers.
Her awards have included A&M’s agricultural economics Tyrus R. Timm Honor Registry and the Women’s Legacy Award. She serves on the advisory board of A&M’s Bush School of Government and Public Service and previously served on boards including the Dallas Regional Chamber, Children’s Medical Center, Lamplighter School and the Dallas 2012 Olympic Bid Committee.
Miller Gibson is an Endowed Century Club member of The Association with 17 years of giving. She established the Jarvis E. Miller ’50 Excellence Fund for International Education.
Her family includes husband Robert; daughters Catherine Wade Gibson and Sarah Chamberlain Gibson ’15; three sisters, including Margaret Miller Moten ’83; father, Jarvis Ernest Miller ’50; and grandfather Richard Cook Miller ’26.
“Aggies lead and stand for traditions and values that make this the most remarkable place on earth,” said Miller Gibson. “Aggies are a bright light in a world that needs such bright light.”
- Kathleen Miller Gibson
L.D. (Duke)
Hobbs ’47
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Year Awarded: 2018
Plano, TX
As a 314th Infantry sergeant in World War II, he earned the Bronze Star and Purple Heart. After returning to A&M to finish his degree, he served as an Air Force intelligence officer in the Korean War. Moving to a civilian career, he worked for Procter & Gamble Co., then W.L. Gordon Co. merchandise brokers, where as vice president he was responsible for growing one of the largest non-food organizations in the industry. Upon retiring, he came back to A&M to teach management and direct the Center for Executive Development, during which time he also actively supported many A&M organizations.
He served for more than 20 years as a Class Agent for the Class of ’47, is now a Class Agent Emeritus, and has been a Fish Camp namesake. Proceeds from his book I Knew I Was an Aggie When support Texas A&M’s Cushing Memorial Library.
Hobbs is a Bronze Century Club member of The Association with 47 years of giving; he is a Heritage member of the A&M Legacy Society and Corps of Cadets Center, and with wife Laura created a Sul Ross Scholarship fund.
He has been congregation vice president at Our Saviour's Lutheran Church in College Station; an Eagle Scout, Scoutmaster, merit badge counselor and Boy Scouts of America regional director; a Republican National Convention delegate, election judge and county chair for regional development.
His family includes wife Laura; four children, David, Mark, Keith '84 and Stuart '84; four grandchildren; and siblings Sara Pitcher, John H. Wallace, Jr. ’52 and David M. Wallace ’59.
“Everything I have done since my fish year has been guided by Aggie core values"
- Duke Hobbs '47
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
A. Dwain
Mayfield ’59
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Year Awarded: 2018
Dublin, TX
Mayfield was a lead design engineer of the F-16 fighter jet at General Dynamics Corp., now Lockheed Martin; became Lockheed’s vice president of program development for F-16 worldwide marketing and, after 44 years in aerospace, retired as vice president of marketing initiatives.
As a student, he was active in dorm council and the student chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers, worked in the civil engineering surveying lab and was active in intramural sports. As he pursued his A&M master’s degree in civil engineering, he worked for the Texas A&M Transportation Institute as a graduate assistant, learning by gaining experience in both management and transportation research.
Throughout his career, he remained active with Texas A&M, serving on many boards and advisory councils. Mayfield has been Chair of the Board for The Association of Former Students and is a friend and supporter of the students in its Aggie Network Student Ambassadors group. He has served as a member of the President’s Advisory Council, College of Engineering Advisory Council and Chancellor’s Century Council. He, wife Lynda and their son have been longtime ranchers in Dublin. They also support Tarleton State University, where Mayfield was named a Distinguished Alumnus in 2017; he is an adviser to the aeronautical team, serves on the Tarleton Foundation’s board of directors and was presented with an honorary doctorate in 2017 for his support and his work with students.
Mayfield is an Endowed Century Club member of The Association with 41 years of giving; he is a member of the A&M Legacy Society, has supported The Association of Former Students CEO Excellence Fund and Chancellor’s Century Council, and with Lynda has created several scholarships and sponsors many Century Club memberships for current students.
His family includes wife Lynda; a son; one grandchild; and brothers Durwood Mayfield and Gilbert Mayfield ’65.
Charles L.
Pence ’51
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Year Awarded: 2018
Fredericksburg, TX
As a student, he was a cadet in the Corps’ A Infantry. After Army service in Korea and Japan, he began a 27-year career at ExxonMobil, becoming senior vice president of Exxon’s Friendswood Development Co. and developing Houston area’s first master-planned community, Clear Lake City. As president of Battlement Mesa Inc., he managed the construction of a new town, Battlement Mesa, near Grand Junction, Colo., to house employees of Exxon’s mining operation. Upon retiring from Exxon in 1982, he co-founded Jefferson Development Co., serving as CEO for 12 years; was co-founder and chairman of Entouch Systems for five years; chairman of SiEnergy LLC for 10 years; and is co-founder and chairman of Si Environmental LLC. He has long supported Corps of Cadets scholarships; he is an Endowed Century Club member of The Association with 35 years of giving and an A&M Legacy Society member who has supported the building of the Clayton W. Williams, Jr. Alumni Center and the Corps quad renovation.
His service to his communities includes chairing the transportation committee of the Houston Chamber of Commerce; serving as co-founder and president of the state’s nonprofit Grand Parkway Association developing an outer loop around Houston; and helping start University Baptist Church in Clear Lake City and Grace Fellowship Church in Lampasas.
His family includes wife Kay; four children with his late wife Patsy, including D. Britt Pence ’83; and 10 grandchildren, including Katherine Pence ’07, Kyle Pence ’18 and Connor Pence ’20.
“A&M means hope for our future,” Pence said. “Each time I come to the campus and see these young students, I am filled with a sense of optimism for the future of our country.”
- Charles L. Pence '51
John S.
Sharp ’72
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Year Awarded: 2018
College Station, TX
Prior to being appointed chancellor, Sharp served Texas for more than three decades in public offices.
As a student at A&M, Sharp was student body president, on Corps staff, served as Class president and played rugby. He was a member of Squadron 6 and after graduation served as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army Reserves. In 1976, he earned a master’s degree in public administration from Southwest Texas State University while working at the state Legislative Budget Board, then opened a one-man real estate firm in Victoria.
He represented Victoria in the state House of Representatives 1979-83 and was a state senator 1983-87. Serving next in statewide offices, he was Texas’ railroad commissioner 1987-91, then state comptroller 1991-99. After working as a principal at tax-consulting firm Ryan LLC, he was appointed head of the state Tax Reform Commission in 2005.
As System chancellor, he leads one of the largest systems of higher education in the nation, a statewide network of 11 universities and seven state agencies, with a budget of $4.7 billion.
Speaking in 2016, he said, “There is no place, and there is no university, where love and respect for each other and loyalty and commitment to each other is stronger than Texas A&M University.”
In 2017, the State of Texas tapped him to lead the Governor’s Commission to Rebuild Texas post-Hurricane Harvey.
Sharp is a Diamond Century Club member of The Association with 12 years of giving and has supported A&M’s Student Government Association Endowment Fund.
His family includes wife Charlotte; two children; and one grandchild.
“Everything I ever will be is because of Texas A&M University"
- John S. Sharp '72
James M.
Singleton IV ’66
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Year Awarded: 2018
College Station, TX
Practicing architecture for over 40 years, Singleton has specialized in educational facilities for more than 100 districts in Texas with over 300 K-12 projects; his work also includes medical buildings, banks, office buildings, athletic centers and pro bono work such as the Brazos Valley African American Museum, Bryan’s Queen Theatre and the Boys and Girls Club of the Brazos Valley.
Attending A&M on a football scholarship, he earned dual degrees: a bachelor of arts degree in architecture and a bachelor of science degree in architectural construction. He was a Distinguished Military Graduate of the Corps of Cadets and president of the Lettermen’s “T” Association. During his military service in Vietnam, he was an Army helicopter scout pilot, “Gambler 00.”
A founding member of the Lettermen’s Association and member of its board of directors, he was inducted in 2002 into its Hall of Honor for his leadership in completing the original A&M Sports Museum. He is an Outstanding Alumnus of A&M’s College of Architecture. In 2015, he was elevated to the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Architects. He currently sits on the advisory council of A&M's College of Architecture.
He has mentored dozens of aspiring Aggie architects; in 2016, he endowed the James M. Singleton IV ’66 FAIA Educational Architecture Professorship.
Singleton is a Silver Century Club member of The Association with 31 years of giving and a member of the A&M Legacy Society; he has also created endowments for MSC OPAS and is a member of the 12th Man Foundation and Corps of Cadets Association.
He has served on boards for the Brazos Valley Veterans Memorial, Boys and Girls Club of the Brazos Valley and Brazos Valley Symphony Society.
His family includes wife Stephanie Sale; four children, including Tanner Singleton ’06; grandchildren; siblings W. Jeff Singleton ’66, Jill Singleton ’76 and Hollee Singleton ’78; his late father, James M. Singleton III ’42, and late grandfather D.E. Singleton, Class of 1918.
Joseph B.
Swinbank ’74
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Year Awarded: 2018
Houston, TX
He started his first business while still an A&M student, and today is co-founder and co-owner of Sprint Companies in the construction waste and industrial service sectors. He has been a leader and catalyst throughout the formative and ongoing stages of A&M’s Rural Entrepreneurship Program in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences; mentoring, serving as a “Prof for a Day,” taking part in a yearly symposium and supporting a seminar series, graduate teaching assistantship and new classroom. In 2014, he led the establishment of the M. Edward Rister ’74 Chair in Rural Entrepreneurship. He has been a member of The Gardens at Texas A&M committee, Chancellor’s Century Council and the Agriculture and Life Sciences development council.
He is a Diamond Century Club member of The Association with 36 years of giving and a member of the A&M Legacy Society.
He has also supported Texas State Technical College and spoken at high schools, educating students about industrial job opportunities. In Fort Bend County, he has served on boards for the Work Force Commission, Habitat for Humanity and Economic Development Board.
“I am proud to be an Aggie. And as an Aggie I find the greatest personal satisfaction encouraging, sharing my experience, successes, struggles and failures with Aggies and others paying forward what has been given to me,” he said.
His family includes wife Shirley; three children, including Will Swinbank ’02 and Reagan Swinbank ’03; eight grandchildren; sister Jill Swinbank Norris ’80 and brother-in-law James F. Connally ’71.
“Challenges in life, school and business only helped to develop personal and professional strengths needed to succeed.”
- Joseph B. Swinbank '74
Graham
Weston ’86
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Year Awarded: 2018
San Antonio, TX
A business entrepreneur since he was a seventh-grader, Weston today creates ventures that help San Antonio entrepreneurs and is helping to reshape part of the historic core of the city into a tech district. His Weston Urban development firm is partnering with the city to revitalize the west downtown area.
As a student at A&M, he was involved with Town Hall, the Entrepreneur Club, Photography Committee and Bonfire.
In 1998, he helped cofound cloud computing firm Rackspace Hosting, and has served as its CEO and chairman of its board. His past real estate development has included San Antonio’s Weston Centre. He co-founded Geekdom, a collaborative coworking space for San Antonio startups, and his 80/20 Foundation invests in nonprofits that improve San Antonio’s tech entrepreneur ecosystem.
He was inducted into the Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs at Babson College in Wellesley, Mass., in 2014. In 2005, he was honored by the City of San Antonio for converting one of his vacant properties into a temporary shelter for more than 2,500 victims of hurricanes Katrina and Rita. At Texas A&M, he supports agricultural economics and entrepreneurship programs, making many personal visits to classes; he has also invested in increasing cloud computing education in San Antonio.
Weston has been a 10-year member of The Association’s Century Club and has supported the McFerrin Center for Entrepreneurship and contributed to teaching excellence and education.
His family includes wife Elizabeth and three sons, Glenn, Grant '21 and Gage.
“Dr. Litzenberg’s sales course taught me more than selling products. It taught me how to sell myself, which is a critical skill. It truly changed my life.”
- Graham Weston '86