Last week a group of SW student managers were attending a Leadership Retreat in Des Moines, IA.   Lee McCroskey was helping run the retreat and as they wrapped up lunch and were heading into the conference room, one of the managers remarked, “Rick Perry is in the restaurant.”   Lee was busy getting the projector ready, messing with the PowerPoint and then he got a text: “Rick Perry in restaurant.”  Lee said, “It dawned on me that this was no joke, since there was a debate that night in town!  We suspended the meeting and I headed over to meet one of our alums, now Republican presidential candidate.”  He talked about their time with Gov. Perry in his blog.

A cluster of student managers encircled Gov. Perry.  It was a nice encounter–the restaurant had emptied–and there were a couple bodyguards on the periphery.  Perry seemed interested in the Southwestern students, and his body language gave no indication he was in a hurry to exit.  We chatted about Southwestern, who we knew, and asked him about that night’s debate.  His “Gold Seal Gold” election schedule sounded daunting, and we were glad to be able to spend a few minutes with him.

Overall, Perry made a good impression (would you expect any less?).  He was warm, friendly, interested in us and what we were doing.  Obviously, photos were in order so we fell in and took a few shots.  As we broke up, we asked him if he would mind saying a few words about his Southwestern experience on video.  Perry told us that he could not endorse a product or company, but he did say we could quote him: “Southwestern’s the best thing I ever did.”

Gov. Perry’s roommate from the bookfield, Judge John Brieden, recalled their Southwestern summer in an article on mysanantonio.com.   They sold with Al Godwin’s Texas A&M group in Festus, MO in Southwestern’s library division.

The book set included a biblical encyclopedia, commentary and two others lost to Brieden’s memory. What he remembers are the qualities that later served Perry well in his state campaigns and will come into play if he leaps into the presidential race: a sharp focus both on the job before him and on his overarching goals.

A bookman running for President?  Most of us that have carried a SW samplecase would tell you it was inevitable.  Many of the skills gained from the bookfield are a great base for a Presidential candidate.   No matter what occupation we pursue, selling books with Southwestern is an experience I would not trade for anything.  A sentiment Gov. Perry echoed in a  Nashville Post article written after the passing of Southwestern’s former president, Dortch Oldham.

“I count my time working for Dortch Oldham as one of the most important formative experiences of my life,” commented Texas Governor Rick Perry…  ”There is nothing that tests your commitment to a goal like getting a few doors closed in your face” Perry said. “Mr. Oldham taught legions of young people to communicate quickly, clearly and with passion, a lesson that has served me well in my life since then. Mr. Oldham will be missed.”

Dortch grew up on a farm north of Nashville, and heard about selling books from a friend. As he said in an interview here several years ago, “He told me you could make as much as $200. That was during the Depression, and I was on the farm – that was real money to me.” He began selling while still a teenager. At the recommendation of J.B. and W.E. Henderson, his sales managers, he attended the University of Richmond, graduating in 1941. Dortch and his wife, Sis, later endowed Richmond with scholarships for deserving young people, who became known as Oldham Scholars. They did the same for U.T. Knoxville in 1999.

 

Dortch influenced thousands of young people, and through them, thousands more. He believed strongly in advising students to do what was in their best interest, and was a living example of the truth behind Edwin Markham’s great quotation that what we put into the lives of others comes back into our own. One of the young people he mentored throughout his early career later donated $500,000 to the University of Tennessee-Martin to help establish the Dortch Oldham Center for Economic Education and Entrepreneurial Studies. Dortch’s influence, represented by countless acts of generosity and kindness, will continue to multiply to the benefit of all society. 

 Click here to view Dortch’s obituary.