Alfred Randolph (Bill) Tandy was inducted into the Tulsa Hall of Fame in 2012

Alfred Randolph (Bill) Tandy flew his B-26 Marauder, a twin-engine, medium bomber, over Europe on 50 successful missions during World War II. The resolve and discipline he developed during those flights empowered him to carve an independent path in Tulsa, separate from the Tandy family legacy in Fort Worth, Texas.

The name Tandy, of course, is synonymous with the tenacious, innovative and entrepreneurial spirit that built a variety of innovative retail businesses. Tandy’s father, Dave, in 1919 in partnership with Norton Hinckley, created the Hinckley-Tandy Leather Company, which would evolve into a multifaceted, multibillion dollar organization that oversaw the growth of businesses that eventually would be known as Tandy Leather Company and RadioShack. The latter may be remembered as introducing in the 1970s the TRS-80, one of the first affordable personal computers on the market.

Bill Tandy married Marylouise Oak in September 1944. The couple had two children, A.R. Tandy, Jr., called Rant, and Carol. In 1957, Bill Tandy purchased Tandy Industries, which specialized in property development nation-wide, building homes and institutional buildings such as dormitories and libraries. In addition, he was president, CEO, and a director of Great Yellowstone Corp., a Tulsa-based oil and gas producer.

He attended Texas Christian University, the University of Minnesota, and Loyola University in Baltimore. He received an honorary degree from Ricker College, Houlton, Maine, in 1966.

He was active in several Tulsa organizations including Young Presidents, Junior Achievement of Greater Tulsa, the YMCA, and the Metropolitan Tulsa Chamber of Commerce.

The A.R. and Marylouise Tandy Foundation, established in 1985, recently contributed $14 million to The University of Tulsa to fund the A.R. and Marylouise Tandy School of Computer Science. Mr. Tandy died in 1971, at the age of 49. His widow Marylouise, who died in 2009, was graduated from The University of Tulsa in 1944 and was named distinguished alum in 1998.

Joseph W. Morris was inducted into the Tulsa Hall of Fame in 2012

Judge Joseph W. Morris has been at more than one crossroads during his career if, as defined by the first century Roman philosopher Seneca, a crossroads is where opportunity and preparation meet.

In 1948, when Morris, a Kansas native, arrived at his first professional crossroads, he was prepared: a degree from Washburn University in Topeka (1943), service in the U.S. Navy Reserve during World War II, a Bachelor of Laws degree from Washburn (1947), and a Master of Laws degree from the University of Michigan (1948).

The opportunity he took was a job with Shell Oil in Tulsa. He stayed there from 1948 to 1960, even spending some time in Shell’s New York City offices. He returned to Tulsa in 1960 to become associate general counsel of Amerada Petroleum, later Amerada Hess.

Morris found himself at a new crossroads when Dr. J. Paschal Twyman, president of The University of Tulsa and a frequent tennis opponent, offered him a position as dean of TU’s law school. He filled that role from 1972 to 1974.

President Richard M. Nixon presented Morris with the next crossroads by nominating him to serve as chief judge in the Eastern District of Oklahoma at Muskogee, a job he admittedly enjoyed.

This could have been the last stop in an impressive career but the CEO of Shell Oil invited him to become the company’s vice president and general counsel. Morris took that opportunity and agreed to relocate his family to Houston in 1978. He returned to Tulsa in 1984 when GableGotwals extended its hand to him. He has been a member of that law firm’s board and shareholder for 28 years.

He also is an adjunct professor at TU, teaching arbitration law.

Morris has received many accolades and honors for his professional and civic service. He met the challenges of the many crossroads that came his way as he focused on being a practicing lawyer, a teaching lawyer, and a judging lawyer.

Judge Morris’ first wife, Deane, died in 1986. The couple had three children, Jeffrey Morris, Marilyn Morris and Jeta Morris. He married again in 1989 to his vivacious wife Dona. His family also includes one granddaughter.

Jean B. McGill was inducted into the Tulsa Hall of Fame in 2012

Jean B. McGill never backed down from a challenge. In her personal life, in the volunteer roles she took on, in business, or in her advocacy on behalf of her favorite issues – women’s health and the fight against cancer.

A breast cancer survivor while still in her 30s Jean accepted that challenge and channeled her energy toward the cure for cancer. For more than 35 years, she was a proud volunteer in that fight. She lobbied the Oklahoma legislature on behalf of stringent anti-tobacco laws. She gave countless hours of her time leading the fight to outlaw smoking on airplanes. She traveled throughout North America and Europe speaking about cancer prevention and making keynote addresses at meetings in England, Norway, Portugal, Spain and Italy. In appreciation, the American Cancer Society presented Jean with an Honorary Life Membership in 2011, one of the highest awards of the Society.

As treasurer of the national organization for three years, she was responsible for the investment of over $1 billion of reserve funds. She oversaw a reorganization of the Society to comply with new accounting regulations. She served on the Society’s national board of directors from 1989 to 2011 when she was named an Honorary Life Member.

Born in Oklahoma City in 1941, the second of Wilma and William Bonney’s two children, Jean was a proud Oklahoman even when traveling outside the state. She graduated from Classen High School and received a Bachelor’s in Business Management degree from the University of Oklahoma. She married William Noble after college and the couple had two children: Susie Noble McRight and Scott Allen Noble.

The family moved to Tulsa 1974 and she worked part-time as an accountant in their family business, Builders’ Steel Company, and helped build it into a success. She married Jim McGill in 1992.

Jean also served on the board of the Hillcrest Healthcare System, Morningside Foundation, and the Tulsa Community Foundation. For more than 10 years she was a member of the Oklahoma Capital Investment Board, with oversight for over $100 million in state funds.

Jean died in July of pancreatic cancer. She is survived by her husband, four children, hers and Jim’s daughter Cindy Yanik and his son Mike McGill; a brother, Bill Bonney; and 11 grandchildren.

Bryan B. Close was inducted into the Tulsa Hall of Fame in 2012

Many military BRATS, which Hall of Fame inductee Bryan B. Close calls himself, never think of themselves as having a hometown. But that’s just not how Close sees it. From 1953, after his father retired from the Army Air Corps and his family settled in Tulsa, Close embraced the city as his community.

Close, president of CloseBend, Inc., a leader in the welding fitting industry, personifies many positive, personal qualities attributed to the military BRAT subculture: outgoing, independent, resilient, sensitive to international and cultural distinctions, and adaptable. For readers who feel uncomfortable with the term BRAT, a label that most current and former military children like, research shows it dates back to the British Empire.

Adaptability: Close received his diploma from Tulsa’s Edison High School in 1962, then headed west on highway 51 to Stillwater with the intention of pursuing a degree in veterinary medicine. Circumstances led him in a different direction however, and, after his third semester at Oklahoma State University, Close became a Hotel and Restaurant Administration major. After commencement he had a variety of jobs in that field.

Resilience: In 1974, Close’s father launched the family business. Bryan agreed to help out as a bookkeeper, a subject in which, he recalls, he did not excel at OSU. He soon was captivated by the manufacturing process and he excelled in its management. His focus is CloseBend.

Independent, outgoing personality and his service to others: Close is a member of advisory boards for several local non-profit organizations: Domestic Violence Intervention Services, the Parent-Child Center, Meals on Wheels, Life Senior Services, Family and Children’s Services, Multiple Sclerosis Society, and Big Brothers and Sisters. He is on the OSU Foundation Board of Trustees, the Provost’s Council, and the College of Human Sciences Partners Association. He served 15 years on the Oklahoma Alcoholic Beverage Laws Enforcement (ABLE) Commission.

Close’s donation to his alma mater established an endowed professorship in adulthood and aging. “All of us will need some assistance in this way someday, and the more we know about aging gracefully and comfortably will help to minimize our suffering in the future.”

Multi-cultural/international awareness: Bryan enjoys travel, especially to places known for fine cuisine.

Mouzon Biggs Jr. was inducted into the Tulsa Hall of Fame in 2012

Our community is better place because Mouzon Biggs Jr. did not become a chemical engineer. There is no doubt that if he had gone in that direction he would have been hugely successful. However, in his own words, “…God wanted me to do something different – to be a United Methodist minister.”

The Rev. Dr. Mouzon Biggs, Jr. has been senior minister at Boston Avenue United Methodist Church, an iconic edifice located immediately south of downtown Tulsa, since August 1980. During his tenure, the church has added more than 8,000 new members. Its endowment has grown from $200,000 to $26 million, and his weekly Sunday television broadcast at 11 a.m. on Tulsa’s ABC-affiliate is the most watched program in its time slot.

In a short, biographical essay, My Call to Ministry Unmistakable, Biggs wrote, “I have been under appointment of a bishop, preaching every seventh day since I was 18 years old. From the Sunday I walked forward, I have never doubted the claim of Christ on my life to be a minister for Him…”

This native Texan is a graduate of Centenary College of Louisiana and he holds a Master of Theology degree from Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University; a Doctor of Divinity from Texas Wesleyan University; and a Doctor of Humane Letters from Oklahoma City University.

As he walked his chosen path, Dr. Biggs also became an ecumenical and interfaith leader. He is a board member, twice president and director for life of the National Conference for Community and Justice, now the Oklahoma Center for Community and Justice (OCCJ). He is a founding member and host of that organization’s Jewish-Christian Dialogue Study Group. He is a faithful supporter of the OCCJ Interfaith Trialogue Series. He is involved in the Martin Luther King Commemoration Society and founding trustee of the Knippa Interfaith/Ecumenical Lecture Series. This work has resulted in his receiving numerous awards and honors, including the Tulsa Interfaith Award; the National Conference of Community and Justice Award; the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., “Keeping the Dream Alive Award;” the Tulsa Jewish Community’s “Righteous Gentile” Award; and Tulsa Rotary’s “Spirit of Will Rogers Award.”

He and his wife, Gayle, have two sons, Trey and Jason, and six grandchildren.