CADET SLOUCH
U.-S.MA1
by Jim Earie P arSOnS To MISS A&M Life
Listen Up
Editor:
A pain strikes deep within a
mother’s womb,
She cries out in the night.
A father weeps silently as he sits
by his desk at work.
A boy has died.
evening. “Why I have that paper
to write, the test to study for, and
my research is too important to
take time from. But it is only a
few minutes so I will put up with
it. Afterwards I can turn on the
lights and work!” It was two days
into classes.
Death’s cadence keeps time, a
mournful sound.
A valley speaks for the departed.
Wails of trumpets disturb the
birds.
A man no longer walks with his
comrades.
At A&M there is Silver Taps.
Ah, yes, we are a large university.
Is it 15,000 now? We cannot live
in the past. It is ridiculous for an
institution so big and so import
tant in research to turn out its
lights and remain still for an
We move to another year and
traditions bend a little and
crack.
Another Aggie dies.
Yes, we still have Silver Taps, but
the spirit took a day off to die.
When the Aggie Spirit dies who
will hold Silver Taps?
A mother cries herself to sleep.
A father hides his tears at work.
At A&M there is . . .
Jan Faber ’74
Ask Walter H. Parsons Jr.
what he’s enjoyed most about life
and his answer is quick — Texas
A&M.
Parsons retired Thursday as
director of the TAMU Physical
Plant, the institution’s largest
department with 630 employes
and the tough job of providing
maintenance and utilities to
almost all parts of the nation’s
largest college campus.
The retired Army Corps of En
gineers colonel, a 1930 architec
tural structural engineering grad
uate of TAMU, has earned a rep
utation for getting the most out
of people through kindness. He
also has a hard time saying “no”
to any civic request.
Parsons and his wife plan to
stay in the Bryan-College Sta
tion area. “I have enough work
to keep me busy for a long time,”
he said on the eve of retirement.
His civic work includes board
member for the Bryan City Mis
sion, including serving as chair
man of the building committee
which plans to develop a 9%-acre
donated site; Sir Knight in the
Knights of Columbus, as well as
district deputy and Master of the
Fourth Degree; past president of
the St. Mary’s Catholic Church
Council; 10-county chairman of
the USO, and former president
and six-year board member of
Catholic Charities, Austin Dio
cese.
In addition, Parsons is a board
member of the Sam Houston Boy
Scouts of America, the College
Station Salvation Army, past
president of the College Station
Community Chest, president of
the College Station Kiwanis Club
and advisor to Alpha Phi Omega,
the student service fraternity.
Since joining the staff in 1962,
Parsons has concentrated on serv
ing the community and improv
ing the physical plant services.
He said reorganization of the
physical plant, the former Build
ing and College Utilities Depart
ment, and computerization of the
administrative department are
his proudest accomplishments.
The workers were organized
under the same system used by
the armed forces. While the en
rollment and facilities of the uni
versity almost doubled over the
past 10 years, the work force has
remained about the same.
“When we started computer
ization, there was concern that
some of the people would lose
System Plant Employes Honored Wednesday
Three men directly involved in
Texas A&M’s recent phenomenal
growth were honored Wednesday
by TAMU system physical plant
employees at a retirement party.
Howard H. Badgett, assistant
director of facilities planning and
construction; C. K. Leighton,
system civil engineer, and Paul
K. Gippin, construction inspec
tor who has been overseeing the
Mitchell Campus program in
Galveston, retired.
Executive vice president Gen.
A. R. Luedecke presented retire
ment certificates.
“On an occasion such as this
when friends gather that you
have worked with the major part
of your lives, it’s a saddening
note,” Gen. Luedecke commented.
“Actually, it’s not when you can
swap your pencil, paper and slide
rule for a good fishing pole.”
Badgett has been building
campus facilities 38 years, in
cluding planning most of the
buildings standing today. The
Denison native earned bachelor
and master’s degrees from Texas
A&M, in 1929 and 1932. He was
with the Texas Engineering Ex
periment Station before World
War II. Returning as assistant
manager of construction, Badgett
became director of the physical
plant, manager of TAMU system
physical plants and then assist
ant director of system facilities
planning and construction.
Leighton joined Texas A&M in
1940 as construction engineer and
became the system civil engineer.
A 1933 A&M graduate in civil
engineering, he worked for the
Texas Highway Department sev
eral years and is past-president
of the Brazos Chapter of the
Texas Society of Professional En
gineers. A registered engineer,
Leighton was formerly from Cor
sicana.
Gippin joined the university in
1968 as construction inspector.
Also an A&M graduate, Class of
1928, with his bachelor degree in
mechanical engineering, he is a
registered professional engineer
with more than 40 years experi
ence. The Dallas native was un
able to attend the retirement
event due to illness of his wife.
Batt News Summary
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
SAN CLEMENTE, Calif. —
President Nixon flew Wednes
day to Hawaii for summit talks
with Japanese Prime Minister Ka-
kuei Tanaka.
Besides his two days of talks
with Tanaka, Nixon plans some
election-year politicking and a
meeting Thursday with Ambas
sador Ellsworth Bunker, U. S.
envoy to Saigon.
Appearing before the New
York Board of Rabbis, the South
Dakota senator urged that re
strictions on emigration by So
viet Jews be eased.
NEW YORK — Democratic
presidential nominee George Mc
Govern charged Wednesday that
President Nixon has remained
silent “in the face of continued
persecution of Soviet Jews.”
REYKJAVIK, Iceland — Bob
by Fischer inched closer to the
world chess championship Wed
nesday as he drew the 20th game
of his match with Boris Spassky.
The American challenger needs
only one more point to take the
world title away from Spassky.
HONOLULU — President Nix
on arrived in rain-swept Hawaii
Wednesday for summit talks
with Japanes Prime Minister
Kakuei Tanaka and predicted the
mid-Pacific conference will con
tribute to a new structure of
peace.
A lei draped around his neck,
Nixon stood in the rain and told
an estimated 5,000 persons who
gave him a warm welcome that
he was here to further the United
States’ “very close friendship”
with Japan.
Nixon noted that it was in Ha
waii three decades ago that
World War II began with the
Japanese attack on Pear Harbor.
TRY
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eriods, September through
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EDITOR MIKE RICE
Managing Editor Larry Marshall
News Editor Rod Speer
Women’s Editor Janet Landers
Sports Editor Rjn Henry
their jobs. Actually, it allowed
us to take on more work and in
creased efficiency,” Parsons re
lated.
He also started an “employe
of the month” program, which
the employes like. He said com
plaints dropped fast.
Another of Parson’s ideas was
providing free uniforms and uni
form laundry for the physical
plant workers. It improved ap
pearance and attitude on the job.
One university official pointed
out Parsons’ has the toughest job
on campus. His department not
only provides all the utilities for
the 5,200-acre campus, but han
dles all maintenance. The depart
ment is responsible for just about
everything except new construc
tion over $10,000.
Parsons came to TAMU follow
ing retirement as center engineer
at the vast Army Air Defense
Center in El Paso. His Army ca
reer included organization and
construction of an oil refinery
and 1,000 miles of pipe lines in
the Yukon Territory during
World War II.
He was senior engineering
branch professor in the ROTC
program here from 1948-51,
which he calls the best time of
his Army career, and various
other assignments in Germany,
director of instruction at the
Army Engineer School at Fort
Belvoir, Va., education at Fort
Leonard Wood, Mo., and director
of the Department of Army
Snow, Ice and Permafrost Re
search Establishment.
Four of the Parsons’ five sons
attended TAMU. They are Lt.
Col. Walter H. Parsons III, 1956
graduate now on the engineering
staff at West Point; Maj. Donald
Parsons, 1958 graduate, military
intelligence officer with the 82nd
Airborne Division at Fort Bragg,
N.C.; David Parsons, who at
tended A&M one year before go
ing to West Point and graduat
ing, now an engineer in Min
neapolis, Minn., and Paul Par
sons, 1970 graduate employed by
a Houston glass company. Son
Michael, a New York freelance
advertising writer studied at a
St. Louis seminary.
THE BATTALION
Page 2 College Station, Texas Thursday, August;
LITTLE JOHN'S
Catering Service
4613 Texas Avenue
Phone 846-1132
John Arnold — M^r.
BARGAIN LAND
1809S.CollegeAv.Bryan 10AM 8 PM Phone#822-2210
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Back Packs
- Sleeping Bags —
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— Fishing Equipment
— Knives —
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— Guitars —
★ lank Tops^
— Furniture
— Tape Decks —
-8-Track Tapes —
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WE BUY, SELL, & TRADE
or
LET US SELL IT FOR YOU
If your college days
are nearly over
your need for
Worldwide banking service
has just begun.
Graduation means the end of student status.
And the beginning of your professional life.
Through this period of transition and beyond
you will need a friendly, responsive banking
relationship. Promotion will mean travel. And
your need for a stable, permanent banking
home will be one of your most valuable assets.
The Bank of A&M’s Worldwide Division offers
a program for professionals that is without
equal:
• liberal car financing (100% for up to 42
months).
• instant credit as you need it (loan checks
to exercise a pre-arranged line of credit).
• overdraft protection (a frequent problem
related to relocation or travel).
• no monthly service charge (based upon
$200 minimum balance).
• and best of all, person to person com
munication by telephone or airmail for
Worldwide service (wherever you might be).
Take a few minutes today to discuss your
need for a Worldwide banking relationship
with the Bank of A&M. See Vice President
Stanley Sommers or Lt. Col. Glynn P. Jones
(USAF-Ret). On graduation day, and every
day thereafter, you’ll be glad you did.
JMn THE BANK OF A&M
/gYj\c Highway 6 South/College Station
(M V m\J Telephone: 846-5721
No bank is closer to Texas A&M or its students.
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