Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (April 9, 1981)
6 M 1961 '6 pjdv '/CBpsjmu. uoijupea am 'sruoj '\iHsg3ui*- mmmi t=iag snows ofcf Ag's spirit By Gaye Denley Battalion Reporter Aggies who visit downtown Midland are greeted by a 7-by-9- foot maroon and white flag which flies atop the 14-story Gulf Building nine months a year, flashing the familiar block ATM. Beneath the flag are the old offices of Clayton W. Williams Jr., a 1954 animal husbandry graduate of Texas A&M College and owner of the Gulf building, one of the tallest structures in the West Texas oil capital. An independent oil and gas operator, Williams said he started flying the Aggie flag from his offices several years ago in Fort Stockton, Tex., when his seaetaries presented him with an Aggie flag as a gift. They began flying the flag on a regular basis when Williams was in his office to let friends and associ ates know he was in town. For the last six years, the ma roon and white flag has flown over Midland almost every day, no longer an indication that Wil liams is home but a symbol of his pride in and loyalty to his alma mater. "What finer star to hitch your wagon to than the A&M flag," Williams said. The Texas A&M flag will not fly from the Williams Com pany's new offices in outer Mid land., since the space is leased, not owned by Williams. Still, it is not difficult to identify his office or his manner as that of an old Aggie. Williams proudly displayed one of his company caps, white with a maroon "Williams Com- pany" embroidered around a maroon hand clenched in the "Gig 'Em" sign. "All over the world, thumbs up is upbeat," Williams said, ex- 1 Gaining why, outside of sheer oyalty, he chose the "Gig 'em" sign as his company emblem. A member of the Corps of Cadets his first three years at Texas A&M, Williams left the Corps as a senior because of a depth perception problem which could have barred him from flying in the Air Force after being commissioned. Instead, Williams joined the Army after his graduation. He left the service in 1956 and drifted from waiting tables in Mineral Wells, Tex., to selling insurance to, finally, brokering oil leases. Over the years, Williams has expanded his company from a one-man, one-secretary venture which earned him only $50 the first six months into a successful independent oil business which employs, either monthly or on contract, over 1,400 people. Williams Company has oper ations in Fort Stockton and Jack- son, Miss., as well as in Mid land, and Williams has drilled for oil all over the country. OLYMPUS OM-2 FEATURING OTF AUTO EXPOSURE. FULL MANUAL ALSO. INTERCHANGEABLE SCREENS. OTF AUTO FLASH. FREE! WINDER BAG With purchase of any Olympus camera in stock — very limited quantity. Offer may never be repeated. •a* OLYMPUS FACTORY DEMO SALE SATURDAY APRIL 11 9:00-3:00 Olympus Factory Personnel on Hand to Demonstrate Your Favorite Camera — Lens — Flash Too Many Specials to Name Them All Here Much More to See Quantities Limited — Sale Ends at Closing — So Come in Early Buy — Sell — Trade Repair 401 University Drive • 846-5418 • Northgate "I’ve flown Aggie flags from Wyoming to Florida on wells I've drilled — most of them dry holes," Williams said. It's been tremendous the way th^f th e whole school has been abl e t 0 go to the future with the fivefold growth it's had and stiU ret^^ t h e spirit," Williams said. Ev ^n more, in my opinion, than tl^g improvement in the quality education and the variety D f training that you can get at A&M, the real core — the real do^p.deep secret to A&M s 8 rowth and what it is, is that it stands fof doing the right thing'" Williams said. Ovet dm years, Williams has demon^dated his loyalty to and his a PPredation of Texas A&M in many W ays other than flying ^Ag^ie flag- Five 0 f his company planes read 'em" 0 n one side and carry a picture of "Old Sarge" on the oth^ r . At his ranch, beside a senior-bo 0 t-shaped pool, lies the old astroturf from the 50- yard lihe at Kyle Field. Most impressive/though, are his donations to the University, which have ranged from spon soring a President's Endowed Scholarship to giving Texas A&M the overriding royalty in terest in some oil properties valued at $3 million. That parti cular gift, Williams said, should bring the University over $10 million. "It's a source of pride to be able to give," Williams said. "But it's just something I want to do. I feel like that's right." With the same pride, Wil liams defends the oil industry and the independent operator. "Everything I do — or 99 per cent— is productive," Williams said. "Every step along the way, I have done good for lots of people." Oil is not his only business, however. Williams' farming backgroud has settled in his blood he said, and he runs a suc cessful ranch in West Texas. "I h ave a dang good econo mic farm, and my cattle ven tures are economic — in other words. I'm not playing with them," Williams said. "I'm a cow man, and I'm a fair one. And I love it." One of the keys to Williams' success on all fronts is his atti tude towards his employees. Af ter finishing a drilling or a pipe line job, Williams likes to throw a party for all the people who worked on the job. "I work my people hard and I work myself hard" Williams said. "When we get through working, there's a time to play, and I like to do them both very intensely." Battalion Classified 845-2611