Tom McGehee
Encyclopedia
Thomas Rive McGehee, Sr. (July 12, 1924-August 6, 2002) was a Jacksonville, Florida
business and civic leader who served on the boards of over twenty entities and founded the charity, Dreams Come True
.
and the University of Alabama
, graduating with a Bachelor of Science in chemistry. He married the former Delia Houser Crawford in 1950. and they had two children, Thomas R. Jr. (Mac), and Delia Houser, II (Dede).
, to target the printing and graphics industries. The business was successful and expanded throughout 8 southeastern states. As of 2006, the firm recorded sales in excess of $500 million, employed 950 people and was one of the 50 largest private companies in the Greater Jacksonville Metropolitan Area.
founded Christian Television of Jacksonville. The non-profit purchased Channel 47
before it was launched in August 1980 and requested the call letters, WXAO. "XAO" stood for "Christ, the alpha and the omega" in Greek. Their intent was to be an alternative to commercial television's sex and violence by broadcasting programs from The PTL Club
, Christian Television Network
, and Trinity Broadcast Network. The station was Jacksonville's first 24-hour station, but never generated a large viewership and was sold in 1990 for approximately $3 million.
from 1961–1992 and served on the board of Jacksonville University
from 1959 until the late 1990s, including a stint as chairman in 1992. McGehee volunteered to help neighborhood groups like Friends of Five Points as often as more visible organizations, such as the Chamber of Commerce.
In 1996, McGehee and his wife made a $1 million gift to the University of Florida
veterinary school to build an Equine Reproduction Facility which was named in honor of their daughter Dede, a veterinarian and UF alumnae.
, Robert Feagin and Laurence Lee, Jr. started the Greater Jacksonville Area Community foundation
in May 1964 as "a depository for the people of Jacksonville – both the large and small – the wealthy and the moderate, to be able to give for the betterment of their fellow man, not just today, but in a continuing way, through the principles of a foundation, for years to come", wrote McGehee. McGehee was so involved with the organization that many people thought that
the Jacksonville Community Foundation was Tom McGehee's personal philanthropy, according to a consultant.
McGehee served as chairman for almost 20 years until he recruited his friend, Bob Shircliff, to become chairman and infuse new enthusiasm into the organization. Shircliff hired Andy Bell as Executive Director, but Shircliff and Tom McGehee supplemented Bell's salary for several years because the foundation couldn't afford what Bell was worth.
As of 2009, the Community Foundation in Jacksonville, as it is known today, is the oldest community foundation in Florida, and counts more than 350 individual funds with over $125 million in assets. They have issued grants in excess of $140 million.
. Lee's dream was to play with golfer Fred Couples
, and McGehee and his wife, Delia, arranged to fulfill George’s wish. Lee died less than a year later, and was buried with the driver given to him by Couples. McGehee presented the idea of a non-profit group that grants the wishes of children with life-threatening illnesses to several local business leaders who supported the concept, and Dreams Come True
(DCT) was created. At the time, McGehee owned television station channel 47, and the charity began work in an empty office there, but grew. At the time of McGehee's death, it had granted the wishes of 1,275 children. According to Suzanne Crittenden, DCT Associate Director, "His promise to every child was that 'if you have a life-threatening illness, you will have a dream come true.' He left a big void, but he's charged us with quite a mission."
Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Florida in terms of both population and land area, and the largest city by area in the contiguous United States. It is the county seat of Duval County, with which the city government consolidated in 1968...
business and civic leader who served on the boards of over twenty entities and founded the charity, Dreams Come True
Dreams Come True (non-profit)
Dreams Come True is a 501 non-profit organization in Jacksonville, Florida, begun by Tom McGehee and his wife Delia, that grants the dreams of children with life-limiting illnesses...
.
Early years
McGehee was born and raised in Jacksonville and served in the US Army during World War II. He was a corporal in the 8th Armored Division until his discharge in 1946, then attended Jacksonville UniversityJacksonville University
Jacksonville University is a private university in Jacksonville, Florida, on the banks of the St. Johns River. The school was founded in 1934 as a two year college and was known as Jacksonville Junior College until 1958, when it shifted its focus to four-year university degrees and adopted its...
and the University of Alabama
University of Alabama
The University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States....
, graduating with a Bachelor of Science in chemistry. He married the former Delia Houser Crawford in 1950. and they had two children, Thomas R. Jr. (Mac), and Delia Houser, II (Dede).
Business
Thomas’s father, Clifford Graham McGehee, had founded the Jacksonville Paper Company in 1919, and after college, Thomas was dispatched to the company’s mill in Louisiana to learn the paper manufacturing business. By 1956, he was president of the company, which was sold by the family in 1965. Tom and his brother Frank immediately started a new company, Mac PapersMac Papers
Mac Papers, headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, USA is the largest supplier of quality printing paper and envelopes in the Southeast United States, delivering 100,000 tons of paper each year.-History:...
, to target the printing and graphics industries. The business was successful and expanded throughout 8 southeastern states. As of 2006, the firm recorded sales in excess of $500 million, employed 950 people and was one of the 50 largest private companies in the Greater Jacksonville Metropolitan Area.
Television
Tom and Frank McGeheeFrank McGehee
Frank Sutton McGehee, Sr. was a Jacksonville, Florida business and civic leader who served on the boards of many non-profit entities and a generous supporter of the Bolles School.-Early years:...
founded Christian Television of Jacksonville. The non-profit purchased Channel 47
WTEV-TV
WTEV-TV is the CBS-affiliated television station for Florida's First Coast licensed to Jacksonville. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 19 from a transmitter on Hogan Road in the city's Southside section. The station can also be seen on Comcast channel 6 and in high...
before it was launched in August 1980 and requested the call letters, WXAO. "XAO" stood for "Christ, the alpha and the omega" in Greek. Their intent was to be an alternative to commercial television's sex and violence by broadcasting programs from The PTL Club
The PTL Club
The PTL Club , later called The Jim and Tammy Show, and in its last days PTL Today and Heritage Today, was a Christian television program first hosted by evangelists Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker, which ran from 1974 to 1989...
, Christian Television Network
Christian Television Network
Christian Television Network is a non-profit broadcast television network of small owned-and-operated stations that broadcasts religious programming. It is based in Largo, Florida , and the flagship station is WCLF channel 22, which signed on the air in the Tampa Bay Florida region in 1979...
, and Trinity Broadcast Network. The station was Jacksonville's first 24-hour station, but never generated a large viewership and was sold in 1990 for approximately $3 million.
Community
McGehee was active in civic endeavors in Jacksonville, serving as president of United Way in 1964. He was a member of the board of Barnett BankBarnett Bank
Barnett Bank, founded in 1877, eventually became the largest commercial bank in Florida with over 600 offices and $41.2 billion in deposits. The purchase by NationsBank was announced August 29, 1997, but even before signs on Barnett's branches were changed, NationsBank merged with BankAmerica in...
from 1961–1992 and served on the board of Jacksonville University
Jacksonville University
Jacksonville University is a private university in Jacksonville, Florida, on the banks of the St. Johns River. The school was founded in 1934 as a two year college and was known as Jacksonville Junior College until 1958, when it shifted its focus to four-year university degrees and adopted its...
from 1959 until the late 1990s, including a stint as chairman in 1992. McGehee volunteered to help neighborhood groups like Friends of Five Points as often as more visible organizations, such as the Chamber of Commerce.
In 1996, McGehee and his wife made a $1 million gift to the University of Florida
University of Florida
The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...
veterinary school to build an Equine Reproduction Facility which was named in honor of their daughter Dede, a veterinarian and UF alumnae.
Charitable foundation
Tom McGehee, along with J.J. DanielJ.J. Daniel
Jaquelin James Daniel , known professionally as J. J. Daniel, was an American lawyer, businessman, civic leader and newspaper publisher. Mostly forgotten in Jacksonville, Florida, where he was born and lived for most of his adulthood, he was once once of its most powerful people.-Family and early...
, Robert Feagin and Laurence Lee, Jr. started the Greater Jacksonville Area Community foundation
Community foundation
Community foundations are instruments of civil society designed to pool donations into a coordinated investment and grant making facility dedicated primarily to the social improvement of a given place...
in May 1964 as "a depository for the people of Jacksonville – both the large and small – the wealthy and the moderate, to be able to give for the betterment of their fellow man, not just today, but in a continuing way, through the principles of a foundation, for years to come", wrote McGehee. McGehee was so involved with the organization that many people thought that
the Jacksonville Community Foundation was Tom McGehee's personal philanthropy, according to a consultant.
McGehee served as chairman for almost 20 years until he recruited his friend, Bob Shircliff, to become chairman and infuse new enthusiasm into the organization. Shircliff hired Andy Bell as Executive Director, but Shircliff and Tom McGehee supplemented Bell's salary for several years because the foundation couldn't afford what Bell was worth.
As of 2009, the Community Foundation in Jacksonville, as it is known today, is the oldest community foundation in Florida, and counts more than 350 individual funds with over $125 million in assets. They have issued grants in excess of $140 million.
Grant a wish
In 1984, McGehee learned about George Lee, a 17-year-old Jacksonville teenager with cystic fibrosisCystic fibrosis
Cystic fibrosis is a recessive genetic disease affecting most critically the lungs, and also the pancreas, liver, and intestine...
. Lee's dream was to play with golfer Fred Couples
Fred Couples
Frederick Steven Couples is an American professional golfer who competes on the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour. A former World No. 1, he has won numerous events, most notably the 1992 Masters Tournament. In August 2011 he won his maiden senior major at the Senior Players Championship...
, and McGehee and his wife, Delia, arranged to fulfill George’s wish. Lee died less than a year later, and was buried with the driver given to him by Couples. McGehee presented the idea of a non-profit group that grants the wishes of children with life-threatening illnesses to several local business leaders who supported the concept, and Dreams Come True
Dreams Come True (non-profit)
Dreams Come True is a 501 non-profit organization in Jacksonville, Florida, begun by Tom McGehee and his wife Delia, that grants the dreams of children with life-limiting illnesses...
(DCT) was created. At the time, McGehee owned television station channel 47, and the charity began work in an empty office there, but grew. At the time of McGehee's death, it had granted the wishes of 1,275 children. According to Suzanne Crittenden, DCT Associate Director, "His promise to every child was that 'if you have a life-threatening illness, you will have a dream come true.' He left a big void, but he's charged us with quite a mission."