As trustee the Ella C. McFadden Charitable Trust, Clifford Taylor Jr. ’49 met annually with President's Endowed Scholars.
Irascible, loud, provocative, loving, devoted—these are some of the words those who knew, respected and cherished Clifford A. Taylor Jr. ’49 have used to describe him.
“If he liked you, he’d say, ‘you’re alright’—that was sort of his trademark,” laughed former Texas A&M Foundation Trustee Jim Creel ’69. He was still in college when he first met Taylor in the late 1960s, marking the beginning of a long and close friendship.
“[Cliff] was a man of high integrity and a wonderful person to have as a friend,” Creel added. “He was definitely a very unique character, and everyone that has ever encountered him would probably agree with some or all of that.”
In disposition, Taylor was a man of many colors; but underlying every shade was a deep, unshakeable loyalty that will forever leave a bold impression on all of the lives he touched.
“His personality was bigger than life and just so robust,” said Taylor’s wife Frances, reflecting on the 40 years they shared during their marriage, until Taylor’s death in 2013.
It was this very strength of character that put Taylor at the helm of a trust fund, which, at the time of its inception in 1985, represented the largest gift ever received by the Texas A&M Foundation.
The Birth of a Trust
After graduating with degrees in business and accounting, Taylor briefly served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War before returning to Texas A&M to pursue an MBA. Upon completing his education, Taylor returned to Fort Worth to start his career in accounting, eventually finding his way to the Southland Royalty Co., an independent oil and gas company owned by W.C. and Ella McFadden. Southland Royalty served as Taylor’s professional foundation for 15 years, and his loyalty to the company remained steady even after he retired in 1980 to start his own CPA practice.
Ella McFadden recognized her employee’s devotion. In her will, she made provisions to establish the Ella C. McFadden Charitable Trust and named Taylor one of its three trustees. The trust existed for a period of 20 years—from McFadden’s death in 1965 until 1985—and when it dissolved, assets from the trust were distributed among 35 charities and institutions across Texas. Taylor had a special interest in seeing the trust benefit his alma mater, and thus, Texas A&M University was high on the list.
Clifford Taylor Jr. '49 served as an infantry officer during the Korean War.
“Cliff cared deeply for the things he loved, and he always wanted the best for the things he cared about,” said Creel, who grew well acquainted with Taylor through their work together in the Fort Worth A&M Club. Taylor served as treasurer of the local club for more than 25 years before serving as its president. “Fort Worth was his home, and he was very active in the philanthropic community there, but there was no questioning his love for Texas A&M.”
Devoted not just to the university but to honoring McFadden’s legacy, Taylor made it his responsibility to help others and saw to it that funds from the trust would do just that.
“Cliff was a perfectionist, and he was intimidating to a lot of people,” said Frances Taylor. “His motto was ‘nearly right is wrong’ and especially in his younger years, it always had to be his way and no other way. But he was fair, and he always gave everybody a chance—things just had to be right. He had so much integrity.”
By establishing endowments to support scholarships and university programs, Taylor used the McFadden Trust to cultivate renewable resources for the university. His careful planning has benefited the institution’s long term growth, and in turn, will support the bright minds that grace Texas A&M’s campus.
“He wanted bright students to get good scholarships and to him, Texas A&M was one of the best places they could get their education,” Creel said. “He wanted them to love Texas A&M, to be good people and to be good Aggies.”
Major Motivator
It only took one visit to the Texas A&M campus for sophomore John D’Angelo ’17 to catch the Aggie spirit.
“Texas A&M felt like a much better fit for me than any of the other colleges I visited,” recalled D’Angelo. For the aspiring engineer, the decision to attend Texas A&M would have been so simple had it not been for the eight-hour drive to his home in New Orleans.
The Ella C. McFadden President’s Endowed Scholarships (PES) give high-achieving students the opportunity to pursue a Texas A&M education. In addition to covering enrollment costs, these merit-based scholarships also allow out-of-state recipients like D’Angelo to earn a non-resident tuition waiver for the duration of the scholarship.
“It’s been nice not having to worry as much about how I’m going to pay for tuition and instead be able to really focus on and enjoy my classes,” he said. Last fall, D’Angelo was selected as one of 20 recipients of the McFadden PES; this fall, he will be entering his second year as a mechanical engineering major. He believes his education will earn him a job where he can take advantage of his passion and knack for math and physics.
Also important, D’Angelo explained, is the academic motivation his scholarship provides. “It’s definitely been a major motivator for keeping me on my toes with classes and trying to keep my GPA as high as possible.” To remain eligible for funding, PES recipients like D’Angelo must maintain a 3.5 GPA.
“Scholarships like these are more important now than ever,” D’Angelo said, “because there is a large number of people who are considering pursuing an undergraduate degree but can’t afford to. It’s easy to ask yourself, ‘Is this really worth my time or should I just work at the Burger King down the street?’”
Only the Best for A&M
In addition to establishing the McFadden President’s Endowed Scholarship, the trust has funded more than 500 McFadden Honors Scholarships and over 400 McFadden Opportunity Awards. The trust’s endowments also support various Texas A&M departments and programs including the Corps of Cadets, athletics, the College of Liberal Arts, The Bush School of Government and Public Service, The Association of Former Students, the Private Enterprise Research Center, the Sterling C. Evans Library and the Texas A&M Foundation.
“Cliff Taylor may not have been a ‘traditional’ donor to Texas A&M, but that doesn't diminish his impact,” said Texas A&M Foundation President Ed Davis ’67. “In overseeing the McFadden Trust and choosing this university as one of its beneficiaries, Cliff played a pivotal role in expanding opportunities for our students through scholarships and on-campus programs.”
By Dini Susanto
Texas A&M Foundation
The Texas A&M Foundation is a nonprofit organization that solicits and manages investments in academics and leadership programs to enhance Texas A&M’s capability to be among the best universities.
