William T. Graham

EVANSVILLE-William Thomas “WT” “Bill” Graham, age 93, passed away peacefully in his home, surrounded by family, on Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2018, in Evansville. He was born April 18, 1924, to Patrick and Mary (Rogers) Graham in Rogers, Ga. WT married Beth (Stackhouse) Graham of New Jersey in 1942. Following Beth’s passing in November 2010, he married his long-time, dear friend and partner, Sandy Martin.  W.T. Graham graduated from Rabun County High School in Clayton, Ga., in 1942.  He served in the U.S. Army Airforce during World War II flying bombing missions over Germany as a B-17 radio operator and machine gunner. He was shot down twice.  First, on his seventh mission, he and his crew were forced to ditch their plane in the English Channel and were rescued by an English flying boat, even as they were under fire.  The second time, he and his crew were shot down over Germany on his eighth mission in 1944, when his B-17G was badly damaged.  WT and the surviving crewmembers bailed out and were captured. He was imprisoned in Stalag 17 in Krems, near Vienna. In 1945, after 14 months as a POW, he was liberated upon the arrival of Patton’s tanks and troops.  After the war, he settled in Madison, where he attended UW-Madison and soon after started the WT Rogers Company. WT, with his friend and partner, Jerry Kuypers, built WT Rogers from a one-product enterprise (typewriter cleaning brush) into a better than $50 million office product manufacturer and distributor with hundreds of products while employing 250 people on Madison’s south side.  WT was an active and engaged philanthropist. He provided organization, funding, uniforms and helped start South Madison’s little league program. He supported the University; especially its business school by helping to endow a chair of business ethics. Besides employing many residents in the Madison area, he organized his company as an ESOP, thereby sharing the ownership with all employees.  WT created and funded the Youth Art Awards to students in Dane County, where student art was recognized and displayed in the Capitol.  He was also a recipient of the Martin Luther King award for his long-standing leadership and commitment to promoting peace, fairness and honesty in the Dane County community.  At heart, WT was always a farmer. He was fascinated with growing things and became a big supporter of improving water quality through establishing and protecting native plant communities. WT’s company, Agrecol/Envirolok, located on some 800 acres surrounding his home in Evansville, has grown into the biggest Midwest producer of native grasses and wildflowers. His entrepreneurial genius, as applied in Agrecol, led to his being able to produce more native seeds and at lower prices than had been possible previously. Agrecol now supplies prairie seed to state natural resource departments, highway departments, Pheasants Unlimited, and a myriad of prairie enthusiasts, landscaping companies and nurseries.  Another of WT’s current companies is Rushing Waters Trout Farm and the Trout House restaurant in Palmyra, Wis.; along with a second location that he opened in Delavan, Wis., in the fall of 2017. Rushing Waters is the largest producer of fresh Rainbow Trout in Wisconsin with 50 ponds fed by artesian springs.    WT is survived by his wife, Sandy; children, Judy Graham of Silverton, Colo., Patti Graham of Madison, Bob (Druscilla) Graham of Rabun County, Ga., and Susie Haas of Rabun County, Ga.; grandchildren, Charles Graham, Sonia (Shawn) Allen, Quai Barker, Nicole Graham, Ben Graham, Mariah (Darius) McCurty, Shane Jackson, Antoine Jackson, Mary Haas, Lisa Haas and Malik Williams; as well as 27 great-grandchildren.  He was preceded in death by his parents; and his first wife, Beth Graham.  A fellowship service will be held at GUNDERSON OREGON FUNERAL AND CREMATION CARE, 1150 Park St., Oregon, at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 17, 2018, with the Rev. David Smith presiding.  A time of gathering will be held at the funeral home from 11 a.m. until the time of the service on Saturday.  In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to Boys and Girls Club of Dane County, 1818 W. Beltline Hwy., Madison, WI 53713 or online at https://www.bgcdc.org/get-involved/donate.    WT was many things.  He said that it all came down to just a couple of things that he loved better than anything else: “I love people and I love to make deals.”  For WT, this meant that a deal had to be fair and each party needed to see it that way for him to be happy.  He was generous, and always honest, and felt that the only way to succeed in business was to be honest in all your dealings.  WT never put on airs.  He saw himself as just a guy from Mountain City Georgia.  But he was not one to be underestimated, he was tenacious, confident, and exuberant, and preferred to trust other people.  His major quality, according to all who loved him, was his optimism, he would always see the good in anything or anyone.  WT was an incredible man who woke up every day with a positive attitude and enjoyed the beauty of the world.  He was a conservationist, entrepreneur, and a philanthropist.  He had a creative mind; he invented, he sculpted, he carved, he painted, he loved music and he played his guitar right to his last day.  Online condolences may be made at www.gundersonfh.com.                                                                                    Gunderson Oregon Funeral & Cremation Care 1150 Park Street (608)835-3515