Pub. 57 2016-2017 Issue 4

12 In between taking family vacations and operating a high pres- sure business, our winner often escapes with his wife, children and grandchildren to their farm to do pasture shredding, fishing, hunting, 4-wheeling, rounding up cows or checking fence lines. With a remarkable energy and drive that is a characteristic of every Texas dealer, our winner finds the time to serve onmul- tiple boards, contribute to dozens of charities and local institu- tions, and has become one of the true leaders of Waco, Texas. An outstanding franchised car dealer, the consummate com- munity leader, and with his wife, Collette, three daughters and the fifth generation of a great dealer family, grandchildren LillyGrace and Jack (with two more on the way), I present to you the 2017 Walter B. Wainwright Key Director Award winner, Richard Karr. Will the Karr family please join us on stage? Richard Karr is the third generation of his family to own franchised dealerships in Texas. His daughter and dealership partner, Mary Francis Karr-Ellis, carries the family legacy into the fourth generation. Mary Francis’s great grandfather, William Rountree started the business in Houston followed by his son and TADA Past Chairman of the Board, Gordon Rountree who moved the family dealerships to Waco where they still operate today. RichardKarrmarriedCollette Roun- tree right after they bothgraduated fromBaylorUniversity and soon joined father-in-law Gordon Rountree in the business. Congratulations to Richard Karr for being recognized as TADA’sKeyDirector for 2017, and for his outstanding leader- ship on the TADA Board of Directors.  Richard provided some photographs of previous Rountree stores, including their Pierce Arrow dealership in Houston in the 1930’s.

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