Tau Man of the Year Honorees

Wade Kilpatrick (Tau '69) Awarded
2011 Tau Man of the Year

The Tau Chapter honored Wade Kilpatrick as this year's Kappa Sigma Tau Man of the Year during Parents' Weekend celebration on November 5.

A self-styled businessman with a quick wit and ready smile, Kilpatrick has a talent for creating opportunities and leveraging smart business investments. He also knows how to enjoy life and makes sure those around him enjoy it as well.

During his years at the University of Texas, Kilpatrick served two terms as social chairman and as Grand Master his senior year. He has been an active and continuous Tau Trustee since the late 70s. For more than 25 years, he has been an enthusiastic fundraiser for rush and chapter activities, hosting annual receptions for Alumni in his home.

Kilpatrick was very involved in the Kappa Sigma House move to the present location and has made substantial financial contributions toward that effort, as well as to the Tau 125 campaign to raise funds for the Lodge and future Kappa Sig House. He served two terms as Tau Trustee president and was chairman of the Building and Design team for the Lodge.

"No one has worked harder or more effectively than Wade Kilpatrick on behalf of the Kappa Sigs. The Tau Chapter would not be where it is today without his efforts," said Hagen McMahon, Jr., 2010 Tau Man of the Year.

Kilpatrick graduated from UT in 1970 and earned his JD degree from The University of Houston Law School.

In 1975, he began a law practice with a focus on real estate, banking and commercial transactions. Along with two associates, he purchased a large title insurance agency which grew to be one of the largest title insurers in Houston. Prosperity abounded until the real estate market crash of the late 80s. Kilpatrick refers to the years that followed as "the humility years."

But true to his character, he got back into the market and purchased new commercial real estate properties and other commercial interests. He remains active today in managing a variety of related private equity investments.

Kilpatrick and his wife, Melinda, have been married for 38 years and have raised three very accomplished children: Gaines, Brian and Kelly.

He and Melinda divide their time between their Houston home and their Hill Country ranch in Sisterdale. They are active on two prominent Land Trust boards, The Cibolo Conservancy and The Galveston Bay Foundation, through which they work to protect and preserve environmentally sensitive lands and habitats.

Since 2000, Kilpatrick has been the lead singer for the vintage rock and roll band "Mid Life Crisis and the Hot Flashes." The band has played numerous high profile events over the years, including inaugural events for President Bush and President Obama.

Kappa Sigma Tau Man of the Year Wade Kilpatrick (Tau '69) (third from left)
with fellow Tau Trustees (left to right) Jim Pritchett (Tau '71),
Hagen McMahon (Tau '66) and Joe Longley (Tau '61)

 

Charles Bankhead (Tau '57)
Honored Posthumously by Tau Chapter

Charles H. "Charlie" Bankhead (Tau '57) a Kappa Sig remembered as a loyal friend and mentor to many who followed him, was honored posthumously as Tau Man of the Year on November 5. Bankhead died March 11, 2011.

After graduating from Arlington Heights High School in Fort Worth, Bankhead enrolled at the University of Texas at Austin in 1956 and pledged Kappa Sig in 1957. An outstanding athlete, he ran on the UT track team and was Southwest Conference pole vault champion. Representing Kappa Sigma in the UT Intramural program, he helped the Kappa Sigs win almost every sporting event on campus.

"Charlie was a true leader in everything he did," said Phil Pritchett (Tau '59) in a tribute to Bankhead during the awards ceremony. "Everyone enjoyed being with Charlie. I'm proud to have been his friend."

After graduating from UT, he went to work in the Louisiana oilfields as a mud engineer. He later moved to Dallas where he had an accomplished career in securities and finance.

He is survived by his wife Marcia McMurtry Bankhead of Dallas, daughter Elizabeth Taub Bankhead of Dallas, step-children Christian Liston Reid of Denver, Colorado, Elizabeth Liston Jahn of Dallas, Jack D. Liston, III of Dallas, their spouses, and his nine beloved grandchildren.

An avid golfer, he was a long-time member of Brook Hollow Golf Club, where he served on the board of directors. He treasured his many deep and lasting friendships, his family, his dogs, playing gin rummy, and spending time at his farm in Mabank, Texas.

 

The Tau Men of the Year are honored by the Tau Trustees
in recognition of their accomplishments among their fellow
man and their loyalty to Kappa Sigma and Tau Chapter.

2011		Wade Kilpatrick '69, Charles Bankhead '57
2010		F. Hagen McMahon, Jr. '66
2009		George A. Alcorn '53
2008		Robert A. "Monk" White '60
2007		Clifton Morris '53
2006		Robert H. Whilden Jr. '54
2005		Norman Joe Bailey '73
2004		Eric Douglas McLeod '60
2003		John F. Austin III '63
2002		Joe K. Longley '61
2001		R. D. "Dan" Burck '51
2000		Nicholas K. Kralj '62
1999		Jack W. Lander Jr. '43
1998		Charles C. Pierce Jr. '53
1997		Robert J. Hewitt '50
1996		David E. Bell '63, William W. Collins, Jr '65, Stewart W. DeVore Jr. '65, Mark L. Hart Jr. '62, Robert J. Hewitt '50, Robert A. Moor '64, John T. Sharpe '55
1995		Robert A. Moor '64
1994		Charles Alcorn '46
1993		Mark L. Hart Jr. '62
1992		William "Bill" D. Wittliff '59
1991		W. James McAnelly, Jr. '48
1990		Richard G. Miller '38
1989		Richard E. Rainwater '63
1988		Hon. David O. Belew Jr. '39 Hon. Joe B. Estes '25
1987		William W. Collins, Jr. '65
1986		Steve Murrin Jr. '59
1985		John H. Rauscher Jr. '43
1984		John R. Warren '55
1983		Webb M. Sowden Jr. '54
1982		John T. Sharpe '55
1980		Ron Waldie '55, Frank C. Erwin Jr. '38
1979		William N. Finnegan III '43
1977		E. Philip Moore
1976		Ben F. Looney III '45
1975		Hilmar G. Moore '39
1974		Timothy J. Herman '63
1972		Robert D. Spellings '60
1971		Howard V. Rose Jr. '50
1970		Hilmar G. Moore '39
1969		James L. Bayless '43
1968		Jack G. Taylor Jr. '61
1967		Dause L. Bibby '30
1966		Denton A. Cooley, MD '38
1965		Frank C. Erwin, Jr. '38
1964		Judge Robert E. Thomason 1899
1963		Joe B. Hogsett '01, James P. Nash '12, C. R. Smith '24
Date Unknown:		Jack Josey '35

 

Nash Phillips Remembered
1920 - 2011

Nationally recognized home builder and developer Nash Phillips (Tau '38) passed away on February 7, 2011. 

A man of enduring faith, unyielding perseverance and undaunted character,  Nash Phillips personified the best of Kappa Sigma.  He is remembered not only for his own drive to be the best, but for encouraging and supporting those around him in their efforts to succeed. 

A founding partner of Nash Phillips Copus and later Wilshire Homes, he created two of the most successful home building and residential development companies in the nation. 

One of the first in his industry to combine the building of homes with the marketing and selling of homes, he helped create the "realtor" profession as we know it today. 

Named "Builder of the Year" in 1984 by Professional Builder magazine, NPC was then the largest privately owned builder in the United States, building homes in communities throughout Texas, Arizona and Colorado. 

NPC was also active in the commercial and multi-family housing markets, building office parks, hotels, shopping centers, apartments and condominiums.  The NPC planned community was a forerunner to the "new town" concept that is popular today.  

In 1991, Mr. Phillips co-founded Wilshire Homes to focus on home building and neighborhood development in Austin and San Antonio.  Recognized by his peers for an extraordinary career that spanned 65 years and provided more than 80,000 homes, he was inducted into the Texas Homebuilding Hall of Honor in 2009. 

The son of an army surgeon, Nash McDowell Phillips was born at Ft. Bliss, Texas on November 28, 1920.  After graduating from the University of Texas, he served his country in World War II as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Navy, Fleet Air Wing 12, stationed in the North Atlantic. 

Mr. Phillips is survived by his daughter, Elizabeth Phillips Horne, her husband, Ed Horne, and grandson, Nash Horne, who pledged Kappa Sigma  at UT Austin in 2010.  He is also survived by two granddaughters, Kathleen and Rosemary Sharp, and a large extended family. 

To honor his remarkable life, memorials can be made to The Nash Phillips Memorial Scholarship, Tau Chapter of Kappa Sigma, at 2508D Quarry Road, Austin, TX 78703.