Willard
R. Sparks
Born
in Dibble, Oklahoma October 10, 1936
Died
in Memphis, Tennessee on January 30, 2005
A memorial
service for OSU graduate and benefactor Willard R. Sparks is scheduled at the
Free Will Baptist Church, Dibble, Okla. on Saturday, February 5, 2005, at 1:00
p.m. A reception will be held at the Dibble High School gymnasium
immediately following the service.
Sparks,
68, of Memphis, was regarded as one of the nation’s leading agricultural
economists, businessmen and philanthropists. He also was internationally
recognized as an authority on agricultural commodity research and
analysis. He died at his Memphis home early Sunday morning of cancer.
Originally from Dibble, Oklahoma, he spent much of his boyhood working on the
family’s grain and livestock farm as well as raising and showing livestock at
area fairs. Later, Sparks received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from
Oklahoma State University and his doctorate from Michigan State University, all
in agricultural economics.
In 1963, he and his family moved to Memphis from New Jersey where he joined
Memphis-based Cook Industries as director of economic research. He later
became senior executive vice president and director of Cook’s worldwide
Agriproducts Group. The highlight of his 14-year career at Cook was the
dominant role he played in orchestrating the first big sale of U.S. grain to
Russia.
In 1977, Sparks founded Sparks Commodities, later named Sparks Companies, Inc.,
where research analysts and consulting specialists served hundreds of the
world’s leading agribusinesses. In 2003, the firm was sold to a publicly owned
British company.
Sparks also was a part owner of Cattlco, Inc., one of the nation’s largest
cattle-feeding operations, and Vining-Sparks, a NASD-registered general
securities firm headquartered in Memphis. He was affiliated with Refco,
LLC, one of the world’s largest futures commission merchants headquartered in
Chicago, and he held membership in the major U.S. commodity exchanges.
Sparks also had extensive farming and ranching interests.
In addition to his corporate activities, Sparks was a respected community
leader who devoted particular attention to supporting education, sports and the
arts. For 15 years, until 2003, Sparks served as chairman of the Public
Building Authority of Memphis and Shelby County, an entity responsible for
overseeing Memphis’ famed Pyramid arena. The National Agricultural
Alumni and Development Association honored him with the Outstanding
Philanthropist Award. In 2004, the Memphis Cancer Foundation
presented its “Spirit of Life” to him.
Sparks has been a loyal friend and supporter of the University of Memphis and
Oklahoma State University. At the University of Memphis, he received
several awards. Sparks was a member of the Board of Visitors for several
years and was its immediate past chairman. He established the Sparks
Family Chair of Excellence in International Business, as well as the Sparks
Family Marketing Center, in the Fogelman College of Business and Economics.
In April 2003, the Bureau of Business and Economic Research was
renamed the Sparks Bureau of Business and Economic Research to honor the time,
expertise, leadership, and financial resources that he contributed to the
university.
At OSU, he was a founder of the Oklahoma State 21st Century Center
for Agriculture and Renewable Natural Resources, a former member of the OSU
Foundation Board of Governors, and since 1997, a member of the Dean’s Advisory
Committee of the Division of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources.
Moreover, Sparks and other members of the Sparks Companies staff served as
speakers at many of the Advanced Cattle Management Seminars sponsored by OSU;
he co-chaired the Bringing Dreams to Life campaign for the agricultural
division. Sparks also endowed a chair in agricultural economics and,
because of his generosity, the Willard Sparks Beef Research Center was opened
in 1998. Sparks has provided scholarships to students in the OSU
Department of Agricultural Economics since 1978; he also provides scholarships
to Dibble High School graduates attending OSU. Several years ago, he
established a President’s Distinguished Scholarship in honor of his
parents. In addition, he holds membership in the OSU POSSE.
He
received the 1987 Distinguished Alumnus Award from the OSU Alumni
Association, the 1996 Distinguished Agriculture Alumnus Award from the
College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, and the 1997
Distinguished Service Award from the Department of Animal Science. In
1998, Sparks received an honorary doctorate in social science at OSU, the ninth
person since 1927 to receive such an honorary degree. The OSU Alumni
Association also has named him to its 2005 Alumni Hall of Fame.
He leaves his wife Rita, his parents, Jess and Agnes Sparks of Dibble, Okla., a
daughter, Sherry Wallace of Houston, Texas, two sons, Robert Sparks of Eads and
Brian Sparks of Germantown, Tenn., and a stepson, Jim McFarland of Jackson,
Tenn. He also leaves two brothers, Roy Sparks of Chickasha and Glen
Sparks of Dibble; two sisters, Francis Fuller of Kennedale, Texas, and Bertha
Matthews of Cushing, Okla.; and nine grandchildren, Justin, Tara, Taylor,
Ashley, and Sydney Sparks; Honor Wallace; Mitchell, Ally and Stanton McFarland.
The family
requests that any memorials be made to the Free Will Baptist Church, P.O. Box
155, Dibble, OK 73031, or the charity of one’s choice.
