UA Walton College Announces 2007 Arkansas Business Hall of Fame Inductees

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Since its founding in 1999, the Arkansas Business Hall of Fame has honored 33 individual business leaders for their accomplishments and lasting impact on the state of Arkansas. The Sam M. Walton College of Business, University of Arkansas, and the Arkansas Business Hall of Fame Board announced another group of distinguished business leaders for the 2007 induction ceremony:

• The late Delbert E. Allen Sr., chairman, Allen Canning Company, Siloam Springs, Ark.
• Thelma Joshua and the late Ernest P. Joshua Sr., founders, J.M. Products Inc., Little Rock, Ark.
• Albert R. Yarnell, chairman, Yarnell Ice Cream Co., Searcy, Ark.
• The late Kenneth Pat Wilson, chairman and CEO, First Arkansas BancShares, Inc., Jacksonville, Ark.

Walton College Dean Dan L. Worrell said: “The Arkansas economy has been blessed with such a strong base of business talent. The Arkansas Business Hall of Fame was founded to highlight the important contributions of these business leaders. We believe it is important to the state’s future business leaders to honor and perpetuate these inductees’ names and accomplishments.”

The ninth annual Arkansas Business Hall of Fame induction ceremony will be held on Friday, Feb. 9, 2007, at the Statehouse Convention Center in Little Rock. The Arkansas Business Hall of Fame is permanently housed in the atrium of the Donald W. Reynolds Center for Enterprise Development at the Walton College on the University of Arkansas campus in Fayetteville.

The selection process was chaired by Walton College alumnus and Arkansas native Tommy Boyer, chief executive officer of Micro Images, Amarillo, Texas. A nominating committee of 17 business leaders encouraged people throughout the state and beyond to make nominations, and then a selection committee of 12 business and community leaders reviewed the nominations and chose the inductees. Criteria for selection included: the significance of the impact made as a business leader, the concern demonstrated for improving the community, and the display of ethics in all business dealings. In addition, the inductee must be over the age of 60.

The late Delbert E. Allen Sr. was chairman and CEO of Allen Canning Company, one of the largest privately held vegetable canning facility in the United States. In 1926, his father, Earl Allen, became the owner of the company, which weathered the Depression and helped feed the U.S. troops in World War II. Delbert Allen took over in 1948, growing the business through acquisitions that led to facilities in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina and Wisconsin. The company continues to work with family-based farming operations in the cultivation, planting and harvesting of vegetables. In 1960, Allen founded Arkansas State Bank, now Liberty Bank of Arkansas. In 1984, he was selected as Siloam Springs’ “Pioneer Citizen of the Year.” Allen worked extensively with and supported many organizations for the youth, elderly and underprivileged, including Siloam Springs Memorial Hospital and the Siloam Springs Children Center.

Thelma Joshua and the late Ernest P. Joshua Sr. founded J.M. Products Inc. in the mid-1970s. She is currently the CEO. The company is one of the largest manufacturers of ethnic hair care products in the United States, including the ISOPLUS brand. It is the largest African American owned company in the State of Arkansas. The company’s hair care products are distributed internationally as well through mass merchandise stores. Manufacturing facilities are located in Little Rock and North Little Rock with joint venture operations in Jamaica and Africa. The Joshuas also own a chain of beauty and barber salons and a beauty academy. Ernest and Thelma were the first Arkansas people to be honored at the White House by Ronald Reagan for their achievements as a small business people. Bill Clinton invited Ernest to participate in the first ever U.S. Trade Mission to South Africa in 1994. Ernest attended Cortez Business College and received an honorary degree from Philander Smith College in Little Rock. Prior to forming their business, Thelma was an accomplished furrier for such firms as Bensky’s Furs in Little Rock and Bonwit Teller in Chicago. The Joshuas have worked tirelessly to create opportunities for other African Americans through their community contributions and involvement.

The late Kenneth “Pat” Wilson organized Jacksonville State Bank in 1949, which later became First Jacksonville Bank. Today it is known as First Arkansas Bank & Trust. One of his major accomplishments was his effort to bring the Little Rock Air Force Base to Jacksonville by serving on the Pulaski County Committee of 100 businessmen. He helped to raise funds for the base land acquisition that included the Wilson family’s 1860 homestead property. After the base location was selected in 1952, Wilson served as president of the Little Rock Air Force Base Community Council. Throughout his life, he was dedicated to Jacksonville’s economic growth, enhanced civic services, educational resources and recreational opportunities. He also served Central Arkansas through leadership on many commissions as well as on the boards of many corporations. A 1946 graduate of the Walton College, Wilson was a lifelong advocate for the University of Arkansas and the Razorback sports program. In 1999, he and his wife Ruth made a $2.4 million gift to the UA Chancellor’s Scholarship Program.

Albert R. Yarnell is chairman of the board of Yarnell Ice Cream Company. He began his career at the age of 12, working for his father. Following service in World War II, he joined the family ice cream company in 1948. He became president and CEO in 1974 and chairman in 1985. Yarnell is recognized as an industry innovator and has established business relationships with such brands as Nestlé, Dreyer’s and Häagen Dazs. He personally created the nation’s first all natural ice milk in 1978 and led the team that invented the nation’s first non-fat, no sugar added ice cream in 1990.Yarnell’s has eleven distribution centers, serving over 3,500 outlets as well as the food service industry. He served on the board of the International Ice Cream Association for 18 years. Among his many civic involvements, he has served on the board of Baptist Health since 1977, serving as chairman in 1987-88. He also has served on the board of the State Chamber of Commerce since 1970.

Boyer said: “We are very excited about this year’s inductees. They join 33 other Arkansas business leaders in a place of prominence. Each of these distinctive people has made a major contribution to the state of Arkansas in terms of employment and revenues and has reached out and touched the nation and the world with their expertise and services.”

Previous inductees in the Arkansas Business Hall of Fame include:

• 1999 - the late William T. Dillard Sr., Dillard's Inc.; the late Charles R. Murphy Jr., Murphy Oil; the late Jackson T. Stephens, Stephens Inc.; the late Sam M. Walton, Wal-Mart Stores Inc.
• 2000 - Joe T. Ford, ALLTEL Corp.; the late Harvey Jones, Jones Truck Lines; the late Donald W. Reynolds, Donrey Media (now Stephens Media Group); Don Tyson, Tyson Foods Inc.
• 2001 - the late Col. Thomas H. Barton, Lion Oil Co.; the late William E. Darby, National Old Line Insurance Co.; J.B. and Johnelle Hunt, J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc.; the late John H. Johnson, Johnson Publishing Company Inc.
• 2002 — the late Roland S. Boreham Jr., Baldor Electric Co.; the late Sheridan Garrison, American Freightways Inc. (now FedEx Freight East); Gene George, George's Inc.; Walter V. Smiley, Smiley Investment Co.
• 2003 - Richard E. Bell, Riceland Foods Inc.; David D. Glass, Wal-Mart Stores Inc.; the late Robert D. Nabholz Sr., Nabholz Construction Corporation; the late Louis L. Ramsay Jr., Simmons First National Corporation
• 2004 - the late John A. Cooper Sr., Cooper Communities Inc.; the late Frank Lyon Sr., Frank Lyon Co.; Charles D. Morgan, Acxiom^® Corp.; the late Robert A. Young Jr., Arkansas Best Corp.
• 2005 - the late Dave Grundfest Sr., Sterling Stores Co. Inc.; the late James T. “Red” Hudson, Hudson Foods Inc.; Donald Munro, Munro & Co. Inc.; Edward M. Penick Sr., Worthen Banking Corp.
• 2006 - Frank Hickingbotham, TCBY Enterprises Inc.; the late William F. “Billy” Rector, Rector Phillips Morse Inc. (RPM); Doyle W. Rogers Sr., Metropolitan National Bank; and Forrest L. Wood, Wood Manufacturing Company Inc. (Ranger Boats)

Tickets to the Arkansas Business Hall of Fame, a black-tie optional event, on Friday, Feb. 9, 2007, are $125 per person. For more information about tickets and event sponsorships, please contact the Office of External Relations at the Sam M. Walton College of Business, Business Building 343, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701-1201, (479) 575-6146, by e-mail at abhf@walton.uark.edu, or on the Web at http://waltoncollege.uark.edu/halloffame/