Bio, 2014: Wayne Weatherly
We are ALL very lucky to have been a part of Stillwater’s CE Donart1964 Graduating Class. With the hard work of Ann and her many helpers, we have remained very close and have a special bond as a very special group of students, friends, spouses, parents, grandparents, great grandparents and maybe more.I have been enjoying the refreshed memories and the brief walks through your lives as I read each of the bios that you have shared with all of us.
After graduation I attended OSU and was fortunate to graduate with a BSBA with a major in accounting. While at OSU I was also blessed with a college baseball career and was lucky enough to be part of a team that earned its way to the College World Series all three years of my eligibility. We actually were runner-up one of those years and made it to the final four another. After my senior year I tried my luck at Pro baseball with the White Sox organization and would not trade that experience for anything. However, after two seasons it became clear that a Pro baseball career was not in the cards for me.
In 1969 I married Ann (not to be confused with the famous Ann Jay) who is still my wonderful and very tolerant wife of 45 years. Ann has been in private practice as a Speech Pathologist since 1973 here in Tulsa. We have two lovely daughters, Whitnie and Erin, who are both married and living in the Dallas/Ft Worth area about 45 miles from each other. Whitnie has two boys and Erin has one. As most of us know, grandkids are terrific.
After my attempt at Pro baseball, I decided to concentrate on a real job. Arthur Young & Co, CPAs had hired me for their audit staff to work winters in Tulsa while I pursued my baseball career. After I left the Sox in 1970 I began full time employment with AY&Co until 1977 when I joined one of my oil field supply clients as controller and worked there for 17 years. At that time I foolishly attempted early retirement. Fortunately in 1995 a close friend who had formed and operated his own manufacturing business was losing his CFO and asked me if I had any one I could recommend. I replied yes, how about me? I worked with him to groom his company for takeover and in 1998 he sold the company to Lockheed Martin with the agreement that he and I would remain for 3 years or until they got tired of us. I stayed until 2002.
In my spare time beginning in 2000 my fly fishing buddy and I had formed Tight Line Enterprises with one fly fishing product that we originally supplied to Cabela’s and Orvis (out of our garages). We currently have ten products that we supply to Cabela’s, Bass Pro, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Gander Mountain, about 300 fly shops in the USA and 24 foreign countries, seven countries on a regular basis. Our products were all developed out of a need to solve “pet peeves” and make fishing more convenient for the fly fisher. We still operate from our homes and garages and have added one small offsite storage location.
Gordie Daniel has joined my business partner and me on most of our “fly fishing business trips” over the past few years. He was new to fly fishing and I had about 15 years head start on him but I jealously admit he is now the best fly fisher in our group.
I have attended most of our wonderful five year reunions and I am especially looking forward to this one. SEE YOU ALL THERE.
©2009 Stillwater High School Class of 1964