MPRINT: Williams leaving marks that will last forever
Tommy Williams grew up just off Interstate 20 in Newton, Mississippi, the son of a small-town pharmacist who believed in hard work, steady saving and the life-changing power of an education. Those lessons, learned early, would shape not only his 40-year banking career but also his commitment to giving back, particularly to Mississippi State University, the place that helped launch his future.
Williams graduated from Newton High School in 1980. His father, who owned and operated a pharmacy in Newton from the 1960s through the 1990s, had his own deep ties to Mississippi State. Tommy’s father completed his undergraduate degree there and later taught in the animal science department from 1956 to 1962 before deciding to pursue pharmacy.
“When I was in high school, my dad told me I could go to college anywhere I wanted,” Williams recalled. “But if I’d go to Mississippi State, he would pay for it.”
Tommy took him up on the offer, enrolling in the fall of 1980. He graduated in 1983 with a degree in banking and finance. Beyond the classroom, he embraced campus life fully, attending football, baseball and basketball games and even camping out for tickets when necessary.
That enthusiasm never faded. Over the years, Williams and his family supported the university often through athletics. But after the passing of his father in 2019 and his mother in 2023, Williams felt called to do something more permanent, something that would honor the values they instilled in him.
“They taught me to save first and spend second,” he said. “If you spend first, you’ll have nothing left to save.”
With that mindset — and the realization his parents’ guidance had positioned him for success, Tommy established an endowed scholarship in their honor.
“What I wanted to do was create something that would always be there,” he said. “Both of them loved Mississippi State. They would be thrilled to know something’s in their name there helping kids in the future.”
The Leon W. and Glenda T. Williams Endowed Scholarship supports students in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, and will do so in perpetuity.
After creating the scholarship for his parents, Williams began reflecting on his own legacy. He has since endowed one scholarship in his and his wife Tamara’s names and plans to establish a second. In addition, he has included the university in his estate plans.
A legacy in Maroon is still a growing part of their family. When Tommy and Tamara married, her two children were just 5 and 10 years old. Today, he proudly calls them his own. One has already graduated from Mississippi State and works in banking. The other is finishing an undergraduate degree and preparing to pursue a master’s in accounting.
“I would encourage people who graduated from Mississippi State to do a little self-reflection,” Williams said. “Think about what MSU means to you and how it has helped you in your career. In the big scheme of life, if you’re blessed enough to be in a position to give back, do that and help someone else.”
For Williams, giving back is about more than the gift, it is about gratitude. It is about honoring parents who sacrificed and saved. It is about ensuring future generations have access to the same opportunity that shaped his own life.
Most of all, it is about leaving a mark that will last, one that helps all generations ahead.