TAUW LEGENDS: Terry Carter
The TAUW Legends video series preserves the voices and stories of those who shaped our first century of service. As part of our Centennial celebration, Jesse Boudiette, president of Propeller Consulting and Centennial Committee member, sat down with Terry Carter, who chaired the 2004 annual fundraiser.
Join us in continuing Terry’s legacy of compassion and community impact. Your gift today in honor of Terry helps write the next chapter of our story, ensuring that future generations will have access to the same life-changing services that have touched so many lives over the past century.
interview highlights
Jesse Boudiette: Terry, take me to the beginning. How did you first get involved with the Tulsa Area United Way?
Terry Carter: My wife and I moved here in 1980 to join QuikTrip Corporation. Our co-founder, president, CEO, chairman—my boss at QuikTrip—was Chester Cadieux. In the early ’80s, QuikTrip ran a campaign. I don’t remember much about it, and I don’t think many people in the company remembered much about it either. We had payroll deduction, and it had some level of success. But later in the ’80s, Chester got involved in United Way through friends. He served on several campaigns, and our involvement—QuikTrip’s involvement—kind of followed his interest and involvement. Our campaigns got bigger. They went from one or two days to a week-long festival. It’s amazing what all they do now. Chester eventually chaired the campaign, and at QuikTrip, if you’re doing something, everybody supports you. So, the management team really got behind it.
I remember, like most campaigns, especially in the ’80s and ’90s, it always comes down to that last week, and you’re always behind. There’s a big sum of money that has to be raised. I watched him do it and watched his passion and emotion. I remember the Victory—I remember when he made the goal, and there were tears. Now, this was a very successful businessman who did a lot of great things in his life, but this was tremendously important to him. It became tremendously important to QuikTrip. To the point today, I don’t keep up with it as much as I used to, but year in, year out, it’s one of the top three campaigns in the city.
Jesse: Terry, you’ve done a lot in Tulsa with QuikTrip. Your daughter, Lauren, is now doing a lot of that work for QuikTrip and is beloved in the community for it. What’s it like seeing her in that role?
Terry: Well, it’s amazing, and her mother and I talk about this all the time. She used to be our daughter, but now we’re just her parents. And we love that. Our son and daughter-in-law are very involved in the community, too—same type of work. Between the two couples, they’re chairing or co-chairing more events than I want to attend, but when they put in the work, their mother and I are there. It’s very rewarding, not only to see what she’s doing in the community but also to see what she’s doing at QuikTrip. It’s kind of the same story there—she’s doing a great job, and I’ve run into people throughout the community who just want to talk about her, so it’s pretty fun.