One Family. One Vision

ONE FAMILY. ONE VISION. Giving back to the roots of the Ferguson Family

Larry Ferguson was working at the dairy barn at Oklahoma State University one day when he saw a pretty girl walk in to punch her time card.

“I went to look at her time card to see who she was,” said Larry Ferguson, 1975 animal science alumnus and former CEO of Schreiber Foods. “I needed to know.”

The timecard read “Kay Helms” and he knew he wanted to know more about her, he said.

“Going home that night from work, I was walking in front of the mall on the backside of the library,” Larry Ferguson said. “I saw her walking to her dorm, and I said, ‘Hi, Kay.’”

He asked her on a date that night, and since then, the two have built a beautiful life together, dedicating their life to the growth and development of students, pastors and communities, Ferguson said.

The pair came from hard-working families with deep roots in the dairy industry, so a strong work ethic and dedication is in their blood, said Kayleen Ferguson.

The two of them worked their way through college by working at the dairy barn, she added.

“The words that come to my mind when describing the Fergusons are humble and visionary,” said Thomas Coon, vice president and director of the Oklahoma State University Division of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources.

The thing that sets the Fergusons apart is they are ordinary people in so many ways, Coon said. However, they are extraordinary because of their desire to have an impact on the world, he added.

The Fergusons have used their success in life to extend a hand of support back to their roots in the college of agriculture at OSU, Larry Ferguson said.

After a few years at OSU, the couple moved around the U.S. for Larry Ferguson’s job at Schreiber Foods, Kayleen Ferguson said.

In addition to their travels across the nation, the two traveled worldwide on behalf of Schreiber Foods, Larry Ferguson said.

“You don’t travel to your own delight,” he said. “You have to be educated and see the world through other people’s eyes.”

The opportunity to travel around the world gave the Fergusons a vision and a passion for encouraging others and making the most of what they were given, Larry Ferguson said. They believe their role is to invest in the next generation of leaders who will change the world, he said.

While traveling the world, the Fergusons saw major needs around the globe, which they believe can be fulfilled through their investment in education, Kayleen Ferguson said.

“We’ve always said education is the way to succeed,” she said. “If we can help a student get into the school they need to through support, it’s a step up. We know how rough it was getting ourselves through school.”

In 2015, the Fergusons knew it was time to start investing in education, Kayleen Ferguson said. They felt the best way to do so would be through a donation to OSU’s dairy program, the same program that played a significant role in their relationship, she added.

Through the Ferguson Family Foundation, the Fergusons donated $2 million toward the construction of a new free-stall barn at the OSU Ferguson Family Dairy Center. By donating an additional $1.6 million, the family also constructed an on-site housing center for student employees and named the facility Helms Hall in memory of Kayleen Ferguson’s family.

Kayleen and Larry Ferguson, each of their children and all seven grandchildren join Pistol Pete after the Jan. 15 gift announcement: Larry (back left), Stephen, Katie, Pete, Bryant, Madoc, William (front left), Kayleen, Molly, Caleb, Kyle, Elizabeth, Edward and Jeanna (not pictured: daughter-in-law Sarah Ferguson).

Photo by Brittny Richards.

Four years later, the Fergusons wanted to donate more to the college of agriculture and decided the time was right to make a big step with a $50 million donation, Larry Ferguson said.

In an initial meeting with Coon, Larry Ferguson told the dean the reason they felt the need to donate back to the college was because they “felt called to feed the world,” Coon said.

The Fergusons decided the best way to support the college of agriculture would be through a $25 million donation to the funding of a new building and a $25 million donation to an endowment designed to fund the college’s operations, Larry Ferguson said.

“When Larry told me what they planned to do with the $50 million gift, I knew it meant a new building was going to happen,” Coon said. “I told him I hope in some way in that grand atrium of the new building we can find a place to mark those words, ‘We are called to feed the world.’”

Larry has always been a dreamer, “They want us to use this to make our Kayleen Ferguson said. But when they college the best in the country.” discussed donating to the college and The impact the Fergusons have on how they were going to do so, she saw the college will continue to grow for him put feet to his dreams, she added.

“Students need to be encouraged,” Kayleen Ferguson said. “They need to know there are people out there willing to support them and help them along the way. It’s a family across the board.”

The Fergusons want to create more energy in the college and believe investing in the school and the students will ignite a new passion that could push the renamed Ferguson College of Agriculture further into innovation and growth, Larry Ferguson said.

“The Fergusons are benevolent and philanthropic people,” Coon said. “They want us to use this to make our college the best in the country.”

The impact the Fergusons have on the college will continue to grow forgenerations to come, as students will be impacted by their generosity in numerous ways, Coon added.

“You feed the world by growing better food faster, and the way to do that is through education,” Larry Ferguson said. “We want to have a hand in feeding the world and making a difference.”

ADY VANDEBURGH

Story by Ady Vandeburgh of McClain County Oklahoma.