Where are They Now? John H Rudy

Where Are They Now?

John H Rudy

On the first day of school in September of 1952, C.C. Jelks came in and wrote four large words on the black board: SMART PEOPLE PLAN AHEAD. For John Rudy, a 1953 graduate of Sand Springs High School, that simple phrase made a huge impact. “Since that moment,” Mr. Rudy said “that phrase has been one of my ideals.” Other Sandites who influenced Mr. Rudy include Clyde Boyd, Sr. and John Beck, who “had reputations for being two of the most supportive educators in Sand Springs.”

After Mr. Rudy graduated from Sand Springs High School, known now as Charles Page High School, he attended the University of Tulsa for two years while working part-time at R-K Motors. During his junior year, Mr. Rudy transferred to the University of Oklahoma, but his father’s declining health prompted Mr. Rudy to return home to assist with responsibilities at R-K Motors.

By age 21, Mr. Rudy was supervising 20 employees at R-K motors, and soon after he had finished and earned a degree in Business Management and Marketing, he was working with R-K Motors full-time. Providing quality customer service was paramount for Mr. Rudy. “Car dealers today need to focus on the people,” Mr. Rudy says.

On June 24, 1961, Mr. Rudy and Elva Parris, who graduated from and taught English at Sand Springs High School, were married. Together they had four daughters who also graduated from Charles Page High School. The Rudys have been married for 60 years. “It’s been an enormous blessing,” Mr. Rudy said.

SMART PEOPLE PLAN AHEAD

“Since that moment, that phrase has been one of my ideals.”

Eventually Mr. Rudy purchased the other half of R-K Motors from his father’s business partner, Glade Kirkpatrick, and later the business was sold to the Noller Automotive Group. Ultimately, John Rudy and his family - with help from the Sand Springs Chamber of Commerce, the City of Sand Springs, Tulsa Technology Center, and others - sold the dealership’s property to Tulsa Technology Center. The college’s Sand Springs campus is thriving.

Today, many Charles Page High School students are concurrently enrolled at Tulsa Technology Center. “This year’s senior class is exceptional,” says Mrs. Elva Rudy, “and we have no doubts they will come back from this [pandemic].”

Throughout his life in Sand Springs, Mr. Rudy has continued to serve the community. Mr. Rudy is a 2009 Hometown Hero, a 32° Scottish Rite Mason, a two-term Sand Springs councilman, a Paul Harris fellow, one of the original donors who helped create the first Box Supper for the Sand Springs Educational Foundation, and a member of the Sand Springs Rotary Club for over fifty years.

The direction Mr. Jelks provided Mr. Rudy almost seventy years ago has served him well. Throughout his life, Mr. Rudy has made plans and pursued them relentlessly, along the way frequently giving back to the town where he was raised.

"This year’s senior class is exceptional,and we have no doubts they will come back from this [pandemic].”

Community can be hard to come by. No matter your age, we find our that our schedules can fill up, and before we know it, we aren't connecting with new people or sharing our passion with our community. Each of us has something unique to share, but we don't always have the platform to contribute.

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