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From left, Dr. Kyle McGregor, Vice President for Advancement and External Relations; Connie Wooley, TexasBank Vice President of Operations; L.V. Coffee TexasBank East Region President; Dr. F. Dominic Dottavio, Tarleton President; Kelli Raymond, TexasBank Mortgage Loan Officer; and Justin Greehaw, Tarleton student and TexasBank teller.
Paying It Forward Through Education
“I t’s no secret that TexasBank bleeds purple,” said Connie Wooley, the bank’s vice president of operations. With 80 percent of its Stephenville employees Tarleton alumni or students, TexasBank has a strong commitment to education and the Stephenville community. That commitment is showcased at Tarleton by the
James and Dorothy Doss Foundation Scholarships, established by the financial institution’s owners.
“TexasBank does a lot more than tailor financial services to fit individual needs,” explained L.V. Coffee, East Region president. “TexasBank is committed to investing in the communities it serves. Dorothy Doss and her late husband, James, created the Scholarship Fund as a community investment, knowing that an education from a school like Tarleton goes a long way in getting a good job and improving quality of life.”
The Doss Foundation annually donates $25,000 in scholarships to help Tarleton juniors and seniors from Erath, Brown, Eastland and Comanche counties finish their degrees, putting Texans to work. In fact, the foundation has donated more than $800,000 to local and area schools in the last six years.
“I’m continually astonished at how much TexasBank gives back to the markets it serves—especially when it comes to education,” Wooley said. “The Doss-Knight family, the
owners of TexasBank, understand that it’s not always easy for students in small, rural communities to complete a university degree and are always looking to give where they can.”
Tarleton Texans Ashtyn Brooks and Eddie Velazquez appreciate the generosity of TexasBank and the Doss-Knight family. Doss Foundation scholarships are helping them complete their university degree programs.
An English education major from Comanche, Ashtyn’s using her scholarship to cover student housing while Eddie’s been able to cut job hours to study.
Brooks’ grandmother and Comanche High School teachers are her role models and the inspiration for a career in education. Her grandmother instilled a love to read, and her English teachers a passion for literature.
“Thanks to the Doss Foundation scholarship, I don’t have the daily commute to and from Comanche, leaving more time for class and study,” Brooks said.
Conni E w ool E y Vice President of operations
Velazquez, a criminal justice major from Stephenville, explained that before he received the Doss scholarship he worked 40 hours a week to make ends meet while taking a full class load.
“I still have to work, but I’m not putting in 40 hours a week,” he said. “Thanks to TexasBank and the Doss Foundation, I’m confident I’ll be able to complete my bachelor’s in criminal justice next spring.”
Following graduation, Velazquez hopes to land a job with the Texas Highway Patrol and eventually with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.
“Drugs destroy more than the person who uses them,” Velazquez said. “They destroy entire families. I want to be part of America’s—even the world’s—war on drugs.”
In addition to the Doss Foundation scholarships, TexasBank supports and sponsors campus events, funding for scoreboards, sports fields and other projects to improve the quality of life for Tarleton students. “TexasBank pays it forward through education,” Coffee said. “We’re making a difference in individual lives as well as improving our community, our region—even our state.”
Meet Alumni L.V. Coffee and Connie Wooley
TexasBank East Region President L.V. Coffee is a well-known Tarleton Texan enthusiast.
This past spring, Connie Wooley, TexasBank vice president of operations, and Tarleton Athletic Director Lonn Reisman conspired to bring an unsuspecting Coffee to the university’s All-Sports Banquet for a surprise presentation. Coffee received one of six President’s All-Purple Awards presented to those who go above and beyond in showing support and dedication to Tarleton athletic programs.
Almost anyone who’s attended a Tarleton athletic event has seen Coffee and wife, Emily, a time or two. They’re usually accompanied by daughters, Kennedy and Kamryn, decked out in their purple cheerleading outfits.
As a high school student growing up some 60 miles southwest of Stephenville in Brownwood, Coffee was one of thousands of students who traveled from across Texas to participate in FFA events.
“From the moment I first stepped foot on the Stephenville campus, I knew I wanted to be a Tarleton Texan,” Coffee said. “Faculty and staff take a sincere interest in students and their educational pursuits.”
Coffee graduated magna cum laude in 2000 with a bachelor’s degree in business administration. He started his banking career with Town & Country Bank while attending Tarleton and was a member of the Texas Army National Guard, serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Wooley has Tarleton roots, too, although her stint at the university was a bit shorter—two years— leaving for what turned into a 47-year banking career. Born and raised in Stephenville, she retired from Bank of America and joined TexasBank in 2013.
Coffee and Wooley form just part of the TarletonTexasBank connection.
