Innovative and Energetic TMC Board Member Will Be Missed

Texas Medical Center Board of Directors member Benjamin N. Woodson, known to family and friends as "Woody," passed away July 17.

Born in 1908 in Altoona, Kan, Woodson was brought to Houston in 1953 by an insurance career with American General Corp. He eventually took on the roles of chief operating officer and chief executive officer, only the second person in the company's history to hold the offices. As many as 15 years after he retired from the CEO position, Woodson was still working out of the American General offices, performing duties such as writing a monthly column for an insurance trade magazine and speaking to business and civic groups.

Known throughout the insurance business as "Mr. Life Insurance," American General achieved several major accomplishments with Woodson at the company's helm, including $1 billion in assets and trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

Woodson was active in many local civic boards and groups, including the Texas Medical Center, where he was elected to the board in 1981 and was recently elected a life member. In addition to his TMC involvement, he served as board chairman of Houston's Chamber of Commerce, and was a founder of the Houston Forum Club.

The Houston Committee of the Newcomen Society of the United States, a nonprofit membership foundation for the study and recognition of achievement in American business and the society it serves, was another group Woodson gave time to. While serving as chairman of the Newcomen Society, Woodson presided over a Nov. 19, 1992 gala where the Texas Medical Center was recognized as the group's annual honoree.

Many friends and associates thought of energetic and eloquent Woodson as one of the best public speakers they had ever known.

In an interview with the Houston Chronicle, Mary Crowell, Woodson's daughter, said, "He was one of the funniest people on the planet. He was not only a wonderful businessman and great civic enthusiast, but also a great storyteller. He was a wonderful daddy and grandfather."

Ninety-three-year-old Benjamin N. Woodson is survived by his wife, Audrey Haney Watson Woodson; his daughter; a grandson, John Dennis of Houston; a granddaughter, Jennifer Dennis Farley of Peaks Island,Maine; and two great granddaughters.

Memorial contributions can be made to the Woodson Memorial Court Yard Fund, in care of Dean Gilbert R. Whitaker, Rice University Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Management, 6100 S. Main St., Houston, Texas 77005.

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©2006 Texas Medical Center

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