Mollie Williford

Chapter 01 - Introduction

Mollie Blansett Williford is a native of Houston, Texas, where she attended Stephen F. Austin State College. Her marriage in 1957 to Galveston native Richard Williford, who was in the oil industry, meant the couple would move to various communities.

When they moved to Tulsa, Mollie began volunteering. Her work at Key Elementary would be the beginning of a remarkable volunteer career dedicated to education and service to Tulsans.

Richard’s tragic death in 1996 created a leadership vacuum in the Tulsa community and Williford Energy. Mollie assumed leadership of the company while continuing her public service.

Over the years, she made a significant imprint on the lives of Tulsans through her financial support and diverse board memberships.

Chapter 02 - The Early Days

John Erling (JE): My name is John Erling. Today’s date is August 5th, 2021. So, Mollie, would you state your full name, please?

Mollie Williford (MW): Mollie Marie Blansett Williford. My nickname is Butterfly. My family said I lived in a cocoon of pain for a very long time and emerged a beautiful butterfly.

JE: Yeah.

MW: So I have a huge collection of butterflies.

JE: Oh. And your date of birth?

MW: August 2nd, 1936.

JE: And your present age?

MW: 85 years old as of Tuesday.

JE: And you’re just now recovering from all the partying, aren’t you? You’ve had many friends that partied for you, didn’t they?

MW: Thank you.

JE: Yes. Yeah. Yeah. That’s great. Where were you born?

MW: Houston, Texas.

JE: Your mother’s name and... First of all, your mother’s name.

MW: My mother’s name was Mollie.

JE: Okay. Okay. And where was she born and raised?

MW: Killeen, Texas.

JE: Okay. And can you describe her and her personality for us?

MW: Yes. She was an excellent cook. She was a schoolteacher. She loved to play bridge. She loved to travel. And she and my father were married 50 years.

JE: And then your father’s name?

MW: My father’s name. Marion Francis Blansett.

JE: All right. And we have the M factor going here, don’t we? And he grew up in Texas too?

MW: Yes. Cameron, Texas. And he was on football scholarship to Southwestern Teachers College and became a teacher and a principal of a high school. And then he decided to go into the oil business.

JE: Okay. All right. And what was that? What was it involving? Did he have a...

MW: Well, it was Humble Oil and Refining Company. And we were transferred frequently.

JE: Oh, so you learned that as a child and you didn’t know it was going to happen to you later on in life.

MW: That’s right. I married a petroleum engineer and a geologist. And we were transferred frequently. But we came to Tulsa in 1973.

JE: Right. Okay. But Humble Oil?

MW: Mm-hmm.

JE: Did he work for them?

MW: Yes, he did.

JE: Right. Right. And what was his personality like?

MW: Well, he was a Southern Baptist deacon and very strict and very lovable.

JE: All right. That’s kind of tough to be both, huh? Right. Right. So then you were active in the Baptist church?

MW: Yes.

JE: And lots of twice on Sunday and once on Wednesday type of thing?

MW: That’s right. Right. It’s called prayer. Prayer meeting.

JE: Prayer meeting. Exactly. Wednesday night prayer meeting.

MW: Yes. Right.

JE: Did you have brothers or sisters?

MW: I had an older sister and a younger sister.

JE: And what are their names?

MW: Sarah, Frances, and Catherine Lee.

JE: Okay. Are they still with us?

MW: No. My older sister has passed. My youngest sister lives in Texas.

JE: Okay. What would be the first house you remember living in?

MW: Shreveport, Louisiana.

JE: What was that about the house?

MW: My husband worked for Gulf at the time, and I worked for Texas Eastern Transmission. And that was our very first house after we married.

JE: Yeah, but the house when you were a child, do you remember going back to your childhood? A certain house that was memorable to you?

MW: Well, it was on the Gulf Coast in Houston, and that’s very damp and humid. And I would always have bronchitis. And we lived in a brick house, and that seemed to help because it was well insulated.

JE: So then your education then, elementary, where was that?

MW: Houston. I was in school in Houston.

JE: But you probably, did you move a lot as you were in elementary school?

MW: No, not in elementary school, no. We moved from Houston to Genoa and Genoa to... Anahuac and Anahuac to Beaumont.

JE: Wow.

MW: I graduated high school in Beaumont.

JE: Okay. Was that difficult for you as a child to make up?

MW: No, I liked every place we lived.

JE: And it was easy for you to make friends?

MW: Mm-hmm.

JE: You weren’t treated like the new kid on the block all the time then, probably? Let’s see, you would have been 1941, December 7th, Pearl Harbor, about six years old or so. Do you have any recollection of that day?

MW: Thirty-six and five – I was five years old.

JE: Okay, five.

MW: And no, I don’t.

JE: Right, okay.

MW: But I do remember when they had the explosion at Texas City, where all the school children were killed, and it rattled the walls in our home.

JE: And what was that explosion caused by? What was it?

MW: Fertilizer on a ship.

JE: And you were probably many miles from that ship.

MW: Mm-hmm.

JE: And you felt... Reverberation from it.

MW: Yes.

JE: And many children were killed?

MW: Yes.

JE: Wow, that was sad. So then how old were you about then?

MW: Maybe 12.

JE: So then in junior high school, where did you attend school?

MW: Baytown Junior High School.

JE: And then?

MW: And then we moved to Beaumont, and I graduated high school in Beaumont.

JE: So after high school, and what about your high school activities? Were you active in clubs?

MW: I was in the band. I actually... I went to state in typing, because I had won the district and the regional. So I was not an athlete. I was a typist.

JE: Oh, and they had contests for typing?

MW: Yes, and I went to state in typing.

JE: But you said you were in the band. What instrument did you play?

MW: A clarinet.

JE: All right. Did you continue that beyond high school?

MW: No.

JE: So then after high school, so you graduated in what year?

MW: 1954.

JE: Then do you go to college immediately?

MW: Yes, I went to Stephen F. Austin in Nacogdoches.

JE: Okay. And what was that experience like?

MW: I was a business major, and I played tennis, and made really good grades.

JE: Oh, sure. Why did you choose business?

MW: Because I wanted to be a secretary.

JE: And maybe that business came into play. Maybe that business came into play later on in your life, which we’ll get into. What do you think you did as a child and a teen for entertainment?

MW: Well, we would play baseball in the neighborhood, and lots of church activities, lots of band activities.

Chapter 03 - Became a Volunteer

John Erling (JE): You go to college, and then what year did you graduate from college?

Mollie Williford (MW): I didn’t. I got married.

JE: Oh, okay. And when was that?

MW: February 16th. 1957.

JE: And you would have been how old?

MW: 20.

JE: 20 years old. And the man you married, his name was?

MW: Richard Allen Williford.

JE: And how old was Richard?

MW: 22.

JE: All right. And how did you meet?

MW: On the beach, and he was a senior at A&M, but had his fourth and fifth year. So then we did not marry for two years.

JE: Okay. You dated for two years, and then when he graduated, is that it? And then you got married?

MW: Yes.

JE: Right. How many children did you have?

MW: Two. I have a son, Richard Allen Williford, Jr., and a daughter, Monica Marie Williford.

JE: Richard’s business was what?

MW: Oil business.

JE: And what nature of his work? What was his work about? What did he do in the oil business?

MW: Well, he started his own company. Williford Energy, and we still have that company today.

He also purchased a simulator company, and we manufacture airline simulators.

JE: So he started the company after you got married?

MW: After we came to Tulsa.

JE: After you came in 73?

MW: Yes.

JE: And that’s when you started the Williford Energy. Did you then live, though, in many places?

MW: No.

JE: With Richard?

MW: No.

JE: Prior to coming to Tulsa in 73?

MW: Well, we lived in Shreveport, and we lived in Wichita Falls. We lived in Durango, Colorado.

We lived in Lafayette, Louisiana, back to Denver, and Denver to Tulsa.

JE: And you definitely remember all that. And you moved to all those places because of the oil business?

MW: Yes, yes.

JE: Under the banner of Williford Energy?

MW: No. He was working for Gulf at the time, Gulf Oil Company.

JE: Okay. All right. And then when he came to Tulsa, he started the energy company?

MW: That’s correct.

JE: All right. Right now, don’t you have, weren’t there wells in Oklahoma, Texas, and Colorado?

MW: Yes.

JE: That you have? When you came here and he was involved in the business, what did you do?

MW: I began – I began a 30-year-plus career volunteer work for the many non-profits that we have in Tulsa. And Tulsa’s a wonderful, generous community.

JE: You have volunteered for many, and we’ll get into that. What was the first place that you volunteered?

MW: Children’s Medical Center, working with handicapped children, and Key Elementary School, working with handicapped children.

JE: And what drew your attention to those two places?

MW: Well, they needed help.

JE: Right. Did they reach out to you, or you just sensed that when you came into the community?

MW: I don’t remember.

JE: Key Elementary. Where did your children go to school?

MW: Both of them were at Key Elementary School.

JE: All right. So that’s how that need probably came about. You were willing to volunteer your time and get involved in the community. What are some of the other places that you volunteered that come to mind quickly now?

MW: Tulsa Historical Society. And I was on the Jane Goodall International Board for 10 years. I was on the zoo board. And she came and blessed our chimpanzee exhibit to make it part of the national Jane Goodall acceptance.

JE: And that had to be exciting to meet her.

MW: She was a guest in my home several times and very much enjoyed coming to Tulsa. And she would visit Holland Hall and give speeches there as well.

JE: Tulsa Ballet you were really involved with.

MW: Marcello Angelini came to Tulsa 25 years ago, and I was his first president. And we were going to honor him last year, but COVID made that an impossible situation. So this August 22nd, we are honoring him for 26 years.

JE: And he was married to?

MW: Daniela Busson, prima ballerina.

JE: And we’re fortunate in Tulsa to have such a fine ballet community.

MW: I also volunteered with Tulsa Opera and was in charge of the opening of the Mayo Hotel as a benefit for Tulsa Opera. And had I.G. Gannon come as the band.

JE: Oh.

MW: He was much loved.

JE: Yes, yes, yes, yes. The opening of the Mayo Hotel.

MW: Yes.

JE: The reopening?

MW: Yes.

JE: We’re glad to have that refurbished in downtown Tulsa. But you were also active with the Mental Health Association.

MW: Yes, and the sister cities. I was in charge of the convention where we had 2,000 people in Tulsa for 10 days. And I had to showcase Tulsa because Chicago was the previous year. The next year was Houston. So I wanted Tulsa to be the best.

JE: And I’m sure you did the best job. Then the Tulsa County Jury Fee Committee for the Prevention of Child Abuse.

MW: Yes.

JE: And you were the first woman president of the Summit Club.

MW: Yes.

JE: I mean, we can go on and on with these. Did you ever say to yourself, I’m so busy, I can’t do all this?

MW: No.

Chapter 04 - Plane Crash

John Erling (JE): You had time for all these hobbies in addition to volunteering. But then you’re also known, I know, in the community as a gourmet cook.

Mollie Williford (MW): Yes, I love to cook. That’s one of my favorite things. I love to travel. I used to travel three to four months every year. And it was a wonderful family time with me because my daughter and I, we traveled together for five years. And then my son began to travel with us.

JE: Some memorable trips or countries you may have visited.

MW: Well, I have over 800 days on SilverSea cruise ship.

JE: Oh.

MW: So we don’t have time for me to name those.

JE: Was it mostly cruising?

MW: Yes.

JE: To other countries?

MW: Yes, mostly cruising on several different cruise lines.

JE: Yeah. How fun. So then you were having fun, but then there was a day that was not fun for you. And that was in April of 1996. Can you tell us what happened about this plane crash?

MW: Well, my husband was killed and I was severely burned.

JE: 1996. He was attempting to land, was it, the plane at Expressway Airpark.

MW: I’m not familiar with the details.

JE: Okay. Because they’ve just blacked out on you. You don’t know the details. And he was trapped in the plane. And I’m sorry, this is bothering you even now. And I don’t know how much you want to talk about it. And, but you walked out. I read how these people came and saw this lady walk out. She had her purse over her shoulder. And you walked out of that accident. Pretty amazing. And you think back on that much at all?

MW: Yes. God spared my life. I’m also very grateful that I am an 11-year cancer survivor. So I have many, many blessings in my life. I have a wonderful family. And I have a wonderful God who has taken care of me.

JE: And allowed you to continue to do all this volunteering. You had to say to yourself, there’s got to be a reason I’m still alive. And we know the reason. So that had to be difficult. Did you have children at the time of the crash?

MW: Yes.

JE: And how old were they about?

MW: My son was probably 30 and my daughter 25.

JE: Okay. And so you had them to lean on. And they had you as well.

MW: We’re very close. They both live in Tulsa. And I have nine grandchildren. So I have been blessed.

JE: Yes, yes, yes, indeed. So then you had to jump into the business, didn’t you?

MW: Yes.

JE: Williford Energy. Was that easy for you?

MW: Well, I went to the office every day for 10 years. And then I decided to work at home. And I have a full office here. I have an assistant who comes to my house. And we work at home.

JE: Even today, you’re working at your age of 85.You’re still working.

MW: Yes.

JE: Right. Had you been close to the business all along?

MW: No, no.

JE: And so it was like cold turkey, as we say, for you to jump in.

MW: Well, I was bedridden with burns for three months. And I educated myself.

JE: But then I suppose there were other executives in the company that helped you?

MW: I have wonderful people. And they have very long duration. And they are very, very competent. And in today’s world with computers, you can be in touch wherever you are.

JE: Right. Right. My, oh, my, oh, my. I don’t know if you can even talk about there you were in bed three months recovering. And that shows you how, and those who listen, what a strong person you are. And you probably thought about that in, if I can get through all that, I can get through anything in life.

MW: That’s right.

JE: Right. Because that would be probably the worst thing you faced.

MW: Yes.

JE: Plus cancer.

MW: Yes.

JE: On top of that. So that’s an amazing story right there. Believe me. Then you kind of got yourself up and running. Did you find it difficult as you then were able to come to the office? And be the executive of the company, weren’t you?

MW: No, I didn’t find it difficult. They were all very, very loving and caring people.

JE: Well, I think I was going to lead to the difficulty being a female heading up an oil company and dealing with mostly males.

MW: I’ve been there all my life. You know, I served as a director of One Oak for five years. And it’s difficult to find a woman with knowledge in that area. And so I very much enjoy serving as a director of One Oak.

JE: Wow. Any word to those who are females who are in the business world that you can say to them?

MW: Yes. You will always be judged by your brains.

JE: Okay. Very good. More so than men, you think?

MW: No.

JE: Are they asking more of women?

MW: No.

JE: And so down through the years, then, the oil business has had its ups and downs.

But Williford has survived it all.

MW: Yes.

JE: Have you explored? Did you explore in new territory?

MW: Oh, yes.

JE: I’ve named, what was it, Colorado, Texas, Oklahoma. Are you mostly in Oklahoma now?

MW: Yes.

JE: Right. Are you in other states?

MW: Yes.

JE: Right. And you’re continuing new exploration, I suppose.

MW: No.

JE: No.

MW: No. No more drilling. That’s it. We’re producing now.

JE: Okay. All right. What about the fracking issue? How did that affect you?

MW: Well, it’s very beneficial because you’re able to recover fossil fuels that were not obtainable through other methods.

JE: Yeah. What’s the most difficult part of your business?

MW: The land department because I probably have a hundred changes each month because when people pass away or they get divorced or for whatever reason they want to change their interest, there’s a lot of complication with the land department.

JE: Okay. So, did your company or you have many dry holes, as they say?

MW: Oh, you bet, babe. But not too many. You have a 75% chance it will be a dry hole. A 25% chance of production.

JE: Why be in the business?

MW: Well, I don’t go to the casinos and I said I’m not a gambler. My friends say, Mollie, you gamble every day in the oil business. But I have some knowledge in that area.

JE: Yeah. I didn’t realize the percentage was that low. Yeah. I don’t know. I come from a farming background and those farmers gamble too.

MW: With the weather.

JE: With the weather. Exactly. And right now up in North Dakota there’s a drought and my cousin is probably lucky if he gets 50% of his crop. But then it bounces back and as it did for the oil business. As a matter of fact, North Dakota is big in oil right now, as you know.

Chapter 05 - Richard

John Erling (JE): We talked about you volunteering, but Richard volunteered his time as well.

Mollie Williford (MW): Yes. He was chairman of the Boy Scouts. He was chairman of River Parks. He served on the opera board. He served on the board of Gilcrease and probably other things as well.

JE: Yeah. How old was he when he died?

MW: He was 61.

JE: And you were close in age. I mean, you were the same age.

MW: No. I’m younger. I was 58.

JE: 58. Part of your hobbies, they tell me, is collection of Santa Clauses.

MW: Yes. I had probably 2,000 Santa Clauses. And when I was a child, my father would rent the Santa Claus suit and would take candy canes to our orphanage. And so I think that helped me that every year he would volunteer as Santa and I loved collecting Santa Clauses.

JE: Well, that volunteer was kind of planted by your father then, wasn’t it?

MW: Yes. Yes. He was very active in the Lions Club. And when he passed away, he asked that donations be made for their crippled children, a place where they also would outfit them with eyeglasses.

JE: Yeah. So then it makes sense then that you had that as a role model.

MW: Yes.

JE: And wanted to duplicate that. But you’ve made, you know, you have done fundraising for a lot of entities in town. But you have given generously. You gave $5 million to the Gathering Place in memory of Richard.

MW: Yes. And Tori and Robert Waldo are now working to establish new trails at Turkey Mountain. And I have given money in his memory for this Tulsa Turkey Mountain project.

JE: You also donated funds for the painting of the historic Santa Fe Trail. That was kind of fun. It was commissioned by the Oklahoma State Senate Historical Preservation Fund. Wayne Cooper, the artist, that was a project that Senator Charles Ford put together.

MW: Well, I donated a painting. And the artist gave me a small painting, which I can show you.

And the large painting is hanging in the Senate room of the Capitol.

JE: Yes. Right. What gives you the most satisfaction, volunteering or giving? It’s got to make you...

MW: No, I just want to help people. I feel like my life has been spared. And maybe God has more work for me to do. So, I do not mind supporting. You can’t support everything, but I do support what I can.

JE: Right. Right. And at 85, you’re well and healthy. And you’ve got 10, 15 years ahead of you. How old were your parents when they passed on?

MW: My father passed at 87. My mother passed at 81.

JE: Okay. So, long living blood.

MW: Good.

JE: In you.

MW: Absolutely. My grandfather was 100.

JE: Oh, really?

MW: Yes.

JE: Okay. Then that’s great. What about your grandfather? Did you know him?

MW: Oh, yes. He lived in Texas and his name was George Washington Blansett. I love that name as my paternal grandfather. My maternal grandfather was named Benjamin Franklin Warren. So, those were some family names.

JE: Yes. And were you able to be around them?

MW: Oh, yes. Yes. They were all in Texas.

JE: And what did they do?

MW: Well, my maternal grandfather was a contractor and built large homes. And my grandfather had a cotton plantation in Texas. We call it the fiddle. He played the fiddle.

JE: Oh, yes. Yeah. And you love Texas, don’t you?

MW: Yes. I kept two homes in Texas, but I liked Tulsa very much.

JE: Yeah. Well, it’s nice. You can have both places that you really like for sure. Were you able to donate and make like a Texas A&M? Was that?

MW: A little bit. We donated one of our homes in Tulsa to Texas A&M. My husband was also president of the Association of Former Students and chairman of the Development Foundation.

And when he passed, they lowered the flags on campus to half-mast.

JE: Wow.

MW: And a plane full of the people from A&M flew to Tulsa.

JE: What was Richard’s personality like?

MW: Wonderful.

JE: Yeah. Was he a very outgoing or to himself or a kind of?

MW: Well, he was Capricorn. And they’re very strong. And he enjoyed many things, golf, fishing, hunting, his family, and travel. And his mother lived in the same town where we lived. And he was very close to his mother.

JE: Yeah. You said you donated a home in Tulsa to Texas A&M.

MW: Yes, we had a Tulsa home. And we moved from there to Southern Hills. And he donated our home to Texas A&M.

JE: How did that work? The sale of it?

MW: Yes. A&M receives property and then they can sell it.

JE: So if we went to Texas A&M, we might feel a little presence of the Williford neighborhood?

MW: Yes. Yes. He donated a column on one of the buildings. And I still have several scholarships at Texas A&M that he established.

JE: Oh, wow.

MW: And I get the grades. And I have many, many students that we have helped.

JE: Then it must be satisfying for, I’m sure that some of you, some of them have come back.

MW: Well, my daughter graduated with two degrees from Texas A&M. And her oldest daughter graduated from Texas A&M. So we’re very pleased with that.

JE: Right. And those students who received scholarships as they went through school and became adults, did you get people coming back to you?

MW: Yes. Yes. Some come and visit me even.

JE: Right. It’s just fun to see that the more you give, the more you can receive.. And you don’t do it for that. But out of the clear blue sky, here’s somebody saying thank you. Or maybe a note, even if they don’t see you in person, that you get.

MW: Yes.

JE: As a result of that.

Chapter 06 - Words for Youth

John Erling (JE): Young people would be listening and starting out in life. What do you say to them?

Mollie Williford (MW): Well, I would say that make the best of whatever hand you are dealt. Because you can always be given the strength that you need. And I want you to make your life fun and enjoyable for everyone around you.

JE: Yeah. Do you know Ronnie Watson? Ronnie Watson, they had the Cars for Cures out at Southern Hills.

MW: Well, it’s through the American Diabetes Association, which I was honored and received their award. And it was just wonderful because they have a collection of cars. And I love cars. I have a red convertible and I have a 911 sports car. So it was perfect for me to be their honoree.

JE: And I don’t know if it was that time, but he said you jumped in the swimming pool.

MW: No, I didn’t.

JE: No?

MW: I threatened to raise more money. I threatened to raise more money because it was a very hot night where I had to give a speech and all the people came.

JE: What years of these two cars you referred to?

MW: Well, the red convertible is a 2013 SL V12, which Mercedes no longer makes. It’s got a pretty good engine. And then the 911 is probably a 2016. Porsche.

JE: Yes. And you enjoy those.

MW: I love my cars, yes.

JE: Right. And then you have another car, I suppose. You don’t use those on a regular basis.

MW: Yes.

JE: Oh, you do?

MW: I keep two cars.

JE: And those are the cars that you will use on a regular basis. That’s fun.

MW: Driven by a little old lady. Ha, ha, ha.

JE: Right. Have you collected any other cars?

MW: Oh, I’ve had many cars.

JE: Oh, really?

MW: Many cars. Probably 30.

JE: Is that right?

MW: Well, I never kept a car past 10,000 miles. These are the first cars I’ve ever had. And we kept two cars at Texas A&M because of our house there. And my other house in Southern Hills, I could park five cars. So I’ve always loved cars.

JE: But not all of them were – but many of them were collector’s pieces, weren’t they?

MW: No, no, just everyday cars.

JE: Okay, right.

MW: And I had a red pickup truck. I love that.

JE: Oh, where do you keep that?

MW: Well, I gave it to my simulator company.

JE: At 85, people think that’s old, but I don’t think we’re thinking that’s much old anymore, are we?

MW: No, not for me, babe.

JE: Is there something else that I should bring up to you? That you would like to comment on?

MW: Well, I think you should always value your family. And treat them as well as you wish to be treated.

JE: Yeah. Your grandchildren, do they average, I mean, the ages range from youngest to oldest?

MW: Well, the youngest one is going today to OSU, and she is a pole vaulter. And her name is Brooke Bayles, and she came in third in the state. And so she will go to OSU. My daughter had three children. She was divorced for 13 years, and now she’s been married nine years. And to Steve Bayles, who was a major in Tulsa Police Department for 30 years.

And he had four children. His two sons are Marines. His daughter is going to TCC. And the girl is now going to OSU. One daughter of Monica’s graduated from Texas A&M. One graduated from OSU. And her son is a senior at Canyon College.

JE: Are you able to get everybody together?

MW: Well, sometimes. We had them all last Christmas. Which is rare. But we did have them all last Christmas.

JE: Here in your beautiful home, where we are recording?

MW: My daughter’s, mainly. We had 17, so it was a wonderful Christmas.

JE: Yeah. And we should say we’re recording this interview here in your beautiful home here in Tulsa. Anything else that I can bring out?

MW: Well, thank you, John, for this opportunity. I love Tulsa. And I’m happy to participate.

JE: Yeah. How would you like to be remembered?

MW: Well, I’ve always tried to live my life with a very strong faith. And do as much good as possible.

JE: Yeah. And you have done that. Thank you for giving this time to us. Now, immediately. But for future generations to listen back to a very wonderful woman in our community in Tulsa. And for the state of Oklahoma. Thank you, Mollie.

MW: You’re very welcome, John.