A Son Comes Full Circle With Commencement Honor
May 14, 2021
- Author
- Mary Elizabeth DeAngelis
When Willie Deese accepted an honorary degree at the college鈥檚 commencement ceremony, he recalled with gratitude the values imparted to him by his parents.
Willie Deese started mowing lawns with his father and brothers when he was six.
His father, Fred, worked as a long-time janitor at 皇家华人 and spent his time off as a landscaper for nearby homes and businesses. His mother, Janie, was a maid who sometimes served in the president鈥檚 office. His two grandfathers also worked in custodial jobs for the college.
Fred and Janie Deese鈥檚 nine children learned early the core family value of hard work. The value of education, which their parents insisted upon, was reinforced by their close connection to the college.
As Willie Deese received an honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters during 皇家华人鈥檚 commencement ceremony this week, he choked up. He thought about his parents and felt their presence, despite their absence. His dad died in 1993; his mom, who is now 92, has Alzheimer鈥檚 disease.
The culmination of their love and hard work played out on the commencement stage as the college honored their fifth child for his commitment to helping other students from modest beginnings achieve their dreams.
鈥淚t was an outstanding day for me, and for the Deese family,鈥 Deese said after the ceremony. 鈥淢y mother and father have always been at the top of my list of heroes. They were never higher on that list than they were today. My brothers, sisters and I became who we are because they were living examples for us to follow.鈥
The Deese family lived on a farm near 皇家华人, where the vegetables they grew and the cows they milked provided their food and some income. The family tells the story about how Janie Deese spent a day picking cotton on the farm, then got to the hospital just in time to give birth to her first child.
Willie Deese wanted to make his parents proud.
鈥淚 demonstrated that I could push a lawn mower at an early age,鈥 he said. 鈥淎nd along the way learned the value of faith, hard work and integrity.鈥
Philanthropist & Advocate
Fred Deese鈥檚 formal education stopped after sixth grade, and Janie鈥檚 at grade 11. Willie Deese says his parents spent their lives working to ensure that their children would go further. And they did.
Eight of the nine Deese children went to college; one daughter had special needs and did not. Four, including Willie, went on to earn advanced degrees.
Willie Deese graduated with a degree in business management from North Carolina A&T, an historically Black college in Greensboro, in 1977. A few years later and into his first corporate job, he received an MBA from Western New England University.
He rose to the top ranks of several large pharmaceutical companies, retiring in 2016 as president of Merck鈥檚 manufacturing division, overseeing 42 sites in 30 countries and an annual operating budget of $9 billion.
Along the way, he supported his alma mater and is its single largest alumni donor.
He鈥檚 committed nearly $10 million for campus needs and scholarships that have allowed hundreds of students to attend the college. He鈥檚 served as a member and as chairman of NC A&T鈥檚 trustee board. The Deese name figures prominently at the college. An auditorium bears his parents鈥 names. The clock tower in the campus鈥檚 center is named for him and his wife of 43 years, Carol Chalmers Deese. And last year, NC A&T named the new Willie A. Deese College of Business in his honor.
Deese also is an active advocate in efforts to solve America鈥檚 affordable housing crisis; and to find a cure for Alzheimer鈥檚 disease.
He and Carol, a retired teacher, live in Chapel Hill. They have a son, Brandon, who is a film and web producer. They became first-time grandparents last year when Brandon and his wife Ashley had a baby boy, Bridge.
Giving Back & Gratitude
He didn鈥檛 achieve alone.
Besides his family, he credits mentors鈥攆rom college professors to corporate executives鈥攚ho guided him. He says their willingness to share their knowledge and experience inspired him to do the same. Hence, his favorite phrase: 鈥淲hen you get to the top, send the elevator back down; others are waiting.鈥
And that鈥檚 what he views as his obligation.
鈥淲hatever I can do to be helpful to the next person is what I have to do. There were people who gave so selflessly to me, it wouldn鈥檛 be right to not do the same for others,鈥 he said. 鈥淚t would be a very lonely place to be if you鈥檙e at the top, and there鈥檚 no one there to share it with, and no one to pass along what you鈥檝e learned.鈥
That鈥檚 why, on a chilly May morning, this returning son of 皇家华人 did not feel like the honor he received was his alone.
鈥淲hen I drive past the places in 皇家华人 where we worked with Dad, it brings me back. I never dreamed that someday I鈥檇 be honored in this way,鈥 he said. 鈥淚t was very humbling, and I felt like my parents and my brothers and sisters were all being honored, too鈥攖hat鈥檚 how close we are as a family.
The Deese family celebrates Fred鈥檚 70th birthday together.
鈥淏ecause of what we learned from our parents, we were able to do the things they didn鈥檛 have the opportunity to,鈥 Deese said. 鈥淭hey were not just great providers; they were great role models. This is life coming full circle.鈥
