In the College of Pharmacy dwells the Joseph D. Williams Auditorium — the one with the name on the wall next to the oil painting and bronze bust and plaque. That’s Joe Williams, World War II vet, pharmaceutical salesman, company president, proud UNMC alum.
The 1950 graduate rose through the ranks of the pharmaceutical company Parke-Davis. After a merger, he was eventually president, then chairman and CEO of Warner-Lambert. But he was first “fascinated” by pharmacy as a kid visiting his granddad’s Pawnee City, Neb., drugstore.
He’d become the kind of guy they name auditoriums after at his alma mater. The kind of guy who can start a story with: “We were in Howard Baker’s office. And I said to Howard…” This was when Baker was President Reagan’s chief of staff.
It would be easy for a guy like that to forget where he came from, but he hasn’t.
On a recent visit back to UNMC he said he’s accomplished what he has because he had a good background, a good education. And because he enjoyed what he did.
“I had an aptitude for it,” he said. “And I liked it a lot.”
He succeeded, he said, because he was a pharmacist. His was a drug company that excelled at research in part because its CEO was a guy who knew the business from the ground up.
When he started his career, Williams’ home base was in Beatrice, Neb. By the time he retired, he had access to a corporate jet. So what did he do on his last day? He flew back to Beatrice. It looked like they were going to land on Main Street. “It looked like a strafing run,” Williams said.
That night, he had dinner with his pals from the old days.
Now long retired, Williams recently made a gift commitment of $2.5 million toward a proposed new $35 million College of Pharmacy building. Construction is expected to begin in February 2014 with completion in July 2015. The building would be located just east of the Sorrell Center.
When he was back, Williams met with College of Pharmacy investigators, who were excited to meet with an alum-done-good. He was excited to hear all that they were working on.
They’ll be able to do even more soon, Williams said. The new building will mean more graduates with good educations, who go on to love what they do.
The College of Pharmacy building project is one of UNMC’s top priorities for the Campaign for Nebraska: Unlimited Possibilities. To support this project, contact the University of Nebraska Foundation’s Patty Sherman at 402-502-4114 or psherman@nufoundation.org.