Delbert “Tex” and Ellen Caldwell
The
College of Veterinary Medicine at Washington State University will continue to
lead the way in animal disease research and provide an educational experience
that is unsurpassed, thanks to a bequest from the late Delbert “Tex” and Ellen
Caldwell. Funds from the Mr. and Mrs. Delbert Caldwell Endowment have been
directed to endowed faculty positions and personnel conducting research on wild
sheep diseases, aquatic animal health, and agricultural animal medicine, states
Warwick Bayly, dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine.
Three Caldwell Fellowships created from the bequest will be awarded to
undergraduate and post-graduate DVM students seeking careers as researchers
or clinicians in agricultural animal health. The endowment grants the
couple’s wish to provide a permanent source of funding for research and
scholarships at the College of Veterinary Medicine.
The Caldwells raised cattle and owned several milk cows on a farm near
Moscow, Idaho. The couple’s connection to Washington State was a
veterinarian from the College who would travel to their farm to treat their
cattle. “Tex” and Ellen shared a love for animals and this gift demonstrates
their appreciation for the expertise provided by the veterinary clinician.
The couple did not have children of their own, but through their gift
they will help students further their education at WSU and prepare for
successful careers in veterinary medicine.
Delbert Lee “Tex” Caldwell was born January 11, 1911, and grew up on a
farm in Columbus, Arkansas, where his father, a veterinarian, raised
breeding stock. Delbert and his four brothers and two sisters helped tend
the horses, mules, and cattle on the farm. Delbert grew to be six-feet,
seven inches tall. He played basketball in high school and went on to play
semiprofessionally. In the late 1930s, he began working in construction
operating heavy equipment. He worked in southwest Arkansas, Texas, and
Oklahoma for a few years before moving to Washington state to work on
construction projects at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation and Grand Coulee
Dam. A few years later, he moved to Moscow, Idaho, to work on construction
jobs in the area, including several new buildings on the WSU campus. He met
his future wife, Ellen Anderson, in Moscow. They were married in 1950.
Delbert owned two trailer parks in Moscow but sold them to purchase a ranch
on Randall Flat Road and pursue his first love—raising cattle.
