{"id":6677,"date":"2019-03-21T13:18:23","date_gmt":"2019-03-21T20:18:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cahnrs.wsu.edu\/reconnect\/?page_id=6677"},"modified":"2019-04-11T13:29:16","modified_gmt":"2019-04-11T20:29:16","slug":"forever-pioneering","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/cahnrs.wsu.edu\/reconnect\/reconnect-2019\/forever-pioneering\/","title":{"rendered":"Forever Pioneering"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Forever Pioneering<\/h1>\n

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\n\t\t\tCAHNRS alumnus pays forward ancestor\u2019s spirited legacy\t<\/h2>\n

Not a stone or beam remains of James S. Davis\u2019 hotel on the summit of Steptoe Butte. The rolling prairies far below have long since given way to checkerboards of ripening grain.<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Gordon
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T<\/span>he vista from Steptoe Butte<\/strong>, a quartzite island rising 1,700 feet above the Palouse, is as inspiring today as it was 128 years ago, when Davis, an immigrant and entrepreneur better known by his nickname of \u201cCashup,\u201d opened the grand inn.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt takes my breath away,\u201d said Gordon Davis, Cash\u00adup\u2019s descendant and a CAHNRS alumnus who led a dozen family members to the top of the mountain two summers ago. \u201cEvery time I come up to Steptoe, it opens my mind to what my great-grandfather saw when he first came here in 1872.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe could look for many miles on every side and pic\u00adture the richest farmland in the world,\u201d Gordon added. \u201cIf he could stand here today, I don\u2019t think he\u2019d be one bit surprised by what he would see.\u201d<\/p>\n

As a sod-busting homesteader at St. John in 1872, then as an innkeeper and hotel-builder, James Davis could see the potential of this land for agriculture, trade and improvement. His early vision predicted the Inland Empire of today.<\/p>\n

Pursuit of excellence<\/h3>\n

Gordon, who graduated from Washington State Uni\u00adversity in 1969 with a double degree in agricultural science and agricultural education, inherited much of the Cashup spirit. An award-winning teacher, mentor, entrepreneur and philanthropist, Gordon helps students and educators at WSU, in his home state of Texas, and nationwide rise to excellence.<\/p>\n

In the classroom, the boardroom, and in the frigid walk-in coolers where he coached his intercollegiate meats judging teams, Gordon has always followed the same motto: \u201cIt\u2019s all about the kids.\u201d<\/p>\n

His journey began in 1964, when his family was named the Washington State Dairy Family of the Year. Gordon remembers being \u201cgrilled under the willow tree\u201d by Tim\u00adothy Blosser, chairman of the award selection committee and head of the WSU animal sciences department, who recruited him to the university\u2019s competitive livestock and meats judging teams. That experience, a team contest to apply critical thinking and analysis quickly and accurately, changed his life.<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, I loved it!\u201d Gordon said. \u201cMentally and physi\u00adcally, I\u2019ve never seen a tougher, more challenging event than meats judging!\u201d<\/p>\n

After graduation, Gordon taught high school agricul\u00adture before seizing the chance to get back into collegiate judging, following his former coach and mentor Gary C. Smith to Texas. Building future leaders in the food industry, Gordon was proud to be able to co-coach two national champion teams, in 1973 at Texas A&M, and 1989 at Texas Tech. Former team members tell him the experience changed their lives, too.<\/p>\n

Paying forward success<\/h3>\n

In 1990, Gordon founded his educational media company, CEV Multimedia. Now a world-class service used in 67 colleges and universities, and high schools and middle schools across the nation, the service has 15,000 teacher subscribers, including more than half of all agriculture educators nationwide. Gordon, as chair, leads with four partners\u2014three of whom are former members of championship judging teams.<\/p>\n

With success, Gordon gave back. A major supporter of education, he served on CAHNRS\u2019 National Board of Advisors and its Campaign Council, helping raise more than 250 million to support academics, research, and Extension. Gordon continues to financially support CAHNRS student learning today.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo matter how good you are, you can always get better,\u201d he says. \u201cThe team is always more important than any individual win. I\u2019m on the Cougar team, and we\u2019re winning together.\u201d<\/p>\n

A secret mentor<\/h3>\n

\"\"As a teen, Gordon learned from family elders about Cashup, his famous ancestor.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy great-grandfather, a man I\u2019ve never met, has been a secret mentor to me,\u201d Gordon said. \u201cHe had incredible vision. I\u2019ve had success in life because of that same vision. I\u2019ve tried to see ahead of the game, just like him.\u201d<\/p>\n

In his latest trip to the Palouse, Gordon made sure to pass on the Davis history to the five youngest members of his family\u2014Cashup\u2019s great-great-grand\u00adchildren.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is quite a story,\u201d he told the children. \u201cYou need to learn about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

This spring, Gordon\u2019s oldest grandson, Reese, came to WSU as a transfer student.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think Cashup had something to do with it,\u201d Gordon said.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n

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CONNECT with CAHNRS<\/h2>\n

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