News

Enshrinement 2017: Jack Henry & Associates to receive John Q. Hammons Founder’s Award

JHA-6

Given all of its outreach to numerous charitable causes, Jack Henry & Associates, Inc.® (JHA) is much like a big-leaguer who hits a monster home run and yet quietly jogs around the bases.

Through the course of a year, the Fortune 400 company’s leadership and employees gladly spend hours aiding those in need in southwest Missouri, and yet the public hardly hears about their efforts. That’s by design.

“We do a lot, and it goes back to our founders. Jack Henry and Jerry Hall were so giving and humble,” said Kevin Williams, CFO of Jack Henry & Associates, Inc.® “However, we pretty much do it anonymously. We don’t want the publicity. We just want to help.”

The company’s collective heart has been appreciated by many, especially the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame, which is proud to present Jack Henry & Associates, Inc.® with its 2017 John Q. Hammons Founder’s Award.

The award will be given during the Enshrinement in Springfield presented by Killian Construction, set for Sunday, January 29. (For tickets & the full lineup, see below.)

Jack Henry-4

The award is presented annually to a corporate entity that supports the Hall of Fame, a not-for-profit organization.  Founded in 1976 and the elite in financial services, Jack Henry & Associates, Inc.® is one of the Hall of Fame’s oldest corporate sponsors and has continued its support under Williams’ leadership.

The participation of Jack Henry & Associates, Inc.® has created positive impacts for the Hall of Fame as well as the Price Cutter Charity Championship presented by Dr Pepper, the PGA’s Web.com Tour tournament held at Highland Springs Country Club.

For the Hall of Fame, the great relationship has led to continued growth, including in its Celebrity Golf Classics in which Jack Henry & Associates, Inc.® is a regular. The golf outings allow golf fans to play at the finest courses in the state, including The Club at Porto Cima by Lake of the Ozarks, Tiffany Greens Golf Club in Kansas City, Highland Springs Country Club in Springfield and The Legends Country Club in Eureka.

The company also plays in pro-ams and supports other events of the Price Cutter Charity Championship presented by Dr Pepper. The tournament in its 27-year history has gifted more than $13.7 million to Ozarks children’s charities, including more than $905,000 in 2016.

Jack Henry-2015 Go Red for Women!

Understand, the monies generated reach thousands of children in need.

For instance, consider the work of charities such as The Ronald McDonald House, the Shriners Hospital Dads, Ambassadors for Children and The Arc of the Ozarks.

Ronald McDonald House, now with two Springfield facilities, offers housing to families whose newborns require extended hospital stays. The Shriners Hospital Dads in 2015 purchased a new van in order to continue to transport children and their families to hospitals in St. Louis, Chicago and Cincinnati. For kids who land in foster care, Ambassadors for Children is a tremendous resource by offering them new clothes – for free. The Arc of the Ozarks, the 2015 PGA Web.com Tour Charity of the Year, is able to offer a summer program for developmentally disabled children.

A PCCC gift helped the Shriners Hospital Dads purchase a new van in 2015.
A PCCC gift helped the Shriners Hospital Dads purchase a new van in 2015.

Meanwhile, for Jack Henry & Associates, Inc.®, the golf outings create an opportunity for the company to connect clients with some of the biggest names in Missouri sports history. For instance, Williams and several other JHA associates years ago met none other than Stan Musial, the St. Louis Cardinals great at one of these events.

“They got involved with the corporate sponsorship program when we were first getting it off the ground and have continued to support us at a high level since then,” said Jerald Andrews, President and Executive Director of the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame. “They entertain a lot of their clients and customers at our events. And, of course, they are such a strong force in Springfield and Monett, where they employ so many people. They are involved in so many charitable causes, and we are glad that the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame and the Price Cutter Charity Championship presented by Dr Pepper are two of those.”

Jack Henry & Associates always has an eye on helping southwest Missouri.
Jack Henry & Associates always has an eye on helping southwest Missouri.

Perhaps such support of numerous charities is no surprise, given the Ozarks’ special meaning to the JHA family, whose headquarters remain in Monett. The company employs close to 2,000 associates in southwest Missouri, which is about one-third of its total employee base.

The company’s generosity began under John W. “Jack” Henry and Jerry Hall, the company’s co-founders. Henry passed away in 2007; Hall in 2013.

“Growing up in Southwest Missouri, my beliefs are very much in line with those of Jack and Jerry: to give back to the community and help the less fortunate, as quietly as possible,” said Kevin Williams, CFO.

Beyond its support of the Hall of Fame, the Fortune 400 company since the 1980s has hosted the annual Jack & Jerry Memorial Charity Golf Classic in Monett. In the past two years, the tournament has benefitted Folds of Honor, which gifts scholarships to children and spouses of fallen or disabled soldiers.

A local food pantry also gets a boost from JHA.
A local food pantry also gets a boost from JHA.

Among the other charities Jack Henry & Associates, Inc.® supports are Relay for Life, United Way, Bowling for Kids’ Sake, Big Brothers Big Sisters, and the Sertoma Chili Cook-Off that supports children’s charities.

In celebrating its 40th anniversary, Jack Henry & Associates, Inc.® held nationwide charity events and published the JHA Culture Book, with a portion of the proceeds benefitting the Springfield chapter of the American Cancer Society.

In 2012, when the company celebrated its 36th anniversary, employees were encouraged to volunteer 36 hours in the community in what was called the “36 Hours Project.”

“It was amazing how many of our associates doubled or even tripled that number,” Williams said of the “36 Hours Project.”

That same year, Jack Henry & Associates, Inc.® announced $1 billion in annual revenue.

For Jack Henry & Associates, Inc.® to be in a position to assist numerous charities is a result of its enormous growth. When the company was founded in 1976, it focused on supporting community banks with in-house data processing systems. Today, it counts more than 6,000 employees and 10,500 financial institutions as customers.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Like any success story, however, the company rose from humble beginnings.

In the years leading up the company’s founding, Jack Henry and Jerry Hall were believed to have been the only computer users in Monett – with Jack a data processing manager for Gillioz Bank & Trust, and Jerry in the same role within U.S. Shoe Company. The two became friends on regular business trips to Springfield and eventually went into business together.

With the business idea conceived on a paper napkin, the company opened in space rented in an engine repair shop for $40 a month and the use of a borrowed computer.

“At that time, in-house computer systems were very expensive and only the largest banks could afford them,” Jack once said. “As a result, all of the smaller banks had to send their information to the larger ones for processing. We knew the smaller banks were tired of having their computer work done elsewhere, and we actually created this business to equip those banks with everything they need to do their own data processing.”

Along the way, Jack Henry & Associates, Inc.® reached numerous milestones. In 1977, it earned $115,222 in revenue. Four years later, the first building – J1 – was built on a 52-acre Monett campus, which has since expanded to 154 acres. Then, an Initial Public Offering in November 1985 made JHA a public company trading 3,125,000 common shares on the NASDAQ exchange under the symbol JKHY.

JHA-NASDAQ

Fast forward to today.

Jack Henry & Associates, Inc.® is a financially sound, service-focused company that sells and supports more than 300 products and services. Its three brands – Jack Henry Banking, Symitar and ProfitStars – support financial institutions of all sizes, diverse businesses outside the financial industry and other technology providers.

Through an exceptional service culture that was founded on integrity, trust, doing the right thing and doing whatever it takes, Jack Henry & Associates, Inc.® confidently leads its customers to success. Whether they want to drive efficiencies, improve compliance, better integrate their platforms, customize their systems, or change operating environments, JHA offers the proven technology and unmatched support to move them forward.

Thus, thanks to its strong core values and success, Jack Henry & Associates, Inc.® has made a commitment to assisting non-profits throughout southwest Missouri.

“With nearly 2,000 employees in southwest Missouri,” Williams said, “it’s important to support them, their families and their communities.”

………………………………………………

Enshrinement partial logo 2017

ENSHRINEMENT IN SPRINGFIELD

When: Sunday, January 29

Early Reception: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame, 3861 E. Stan Musial Drive in Springfield. Event is sponsored by Meek’s The Builder’s Choice.

Reception, dinner & ceremony: 4 p.m. at University Plaza Hotel & Convention Center in downtown Springfield, 5 p.m. dinner and ceremony. Sponsored by Killian Construction. Associate Sponsors are Advertising Plus, Hartman & Company, Inc., Hiland Dairy, Hillyard, Inc. and White River Valley Electric Co-op

Inductees: St. Louis Cardinals speedster Vince Coleman, Kansas City Royals outfielder Amos Otis, Chiefs quarterback Bill Kenney, the Voice of the Missouri Tigers, Mike Kelly, Houston Astros owner Jim Crane (University of Central Missouri baseball), former Mizzou football coach Warren Powers, Missouri State volleyball coach Melissa Stokes, Mizzou head athletic trainer Rex Sharp, B.A.S.S. champion Rick Clunn (Ava), motocross champion Jeff Emig (Kansas City), Missouri State basketball standout Kelby Stuckey, NFL referee George Hayward (St. Joseph), the Voice of the Missouri State Bears, Art Hains, track coach Rod Staggs (St. Louis Berkeley), Penney High School football coach David Fairchild and Glendale High School soccer coach Jeff Rogers. The Hall of Fame also will induct the New Bloomfield High School Baseball Program and its coach, the late Rod Haley, and the University of Central Missouri Mules Baseball Program. The John Q. Hammons Founder’s Award will be bestowed on Jack Henry & Associates, and the Hall will present the President’s Award to Leon Combs.

Tickets: Call 417-889-3100. A sponsorship table of 10 is $1,500 and includes an autographed print of the Class of 2017, sponsor recognition in the printed program and at the table. An individual ticket is $150. Numerous other sponsorships also are available, including congratulatory ads.