Late Cheyenne business leader creates professorship to honor son

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 A longtime Cheyenne business leader, whose generosity to the community lives on even after her death in 2001, continues her tradition of philanthropy with a $250,000 bequest to the OU College of Engineering. The Nettie Vincent Boggs Testamentary Trust has established a professorship in engineering at the University of Oklahoma in honor of Boggs’ son, John Vincent “Vince” Boggs. Gifted both academically and musically, Vince earned three degrees at the University, including a PhD in nuclear engineering, before his death in a motorcycle accident in 1971. “Supporting education was very important to Nettie,” said Janith Moore, trustee of the Nettie Boggs Trust. “I think she felt that providing for the education of others was a meaningful way to honor Vince and keep his memory alive. The youngest of eight children, Nettie Ellen Vincent Boggs was born in Texas in 1911 and moved to Cheyenne as a child. She spent nearly all of her 90 years in Cheyenne. A bright and inquisitive student, she excelled academically and, like her son, was named valedictorian of her high school graduating class. Her family did not have the means to provide a college education, but Boggs attended business school in Oklahoma City and returned to Cheyenne to work in a bank. In 1936 she married local businessman Lisle Boggs. The couple was active in civic and business organizations, including the Cheyenne Chamber of Commerce. “Nettie loved her numbers,” said Moore, who grew to be a close friend to Boggs, as well as her personal assistant. “She was happy making money, but not spending it. She lived in a modest stucco house and did not spend money on herself.” Although small in stature, Boggs was known for her ramrod straight posture and even straighter business ethics and acumen. Moore said Nettie loved nothing more than “getting in there and negotiating deals with men who towered over her—she called it ‘dickering.’ “She was a tough business woman, but she had so much warmth and humor once you got to know her,” said Moore. “She could be intimidating; she was always in control of her business and her life.” One thing she could not control was the untimely death of her beloved son. Now her gift to the University will leave a lasting legacy for generations of future OU students. “We are extremely grateful to Nettie Boggs for her generous legacy and to Trustee Janith Moore for her careful stewardship of Nettie’s wishes,” said OU Engineering Dean Tom Landers. “This new professorship will strengthen our ability to recruit and retain the nation’s top engineering faculty and will provide an enhanced level of educational opportunities for our students. I can think of no better way to honor Vince’s outstanding academic career at OU than by his mother’s investment in the education of others.”

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