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Bill McNutt

Bill McNutt more formally known as Lee William “Bill” McNutt III, the son of a World War II U.S. Army Staff Sergeant, co-founder and chairman of State Funeral for World War II Veterans and, has developed a remarkable career in public service, Government and civic leadership, international trade, and private enterprise. Originally from Nashville, Tennessee, McNutt is the son of the late L. William McNutt, Jr. and Josephine Pritchett McNutt McNutt and the grandson of Lee William McNutt and Anna Mae McNutt on his father’s side and the grandson of Joe and Velma Pritchett on his mother’s side. McNutt is the founder and owner of International Direct Marketing Consultants based in University Park, Texas. McNutt and his entities have made 101 Investments since 2014 in tech startups, primarily in Silicon Valley. These include investments in GitLab, Voyce Global, StarShip HSA, Laundry Sauce, Ready Responders, Jewel Bank Bermuda, Strix Levitian, Armory and more. Successful exits include Modern Message, Hint Health, Cancer Gene Connect, and many more.

Family and Residence

McNutt is married with four children. They are Thomas McNutt of Corsicana, Texas, Will McNutt of Dallas, Texas. Rabel McNutt and Slone Carson McNutt of Dallas. Thomas McNutt, a former college football player and high school coach, is married to Louisiana native Julie Martin, Ph.D. in Medicine. Will McNutt, a lawyer and Marine Corps-trained Major in the Texas National Guard, is married to Michelle Glover McNutt, a public-school teacher from Tennessee. Bill McNutt and his wife, attorney Susana Rabel McNutt, split time between Ft Lauderdale, FL and University Park, Texas.

Early Life and Education

McNutt, who was born in Nashville, Tennessee, graduated from Corsicana High School in 1973. He earned his MBA and graduated from the Vanderbilt Owen Graduate School of Management. Bill McNutt is a graduate of Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. And holds a Masters Degree in Art History and Liberal Arts from SMU.

Bill was elected President of the Senior Class, Co-Captain of the Varsity Football Team, and voted Most Likely to Succeed at Corsicana High. He earned a full football scholarship to attended Southern Methodist University. Texas Football Magazine named him to the 25th Silver Anniversary Corsicana High Football team. Following graduate school, he worked for Collin Street Bakery, expanding the company into Mexico and creating a newspaper advertising campaign that brought in over 50,000 new customers. Following the Bakery, he worked in the Office of Privatization in the Reagan White House.

Government Services

Bill McNutt worked for the 40th and 41st Presidents of the United States. He worked as a Special Assistant in the Office of Privatization, a division of the Office of Management and Budget, during the Reagan administration. During the 1988 presidential campaign, he worked at National Campaign Headquarters for Vice President George Herbert Walker Bush and was a member of the 1988-89 Presidential Transition Team. Following his service at the Department of Labor during the Bush-Quayle administration, he organized and led 53 United States Trade Missions to all corners of the Globe.

Private Sector

Bill and two partners purchased 100% of Tradesman Truck Box, Home Depot's sole supplier of Huskie pickup truck storage boxes. They sold the company to Lund International Automotive after it successfully expanding enterprise. Bill has been involved in investing in Tech Startups in Silicon Valley and beyond since the sale of Tradesman.

The State Funeral for World War II Veterans has announced the appointment of Bill McNutt as National Chairman of the Board in 2017. The organization's mission is to "convince the President of the United States to designate a State Funeral for the last Medal of Honor recipient from World War II, as a final salute to the 16 million women and men of the greatest generation who served in our armed forces from 1941 to 1945." This mission was fulfilled on July 14. 2022 with the National Funeral in the Rotunda of the Capitol in Washington of Hershel "Woody" Williams.

McNutt established the Bill McNutt, III Family Foundation, which is dedicated to helping Corsicana and Navarro County, Texas in a variety of ways, including beautifying public spaces and teaching leadership to high school students, among other things. The Foundation dedicated a seven and a half foot tall, museum-quality bronze statue of the Collin Street Baker in 2019. Jerry Grimmett, who is celebrating his 66th year with the company, is depicted in the statue.

He is also the Chairman of the “Corsicana My Hometown project”, which includes a website and a Facebook Group dedicated to promoting Corsicana and Navarro County. Nearly 4,000 people have joined the group. This effort has been very successful in encouraging people to reconnect with Corsicana through social media platforms such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Twitter in order to rekindle memories and help Corsicana grow. The more past and current citizens we can get involved, the better chance we have in bringing additional jobs, events and people to the county seat of Navarro County. The Foundation is working on creating and gifting a sculpture to complement the existing bronze, life-size figures in the downtown area of Corsicana.

The non-profit organization is actively seeking members for its Texas State Board of Directors. McNutt was a member of the National Direct Marketing Association and TCIP Investment Partnership, and a past board member of the International Trade Association of Dallas/Fort Worth, Dallas Museum of Art Budget Board, and National Federation of Independent Business Foundation. He is also founding president of the Southern Methodist University Young Alumni Association and a deacon at Highland Park Presbyterian Church.

During his years at Collin Street Bakery the company grew internationally by 2x and became one of the largest mail order food companies in the world. A pioneer in international direct marketing, the Bakery serves customers in more than 190 countries.

Other business accomplishments include:

  • Adjunct professor of Marketing at the University of North Texas
  • Sole Founder of Cryer Creek Kitchens
  • Founder of International Direct Marketing Consultants

Idea and Founding State Funeral for World War II Veterans

In 2017, McNutt and his daughter, Rabel McNutt, co-founded State Funeral for World War II Veterans. Rabel was fortunate to have as her Godfather Medal of Honor recipient Walter Ehlers. When he died in 2014, he was the oldest recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor. They watched the state funerals of General Douglas MacArthur and President Ronald Reagan on YouTube while preparing her to attend his military funeral. She inquired about a "big funeral" for Uncle Ehlers and his friends in Washington, D.C. This gave birth to the concept, which is now spread across 24 states.

“State funeral for World War II veterans is a uniquely American story. It came from a 10-year-old school girl in Texas who wanted to honor her godfather, who happened to be the recipient of the Congressional Medal of honor in World War II. But this is America. Sometimes the most powerful ideas come from the most basic among us and we want to push through to make sure that the greatest generation has a wonderful final slate.”- Bill

Its intended goal was met on July 14, 2022, when the last Medal of Honor recipient from World War II received a National Funeral in Washington, D.C. The first ceremony took place in the Rotunda of the Capital, where the Speaker of the House and the Senate Minority Leader addressed. Later that day, a crowd of 1,000 gathered at the World War II Memorial to honor seven Medal of Honor recipients.

Civic leadership services

McNutt has served on the following boards as part of his civic leadership:

  • National Federal of Independent Business Foundation
  • Montgomery Bell Academy Advisory Board
  • Budget Board of the Dallas Museum of the Arts
  • Agriculture Board at the National Chamber of Commerce
  • Delegate to the White House Conference on Small Business
  • State of Texas Drug Abuse Advisory Board

References

https://worldwar2salute.org/NATIONAL-BOARD-MEMBERS
https://www.corsicanadailysun.com/news/bill-mcnutt-iii-family-foundation-to-benefit-corsicana-and-navarro-county/article_3f93230c-9f20-11e7-b6d2-5bc1c63436d6.html
https://apnews.com/article/texas-veterans-vietnam-congress-state-funerals-7ef61465f8f958a3d24b89997156cf5f https://www.worldwar2salute.org/resources/Documents/Transcript-E2-Great-ideas-have-humble-beginnings.pdf https://www.corsicanadailysun.com/news/state-funeral-for-world-war-ii-veterans-appoints-mcnutt/article_73ab8bc6-18dc-11e8-a482-076feedac6b1.html https://www.tumblr.com/grrrlstudies/74708877460/bill-mcnutt-more-formally-known-as-lee-william
https://www.txdirectory.com/online/person/?id=31244&office=17402https://obits.dallasnews.com/us/obituaries/dallasmorningnews/name/l-mcnutt-obituary?id=26749931




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