Duffie’s Green Thumb Paying Off—With Century Oak Help

Andy Duffie is again showing that at least one tree can grow money—with his helping green thumb.

Duffie attracted widespread attention—not just in Aggieland—when he came up with the idea of collecting acorns from Texas A&M University’s beloved “Century Oak,” planting them, nurturing them to  seedling size and then selling them to raise money for Aggie scholarships. He even trekked around Texas personally delivering many of the still-potted trees. That was back in 2012 after he started his labor of love with his first collection of acorns in 2010.

He’s at it again.

Duffie, a semi-retired 1978 Texas A&M graduate, has even moved from Vernon to Aggieland, where he is immersing himself in a variety of university-related endeavors in addition to growing the next batch of Century Oak offspring.

His first fling at providing fellow Aggies and others with their own versions of the legendary Texas A&M tree brought in more than $100,000, which Duffie donated to the Texas A&M Foundation, the university’s major-gifts fund-raising organization, to establish the Century Tree President’s Endowed Scholarship. President’s Endowed Scholarships are the most prestigious such awards offered by Texas A&M and help it attract even more high-achieving students, including National Merit Scholars.

The Century Oak—sometimes simply called the Century Tree– graces the heart of the campus near the 100-year-old landmark Academic Building. Its branches reach out more than 75 feet — some so long and heavy that they have to rest on the ground.

In another sense, its reach now stretches across America, with seedlings grown from its acorns literally thriving from coast-to-coast — from Washington state to the west and the Carolinas and Virginia to the east. In addition to those states and at scores of places around Texas, the seedlings now or soon will be growing in California, Georgia, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Oregon, Mississippi, New Mexico, Arizona and southwest Tennessee. The states of Alabama and Florida are not yet on the list.

Unfortunately, Duffie observes, the potential for expanding into other states is limited because Live Oaks can’t survive in extremely low temperatures that are common in some Midwestern and northern regions of the nation.

The first financial award of the Duffie-inspired scholarship was presented to a freshman cadet last year, and that student will benefit from it for four years, provided he maintains stellar grades. Then the student beneficiary will rotate to a new student every four years – forevermore. Recipients of the endowed scholarship are also expected to exemplify the character and traits of the late Gen. Earl Rudder, who was president of Texas A&M when the special scholarship program was established and who is credited with being instrumental in setting the university on its present course of an enhanced national presence in teaching, research and service.

Now that the presidential scholarship is well established, Duffie will use sales proceeds from this year’s crop of seedlings to fund an Endowed Aggie Ring Scholarship at The Association of Former Students. This endowed scholarship will pay for a cherished Aggie ring for a deserving student who may not otherwise be able to afford his or her own ring. The endowment will pay for one Aggie ring per year forevermore.

An Aggie ring can cost up to $1,100 for a man or $550 for a woman, with the price of gold the determining factor. Aggie rings are proudly worn by the university’s graduates and are readily recognizable by other former students – and have been conversational ice-breakers in encounters around the world.

For next year’s Aggie Century Tree Project, Duffie plans to endow a scholarship benefitting the Corps of Cadets. The Corps is growing and in need of more scholarships to offer to deserving young men and women, he notes.

Duffie, himself a former member of the Corps, says, “Endowing a major scholarship specifically for the Corps is my way of ‘paying it forward’ to all of the Aggies who helped me when I was a cadet many years ago.”

Finally, Duffie foresees the establishment of a fund to help support the activities of the Traditions Council, a student-run organization with involvement in various unique university activities, including Silver Taps and providing support for the Bonfire Memorial. Silver Taps is the ceremony that honors Aggies who die while they are currently enrolled students. The Bonfire Memorial was established to honor the 12 Aggies who died and the 27 who were injured when the school’s 1999 Bonfire tragically collapsed.

The first time around, Duffie nurtured more than 530 acorns to leafy fruition and sold them for $250 each or $400 for two. In raising and marketing the current batch of money-generating Century Oak seedlings—again, more than 500 of them—he has them priced at a $100 each. He explains the trees in the first round were two years old and each stood four-to-six feet tall. The trees being made available this year are only a year old and stand about 18 inches high—hence the price difference.

Logistics figure prominently in Duffie’s growing and pricing strategies this year. This time around he will ship many of the seedlings destined for out-of-town destinations via UPS. But he also offers the option of free local pickup or delivery to Aggies in Bryan-College Station.

“The 18-inch seedlings will ship nicely in a box. The two-year old trees from my first project were taller, heavier, and required more special handling,” Duffie explained.

That special handling the first time translated into Duffie personally delivering most of them via U-Haul trucks to Aggies living at various locations around Texas. It proved to be a daunting challenge, but he says it was a rewarding experience.

“During my seedling deliveries in September 2012, I literally met hundreds of awesome Aggies who were thrilled to receive their trees,” notes Duffie. “The Aggie Network is still very much alive and well! It never ceases to amaze me how strongly we are all connected through one tie or another.”

“These special trees are living pieces of Aggieland and will be enjoyed by Aggies for generations to come,” Duffie adds, pointing out that purchases are made by former students of all ages – and for special occasions ranging from birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, weddings, and to honor a living or deceased Aggie family member.

“Well over 300 of my trees have been purchased by Aggie couples who were engaged under the Century Tree at some point in time,” Duffie says. “They were thrilled to have their own Century Tree seedling now growing in their yards at home.”

It’s not just Aggies who consider the tree famous. The Century Tree has received “Famous Tree of Texas” designation by the Texas A&M Forest Service. The “Famous Tree of Texas” designation is reserved for “an elite group of trees that have ‘witnessed exciting times in Texas frontier history’ and are alive today,” says Gretchen Riley, the program’s coordinator.

The project’s Facebook page (Aggie Century Tree Project) shows pictures of the trees at different stages of development as well as many of the Aggies of all ages who have purchased seedlings. His website allows for online ordering of seedlings and includes care and planting instructions for the young trees. A limited supply of Century Tree seedlings from this year’s crop is still available for purchase.