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April 27, 2007
Meet Will Smith's Inspiration for "Happyness"
Chris Gardner chronicled his struggle and motivation during two events at Texas Tech.
Written by John Davis
Chris Gardner shared his heroic story with Texas Tech.
Sure, he’s made millions of dollars.
True, the movie chronicling his life as a single father living on the streets of San Francisco became the top movie in the world Feb. 10 – the day after his birthday.
But for rags-to-riches businessman and author, Christopher Gardner, the most valuable thing he ever did was teaching his now-grown son how to be a responsible parent.
“The most important thing in the world for me to do was to break the cycle of men who were not there for their children,” Gardner said as he spoke to a near-full house Wednesday at Texas Tech’s Allen Theatre. “I’ve raised a young man who knows how important it is to be responsible, and I’ve raised a young woman who knows how she should be treated by a man.”
The Rawls College of Business, the Office of Institutional Diversity and its Mentor Tech program together with the Presidential Lecture & Performance Series co-hosted a lecture by Gardner, best-selling author and CEO of his own brokerage firm, April 26.
Gardner's journey from homelessness to Wall Street is chronicled in his book, “The Pursuit of Happyness.”
“Christopher Gardner in many ways epitomizes the American dream,” says Cory Powell, associate director for the Mentor Tech program. “His life and accomplishments prove that hard work and perseverance pays off. We believe that he will be an inspiration to all that attend.”
The Rawls College of Business Administration also hosted Chris Gardner at its Chief Executive’s Roundtable Luncheon at the Merket Alumni Center.
“Chris is one of the most influential people one could hear speak," said Rawls College of Business Dean Allen T. McInnes. “He truly is an inspiration, and the Texas Tech community could not be more grateful that he could be here to personally tell his story of overcoming hardship.”
Story produced by the Office of Communications and Marketing, 806-742-2136.
Web layout by Gretchen Pressley