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John Philp Thompson, Sr. (November 25, 1925 Dallas, Texas-January 28, 2003 Dallas, Texas), was the eldest son of Joe C. Thompson, Sr., the founder of the 7-Eleven chain of convenience stores. ==Career== Although young, John Philp Thompson began his work in the business at an early age while it was still the Southland Ice Company and worked beside his father in its evolution from a small ice company into the Southland Corporation, which had expanded to include Oak Farms Dairy into its eventual "invention" of the convenience store concept. He served in the United States Navy from 1944 to 1946. By 1948, the ''Dallas Times Herald'' wrote that the young "Johnny Thompson" was destined to be one of "Tomorrow's Leaders". Before his father, Joe C. Thompson, died in 1961, he passed the reins of the convenience store chain to John, who later grew it from a Texas chain into the global giant that in 1985 had total annual revenues exceeding $12.7 billion, taking the new concept of a convenience store into the world markets of Mexico, Japan, Far Eastern countries, Australia and Europe. John Philp Thompson again made history when under his guidance, Southland Corp. (7-Eleven) raised $81.5 million for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, prompting Jerry Lewis to write, “You accomplished so much, and you and your father before you built a monument. The good you've done will never be forgotten.” Thompson continued to measure the “monument” of the company not only by the numbers it produced, but by the good it could do. Oak Farms became the first national corporate sponsor of The March of Dimes, and 7-Eleven contributed to the purchase of land for a refuge for the American bald eagle via the National Wildlife Federation where he served on the Board of Directors. During his time as 7-Eleven's CEO, John also led the company to purchase CITGO Oil and Ticketmaster, overseeing their operations as well. It was this experience that led him to recognize the country's need for environmentally friendly energy options. When his innovative attempt to install "alternative fueling stations for electric cars" didn't work, he nevertheless stood by his belief that those with influence could and should seek ways to balance environmental stewardship with the need to create profit. He expressed this in the 1979 edition of ''U.S. News and World Report's'' "How to Get America Moving Again: 20 Leaders Tell What's Needed" when he said:
John Philp Thompson, Sr. was a champion not only for environmental causes, but also for making education available to all. In 1989, the company began a literacy initiative, "People Who Read Achieve", which continues to raise funds for organizations that sponsor reading programs. He also was one of the primary founders and innovators of the Dallas Community College District Foundation's Rising Star Scholarship Program that sought to make college education available to children in Texas and served as the Chairman of The Chancellor’s Council for his state's universities. He also joined his brothers, Jere W. Thompson, Sr. and Jodie Thompson in establishing the (Joe C. Thompson Conference Center ) dedicated "providing excellent conference facilities, services, and programs for people to continue their educational development and personal enrichment." As a result of serving on both boards related to public education institutions in the medical fields and as Chairman of Presbyterian Hospital, he became aware of the need for public and private medical institutions to be able to share research in order for greater strides to be made. This would prove to be a ten-year struggle of untangling bureaucratic tape, but eventually John Thompson was awarded by Colin Powell for his tireless dedication towards paving the way for doctors and researchers from both public and private medical research facilities in the state of Texas to be able to share relevant information that could advance health for the greater community. An avid leader of the local, national and international business and philanthropic communities, he was known for saying to other CEOs:
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