The late Billy Joe Miles (1939-2018), Don Penn Moore III, and Tommy Thompson have been inducted Thursday into the Owensboro Organization Hall of Fame.

Men and women are nominated for their outstanding civic and organization contributions to the Owensboro region and recognized for their organization excellence, entrepreneurial spirit, courageous considering and action, inspiring leadership, neighborhood influence, and service as a function model. 

The Hall of Fame is run by Junior Achievement of West Kentucky, an organization “dedicated to providing young persons the understanding and capabilities they need to have to personal their financial results, program for their futures, and make sensible academic and financial options,” according to their site.

Billy Joe Miles (1939-2018): Miles Enterprises

Suzanne Miles stated that her father would be extremely proud and honored to be inducted. 

“For our mom, our household was her entire planet. The entire planet was my dad’s household,” she stated. “I know he would be extremely humbled by this recognition. All the teachings of Junior Achievement are points that our father taught us in organization.

When Billy Joe Mile was announced as an inductee in November, his eldest daughter, stated “He introduced himself as a farmer, and that is exactly where he began and that is what he did. He created lots of enterprises in each and every region that we required on the farm, not just for us, but for everyone that we have been involved with.”

Quick biography

Billy Joe Miles grew up living with his parents and paternal grandparents on their farm. He also spent a lot of time when he was young on his terrific grandparents dairy farm on the Ohio River. As he got older and they sold the dairy organization to Velvet Milk, he spent additional of his time functioning with his father and grandfather on the grain farm.

One particular of Miles’ initially purchases was an Ohio County farm in 1962. In the 1970s fuel shortage, he entered the bulk fuel organization then expanded to the comfort shop organization, and then the Express Lube organization.

Miles turned his family’s farm provide organization into a single of Kentucky’s biggest agribusinesses and owned a 40,000-acre ranch in Bolivia. Miles was president at Miles Farm Provide Inc. and Marathon Fuels, and owner of Miles LP Gas Inc. He also served as president of various organizations and enterprises, and was also chairman of the board of Owensboro Overall health Regional Hospital as it produced its transformation from Owensboro Mercy Hospital to what it is now.

Don Penn Moore III: Moore Automotive 

Moore, who’s garnered a lot of awards from other organizations more than the years, stated this honor was particular.

“When persons you are about all the time honor you, there’s no higher honor. When somebody that you do not know effectively honors you simply because you did some thing, they truly do not know who you are. You are receiving honored for a diverse cause. This is an honor simply because it is with the persons I really like. So it is a quite terrific honor.”

Quick biography

Don Penn Moore III grew up on the household farm in Maceo along with siblings Cynthia, David, and John. They raised tobacco, hay, cattle, and row cropped more than 500 acres. When not functioning on the farm, he was washing vehicles or promoting vehicles at the dealership, roofing, or cleaning pools.

Immediately after his college graduation, Moore was produced basic manager of the dealership. In 1986, in an work to turn a 23-second industrial into a 30-second a single, the phrases “It’s Hot Don” and “You can say that again” have been added to a “Sizzlin’ Summer time Savings” industrial. Later, “It’s Hot Don” was highlighted nationally as the most recognized regional tagline of any industrial in the nation.

Right now, Moore is a companion with his household in six dealerships and 12 franchises (Chevrolet, Honda, Nissan, Hyundai, Toyota, Buick, GMC, Ford Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram). The Moore Automotive group is a 5-generation household organization that has grown from $17,880 in annual sales to more than $215M in annual sales. Don Penn has a restricted function with the firm these days. His brother John runs it day-to-day, when their other brother David splits time amongst the vehicle dealership and his primary passion of farming. 

Tommy Thompson: Thompson Properties

Thompson stated that he knows inductees are selected lightly, and he is grateful to be amongst the people who have been honored for their function in the neighborhood organization scene.

“It’s extremely humbling and an honor to be in the shadow of some of these laureates that have preceded me and so a great deal that they’ve completed to advance this neighborhood,” Thompson stated. “It’s just truly particular. It is type of a surreal feeling and chance, and I’m extremely humbled by it.”

Quick biography

Thompson worked on housing job web sites and as a paper boy as a teenager. Immediately after attending graduate college at Indiana University for an MBA degree, he moved to Orlando, exactly where he worked for a true estate improvement firm for two years. 

Following this perform in Florida, he then moved back to Owensboro and joined the household house creating organization. Throughout his tenure as CEO of Thompson Properties Inc., his firm has supplied thousands of housing/living possibilities for its citizens. He also established a house management firm that now owns and manages more than two,000 apartment units in Kentucky and Indiana.

When functioning in the house creating business he became active in his neighborhood, state, and national house creating associations. He has been inducted into the Kentucky and National Housing Hall of Fames. One particular of his most proud accomplishments was his firm becoming chosen to create a house in 7 days for a household as portion of the hit ABC Television show Intense Makeover: Property Edition.

Outdoors of the homebuilding business, he was elected to the Kentucky Home of Representatives, exactly where he served for 14 years.