There are 13 businesses that have been BBB Accredited since 1963. As the Better Business Bureau celebrates 50 years of serving Southeast Texas in 2013, we will feature one of our charter Accrdited Businesses each month in the e-Torch Report.
Three Generations of Straits
When H. D. “Tex” and Emma Strait loaded up their eight children and moved from Waco to Beaumont in 1968 to buy a 12 year-old Culligan business, they probably didn’t envision that 45 years later one of their grandchildren would be following in their footsteps of improving the quality of water for thousands of Southeast Texans.
Tex started with a 1,200 square foot lot encompassing plant, warehouse, and office space. The business was predominantly rural and residential problem well water which utilized portable exchange greensand filters. Tex began adding automatic softeners and filters as well as servicing commercial accounts. Tex had six full-time employees but could also go to his bench when needed: the Strait kids (ranging in age from 8 – 22) would lick envelopes, answer phones, dig ditches, sweep floors, cut grass, run routes, and unload salt trucks. In less than ten years, Tex grew the business to 12 employees and moved into a 3,000 square foot building in an industrial section of Beaumont. Tex was a leader in the industry serving on and chairing the Culligan Dealer Advisory Council (DAC). Tex was also one of the founding members of the Texas Water Quality Association (TWQA), serving on the board of directors and as President.
Tex’s middle son Henry worked in the business during high school summers and while attending Lamar University. In 1973 he married Fran, his high school sweetheart, and stayed with the business after graduating college and eventually moved into management. Henry and Fran purchased Southeast Texas Water from Tex and Emma in 1994. Henry expanded the high purity water division, added bottled water and air purification services, grew the business to 18 employees, and moved into an updated 12,000 square foot facility with much added curb appeal. Henry followed in his dad’s footsteps serving as chair of the Culligan DAC and as TWQA President. When their youngest child was old enough to attend school, Fran assumed the role of accountant and began managing the financial and administrative components of the business. Like Tex and Emma, Henry and Fran kept their two sons Harvey and Matthew busy digging ditches (and other hot, miserable work they hoped would reinforce the perceived value of a college education) during the summer months. Their daughter Catherine also worked in the business while attending Lamar University where she earned her degree in Accounting.
Henry & Fran Strait at the 2013 BBB Torch Awards Banquet
As they inched closer to retirement, Henry and Fran ensured their three children were aware they would not sell their business until youngest son Matthew turned 30, in the event any one of them was interested in being a third generation Culligan Man. By the fall of 2010, Harvey had graduated from Southwest Texas State and was happy with his career in Austin, and Matthew had graduated from the University of Colorado at Boulder and was enjoying life in the Pacific Northwest, and neither could see themselves moving back to Beaumont.
After graduating from Lamar, Catherine moved to Houston and obtained her CPA designation while working for the accounting firm of Ernst & Young. It was there she met her future husband Matt Gilby, a senior manager from Nova Scotia, Canada who was focused on a partnership path with the firm.
Catherine and Matt were happy with their life in Houston and enjoyed the travels that accompanied Matt’s job including San Francisco, New York, Chicago, and international locations in Europe and South America. In January 2010, life changed for Catherine and Matt when their daughter Emma was born. After Matt returned from a ten-day trip to South America when Emma was three-months old, he and Catherine started to discuss more earnestly the advantages of owning a water treatment business in Beaumont.
Both Catherine and Matt agreed that owning their own small business would mean a drastic change in lifestyle, but what the heck, Emma had already taken care of that! Being accountants, they crunched the numbers and jumped in with both feet, quitting their jobs, selling their home in Houston, and moving to Beaumont in December 2010. They purchased Southeast Texas Water in January 2011 and breathed much needed life into a business that had been on auto pilot for a few too many years. Just as her father had done before her, Catherine and Matt went to work upgrading the fleet and technology of operations, including web interfaces, internet marketing, and social media. With these upgrades and improvements came a surge in the enthusiasm and energy level of all the employees.
In April 2012, Catherine and Matt were blessed with the birth of their son Lucas and in January 2013 Matt was sworn in as a citizen of the United States. With a couple years under their belt, both feel confident they made the right decision for their family. Both Catherine and Matthew are committed to embracing the tradition of keeping their children in the company as soon as Emma and Lucas are old enough to lift five-gallon water bottles and 50 pound bags of salt. It’s pretty safe to say that Tex and Emma are looking down upon them with great pride!
