Auto crisis ends local dealership

Jun 17 2009 - 3:17pm | Travis Hord

There is an empty asphalt parking lot on Highway 123 where the Chuck Nash Jeep Eagle car dealership stood for years.

The Chrysler dealership, along with approximately 800 others, closed June 9 as part of Chrysler’s strategy to remain viable through bankruptcy.

The automaker has been in the headlines for several weeks as nervous dealers waited to hear from executives whether or not their dealerships would be on the chopping block.

According to a Chrysler briefing filed in a New York bankruptcy court hearing, executives intend to keep only their top-performing dealerships open for business — releasing nearly one quarter of their 3200 dealerships.

Chuck Nash, Texas State donor and community activist, did not make the cut.

“We’re not going anywhere though,” said a Nash employee who wished to remain anonymous, “Our General Motors dealership on I-35 is doing great, and Mr. Nash is an irreplaceable part of the San Marcos heritage.”

Nash owns several dealerships in Central Texas and has been active in the San Marcos community since the 1970s.

“Among his many contributions and community involvements, Mr. Nash also chairs the city’s airport commission and has done much to assist in the development and improvement of the San Marcos Municipal Airport,” said Melissa Millecam, the communications and intergovernmental relations director for the City of San Marcos. “Mr. Nash has done so much good for San Marcos.”

But it is Nash’s relationship with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission that has left a lasting impression on Texas State.

“Several years ago, Mr. Nash organized with the university to set up a very considerable endowment,” said Tim Bonner, director of the Texas State University Aquatics Center. “Nash, who was previously the chairman of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission, wrote to them and asked them to provide a donation for the growing Texas State aquatic biology department.”

The Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission responded to Nash’s request with a $25,000 endowment, given to Texas State in his name.

“The Texas State University Development Foundation Investment Committee took that original endowment, invested it and over time it has grown significantly,” said Bonner, associate professor in the biology department. “And from the proceeds of that investment, we’re able to help support our best and most promising students with a very nice annual scholarship — all thanks to Mr. Nash.”

Changing economic conditions and the increasing cost of tuition have made the Chuck Nash Aquatic Studies Endowed Scholarship more lustrous.

“In today‘s unpredictable economic climate, scholarships are becoming more important than ever,” Bonner said. “As costs have been going up, and with the stock market as unstable as it has been lately, the race for Mr. Nash’s scholarship has become highly competitive and prestigious.”

A selection committee comprised of biology department faculty and staff select one student per year to receive the Nash scholarship.

“Mr. Nash’s scholarship only goes to students we like to refer to as stellar students who not only have high GPA’s, but who are also involved in the betterment of the university and the community,” Bonner said.

Nash was not present at the June 9 closing of Chuck Nash Jeep Eagle and was not available for comment.

“We realize this can’t be an easy time for Mr. Nash, but we support him and I think he will be successful regardless,” Bonner said. “Nash and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission have enriched our program tremendously, and we are grateful for and appreciative of his involvement and his community spirit.”

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