Terry was also an avid hunter and fisherman. He likes to tell this story “When I was growing up there was an epidemic of magpies and rabbits in Wyoming. The Fish and Game Department paid twenty-five cents for every one we shot. My friends and I would fill up a pickup truck with carcasses. That’s the way we made extra spending money.” Like most boys growing up in that era, Terry had a paper route. “When I was ten-years-old I delivered 210 newspapers everyday and ran the whole route. I learned to jump fences so I could keep on running. The newspaper was a dollar a month and everyone paid with a silver dollar. I only collected once a month and the money was so heavy, plus everyone tipped on top of that. It was quite a load carrying 210 silver dollars and a lot of change from tips. I decided the weight was too much so I started collecting every two weeks.”
Terry has spent the last thirty-seven years in the insurance and investment business. He was playing baseball for Wyoming University and an assistant coach who worked with the team was also in the insurance business. “He hired me in 1965 to work with him in the business. I found I enjoyed taking care of people and I liked helping them solve their problems. I enjoy the facilitation that goes into the process of making sure people are taking the right steps to protect their future.”
The rest of this interview will be a bit different. Terry decided to have his wife answer the questions that I sent over and when we met for the interview, he and I went through our own version. I’m going to present both responses, which will give you the opportunity to see just how well one spouse knows the other after twenty-six years of marriage. T stands for Terry and E for Elaine.
What’s important in your life? (T) Making sure all people know they are valued and honored. (E) My family
What’s in your future? (T) Travel, my community work, spending time with my grandson and hopefully more grandkids. (E) Spending more time with my lovely wife, even more golf, giving back to the community, enjoying grandchildren
What are your volunteer activities? (T&E) Board member and past Chair for Denver Health; Beginning January will become Chairman of the Board for the Prevention Center, Honorary board member Central City Opera, have served on many non-profit boards. I’ve been corporate chair and outreach director for so many of them…seems everything I do is geared to me raising money for a cause.
Which social event is your favorite? (T) Denver Health Gala, The Prevention Center’s Inspiration Ball, a fun one is Saturday Night Alive and The Denver Debutante Ball (E) The Denver Debutante Ball
Favorite restaurant? (T) Tante Louise and the Barolo Grill (E) Cherry Creek Grill for lunch and Tante Louise for dinner
Who is the most interesting celebrity you have ever met? (T& E) Mohammed Ali. I talked with him for about twenty minutes in the weight room at the International Athletic Club. We had a great talk before weigh-in about Louisville and the Golden Gloves. At weigh-in, Lyle Alzado tried to start a fight with him. It made Ali mad and he said, “I’m going to beat you to a pulp.” The fight went to the sixth round and Lyle was a mess. I played tennis with Charlton Heston and sat at lunch with Frank Sinatra, but Mohammed Ali was the most interesting.
If your life were a movie, whom would you want to play your part? (T) John Wayne, he’s part cowboy, fraternity brother and gentleman. (E) Harrison Ford, because he’s adventuresome
Do you have any pets? Two schnauzers, Molly and Haley. They have been on the Emergency Vet TV show
When you move, what will your home tell its next owner about you? (T) The Scholes took a lovely old home and made it better (if these walls could speak…) (E) Terry enjoyed collecting antiques. He always wanted to have a project going to change something in the house.
What word describes you best? (T) Honest, hardworking and fun (E) Observant
How would you like others to describe you? (T) Maybe that I give my time to the community (E) Kind, helpful, enjoyable
What was your first job? Delivering newspapers
What is the trait you most deplore in yourself? (T) Procrastination (E) Impatience
What trait do you most deplore in others? (T) Lack of confidence (E) Laziness
What is your greatest indulgence? (T) Chocolate and traveling (E) Chocolate
What is the best gift you have ever given? (T) In 1984 I bought an old mansion on 14th and Vine and turned it into a home for abused girls. It was called Zadelia House. (E) A life insurance policy (planned giving) to the Central City Opera and the Zadelia House
What is the best gift you’ve received? (T) Lots of energy. Probably my collections. My mother was an antique and art collector. That’s where I developed my interest. My favorite is an FC Bromley oil called Muckross Abbey. My office is a showcase for some of my collection, including an original Cambodian tapestry, Les Catholiques, a bronze cast in 1890 and an original Dali cross. I’ve been acquiring for thirty years, following art, trading and working with dealers.
What or who is the greatest love in your life? (T) My wife Elaine
What is your current state of mind? (T) Energetic and enthusiastic (E) Happy and content
What do you consider your greatest achievement? (T) Raising three great kids (E) Raising three productive, well-adjusted children
What is your most treasured possession? (T&E) My art collection
What is the quality you most like in a man? (T) Honest and a man who is secure with himself (E) Honesty
What is the quality you most like in a woman? (T) Gracious and thoughtful…but commanding respect (E) Honesty
Favorite books/writers? (T) Sea biscuit I) and Rick Reilly’s, Who’s Your Caddy?) (E) Winston Churchill and Walter Isaacson’s Benjamin Franklin
What is the best advice you have ever received? (T) Stick with your business and good things will happen
Do you have a motto? (T) You get what you inspect, not what you expect (E) Do your best all the time
What’s the funniest thing that’s happened to you? (T) When I was a Sigma Chi Pledge, the fraternity had us all in for a cookie dinner. All the cookies and brownies had ExLax in them. With my love for chocolate, I was the one who ate the most. It wasn’t funny at the time…but I lost twelve pounds!
If you could come back in another lifetime, what/who would you like to be? And why? (T) I’d like to be eighteen and know what I know now. I would vicariously live my life a lot differently. (E) A miniature schnauzer in the Scholes household (great life, good walks, picked up after, good food and lots of fun)
What are your hobbies? Other interests? (T&E) Golf, reading, traveling and art collecting
Who is your mentor? (T) Bob Devlin, a retired insurance executive (E) Garvis Kincaid from Kentucky and Dr. Jack Fey
What would you most like to be remembered for? (T) Giving my time and effort for good causes (E) Having a great family, giving to the community and making a difference
If you could go anywhere and do anything, what would it be? (T) Travel. We go all over the world. We want to do a Mediterranean Cruise and a Baltic Cruise. (E) Travel around the world for two or three years
What do you like about the town you live in? (T) Denver is such a fine, diverse city. It is so small in many ways. Lodo is amazing and our DCPA rivals anything in America and the world. The people of Denver are proud people and they give of their time and money for many causes.
