Donald "Buddy" Wray, former president of Tyson Foods and one of the key players in transforming the company into a food industry giant, died Monday. He was 78.
John Tyson, chairman of Tyson Foods, said Wray was a legendary figure at the company.
"He was instrumental in everything the company did for over 50 years," Tyson said. "There is no way to express what Buddy meant to the company and thousands of its team members during that time."
Wray held a number of positions at Tyson during his more than 40-year career with the company -- working his way up from a service technician to president, chief operating officer and a member of the board of directors.
Among many honors, the University of Arkansas established the Donald "Buddy" Wray Chair in Food Safety in the Dale Bumpers College of Agriculture in 2004. He was inducted into the Arkansas Agriculture Hall of Fame in 2012.
"Buddy was one of my mentors, and I will miss his leadership, insight and especially his friendship," said Donnie Smith, chief executive of Tyson. "He earned the gratitude and respect of all of us here at Tyson Foods, and we will never forget him."
Metro on 01/19/2016