William R. Ireland

(1923-2009)

Ireland attended Auburn University (then Auburn Polytechnic Institute) in the early 1940s before serving in World War II. The long-time Vulcan Materials Co. executive and board member made numerous generous contributions to AU. His career with Vulcan Materials included serving as president of two Vulcan subsidiaries, executive vice president of the Midwest division, manager of community relations and for 29 years a member of the board of directors. He received an honorary degree (Doctor of Humane Letters) from Auburn in 1993, served on the board of the Auburn University Foundation and on the advisory council for AU's College of Mathematics and Sciences. Ireland was also a board member and past president of the Alabama Wildlife Federation, a member of the advisory board of the Alabama Wildlife Rescue Service and a member of the Governor's Committee on the Forever Wild amendment. He has been honored for his efforts on behalf of wildlife with the 1994 Walter L. Mims Lifetime Achievement Award in Wildlife Conservation and the 1995 Ducks Unlimited Marsh Project Award.

Ireland had a long-standing relationship with the AU Department of Fisheries and Allied Aquacultures. Over many years faculty and staff in the fisheries department worked with him on several projects including providing management help with the fishing resources of the Boy Scout and Girl Scout camps that Ireland helped sponsor. Ireland generously supported the construction of the Ireland Center Lab at the E.W. Shell Fisheries Station at Auburn.

Sources: http://www.auburn.edu/administration/univrel/news/archive/10_97news/10_97ireland.html, https://www.samford.edu/alabama-mens-hall-of-fame/inductees/Ireland.html