The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree in the Vicknair family. Deacon Tom Vicknair of St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church in The Woodlands and his son Mitch Vicknair share similar pursuits and an identical desire to give back. Each gave their time to deliver valuable presentations at USTMAX Center over the summer of 2021 for the benefit of the Conroe and Montgomery County community.

Tom’s Luminary Lecture was “Sharing the Fruit of the Holy Spirit.” His presentation was an insightful and entertaining overview of how he came to live a life guided by the Holy Spirit. The Fruit of the Holy Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. The elder Vicknair offered ways for others to embrace and share the Fruit of the Holy Spirit with everyone every day.

Mitch’s Lunch & Learn talk on a different day was titled “Avoiding Common Mistakes When Financing Your Small Business.” He provided practical tips for small business owners and shared personal experiences to illustrate borrowing and lending practices, both good and bad.

Son Following in Father’s Footsteps

Tom Vicknair completed the deaconate program at St. Mary’s Seminary in 1978, and son Mitch is going through the same program now. A banking executive for 30+ years, Tom now leads Vicknair Solutions Group, LLC. Mitch, too, excelled in banking, leaving it in 2009 to become CEO of American Finasco and help thousands of companies to avoid bankruptcy and return to profitability.

“Like father, like son,” Senior Director of USTMAX Center, Carla E. Alsandor, Ph.D, said. “Deacon Tom and Mitch Vicknair share their talents, experiences and knowledge to help others in our community. They have added great value to the programs offered at USTMAX. I am grateful for their generosity, goodness and friendship.”

Upcoming USTMAX Events for the Community

USTMAX Center hosts quarterly, enriching Luminary Lectures as well as business-focused lunch presentations.

The next Luminary Lecture takes place Thurs., Sept. 30 (exact time TBD) with Dr. George Harne, executive dean of UST Arts & Sciences presenting “Liberal Education Leads to Lives of Human Flourishing”

Harne said, “In my talk and our discussion, we will consider why liberal learning and leisure are essential for our students to achieve truly human freedom. Without these, they risk becoming enslaved to the opinions of our age and an approach to work that is not proper to human flourishing. While this presentation is open to all, I especially hope to see educators in the audience.” A brief essay entitled “Work, Spare Time, and Leisure” by Josef Pieper will serve as a foundation for Dr. Harne’s lecture. It will be made available should anyone wish to read it in advance, but it is not a prerequisite.

For more information about UST’s micro-campus in Conroe and its valuable role in that community, go here.