B O O K S
Morsani Memories
From There to Here
By Aaron R. Fodiman
40 TAMPA BAY MAGAZINE JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2016
9
F rank and Carol Morsani have benefited so many people in
the Tampa Bay area through their generosity and leadership.
If you don’t know their names, you should, as they have set
a remarkable example for living and giving.
Frank’s book opens with his humble beginning, growing up in a
home without electricity in Arkansas, where he didn’t realize he was
poor, since everyone else was also. His unlikely journey from those
roots led to him becoming one of the largest and best automobile
dealership owners in the country. He became a champion of small
business as the chairman of the board of the United States Chamber
of Commerce, where he influenced the economic policies of three
United States presidents.
Frank tells his life story to educate and inspire others to succeed
at whatever they want to do through hard work, determination
and, of course, education.
One of the secrets to his own success is trusting others to do
their jobs, whatever their level. He developed this management
philosophy while serving in the Navy aboard an aircraft carrier
during the Korean War. There he saw authority being passed along to
what he calls “the lowest common denominator.” He also discusses
why he and Carol have been so philanthropic, giving millions to
USF, the University of Tampa, Oklahoma State University, the
Straz Center, the Dalí Museum and a multitude of other nonprofit
organizations. Their latest gift of $20 million was to USF’s new
College of Medicine, that will be built in downtown Tampa, where
it will serve as the centerpiece of the city’s revitalized waterfront.
The Morsanis were required to take certain calculated risks in their
life, and Frank speaks of them with the calm, even hand that guides
the Morsanis throughout their lives. This is particularly revealing
in his unemotional telling of his experiences with professional
baseball, while he pursued a franchise for this area. It is not a
pretty story, but even without attaining the desired result, there
are lessons to be learned.
Ultimately, Frank’s message is that the American Dream is alive
and well and that Winston Churchill had it right when he said,
“Never, never, never, ever give up.”
Frank and Carole Morsani were the stars of the launch party
for Frank’s new book To Be Frank: Building the American
Dream in Business and in Life that was given by
Judy Genshaft, the USF System president.