Our History…
In 1967 Florence M. Trull and her children established the Trull Foundation to receive the assets of the first B. W. Trull Foundation. B.W. and Florence M. Trull established the B.W. Trull Foundation in 1948 for religious, charitable, and educational purposes until its expiration by terms of indenture in 1973.
For over seventy years, these foundations have been actively interested in various educational, religious, cultural, and social programs, the majority of which have been in the State of Texas. Both foundations have supported Presbyterian interests without being limited to only those interests. The Trull Foundation continues to be concerned with people, with improving the quality of life, especially for those living in poor or oppressed conditions.
In 1999, many changes took place within the foundation. Robert B. Trull, founder and Chairman of the Board of Trustees, and his sister, Jean T. Herlin, also founder and Trustee, resigned from the Board. Both were given the honorary title of Trustee Emeritus. At the 1999 Trull Foundation Semi-Annual meeting, Sarah H. Olfers was elected Trustee to fill the position of her mother, Jean T. Herlin, and R. Scott Trull was elected Trustee to fill the position of his father, Robert B. Trull. At the same meeting, Colleen Claybourn was appointed Chairman of the Board.
Following the resignation of Rose C. Lancaster in 2007, at the 2008 foundation annual meeting, the board elected Cara P. Herlin (daughter-in-law of Jean T. Herlin) as Trustee. The Board also appointed R. Scott Trull, Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees, replacing Rose C. Lancaster. The Board honored Rose with the title of Trustee Emerita in appreciation of 32 years of commitment to the Trull Foundation.
During the 2010 year, J. Fred Hewitt, a Trull Foundation trustee serving for 43 years since the Foundation’s beginning in 1967, retired. Craig A. Wallis was asked to serve as an Associate Trustee. In 2011, the Board elected Craig as a Trustee of the Foundation to fill the open seat on the Board.
In October 2012, at a Trull Foundation retreat, the Trustees at the following priorities:
A concern for the needs of Palacios and Matagorda County, where the foundation has its roots.
A concern for children, channeling lives away from abuse, neglect, hunger, and poverty.
A concern for those persons and families devastated by the effects of substance abuse.
A concern for the coastal Texas environment, recognizing and including water issues, estuaries, birds, agriculture, and aquaculture.
R. Scott Trull of Austin, Texas, was elected Chairman of the Board of Trustees of The Trull Foundation on March 7, 2013, at the Foundation’s Annual Meeting in Palacios. The Trustees celebrated Colleen Claybourn’s fourteen years as Chairman from 1999 to 2013.
At the 2018 Trull Foundation Annual Trustees meeting, R. Scott Trull was re-elected Chairman of the Board, Cara P. Herlin as Vice Chairman, and Kristan Olfers was elected as Secretary. Craig A. Wallis and Sarah H. Olfers continue as Trustees on the Foundation board. Colleen Claybourn was awarded as Trustee Emeritus.
