Posted by DEAN SKIP RUTHERFORD – One of the most remarkable women in Arkansas’s history, Willie Oates of Little Rock, died last week after a lengthy illness. She was 90.
Willie attended the University of Arkansas where she was a cheerleader. She called her alma mater “The University” –because in her mind there was no other comparable college or university. For years, she would return to Fayetteville on Homecoming to serve as an alumni cheerleader. “Calling the Hogs” (the school’s athletic yell) was her specialty. No one was better at it or enjoyed it more than she did. Over many years, hundreds of thousands of people watched and supported her from the stands. Generations of college students knew her name and identified with her. With the possible exception of Bill Clinton, Willie may have been Arkansas’s most recognizable public figure.
In 1959, Willie was elected to the Arkansas Legislature—running and winning proudly in her own right. During her term, she introduced legislation to promote the teaching of evolution in the public schools which you can imagine was highly controversial. In fact, it was a factor in her reelection defeat in 1960.
In those days women (including Jacqueline Kennedy and her famous pillbox) often wore hats and Willie wore one to the legislature. When she got tired of being photographed in the same hat, she went to local department stores and bought several different ones–some of which were quite colorful. Soon the hat became her symbol and she began collecting and wearing them everywhere. By the time Willie died she owned hundreds of hats and incorporated them in stories and presentations which she gave without charge to charities all over the state and country. I’ve never met anyone more generous with her or his time.
She was the epitome of public service, and I had the high honor of speaking at her memorial service. Here’s a portion of what I said
“What I really admired about Willie was that she thought politics and public service were honorable. I only wish she had been healthy enough to meet the remarkable women and men who are attending the Clinton School from all over the state, the country and the world. Even more importantly, I wish our students would have had an opportunity to know her.”
Though some might have been surprised, we “called the Hogs” at Willie’s memorial. It might have been the first time that’s happened in a church, but Willie would have loved it. Willie was buried with her hat on too—a large white one with a big feather. She wouldn’t have had it any other way.