Clay Huber '12 and his wife Jenna '13 at the Texas A&M Foundation's Heritage tailgate.
Wearing a uniform with pride comes second nature to Clayton E. Huber ’12. From serving as a Texas A&M University Maroon Coat to a MH-60R pilot and air detachment officer in the United States Navy, Huber exemplifies honor, dedication and selfless service.
After enlisting in the U. S. Navy in September 2004 during his senior year of high school, Huber spent four years in the Navy before being selected for the Seaman to Admiral-21 Program. Active-duty sailors chosen for the program attend the college of their choice for three years before returning to the Navy as an officer after they receive a bachelor’s degree.
A Strong Aggie Foundation
The decision to attend Texas A&M was an easy one for Huber, who said he made up his mind after attending Parents’ Weekend when he was just 16 years old. “I came down with a friend who had an older brother in the Corps of Cadets, and we went to Midnight Yell, the Maroon & White game and the Bevo Burn Barbecue,” Huber said. “After experiencing the spirit of Aggieland, I fell in love with Texas A&M.”
After joining the Aggie family in 2009, Huber quickly immersed himself in student activities, including the Texas A&M Foundation’s student ambassador group, the Maroon Coats. “Being a part of the Maroon Coats taught me that it takes a great deal of generosity and good will to not only ‘keep the lights on,’ but to give students the same outstanding education and out-of-the-classroom leadership experience year after year,” said Huber.
After graduating from Texas A&M with a bachelor’s degree in communication, Huber was commissioned as an officer in the Navy, where his love and appreciation for the university grew deeper. “Not only did Texas A&M give me my beautiful wife Jenna ’13, it gave me a strong foundation from which to lead sailors in challenging times for our country,” Huber said. “It affirmed that I made the right decision when I chose a career of active-duty service.”
Prospering Passions
Inspired from his time as a Maroon Coat, Huber established a planned gift through his life insurance policy to support scholarships and excellence funds for the Department of Communication and The Old Army Gentlemen’s Society, a social, service and leadership men’s organization on campus.
In order to establish a gift of life insurance, donors must simply designate the Texas A&M Foundation as beneficiary in their policy. Life insurance gifts are ideal for younger donors who are still building their estates but wish to make a gift early in life. The policyholder can leverage a few hundred dollars in premiums to create a much larger gift and may also receive a charitable tax deduction depending on the gift’s structure.
“I hope that whoever receives the scholarships I have established is academically proven— that they know what they are doing and they know how to get there,” Huber said. “But more important to me is what they do to serve others, A&M and their community.”
Though Huber will never get the opportunity to meet the Aggies his gift will support, taking advantage of his life insurance policy to give back to the university that changed his life was a personal and gratifying decision.
“We all have passions and things we want to accomplish,” Huber said.” I chose to donate using my life insurance policy because it ensures that my loved ones will be taken care of and my passion for the success of Texas A&M will be accomplished regardless of when I get called up.”
By Oz Cantu ’12 and Chelsea O’Neal ’17
Texas A&M Foundation
The Texas A&M Foundation is a nonprofit organization that solicits and manages investments in academics and leadership programs to enhance Texas A&M’s capability to be among the best universities.
You can support your favorite college, department or program at Texas A&M with a planned gift to the Texas A&M Foundation. For additional information about how to make a planned gift, contact Angela Throne ’03 with the Foundation at (800) 392-3310, (979) 845-5638 or athrone@txamfoundation.com.
