EDUCATORS ’ PERSPECTIVE
Why Kemmerer , Wyoming Matters : J . C . Penney and Bill Gates
By Brian Grinder and Dan Cooper
“ Therefore , all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you , do even so to them .”
— The Golden Rule Matthew 7:12
What do J . C . Penney and Bill Gates have in common ? The short answer is Kemmerer , Wyoming . 1
While the Federal Reserve prefers to meet once a year 170 miles north of Kemmerer in Jackson Hole 2 , Kemmerer continues to play a surprisingly important role in the economic development of our country . It is currently playing a pivotal role in the development of clean nuclear energy , but 122 years ago , this coal mining town was the home of the first J . C . Penney department store .
James Cash Penny ’ s business career and philanthropic activities were motivated by the Golden Rule , which endorses a lifestyle based on treating others as we would want to be treated . This principle was instilled in Penney by his father who was an Old School Baptist preacher . 3 It was also the foundational idea behind the Golden Rule stores that began operating in the area around Denver , Colorado , in the late 1800s .
William Henry Gates III ’ s philanthropic activities , especially in the area of clean energy development , are motivated by concerns over climate change . In How to Avoid a Climate Disaster , Gates writes , “ To avoid a climate disaster , we have to get to zero [ manmade carbon emissions ].” Getting to zero without depriving developing countries of the energy they need to grow their economies can only be accomplished by developing and expanding nuclear plants that generate clean electricity with minimal nuclear waste . Gates argues that nuclear power “ is the only
Portrait of James Cash Penney , who founded J . C . Penney in Kemmerer , Wyoming , in 1902 .
carbon-free energy source that can reliably deliver power day and night , through every season , almost anywhere on earth , that has been proven to work on a large scale .”
At first glance , Penney and Gates appear to have little in common . Penney grew up in poverty on a farm in rural Missouri ; Gates was the son of well-to-do parents in the Seattle area . Penney chose to start his business in Kemmerer , while Gates ’ s interest in the small Wyoming town came later in life . Penney ’ s philanthropic work focused on agriculture , while Gate ’ s philanthropic work focuses on climate change , as well as education and global health .
Nevertheless , both men were hard workers who pushed their businesses relentlessly in the pursuit of growth and domination in their respective industries . Neither man originated the ideas they used to grow their businesses , but both capitalized on those ideas to grow their businesses and increase their personal wealth . Finally , Penney spent and Gates continues to spend significant amounts of time and money on philanthropic activities .
Bill Gates , whose philanthropic work on climate change recently led him to Kemmerer , Wyoming .
J . C . Penney and the Golden Rule Store
Although Penney loved life on the farm , he concluded “ that there was little money in farming . In fact ,” wrote Penney , “ I could see no money in it and then , furthermore , even when I was a boy , I had hope and ambition — and I nursed it along — to become a wealthy man .” His dying father recognized that ambition in Penney and set him up to work as an apprentice with a local department store in Hamilton , Missouri . Penney , a hard worker and quick study , thrived in the department store business , but when the tuberculosis that took his father ’ s life threatened his own , J . C . Penney chose to leave the humidity of Missouri for the drier climate of Denver , Colorado .
After a couple of false starts , Penney landed a job in Longmont , Colorado , at the Golden Rule Store owned and operated by fellow Missourian Thomas Callahan . Although there were many stores using the Golden Rule name , Callahan ’ s new chain of stores had several
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