Meet the Leadership

Jim Click, Jr. was born in Paul’s Valley, Oklahoma, April 28, 1944. He is a third-generation car dealer. His grandfather, Bert Click, was a pioneer Chrysler-Plymouth dealer in Shawnee Oklahoma, and his father, Jim Click, Sr., was a Chevrolet dealer in Altus, Oklahoma. His parents, Jim Sr. and Margaret Click, raised the “Click Clan” in Altus. Jim; his brother, Joey; and his two sisters, Janet and Jill, were known in town for their athletic prowess. It was common to see the entire Click family out water-skiing on Lake Altus with or without skis, as Jim was inclined to do.

Jim graduated from Oklahoma State University in 1966, where he received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business. He was a Scholastic All-American football player, received the Big 8 Medallion Award, and was captain of OSU’s Cowboy football team. Jim was a member of the Sigma Nu Fraternity and made Dean’s Honor Roll every semester. In 1985, Jim Click received OSU’s Distinguished Alumni Award.  Honored as one of the University’s most outstanding graduates, he was inducted into OSU’s Hall of Fame.

After graduation, Jim Click went to work selling cars for his great uncle, the legendary Holmes Tuttle, at his Ford dealership in Los Angeles. Within two years, he was the top salesperson, which led to a promotion to Sales Manager at the Beverly Hills Mercury dealership. The next step for Jim came quickly, as he was promoted to General Manager of the Lincoln-Mercury store. In 1971, Jim moved to Tucson and purchased his first dealership called Pueblo Ford. By changing the name to Jim Click Ford, using a massive media advertising campaign, and doing a lot of hard work, his dealership’s sales volume doubled. At age 27, Jim was one of the Country’s youngest automotive dealers. Thirty years later, Jim and his cousin, Bob Tuttle, are co-owners of the Tucson-based Jim Click Automotive Team, which includes: Ford, Lincoln-Mercury, Dodge, Chrysler, Jeep, Mazda, Nissan, and Hyundai. They also have several dealerships in Orange County, California, and are ranked 22^nd in the 2000 Automotive News Top 100 Dealerships Group.

In 1978, Jim and Bob purchased a controlling interest in Arizona Bank’s predecessor, Union Bank of Tucson. As Chairman of the Board, Jim led Arizona Bank, with its familiar Kachina logo, towards constant growth, as it became the largest independent bank in the State of Arizona. In December 1998, Alabama-based Compass Bank purchased Arizona Bank, and Jim served on its Board of Directors.

Jim Click is no doubt one of Tucson’s most visible philanthropists. Just some of his volunteerism includes: Junior Achievement, Board of Directors, President and recipient of the prestigious, Gold Lay Leadership award; Boys & Girls Clubs of Tucson, Board of Directors, and Chairman of the Capital Fund Drive, raising over $1.2 million to build the Holmes Tuttle Boys & Girls Club, the Roy Drachman Boys & Girls Club, and the Jim and Vicki Click Club; Salpointe Catholic High School, Chairman, of the 1988 Capital Campaign; and the University of Arizona Foundation, Board Member.

In 1982, he was Tucson’s Man of the Year and is a member of the Tucson Conquistadores. A dedicated citizen, in 1999 he led a successful effort to maintain an adequate water supply for Tucson’s future. And as Chairman of the Capital Campaign for Primavera Builders, Jim raised the money to build a new training center for the homeless.  In 2009, Jim Click was honored by the Boys & Girls Clubs of Tucson with the 1^st Annual Click for Kids Award to recognize his 30+ years of service to the Clubs.  It is the Club’s highest recognition and expression of gratitude.

The combination of academics and athletics plays an influential role in the nurturing of Jim’s entrepreneurial spirit. Leadership gifts from the Click family have included the University of Arizona’s Adaptive Athletic Program, the Jim Click Hall of Champions at U of A McKale Center, the Click Family Athletic Center at Landmark College in Vermont, and the current construction of two new Boys & Girls Clubs.

Disabilities have always been at the center of Jim Click’s family focus. In 1975, he was one of the first Tucson employers to offer a workstation for people with developmental disabilities through the Beacon Foundation. Today, Jim employs sixty-eight individuals with disabilities at his dealerships. In 1999, President Bill Clinton presented Jim with the President’s Award from the Committee of Employment of People with Disabilities for his leadership in the development of LINKAGES, a unique non-profit organization that matches individuals with disabilities with employment opportunities.

As a devoted family man, Jim Click and The Click Family Foundation, help establish a Cristo Rey model high school in Tucson where at risk teenagers from disadvantaged neighbors are able to obtain a Catholic, college and career preparatory education.  San Miguel High School, established built in 2004, has graduated three classes, with 100% graduation success and all of the seniors accepted to universities and college nationwide.

Although he has never run for any political office, Jim Click’s passion for politics and electing good citizens to serve has often driven him to positions of fund-raising and finance chair for numerous candidates at the local, state, and national levels. From former Mayor of Tucson Lew Murphy, to Arizona Congressman Jim Kolbe, to former United States Presidents Ronald Reagan and George Bush, to the 2000 election of President George W. Bush, Jim Click’s support was a tremendous boost to many campaign successes!

Having been athletic all his life, Jim Click has maintained his desire for fitness and enjoys the competition of sports. Jim has completed marathons in Los Angeles, Phoenix, Tucson, and New York City. He and his daughter, Carrie, have run several marathons together. Jim is also an avid cyclist, and races vintage cars, on the Jim Click Racing Team.