Bert Thornton, co-president of Waffle House, visited Darlington School March 25 as the sixth speaker in the annual Class of 1953 Lectureship Series. His presentation was titled “Success Tactics: Basic Laws of Success in Business and in Life."
Click here to view a video of the event.
According to class agent Mike Luxenberg (’53), the lectureship was established in April 2003 to commemorate the class’ 50th reunion. “It was a wonderful opportunity for each of us to help Darlington continue its tradition of providing an outstanding education for all students,” he said, “and also a means for us to say ‘thank you’ for the fine education we received at Darlington.”
Thornton was born in New Orleans, La., in 1945 and grew up in Tampa, Fla. He played football at Robinson High School, where he was president of the student body, and later attended Georgia Tech on a full football scholarship. There, he was a member of the Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity. Thornton graduated from Tech in 1968 and spent two years as an artillery officer in the United States Army, during which time he served one tour with the 5th Battalion, 2nd Artillery in South Vietnam.
Upon separation from the service, he worked as a systems analyst and salesman in NCR’s information technology division. In 1971, Thornton joined Waffle House as a dishwasher and bus boy. It didn’t take long for the company to see his leadership potential, and four years later he became vice president. In 1994, he was elected to the Board of Directors. Over the past 37 years, he has worked with both company and franchise operations in Waffle House. In 2004, he was named president and chief operations officer, and just last year he became president of franchise operations.
An active member of Georgia Tech’s alumni base, Thornton served from 1996-2000 as a member of the Alumni Association Board of Trustees. In 1999, he was chairman of Tech’s highly successful $7.8 million dollar annual giving “Roll Call” initiative, and was named president of the Alumni Association in 2001 and 2002. He is currently a member of the Georgia Tech Foundation Board of Trustees and serves on the Finance Committee.
Thornton lives in Duluth, Ga., with his wife, Kathy. They have three grown daughters, Aspen, Chaice and Mayson.
