At the young age of 14, Arthur Cash landed his first job at a Waxahachie medical clinic and since then hasn’t stopped working. He thought he would retire at age 65, but with that milestone age approaching – now he’s thinking maybe not. He developed his work ethic from his father, a longtime employee of Dallas Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

While his dad was the major influence on his life, a Waxahachie High School teacher actually sent Mr. Cash down the career path he followed by recommending he take an accounting class.

He had an aptitude for numbers and the concentration required to do the work. Mr. Cash continued studying accounting at El Centro College, but he started working for UT Southwestern as an Accounting Clerk II even before he had finished his degree. Today he is an Accountant III, the highest level attainable in his field at UT Southwestern.

While he’s proud of his 40-year career, the accomplishment that stands out most in his mind occurred in the late ’80s.

“Back then, we used actual sequenced checks – not electronic money transfers like now. There was one set of paychecks for vendors and another for employee payroll. Someone made an error and switched the checks they were printed on, causing thousands of checks to kick out as not reconciled,” he says.

The problem had stumped the higher-ups in the Department for months when Mr. Cash volunteered to give it a go. After several weeks tackling the issue, he had everything resolved.

When he’s not working, Mr. Cash plays piano, cooks – he makes a mean meatloaf – and attends track meets. He ran track himself when he was in high school. “I was pretty fast,” he says.

“Forty years means dedication, sacrifice, and an investment in my future,” he says. “There were some tough departments and late nights at the office – like leaving at 3 a.m. during year-end closing – but I stuck with it, and it paid off in personal growth.”

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