While Carolyn Adair, resident of Arbor Oaks at Crestview, has made many purchases in her lifetime, one of the most significant was the abandoned olive grove she purchased in 1997 in the Arno Valley of Tuscany. She had just retired at the age of 63 from a long and successful career with Texas A&M University as Director of Student Affairs. She had initially discovered the area when she took university students on a trip to Italy in 1984.
Since retirement she has split her time between Italy and Texas. Her time in Italy consists of pruning, picking, and pressing the olives produced in the grove. Then, back in Texas, she makes visits to the retailers who sell her oil, often setting up little tasting stations with oil and crispy bread for curious customers to taste. When she initially began working the abandoned two acres, there was only enough oil for her own personal use. Two years in and the land had begun producing at such a rate she was able to produce 500 bottles for retail, later expanding to over 2,000 bottles each year. Currently sold in Bryan and College Station. Adair doesn’t shy away from admitting her oil is one of the most expensive bottles on the shelf. “This is the real stuff,” she explained, “It’s completely organic, with no added pesticides and fertilizers.”
Her instant business success didn’t come as a surprise from those who know her best. Adair was the first woman to graduate with a master’s degree in education public relations, later completing her doctorate in education administration in 1975.
