Sanders Morris

Ninety years ago today, Don Sanders was born.

For five weeks we've shared the stories — the blue dogs, the printed-out emails, the handshake with Nolan Ryan that became a baseball team. Different stories, same throughline: show up, back the right people, and stay in it for the long run. It's how Don built what he built, and it's how he still operates at 90.

From all of us at Sanders Morris: happy birthday, Don. Thank you for all of it — and here's to you.

The best way to start the 90's is a clean break." That was John McMullen's line when he split with Don Sanders. He got his break.

The backstory: in 1980 McMullen, the Astros' majority owner, asked Don — the club's largest minority owner — to host Nolan Ryan and his family. The kids were the same age; the families became fast friends. When McMullen later pushed Ryan out to the Rangers, Don sold his stake and walked.

The friendship stayed. Years later Nolan asked if Don wanted to buy a baseball team. Fifty-fifty. Done on the spot. That handshake became Ryan Sanders Baseball, Round Rock, and a family of businesses built on one idea: back the right people and stay in it for the long run.

A clean break was supposed to end the story. Instead it started the best chapter. At 90, Don is still in the game.

Don Sanders has always been an animal person — cats especially. And he's spent decades putting that behind real causes — starting with Friends for Life, Houston's first no-kill shelter. The Don Sanders Center for Cats & Kittens at BARC, support for PetSet, champion of the Animeals program that feeds pets of homebound seniors, years of backing Rescued Pets Movement and countless other pet charities.

RPM is the bridge between a shelter's euthanasia list and a permanent home. Each week they pull hundreds of animals out of overcrowded Houston shelters, get them vetted and fostered, and transport them to regions where adopters are waiting — more than 100,000 lives saved since 2013. Don's support, including several transport vans and the "Don Sanders Cattery," helped them double the number of cats they save each year.

In their words: "We would not be where we are today without his generosity and kind heart."

Different problems. Same answer.

Ask Don about the Blue Dogs and he won't talk technique, market, or provenance. He'll just tell you they make him happy — and then he'll be happy to show you all hundred of them.

No one who has been to the Sanders Morris office can say they've never seen a Blue Dog. For years, we were lucky enough to house a large part of Don's collection. Here's how it all started.

Don Sanders turns 90 on July 5. This happened.

Don Sanders founded the Houston Police Foundation in 2005. Twenty years later, he's still an active member — still answers, still picks up the phone whenever needed.

This July, our founder Don Sanders turns 90. To celebrate, we're sharing the stories that capture who he really is — starting with this one, because it says more about Don than any track record could.

On July 5, our founder Don Sanders turns 90. He'll mark it the way he's marked every working day for decades — by showing up. Between now and his birthday, we'll be sharing stories from his ninety years — not just the work, but the foundations, the shelters, the ball fields, and the friendships that tell you who he really is. Follow along here on Facebook, or on LinkedIn.