Benefactors

Tony and Sonja Nicholson

Mr. Anthony J. Nicholson has been an entrepreneur since 1962, and has supported the Central Florida community for many years. Mr. Nicholson graduated from Tulane University in 1960 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration. Very involved in college, he joined the Zeta Beta Tau Fraternity in 1956, and was elected Senior Class President in 1960.

After graduation, Mr. Nicholson joined the McDonald’s Corporation, in new site acquisition and lease negotiation. This experience led Mr. Nicholson to Site Finders Unlimited, a real estate brokerage, offering site locations to food chains.

In a short period of time Mr. Nicholson had mastered the business, and decided to open his own company, Anthony J. Nicholson Inc. The company’s main function was real estate brokerage and financing, placement of first, second, and land mortgages. In this position Mr. Nicholson was able to place several million dollars worth of mortgages, the largest mortgage being the Tyson Corner Shopping Center in Washington D.C. At the time, this was the largest shopping center in the United States.

Soon thereafter, he expanded his services to finance and manage apartments. This decision led him to the Orlando area in 1967. Once in Central Florida he was a co-general partner in limited partnerships with interests in some 2000 apartments from West Berlin, New Jersey to Orlando, Florida. He was responsible for locating properties, managing the assets for the partners, and selling the properties.

Meanwhile, his Orlando-based business empire continued to grow. In 1981 he founded Alltelco, Orlando’s first long distance telephone resale company, which he sold in 1990 to Phone One. He continued owning and operating over 850 apartment units in Louisiana. Hi-Res Magazine was founded by Mr. Nicholson and was internationally distributed by Dell, with 150,000 copies in distribution monthly. Later Mr. Nicholson bought Microfilm Services in Orlando, and formed Dakota Microfilm Services, which he sold in 1996.

Mr. Nicholson formed Nicholson International Productions, Inc., in 1985 to promote concerts and manage video production in Florida. The Company co-produced Richard Harris in Camelot, and produced "Swayze Dancing" featuring Patrick Swayze, which won the ITA Gold Video Award for production. In addition, the company is responsible for employee leasing, and real estate acquisition.

Mr. Nicholson decided to purchase "Pirate Radio" in Panama City, Florida and the station soon rose to become number one. He owned the station for two years, selling in 1992.

Since 1995 Mr. Nicholson has developed 3000 homes and 10,000 lots in Central Florida. His present companies include Nicholson USA Properties, Inc., Affordable Homes of America, Inc., Magic Housing, Inc., United States Financial Services, Inc., and U.S. Title Co., and System and Solutions International. He is also one of the owners of the Orlando Predators and is on the Board of Governors.

Mr. Nicholson remains a busy man both professionally and personally. He has been elected to the Board of Directors for: Who’s Who World Wide Business Leaders; New York City Center; Orlando Area Apartment Association; Florida Apartment Association; National Apartment Association; President of Orlando Area Apartment Association, Committee of 200 for the Orlando Area Chamber of Commerce, University Athletic Association, and Walt Disney Memorial Cancer Center at Florida Hospital. Mr. Nicholson has also donated his services and experience to the University of Central Florida.

He was the Chief of the Development Committee for UCF and served on the Executive Board of Trustees. Mr. and Mrs. Nicholson bequeathed an undisclosed amount to the University of Central Florida, and in turn, the University named the School of Communication after them. This was the first school program or building named after a person at the University of Central Florida.

Mr. Nicholson remains actively involved in the Nicholson School of Communication. He is supportive of the Quotes Advertising and Public Relations Club, in which both he and Mrs. Nicholson are honorary members. The Quotes Club hosts annually the Knight Images Awards Show to showcase the talents of the students in the Nicholson School of Communication. At the April 8, 2000 awards show, the Nicholson School of Communication Alumni Committee inducted Mr. Nicholson into the School’s "Alumni Hall of Fame".