Wichita ? Willard Garvey, who amassed one of the largest grain empires in the world and is remembered by the city’s mayor as a “a giant in the history of Wichita,” died Thursday. He was 81.

“He has been a very powerful voice for many, many years,” said Wichita Mayor Bob Knight. “Our downtown would look quite different with the absence of Willard and his family.”

Together, Garvey’s business interests, which ranged from construction to agriculture to petroleum, made up an empire that once ranked his family among America’s richest.

The president of the Builders Inc. and Garvey Grain, Garvey’s career highlights include building the Epic Center, a Wichita office building that is the tallest building in the state, and homes in Wichita and 27 countries worldwide.

As a philanthropist, Garvey helped underwrite some of the best-known institutions in the state’s largest city, including Friends University, Heartspring (formerly the Institute of Logopedics), President’s College and the Independent School.

In 1992, he allowed his six children to begin taking responsibility for many of his major operating companies, including Garvey International, Builders Inc., Nevada First Corp., Petroleum Inc., and the Family Foundations.

He was born in Colorado Springs on July 29, 1920, while his parents were vacationing there. The family moved to Wichita in 1928. Services are pending.