Penticton philanthropist David Kampe died May 8. He was 77.
Peters Bros./Special to the Herald
For his last act of philanthropy, Penticton businessman David Kampe chose to support local students.
Before he died last week, Kampe had been getting ready to launch a new campaign in support of the Penticton Secondary School Bursary and Scholarship Foundation. In partnership with Castanet, the initiative seeks to raise $50,000 — in part by directing people who would buy flowers to mark his passing to donate instead.
“Our students will be our greatest success story and our ambassadors as they pursue their post-secondary dreams,” Kampe said in a pre-recorded statement that was released Monday
“However, the economic reality of many families in Penticton does not align with the growing costs of post-secondary education. We have a responsibility as a community to do whatever we can to support our students; they are our succession plan; they are our future.”
In 2018, Kampe and Peter Brothers Paving made a combined donation of $195,000 consisting of 30 $5,000 bursaries and 15 vocational awards of $3,000. The contribution effectively doubled the amount of support the foundation distributes annually from local
donors.
Established in 1984, the foundation is a registered charity and currently presents about 250 awards annually with a total value of just under $200,000. The highest single honour in 2017 was $3,000, with the majority in the range of $500 to $1,000. The bursaries and
vocational awards are available to the graduating students at Penticton Secondary and Princess Margaret Secondary schools.
Donations to the foundation can be made by calling 1-855-904-7033 or by dropping off a cheque made payable to “Penticton Secondary Schools Bursary and Scholarship Foundation” at the Castanet office at 225 Main St. in Penticton.
They can also be mailed to the foundation’s address at 158 Eckhardt Ave. E., Penticton, B.C., V2A 1Z3. Registered charity number is
890405244RR0001. You can also follow the progress of the fundraising campaign on Facebook.
Meanwhile, Kampe and his giving were also recognized this week in the House of Commons.
“Penticton lost a pillar of the community last Wednesday when David Kampe passed away. Mr. Kampe owned one of the largest construction firms in the Okanagan Valley and was a community builder, in that sense, for over 35 years. However, it was his quiet philanthropy that really had an impact,” said South Okanagan-West Kootenay MP Richard Cannings during members’ statements.