by Rachel Coleman
LIBERAL, Kan. — The Seward County Community College Foundation has received its largest-ever single donation, a gift of $825,291.76 from the Clifford and Irene Pepper estate. The funds will be managed locally and provide the corpus for endowed academic and athletics scholarships.
“This is going to be a game-changer for generations of students going forward,” said Seward County Community College President Brad Bennett. “When the estate told us their plans, we were blown away by their generosity. It’s very humbling.”
Teresa Randle, SCCC Foundation Executive Director, said the bequest is “there for the long haul. The endowment grows and the investment provides the scholarship funding.”
Financial details aside, the gift is especially meaningful in light of the donors.
“Learning more about the Peppers has been a privilege,” Randle said. “I am excited to assist in executing their wishes. This is an amazing example of quiet people doing something really powerful.”
Clifford and Irene Pepper were behind-the-scenes people during their lives in Liberal, known by friends and family as inseparable: “They never went anywhere without each other,” said their niece, Connie Bennett.
For 42 years, Cliff, a graduate of Fort Hays State University, worked as a medical lab technician at Southwest Medical Center. Immediately after Irene graduated from Liberal High School, she went to work as a teller at The People’s Bank, then as the front-desk manager for Dr. Nevins, and later, Dr. Ray Allen. In both cases, noted family members, the Peppers handled important information with care and accuracy.
Cliff was quiet, Irene more talkative, “but they were shrewd and independent people who didn’t like other people knowing their business,” said Connie Bennett, who recalled visiting the Pepper home as a child with her parents for an occasional lunch.
“He was a character,” she said. A hunter, fisher, and avid sports fan, Cliff also loved to follow the stock market and kept an active book to track his investments. “Irene liked to cook and bake, and collect piggy banks. And of course, they cherished their little dog, Annie. She was a schnauzer, and they just thought she was the cream of the crop.”
Jerry Bennett, Connie’s husband, remembered a period of time when Cliff “got a little tired of his job at the hospital lab, so he got his Commercial Drivers License and went to work for Martin’s Trucking out of Hugoton.” After a few years, Bennett said, “he went back to the hospital and ended up working there until he retired. I think he really enjoyed the hospital.”
After Irene’s death, Jerry Bennett provided practical support for Cliff, who was diagnosed with cancer.
“He refused radiation treatments because he thought they were too expensive,” he said. “That’s how he was — He didn’t want to renovate or update the house, because they were content with what they had. I don’t think he even owned a cell phone until he was in his late 60s.”
In addition to assisting Cliff with medical paperwork, appointments, and travel, Jerry Bennett carried out the legwork for Cliff’s estate planning, following Pepper’s instructions.
“He really liked the idea of supporting students who wanted to pursue work in the medical field, but also students for truck driving,” he said. “And, he was also willing to be flexible and said the Foundation should put the funds to use for whatever the need is greatest.” Scholarships from the Pepper Trust will fund both academic and athletic scholarships at SCCC.
Pepper was also insistent that money should remain in the local economy
“Any donation is amazing, and it’s the people who make it amazing,” said Randle. “The Peppers had no connection to the College and yet decided to donate funds for the betterment of the community.”
For information about the SCCC Foundation, call 620-417-1131, or stop by the office on the second floor of the Student Union Building on campus.
