Thursday, October 23, 2014

Dedicated Student Raising Money to Buy Pivot for his College | by Shannon Peterson

Some people have a gift – sometimes they don’t even realize it.

Kevin Hawman, a sophomore at Blue Mountain Community College in Pendleton, Ore., is one of those people. The 19-year-old is studying ag business and crop production at BMCC, but he is doing so much more.
After a miserable February day spent repairing old wheel line sprinklers on the school’s student farm, Kevin was frustrated with the old irrigation equipment. But rather than complain – as many college students would – Kevin decided to take action.

He launched a fund-raising campaign, so he could buy a new Valley® center pivot and a Valley for his school. This is no band-trip fundraiser. Kevin needed $25,000 for the pivot and $65,000 for the linear – after a $30,000 discount from Valley. But he wasn’t daunted by the price.

“I really want to give back,” said Hawman, who grew up on his family farm in Hermiston, Ore. “I’ve been at BMCC for a year and it’s so great. I just wanted to give back to the school.”

Some of that generosity may be in his genes. Twenty years ago, his father, Mike Hawman – a BMCC alumnus, donated a pivot to the school. Mike helped his son develop a list of potential donors.

So far, Kevin has raised $33,000. Two weeks ago he ordered a two-tower Valley pivot that will be delivered soon.

He still needs about $57,000 to purchase the five-tower linear, but he is determined to reach his goal.

I asked Kevin, ‘why Valley pivots?’

“Because of my background,” Kevin said. “My dad has had a great relationship with Valley and I grew up with Valley pivots. I just wanted to get the best and I wanted to get Valley.”

Kevin Hawman – not just a generous heart, but a good head on his shoulders!

Want to help Kevin out? Contact him at k_hawm@hotmail.com.



Shannon Peterson
Marketing Content Editor

Shannon joined Valley Irrigation in 2013. She writes and edits materials about irrigation equipment. Shannon enjoys traveling with her family, particularly to national parks, and she occasionally writes about her travels for tourism magazines. She also likes trying new restaurants, seeing movies, and watching Husker football and Creighton basketball. 


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