Ingrams August 2023

Kamal Khayat Missouri S&T Rolla Before his death in 2021, Missouri

Jerry Kerr Segs4Vets, St. Louis

The fork in Jerry Kerr’s career path—in his life, really—is forever fixed in his mind: He reached it on July 25, 1988. “I do rem- ember hitting the water, and a sound like breaking glass,” he recalls of that final dive during a fateful lakeside outing with his family. “I knew something was

business icon Fred Kummer and his wife, June, donated $300 million to Missouri University of Science and Technology. It was hailed at that time as transformative for the university and the state. And for

seriously wrong.” That something was his fourth cervical vertebra, shattering into 21 pieces. At 44, he was about to transition from construction-company ownership to a new purpose in life. And the lessons he had gleaned from his upbringing in Macon—grit, deter mination, overcoming adversity—all would play a part in steering him toward that purpose: Segs4Vets, a nonprofit he launched nearly 20 years ago to assist wounded soldiers who had lost their own mobility with their combat injuries. It provides Segway mobile transporters and other tech, plus the instruction in their use. “I focused my life on charity, on the technology that would benefit people who had diffi- culty walking,” Kerr says. That journey has entailed so much more than providing hardware for the injured, such as building and mana- ging a base of volunteers to train recipients, or staying up on inno- vation that can bring the benefits to those with more severe injur ies. Kerr could lament his lot in life, but he’s having none of it. “I say I’m blessed. Look at the alternative.” Even after losing his wife at the end of her five-year battle with breast cancer, he searches for the positive. “From my perspective, I’m lucky,” Kerr says. “If I’d not had my accident, I would not have had that time to spend with her that way.”

Kamal Khayat, a civil engineering professor who this year became vice chancellor for research and innovation, a mission that will rely heavily on the Kummers’ philanthropy. “Missouri S&T is at an inflection point of growth, and with the transformational gift from June and Fred Kummer, we are well positioned to become a global leader in research, innovation and entrepreneurship for years to come,” Khayat says. He came on board in Rolla in 2011, and took on duties of interim vice chancellor for innovation in 2021, and has been praised for his ability to bring researchers from multiple disciplines together to address critical research issues. The university’s research division works with research centers, academic departments, laboratories, and individual faculty and students, helping all secure vital research grants and reach their research goals. As important to the broader state economy, that division leads commercialization efforts that move research discoveries into marketable products, services, intellectual property and spin-off companies. He holds a Ph.D. in civil engineering from California-Berkeley, where he also earned his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering and a pair of master’s degrees.

Tracy Kimberlin Springfield Convention & Visitors Bureau

Caroline Kindle St. Louis City SC

Consider Carolyn Kindle the exception that proves the rule with members of third-generation family businesses: she’s leaving nothing in her wake but a record of achievement. It started with her work in the trenches for Enterprise Holdings’ car-rental operations not long after she earned her

Tracy Kimberlin thought he had a plan: He enrolled at Rolla to study engineering, but tragedy struck when his mother and brother were murdered. So, he transferred to Missouri State and switched his major to psychology to help him

business degree from the University of Tulsa. It continued when she shifted gears to philanthropic efforts, signing on with the Enterprise Holdings Foundation in 2013, and serving as its president since 2019. The next item on her dance card? Why not a Major League Soccer championship? Kindle is also the president and CEO of St. Louis CITY SC, the first woman to lead a team in the league’s history. She’s part of a local group that raised an estimated $200 million to bring pro soccer to St. Louis. Back at the foundation, she oversees a philanthropic powerhouse with more than $462 million in assets. As impressive as that number is, the foundation’s overall impact has been even greater— since it’s inception in 1982, it has issued more than $592 million in grants and donations to non-profit organizations and initiatives, with $74 million of that coming just last year for social welfare efforts, environmental programs, education, the arts and more. She cites two keys to her own success: The ability to listen, and to be a team player. “When you listen, there is always something you will learn that can help your employees, the customers, the business or even yourself.” As for team play, she says, “I believe that if you are going to ask someone to do something, you have to be open and prepared to do it yourself.”

process their deaths. After graduation, he worked at a hotel with plans to pursue a master’s in counseling. Yet, within two years, he was managing that hotel and then became vice president for Frank Farmer Enterprises, overseeing nine hotels and restaurants across four states. The experience nurtured a passion that led him to a 35-year career as president of the Springfield Convention & Visitors Bureau. “I fell in love with the travel industry while working in hotels and restaurants,” he says. The Bourbon, Mo., native started on the board of the CVB but was encouraged to apply for the executive director position when it became available. “Being rather tired of the very long hours in the hotel and restaurant industry, I decided to apply. And the rest is history,” he says. Since retiring in December, Kimberlin is still a fierce advocate of the region and remains proud of Springfield’s offerings—from the surrounding lakes and rivers, historic sites (like Fantastic Caverns and Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield), the growing airport, and more. “Springfield is very diversified when it comes to industry and business. … [It’s] a growing city that has about anything you could want, but with far fewer hassles than you would find in St. Louis or Kansas City.”

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