Alumni Frederick Stabbert of Bainbridge Island will receive the “2008 Distinguished Alumni” award at celebratory dinner hosted by Tacoma Community College and held at Primo Grill, May 28 from 6-8 p.m.
“He truly personifies someone of distinction, leadership, success, and compassion,” said Institutional Advancement Office Assistant at TCC, Lisa Clark.
Stabbert was recognized for his leadership role as chairman of the board at World Concerns along with his success in the business world as CEO, President, and director of West Coast Paper Co. and his leadership roles at the Winslow Group, International Paper, and Crown Zellerbach Cooperation.
Stabbert entered World Concern in 2006 at the request of a friend and has been committed to it ever since. World Concern is a world relief and development agency serving developing nations worldwide with donations of money, clothing, food, medicine and technical personnel to teach primary healthcare and food production. More than 960,000 people have received direct help and another two other million dependents have received relief from physical and cultural oppressions.
Their goal is relieve suffering and to bring hope and reconciliation to people.
“If you are fortunate and God is good, there is no reason to hold it all to yourself,” said Stabbert. “You must give back.”
At World Concern, Stabbert is in charge of running the executive committee meetings, compensation, performance appraisal and organizational development.
Stabbert’s leadership abilities were a result of coming to TCC and learning about himself, according to Stabbert.
Yet his journey at TCC almost didn’t happen.
Stabbert had tried university life at Seattle Pacific but left after only one year to move back to Tacoma and marry his wife, Faith Stabbert.
Working at a grocery store, Stabbert didn’t have the desire or the funds to go back to school until his friend Bob Rhule encouraged him to attend the then newly built TCC and take, “just one class at a time.”
“TCC is where I began to have an interest in learning,” said Stabbert. “There I developed an interest in business and learned how to pace myself in school.”
Stabbert then went on to University of Puget Sound where he graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Business Administration, always crediting his successes to the experiences he had at TCC.
“My interest in school and academics came from TCC, not other universities,” said Stabbert. “For the first time I was able to expand some ideas and touching on things I had never touched before.”
Upon receiving the news of his award, Stabbert was surprised and honored, he stated.
“I’m looking forward to getting connected with TCC again,” Stabbert said. “I haven’t been back for a long time and I am excited to learn about where the college is now because it had such an important impact on my life.”