Retired
Each year, the UMKC Alumni Association recognizes the achievements of outstanding alumni with an awards celebration. In 2019, UMKC is honoring retired Colonel Dick Gibson (B.M.E. ’67, EMBA ’02) with the Bill French Alumni Service Award.
A former president of the Bloch School of Management’s Alumni Association Board, Gibson is a long-time supporter of UMKC. One of the founding members of the EMBA Alumni Admissions Council, Gibson serves on the business advisory board to Enactus and as an at-large director on the UMKC Alumni Governing Board. Despite living nearly an hour from campus, Gibson can be found supporting students at campus events, including alumni pizza nights, move-in days and commencement ceremonies. He recently spoke with us.
What do you enjoy most about working with the students in Enactus?
I love helping them meet key business leaders in the Kansas City metro area who can assist them with completing some of their projects to better the community in which they live as UMKC students. I also enjoy getting the Enactus students ready for their annual competition and have had the honor to see them compete twice at the national competitions.
You’ve served in several different capacities over the years:
- Bloch Executive Education Advisory Board
- Alumni Alliance Board Member
- Bloch EMBA Alumni Admissions Council
- Bloch Alumni Association Board Member/Past President
- Alumni Association Board Member/Director-at-Large
- Bloch Regnier Institute Advisory Board
- Experience UMKC Volunteer
- Legislative Day Volunteer
- Bloch School Guest Speaker
- Mid-Year Commencement Volunteer
- Bloch School Case Management Competition Judge
- Move-in Day Volunteer
“Friends are like notes of a song — one melody, one harmony. Together they make music.”
Would you pick one or two and tell us why it was meaningful?
I find meeting with students and their parents during Experience UMKC each spring in Pierson Auditorium a tremendous opportunity for me to give back to prospective students and relay to them the value of coming to UMKC for undergraduate studies. Also meeting the parents, who sometimes are equally trying to decide if their children should attend UMKC, allows for great interaction and discussions.
Being a judge for the Bloch School Case Management Competition for eight years has been a fantastic experience. Each year I enjoy watching student teams deliver their solutions and recommendations to different Kansas City businesses that want valuable feedback on real business problems.
What phrase do you use most often?
“Friends are like notes of a song — one melody, one harmony. Together they make music.”
Friends are important. It is true friendships that have endured over time that keep me going.