Two Unsung Heroes: Robert and Karen Henry
Steve Boord, MBA2 & Dan Langer, MBA2
Issue date: 10/29/01 Section: News
- Page 1 of 1
|
Over the last year Robert, Karen’s husband, has helped the Canadian Club become the premier club on campus as its co-Prime Minister and has helped run the Manufacturing Club as its co-head. In addition, he has spent hours as a peer-tutor (currently tutoring three 1st years in economics). He is a regular C4C volunteer and Friends for Youth mentor, and is also the new webmaster for the long-defunct SA website. Robert is a very caring friend and a fantastic, if not tireless, spouse--all while doing a dual degree, excelling at school and being an outspoken voice. Somehow he still finds time for his personal interests, which (according to his resume) include equipment, machinery, tools, agriculture, golf, cycling, hiking, and skiing.
Karen, Robert’s wife, has also been a major contributor to the school. She is the BizPartner’s Treasurer, a C4C Volunteer every Tuesday night for volleyball (including coaching at the recent tournament), a Kids Christmas party volunteer and elf, a year-round Friends for Youth Mentor, Canadian Club organizer (she was the one signing everyone up all night at the LPF), Orientation volunteer, and hostess for tons of school gatherings such as her Christmas dinner last year, to which the whole class was invited.
Kyle Chenet, MBA2, remarked, “Robert speaks his mind and wears his heart on his sleeve and I think that makes some people uncomfortable, but his passion and his drive are complimented by such an unassuming and generous personality that you can't help but to want to hug him!”
While Kyle was busy hugging, we had a chance to grab his wife, Christina, for a few comments. “Karen is the kind of person you can always count on for help when you need it--very generous. She is officially the treasurer for Biz Partners, but she wears many hats for us--from buying party supplies to sitting on our admit weekend panel to hosting a networking meeting at their house to storing our things in her garage. And she always volunteers to help with a smile.
“Over the summer, Karen was part of our ‘airport carpool group’. She truly went above and beyond the call of duty by taking a friend to the airport at 5:30 a.m--not everyone would do that, but Karen's just that way.
“Karen also volunteers every Tuesday night for the Special Olympics volleyball activities for C4C, and she and Robert have a ‘junior friend’, sort of like a Big-Brother / Big-Sister type of arrangement.”
Jeral Poskey, MBA2, remembers, “Most striking was C4C weekend, when the C4C people seemed to be pulling teeth to get people to do an hour's work. Karen worked at the booths hours and hours every day.”
Allie Stern, MBA2, also had some thoughts: “I am incredibly proud to have Robert as a classmate. I truly envy his enthusiasm for academics, volunteering, and of course, friendships. Although we differ on some (ok, most) opinions, I love learning about and understanding his point of view. Robert promotes discussion in our class and keeps issues at the forefront of our minds. He helps our class communicate and feel comfortable doing so. Most importantly, Robert has attended more FOAM's than anyone I know. Robert and Karen have made an amazing contribution to our class dynamic. Congratulations on this award--you deserve it!”
We even managed to get Robert to talk about Karen since we tricked him into believing that only she was receiving the award. Robert believes that Karen has the ”patience of a saint--married to me!”
Together the Henrys have touched the lives of us all. They are a great couple, exemplary Canadians, and huge supporters of our school. While their contributions to extracurricular activities have been outstanding, their contributions to the soul of the school have been even greater. Honesty, opinions and respect are Robert’s legacy to our class. Karen’s legacy comes from patience, understanding and support. Together, they are truly remarkable. We are proud to know you and even prouder to have you as part of our GSB family. THANK YOU!