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BHC Receives Largest Gift Ever

WVIK News

Thanks to some generous graduates, Black Hawk College has just received the largest gift in its history. The one million dollars comes from Bob and Blenda Ontiveros. He is the founder of Group O, based in Milan. 

Maria Ontiveros says her grandfather had a motto at Group O - that "everyone wins when someone gets an opportunity." 

"I commend all that Black Hawk has done and I'm looking forward to seeing what this donation offers for the next chapter, especially those scholarships. I know that means a lot to my grandparents."

 
The one million dollar gift includes 100,000 dollars for scholarships, 200,000 for athletic scholarships, 50,000 dollars to begin a soccer program at the college, and 600,000 dollars to endow a student services position - to work with students from diverse backgrounds.

Black Hawk President Tim Wynes says this is just the latest gift from the couple to the college.  

"The funds, with the exception of the soccer start-up money, will be placed in endowment which means they will fund these endeavors into perpetuity. Instead of being a one-time gift, this is a legacy gift that'll last the lifetime of all of us in this room, and beyond." 

Bob Ontiveros attended Black Hawk, then transferred to the University of Cincinnati. He founded Group O in 1974, and it now ranks as one of the top five Latino-owned companies in the country. Blenda Ontiveros studied nursing when she attended the college. 

A native of Detroit, Herb Trix began his radio career as a country-western disc jockey in Roswell, New Mexico (“KRSY, your superkicker in the Pecos Valley”), in 1978. After a stint at an oldies station in Topeka, Kansas (imagine getting paid to play “Louie Louie” and “Great Balls of Fire”), he wormed his way into news, first in Topeka, and then in Freeport Illinois.