Alumni Feature

by Pilar Yates Brumbaugh

Servant Leadership

From the beginning of the life that they share, a common theme of conversation is about community and giving back in various ways through their time, talents, and treasures.

I knew I was dedicated to community services when I saw a need and could not look away,” from Spoken from the Heart, the memoir of George Spear.

Tradition

For generations, there has been a long-standing commitment to community service rooted in the Spear family. For ninety years, the Hansen-Spear family has served the families of Quincy and the surrounding areas in various ways.

In 1929, when Walter and Helene Hansen started Hansen Funeral Home, they understood that their roles in the Quincy community were larger than the services they provided families in times of loss and grief. They were actively involved in community service that stretched across a variety of organizations. Their daughter Charlotte and her husband George followed suit and passed those values on to their sons and grandchildren.

Whether it was giving children sermons for more than twenty years in church or being active in community endeavors, together, both Jeff and Theresa have been involved with more than forty organizations that have helped to strengthen and grow our community. These organizations have missions and purposes that focus on the arts, community, education, and faith.

Is your heart truly in it? Now is the time to make a difference and to be proud of it.” A thought that frequently enter the minds of Jeff and Theresa.

Passion

Jeff and Theresa raised their family, ran their family business, and made choices as to how they would spend the rest of their lives together by making their passions a priority. Before choosing to get involved they must see the value in the organization and have a passion for the vision and mission.

As they continue to get more involved with organizations around the community, they ask themselves, “Is your heart truly in it?”

“One of the things we like to do is help our community,” said Jeff. Prioritizing what they like to do is key; if volunteering felt like “work” they might not enjoy it. And while you may not find Jeff out at the golf course or playing in a softball or bowling league, you can most certainly find him, as well as Theresa, in the community helping local organizations. In fact, they find that doing things in the community is fun!

Just because one of us is a member of an organization doesn’t mean that both of us aren’t working or involved with that organization,” says Theresa.

Commitment

The Spears are a team that is truly committed to sharing their time and talents. “Just because one of us is a member of an organization doesn’t mean that both of us aren’t working or involved with that organization,” says Theresa.

In 1999, Jeff was one of four community leaders who were named to the QU Board of Trustees; one of the first few community leaders outside of alumni and friars. Theresa, having been a non-traditional art major in 1996, saw Quincy University from a student/alumna prospective and following graduation asked herself, “How are we going to give back to Quincy University?” Little did she know that in 2016, she herself would be named as a member of the Board of Trustees (at Quincy University), four years after her husband’s ten-year term ended.

“I have never felt so good about belonging to a board and working with people like I did with QU” said Jeff, as he reflected on his ten years as a member of the Board of Trustees. Theresa recalls how dearly he loved it and just how much he grew spiritually and personally. “It made me feel good to watch those students go across the stage at graduation.

I had something to do with this ...financially, physically, and intellectually helping this place grow,” said Jeff.

“Quincy University is synonymous with Quincy,” says Theresa. “It is such an important institution to this town.” As a student, she saw the impact the faculty had on their students that remains today. “The faculty are all about the students, and it just makes you feel good,” said Theresa.

Over the past twenty years, Jeff and Theresa Spear have created a long-lasting relationship with the QU community; faculty, staff and students. They have taken their passion for QU and planted roots here that have impacted the campus community today and in the years to come through two scholarship funds. The Jeff and Theresa Spear Endowed Scholarship was established in 2002. The George and Charlotte Spear Endowed Scholarship was established in 2014 by Jeff and his brothers, John and Robert, in memory of their parents.

Through their service to the community Jeff and Theresa have passed on their values to their children.