Karen Penfold, ’69: Senior Service Award
Buffalo State University alumna Karen Penfold, ’69, recalls watching the CBS drama The Millionaire as a child. Each week, a fictitious benefactor named John Beresford Tipton gave away $1 million—tax-free. Viewers saw only Tipton’s arm as he reached for the check and handed it to executive secretary Michael Anthony, who made the deliveries on his behalf. Penfold said she will never forget the looks on recipients’ faces when Anthony handed them their checks.
“I wanted to be Michael Anthony,” Penfold said. “I wanted to give away money that changed people’s lives.”
And she has. At last summer’s 50-Plus Club Luncheon, Buffalo State honored Penfold with the Senior Service Award for years of philanthropic gifts, active volunteerism, and community service as a trustee and board member in support of Buffalo State’s mission.
“I wanted to give away money that changed people’s lives.”
Over the years, Penfold and her husband, Richard, have given to numerous causes, organizations, and individuals, but Buffalo State holds a special place in her heart. During her senior year, Penfold worked in the Financial Aid Office and saw firsthand how critical financial support is for students. She has provided the university with generous support for more than 20 years through the establishment of the Karen Kostecky Penfold All College Honors Scholarship Fund, as well as an unrestricted leadership gift to the university for its 125th anniversary and support of numerous other projects, including the Burchfield Penney Art Center and the Great Lakes Center. Penfold also served as an alumni ambassador, a member of the Buffalo State Foundation Board of Directors, and a member of the steering committee for the foundation’s successful $10 million Endowing the Future campaign, to which she also substantially contributed.
“Buffalo State means a lot to me,” said Penfold, who received the Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2009. “The faculty members foster a positive feeling that opens your world. The education and experiences I had there set me up for anything in life.”