Foundation Board Spotlight

Chris Boyle | President

Chris Boyle

Chris Boyle

 

The OCCC Foundation has been in existence since 2000. Chris has served on the Board for nearly as long, and served as the Foundation Board President in 2017 and 2018. 

I was born in Eugene to an American father, Leo, and a British war bride, Wyn. Although I was an only child, I was definitely not spoiled. My upbringing included chores even as a little tyke still riding a tricycle.

My elementary school years were spent in Roseburg and Salem. I attended Junior and Senior high school in Dallas, Oregon. I attended college twenty-three miles away, earning an undergraduate degree in Language Arts and English from Linfield College in McMinnville. During the summers in the early ’70s, I attended the University of Montana in Missoula where I earned a Master’s Degree in Educational Counseling. For a while, I toyed with the idea of becoming a psychologist, but I would have had to devote two more years of studying. That didn’t appeal to me.

I taught English and Psychology at Vernonia High School for nine years, beginning in 1969. After that, I needed a break. I took two years off to try other work including installing wood stoves, working for an employment agency and Payless Pharmacy (now RiteAid). I found my real calling was teaching. A position came open in Lincoln County, teaching English at Waldport High School, and I accepted. It was a very good decision. Lincoln County is a magnificent place to work and live.

I am a big believer in education as a source of personal and career growth. I love the more affordable community college model and the fact that it provides a great stepping-stone to further opportunities, educational and otherwise. Community colleges are able to help fill gaps in needed skills and services, e.g., nursing, welding, childcare, etc., as well as provide exposure to ideas and possibilities not previously considered.

It is very satisfying to be able to help students achieve their educational goals by offering scholarship money and other support systems so they can build better lives for themselves and their families. Personally, it is rewarding to associate with like-minded members of our community and being part of a team working toward common goals assisting people and our local employers

My hobbies include reading – particularly mysteries, biographies and, in the past, science fiction; playing computer games; gardening and traveling. Although traveling has not been very possible lately, Pam and I miss it.

Pam Gill and I met at the Hilton Hotel, now the Agate Beach Best Western, where she was working as the Bar Manager and I was a recent hire. After a very long courtship, we married in 1998, which is without question the best thing that has happened to me. We have no children, ergo no grandchildren.

Something I would like to say to OCCC students is please, please take advantage of the opportunities OCCC offers you. If you are having difficulties, don’t hesitate to reach out for help. There is a lot of help available at OCCC and the Foundation will help as much as possible.

If you are a donor or are considering a donation to OCCC and have not done so, do visit the college. Take a tour of all that is happening here that benefits students and the larger community. You will most certainly be impressed. Pam and I believe in OCCC’s mission so much that we have included the college in our will.

For more information on how you may join Pam and me in Legacy Giving, contact Andi Spirtos at andrea.spirtos@oregoncoast.edu.

Along with his duties as a Foundation Board member, Chris serves on the Foundation Alumni Association Committee, the Donor Scholar Reception and Art Show Committee and last year served on the Pearls of Wisdom Committee.