Bauman family gift focusses on mentorship and peace incubation

October 4, 2017

Peace has been an important value in the lives of Aden and Joanne Bauman and their sons Barry, who passed away in 2016, and Michael. “Peace is a Mennonite thing,” observes Joanne. “Peace is important to our family, and our boys remember that their Uncle Elias was a conscientious objector during [the Second World War],” notes Aden. Recently, the family gave a gift of $100,000 to support the efforts of emerging peacemakers at Conrad Grebel University College in the Kindred Credit Union Centre for Peace Advancement. “We are thrilled by this generous gift to help further develop our presence in the vibrant social entrepreneurship ecosystem at Waterloo,” says Jim Pankratz, Grebel’s interim president. Half of this gift will establish the Barry Bauman Mentorship Fund in memory of Barry, which will be used to focus programming resources on developing mentor relationships for Epp Peace Incubator participants. Accessing capital to develop ideas is also critical at the early stages, and the Peace Incubator Fund is a part of the peace centre’s program that provides small seed funding for start-up participants in the Frank and Helen Epp Peace Incubator. This gift of $50,000 will magnify the impact by adding substantially more investment funds for start-ups. “By matching all gifts up to $50,000, we are inviting others to join us in this endeavor,” says Michael. “This gift is established so that the funds are released as donations come in to the Peace Incubator Fund.”

—Conrad Grebel University College

Photo: 

Barry Bauman

Share this page: Twitter Instagram