KC celebrates support from company, alum

May 19--Kilgore College awarded almost 500 degrees and certificates to Spring 2018 graduates last week.

It took two ceremonies, afternoon and evening, to walk the blue-robed scholars across the stage, and KC used the second to spotlight two additional standouts: Texas Mutual Insurance Co. received the Blue Ribbon Medal of Excellence for Student Success while local developer, philanthropist and Kilgore College grad Kenny Mobbs was awarded the Blue Ribbon Medal of Excellence for Alumni Success.

A Longview native, Mobbs attended KC after graduating from Longview High School. He worked in construction while getting his degrees, finishing at Texas State Technical Institute in Waco.

Construction has been the foundation of his career: Mobbs was a founding partner of K-K Mobbs Construction in 1982 and is its president today alongside developments through Mobbs Builders LLC.

He's turned his businesses' success into a steady stream of contributions to the community, including a variety of donations -- labor, materials and more -- to KC projects.

Kilgore College's Blue Ribbon Medal of Excellence is awarded at graduation to recognize KC partners, businesses and individuals, who help the school advance its mission of student success.

"I feel very honored to have been recognized by Kilgore College with this award," Mobbs said. "I don't feel I have done anything special. I just try to use the abilities God gave me to help others when I can."

Eric Bourquin accepted the college's award Friday on behalf of Texas Mutual, the state's top provider of workers' compensation insurance and a key donor to KC. Bourquin is vice president of safety services for the company which for the past 11 years has helped fuel the school's Risk Management Institute with annual donations of $100,000.

Bolstered by the $1.1 million in donations, the institute -- established in 2008 -- has trained employees of more than 800 companies in 79 countries through free courses highlighting proper workplace safety practices.

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