Bill Grewcock’s Legacy includes support for American Vision and Values Education

With the passing of Omahan William L. “Bill” Grewcock on December 8, 2018, accolades and tributes came for the man, father, husband, coworker, business and community leader, philanthropist, and citizen. It was clear he had touched, and was touched by, many people, as well as causes, and organizations he believed in, including Bellevue University.

Bill, with Berniece, his wife, established the Bill & Berniece Grewcock Chair of American Vision and Values at the University in 1999, not long after the Kirkpatrick Signature Series courses became a bachelor’s degree requirement.

The Grewcocks were regular attenders of the University’s annual fall Signature Event speaker series events, which feature nationally known thought leaders in business, politics, and the news media. Their names are on the University’s main-campus Donor Recognition Wall, which lists individuals, companies, and charitable foundations that have provided major support.

Known for his integrity, straightforward approach, work ethic, and commitment to things he believed in, Grewcock rose through the ranks of Omaha-based Kiewit Corporation, eventually heading construction and mining divisions at the diversified, Fortune 500 company. He embodied the company’s core values of People, Integrity, Excellence, and Stewardship—all Midwestern values, American values. The Grewcock’s two sons, Doug and Bruce, both worked for Kiewit. Doug retired from Kiewit Engineering Co., and Bruce is Kiewit’s current chairman and chief executive officer.

Through their Bill and Berniece Grewcock Foundation, the Grewcocks have quietly supported things like wildlife and habitat conservation efforts, an equestrian center and ice rink at Mahoney State Park, and a new Nebraska Humane Society animal adoption and education facility, currently under construction in north-central Omaha. It was their deep-rooted belief in America, the country’s founding principles and sustaining values, that led them to establish an endowed chair in American Vision and Values at Bellevue University. They had experienced first-hand, the benefits of freedom and the opportunities available to Americans, and they strongly supported efforts to trumpet the American success story through higher education.