News of one of Pepperdine’s most honored figures’ diagnosis with cancer earlier this month struck a blow to the university and the nation.
While Kemp’s legacy as a former Congressman NFL quarterback and vice presidential candidate is widely known to many in the Pepperdine community Kemp is much more: a beloved benefactor and trusted advisor.
“It was a shock to me not just because he’s a good friend but because he’s such a vibrant and energetic and enthusiastic person always with a new idea and always helping people said James Wilburn, dean of the Pepperdine School of Public Policy.According to the press release released Jan. 7, Kemp is undergoing tests in several areas of his body to determine the origin of the disease and the best method of treatment. In honor of his family’s request, no information regarding the type of cancer Kemp is battling has been disclosed.
Kemp has given lectures at the School of Public Policy since its founding in 1997. The university began planning to establish a Jack F. Kemp Institute for Political Economy in October 2007 in honor of Kemp’s accomplishments in American politics and service to Pepperdine.
The institute will feature the Jack F. Kemp Library, the Jack F. Kemp Distinguished Visiting Chair and annual public lectures and conferences.
Friends say Kemp’s active, powerful presence seems at odds with his current illness.
If he were in this room today you’d never guess that he has cancer raging through his body said President Andrew K. Benton. To know Jack Kemp is to know a true life force.”
Kemp is well known for his efforts to reduce taxes most notably as a Republican Congressman from New York through the Kemp-Roth Bill which substantially decreased marginal income taxes during the Reagan administration.
“Jack Kemp and Ronald Reagan were such close associates because Reagan used Jack’s ideas to base his economic reform on Wilburn said.
Kemp is also known as an advocate for civil rights. Wilburn, who has been working with Kemp to raise money to launch the institute, recalls Kemp’s firm convictions concerning equality during his career as a football player for the Buffalo Bills.
He would walk out of a restaurant or place that didn’t treat all of his team members the same Wilburn said.Devoted to expanding opportunities for all people, Kemp was a member of the federal committee to promote Martin Luther King, Jr. Day as a national holiday.
He’s a very rare combination – someone who wants to accomplish a lot of good in the world through politics but also is very much driven by ideas Wilburn said. Wilburn also describes Kemp as non-partisan, kind-hearted and a voracious reader.
Anytime I walk into his office he’s got a book to recommend for me to read. It was even that way when he was a football player he said.
Kemp’s family had a very close association with Pepperdine. His older son Jeff received his master’s degree in business at Pepperdine while playing as a quarterback for the Los Angeles Rams. Kemp’s brother, Tom Kemp, was a Pepperdine regent for several years.
The Payson library is currently compiling a multimedia archive of Kemp’s works during his terms in Congress, which later will be part of the institute’s permanent collection.
