The University of British Columbia Okanagan and the Stober Group are honouring deceased Kelowna business leader Dave McAnerney with a new $50,000 scholarship.
McAnerney, the CEO of the Stober Group, passed suddenly in October 2022. He had deep ties to the Okanagan business community, having served as president and CEO of SunRype, and holding executive positions with Labatt’s and Columbia Brewing.
“Dave was absolutely exceptional, someone who took the time to get to know you, showed an interest in you as a person and a human,” says Ken Stober, president of the Stober Foundation. “Anyone in his orbit benefited from his kindness, strength and deep love of his family and community.”
The Stober Foundation chose to honour McAnerney with a $50,000 gift which will be matched by the university to create the Dave McAnerney Memorial Award in Management which will be used to support third and fourth-year students that perform at a high academic level, are committed to giving back to their community, and demonstrate a financial need.
“As a management faculty, we aim to cultivate opportunities for our students to explore and redefine leadership,” says Sandy Hilton, dean pro tem of the Faculty of Management. “This generous gift—through its transformative effect on students’ university experience in management—will continue Mr. McAnerney’s legacy as a compassionate leader and business innovator.”
Stober Foundation CEO Keith Brewster says that establishing this memorial award is a testament to McArnerney’s impact on the community and his role as a friend and mentor.
“To say that Dave was a leader is an understatement. Setting up this award, with the support of his wonderful wife Anne and their children Michelle and Renee, is a blessing and, quite simply, the right thing to do. It warms our hearts to know that these awards will benefit a lifetime of young scholars. His legacy will remain, elevating excellence in community service, just like he did in life.”