Hampton Lumber & Family Forests is pleased to announce the creation of a Hampton Lumber Scholarship endowment for Tillamook Bay Community College (TBCC). The endowment will provide scholarships for students in TBCC’s forestry and manufacturing and industrial technology (MIT) programs.
“The health and vitality of our communities has always been a priority for Hampton,” said Hampton Lumber CEO, Steve Zika. “Ensuring opportunities and career pathways for local youth is a big part of that.”
While Hampton already offers undergraduate and trade school scholarships to children, spouses, and domestic partners of employees, the TBCC scholarship is the company’s first public educational endowment.
Hampton has operated a mill in Tillamook since 1986 and was a founding partner in TBCC’s MIT program. TBCC’s Associate of Science degree in Forestry program was launched in 2018 for students interested in transferring to a four-year program in Forestry.
“The TBCC Foundation Board of Directors feels incredibly grateful to strengthen our partnership with Hampton Lumber,” Britta Lawrence, Executive Director of TBCC Foundation said. “Endowments exist into perpetuity, and this gift will be impactful to Forestry and MIT students forever. We are so appreciative to have Hampton Lumber as a community supporter.”
In addition to the Tillamook sawmill—one of four Hampton mills in Oregon—Hampton also owns roughly 100,000 acres of timberland in northwest Oregon to help supply these mills. The majority of the timber supply for the Tillamook mill, however, comes from surrounding private and public working forestlands, including the Tillamook State Forest.
“Northwest Oregon is one of the best places in the world to grow and manufacture wood products and demand for lumber for housing and other projects is increasing steadily,” said Zika. “There are lots of local opportunities for young people looking to make a career in the forest sector and we hope this scholarship helps students understand and access these opportunities.”
Students will be able to apply for the scholarship beginning in spring 2023.
About Hampton Lumber
Hampton Lumber is a fourth-generation, family-owned company headquartered in Portland, OR. Founded in Willamina, Oregon in 1942, Hampton celebrated its 80th year in business this year. Hampton operates ten sawmills in Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia and markets wood products all over the world. All of Hampton’s forestlands are certified by the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI), an independent, non-profit organization that promotes sustainable forest management. SFI certified forests play an important role in water conservation, wildlife habitat, and climate solutions.