An Ohio industrialist and friend of the University, Peter Kole, has established the Peter C. Kole Endowed Scholarship Fund to benefit students of Albanian heritage with a gift of $88,000. As a supporter of the New England Albanian Relief Organization, Kole is a leader in humanitarian aid to his ancestral homeland. It was on a humanitarian trip to Albania in 1990 that Kole was introduced to respected alumnus Dr. Lambi Adams '33 and thus became acquainted with Clark and its tradition of offering Albanian Americans opportunities for higher education. Worcester is home to one of the largest Albanian American communities in the United States. Clark has educated first and second generation Albanian Americans for more than five decades, including Gerim Panarity '26 editor of the first Albanian American newspaper in the United States, and Steve Dune ‘53, Perry Pero '61 and R. Norman Peters '62, Clark trustees. Although not a Worcester resident, Kole regularly visits the Universitv to meet with Albanian students and to offer support. At a recent meeting Kole encouraged students to take advantage of all that higher education has to offer saying, "Education is the great equalizer, and without it, we can't survive." Kole is a man of action. When he saw that there were no libraries in Albania, he collected thousands of books and eventually opened the largest open-stack library in Europe in his hometown of Progadec. He also hired a retired American librarian to organize the library and train local residents to run it. Unfortunately, as a result of unrest in the country, the library was destroyed by fire. For his dedication to humanitarian causes, Kole has been named a distinguished alumnus by his alma mater, Idaho State University, where he has also established scholarships. He is president and owner of several manufacturing companies. Kole and his wife, Nancy, reside in Cleveland, Ohio, and enjoy traveling in addition to their philanthropic work.