Claussen's Shoe Store (Carol Cope)

"We will think of her as philanthropist, but she was more like Kearney's matriarch," wrote the Kearney Hub on the life of Carol Cope. This passage, almost perfectly, explains how Carol (and her husband Ron) not only treated their fellow Kearneyites, but also their fellow Nebraskans.

Carol (born Ida Ernestine Schrepel), grew up in rural Pawnee County, Nebraska, leaving her home town to pursue a fine arts degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 1934. Carol would later go on to teach in North Platte for a time, before she and Ron moved to the greater Los Angles area, where Carol earned a Master's degree in music from UCLA

When they returned to Nebraska in the 1930s, Ron and Carol moved to Kearney where Ron became the manager for Claussen's Shoe Store in 1938. Ron would later become the store's owner with the passing of his boss, Ruben Claussen, in 1955. Ron and Carol would go on to manage the store until their retirement in the 1970s.

Ron and Carol saw a need to invest in themselves as well as the larger Kearney community. The would often invest their profits from Claussen's in farmland surrounding the Kearney area, and in a relatively new (for the time) company called Berkshire Hathaway. Some may be familiar with Berkshire Hathaway and CEO Warren Buffett. Ron and Carol becoming early investors, proved to be a savvy business investment, as the dividends from those dealings funded the Cope's generosity in giving.

The Copes also invested in something grander than stock in Berkshire Hathaway: people. Ron and Carol would continue to invest in people even after Ron's death in 1992 and Carol's in 2012. To date, the Ron and Carol Cope Foundation has donated in excess of 20 million dollars to various organizations through out the state. Some of which include: Kearney family YMCA, Kearney Area Couminty foundation, St. James Catholic Church, both the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the University of Nebraska-Kearney, and nameless educational scholarships, through out the state.

The physical space that once was Claussen's is still being used to this day, currently the home to Kearney business "Fanci That". From a humble store front in downtown Kearney, Ron and Carol Cope showed the people it was more than just shoes.

Von Kampen, Todd. Ron and Carol Cope: A Nebraska Love Story. Kearney, Nebraska . Morris Publishing , 2017.

Kearney Hub Staff. Carol and Ron Cope gave estimated $15M to $20M during their lives , kearneyhub.com. September 17th 2012. Accessed December 10th 2020. https://kearneyhub.com/news/local/carol-and-ron-cope-gave-estimated-15m-to-20m-during-their-lives/article_d305d704-fe91-11e1-b519-001a4bcf887a.html.

Ron and Carol Cope , Nebraskaeducationlocation.org. August 16th 2014. Accessed December 10th 2020. https://nebraskaeducationonlocation.org/foundations-trusts/ron-carol-cope/.