Brooks Sumberg
Bachelor of Arts in History, '72
Westport, Connecticut
Brooks Sumberg, who is devoted to giving back, founded Harvest Now, a project that encourages prisons throughout the USA to use land and volunteers from the prisons to grow crops and fresh food. The project has provided thousands of pounds of food to help alleviate hunger and improve health in communities and prisons. He also holds classes for parolees teaching them lessons on how to interview for a job.
In addition to Harvest Now Project, he also started the Connecticut Bike Project, an effort that has brought more than 3,000 bicycles to needy children and new immigrants in the Bridgeport, Connecticut area. Sumberg was honored by Catholic Charities with the St. Augustine Medal for his work with the Connecticut Bike Project.
During his time at Kent State he was an active part of the community as a member of the Zeta Beta Tau Fraternity. He recently organized a reunion with over 30 men from the fraternity in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
After graduating from Kent State, Sumberg spent two years with the Peace Corps serving in Tunisia and brought fresh water to the villages for the first time. He then went on to create a successful import business for 7 years and then retired to devote his time to communities in need.