Chuck Kalinoski was the Penn State Alumni's Central Iowa Chapter Vice President for Life as he jokingly referred to himself. As in all things he really didn't care about the title but would do whatever needed to be done, especially in all matters Blue & White.

Chuck was born in Philadelphia, PA. His love for his alma mater was rivaled but not eclipsed by his passion for all things "Philadelphia". Chuck graduated from Roman Catholic High School and was forced to start PSU in the summer session because the Guidance Counselor (a monk) at his high school sent his transcript into PSU after the deadline since Chuck wouldn't apply to any 'proper' Catholic colleges. After completing his first two years at Penn State, Chuck enlisted in the US Army and served in Cu Chi in the Republic of Vietnam. He later returned to Penn State on what he referred to as his McNamara Scholarship and graduated in Political Science in 1971.

After graduation, Chuck was a social worker for the Department of Public Welfare in Philadelphia while he attended Villanova University for a Master's Degree and the Delaware Law School of Widener University at night. After graduation from law school, he joined the firm of Mesirov, Gelman, Jaffe Cramer & Jamieson in Philadelphia. Chuck continued to practice law for over 20 years with several firms in both Pennsylvania and Iowa with a specialty in civil litigation for the defense. At the time of his death he was a principal of the firm Kalinoski & Chaplinsky here in Des Moines, IA.

Chuck was very active in club activities especially in the recruitment and admissions of Iowa natives to Penn State. The first year after our club was re-formed in the early 1990's Chuck heard of the Golden Circle College Fair and immediately contacted Penn State to arrange for a table at the Fair. After being told that Iowa was not really PSU's target market he plowed on and finally won the school's approval to participate as an "official" PSU representative and served in that capacity for many years. He was always proudest of our club's first student to go to PSU from Iowa, Shannon Nelson, and he always bragged that that first college fair increased the Iowa matriculated students by 100% (or from 0 students to 1).

When traveling on business Chuck enjoyed getting together with Penn Staters across the country at their sports gatherings and other functions. He never traveled without a copy of the Penn Stater in his briefcase which held the all too precious contacts for the clubs across the country. Chuck was never happier than when he was with his Penn State family especially when the get together involved a bowl game and a National Title. He attended as many games in person as possible including numerous bowls, such as the 1986 Fiesta Bowl and the 1995 Rose Bowl.

While we all may miss Chuck personally very much, every time we get together and do anything in the name of Penn State you can't help but feel his energy with us. A scholarship fund intended for the furtherance of Chuck's recruitment and admissions activities directed at Iowa Students wanting to attend Penn State has been founded in his memory by the club. It our wish that someday this fund will grow to an amount that could substantially help offset the out of state tuition which is a roadblock to attendance at PSU for many Iowans.

While Chuck never gave up his Philly roots he did have a special place in his heart for his Iowa friends and family. Chuck firmly believed that although our club was small we were mighty as evidenced by the National Service Award we won recognizing our recruitment efforts shortly after the club attended its first Golden Circle College Fair, beating out many larger Pennsylvania based clubs. We all hope that this scholarship will help keep his spirit with us as well as share it with others.

To Donate money to this scholarship fund on behalf of Chuck Kalinoski, please send checks to:

Herb Meier
8604 Holly Lane
Urbandale, IA 50322