Hobbeheydar says the powerful connection of Culver defies explanation

Jahon Hobbeheydar ’91 says there’s a powerful connection he has with Culver Academies that is hard to explain.

“There’s just this feeling, this connection amongst people who love each other, amongst people who have never met, amongst complete strangers that just seems to be powerful. I love to come and experience that,” Hobbeheydar said.

He said it’s hard to put into words why he keeps giving to Culver more than three decades after graduating. But he said there are some pragmatic reasons.

“I know we need it,” he said. “For a lot of people, it’s hard to see this. There are all these big, new, beautiful buildings going up. How can that be that we really need this money?”

Hobbeheydar said he’s grateful to the benefactors who fund the new buildings, like the recently rebuilt Main Barrack and the North and East barracks that are now being rebuilt.

He added that the cost to “keep the lights on” is significant. He also said the money also goes to students, who, like him, couldn’t afford to go to Culver on their own. Hobbeheydar followed his brother, Jaime ’88, to Culver, both attending on scholarships funded by Paul Gignilliat ’49.

“My brother showed it was possible. The idea of going away to school seemed kind of neat. I had a structured, rigid way about me and a military school seemed consistent with that. And I was able to do that only because of the generosity of strangers,” he said.

Hobbeheydar said because Gignilliat wanted to get to know the students he was providing scholarships for he would take them out to dinner, providing a unique experience to meet his benefactor.

The money also helps Culver hire and retain quality faculty and staff, he said.

“It helps the people who took care of us, who gave so much of themselves,” he said. “This is maybe a little way to give back.”

He said the biggest reason, though, is to simply help the school that is so transformative for students.

“I think the work we do here is important. Doing what I can to continue that is a worthy goal,” he said.

Hobbeheydar earned a bachelor’s degree in physics from Hamilton College and a master’s degree in physics from Yale University. When he began working on his doctorate he decided it wasn’t for him and called his brother, Jaime ’88, who was working in management consulting.

“When I decided to leave grad school, he said something like, ‘I can’t help you with your identity crisis, but if you want I can circulate your resume in this community,’ ” Hobbeheydar said.

He spent the first years of his career in management consulting, starting with The Boston Consulting Group and then continuing in strategy roles across the telecommunications and property and casualty insurance industries. He said those firms appreciated his technical skills.

He later led strategy for Cummins Inc. for 15 years, where he developed the strategy to transition the company from a focus on manufacturing fossil fuels-based products to a leader in green power.

He is currently executive vice president of strategy for the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership, which was formed in 1999 to bring together the chief executives of Central Indiana’s prominent corporations, foundations and universities in a strategic and collaborative effort dedicated to the region’s continued prosperity and growth.

He said one thing that brings him back to Culver is there are so many people he loves and who have been so wonderful to him. Though he said the number of truly supportive people on faculty and staff are beyond count, he highlights three people in particular: Battery C counselor Steve Schumerth, cross country coach Mike Chastain and late Master Sgt. Jim Smith. He said all three had a profound influence on him while he was in school, saying they saved his life.

“I just can’t get my head around what they gave of themselves, and they gave it to me,” he said.

Hobbeheydar said he was a student leader as a second classman and committed a serious offense with some other cadets during fall break.

“At that age I thought, ‘My life’s over now,’ ” he said.

He said Schumerth was on campus as soon as he heard about it and took Hobbeheydar for a drive around the lake.

“Sometimes we talked. Sometimes we didn’t. He was just there,” he said. “That’s one thing I will never forget.”

Hobbeheydar said Chastain showed up in his room that night.

“I wasn’t looking for this, but he gave forgiveness. I had done something wrong and he gave forgiveness and told me he loved me,” he said. “I’m getting emotional just thinking about it.”

He said he was placed on citizenship probation and he needed a supervisor. He called Smith to ask him to fill that role.

“He said, ‘It sounds like some stuff to talk about.’ He met with me every week,” Hobbeheydar said.

He said the three of them were essential in him graduating from Culver.

Hobbeheydar lived in Main Barrack while at Culver, although he spent one quarter in South Barrack and one quarter in Linden while Main Barrack was being renovated. He loves the look of the newly rebuilt Main Barrack.

“What I love is that lakeside looks almost exactly the same. The other side used to be an eyesore. Now it’s beautiful,” he said.

He said he still gets a feeling of awe when walking around campus.

“I see in my mind’s eye all my teenage friends,” he said.

Which is why he likes to bring his parents to Culver when he visits them. They still live in Logansport, Indiana, where he grew up.

“Culver is a reason to get them out of the house,” he said.

He learned about how Culver cadets helped rescue people from a flood in Logansport in 1913 while he was a student at Culver.

“I had to come to Culver to learn about Logansport’s history,” he said.

He was visiting Culver earlier this fall for Ambassador Weekend. He said he loves taking part in that event because “I get to see how much better it is than when I was here. Part of me thinks creating a better Culver experience than I had is impossible. But I see we’ve done it. And I just love that.”

When asked by a colleague why he would return to his high school, he replied: “It would take hours for me to explain that to you adequately. But let me just put it this way: when I go back there, I’m going to know about a third of the people there. And the easiest thing I will do this week, this month, this year, is become friends with the other two-thirds. It’s going to be the easiest, most comfortable thing I do.”