David William Webb '81
(Year Awarded--2006)

The John W. Kuykendall Award for Community Service is presented to an alumnus in recognition of extraordinary service to his or her community and demonstrated leadership through servanthood in the spirit of Davidson’s fifteenth president. David Webb’s life work is helping the forgotten children of Africa survive and thrive in some of the most challenging circumstances imaginable.

In his application for admission to Davidson in January 1977, David wrote that his overall goal was “to be as productive as I can in whatever time I have and to somehow make life better for those around me.” These words, written at age 17, reflect the idealism, passion, and integrity that continue to drive him today.

While at Davidson, David served as a member of the College Union Speakers Committee, historian for the Heraldic-Genealogical Society, participant in theatre productions, brother of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity, and active member of the Davidson Christian Fellowship. In 1981, he graduated with a degree in English and a commitment to Christ.

After working in the College Union, David moved to Kenya to live and teach at a harambee school. The almost three years David spent in Kenya were transforming. He taught at a secondary school, served a famine relief effort among desert nomads, and helped create a literacy course in tribal dialects. In Kenya, David realized that despite the sometimes overwhelming needs of the world, one man truly can make a difference.

Following his return to the States to earn a master’s degree in international education from George Washington University and after time spent as a church administrator and pastor in Northern Virginia, David and his wife, Caroline, moved back to Kenya for three years to build Grace Children’s Home and Nakuru Streetchild Shelter, which together serve 120 poor children. From 1998 until 2001, David and his family lived in Virginia while he acted as national director of Intercessors of America. In 2001, he was called again to the African continent, settling in Johannesburg, South Africa, and serving as a pastor of His People Christian Church. In addition to his pastorate, David and his wife operate Baby Haven, a home for abandoned babies, and lead outreaches that serve more than 100 other children at city orphanages. David also oversees the “Masiphane Projects,” a group of more than 100 volunteers that provide needy children in Johannesburg with food, tutoring, bible outreach, and literacy assistance.

Because you have been called to minister to some of our world’s neediest children; because you are living a life of merciful, compassionate and humane service to others; because you are providing your own children with an example of selfless commitment to humankind; and because you are honoring God through your love for the poor and oppressed, the Davidson College Alumni Association is proud to present you, David William Webb, Class of 1981, with the John W. Kuykendall Award for Community Service on this 29th day of April, 2006.