Robert R. Heaton

Butler County Community College conducted a celebration of life Wednesday for a man who once opposed the creation of the college, but became an esteemed benefactor.

BC3 officials and friends and family of Robert R. Heaton, who was 91 when he died in January, shared stories of good times they spent with him and the lessons they learned from him.

Shortly after donating $50,000 to BC3 for an endowed scholarship, Heating made the first $1 million donation in school history in 2014 during the Pioneer Proud Campaign. His donation was used toward the $6.4 million cost of the Heaton Family Learning Commons, a state-of-the-art academic and community library on the main campus in Butler Township.

Before signing the $1 million donation check, Heaton wanted to look at audits and other records for assurance that BC3 was on solid financial ground, Neupauer said.

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Robert R. Heaton speaks during the dedication of the Heaton Family Learning Commons at Butler community college in August 2016. At right is BC3 President Dr. Nick Neupauer.At left is Ruth Purcell, then-executive director of the BC3 Education Foundation.Submitted photo