At an early age, Tim Kummer saw himself as a point guard on the Marquette men’s basketball team. Though his days as a student didn’t turn out to be on the court, he still made an impact in athletics, working with the women’s basketball team and serving as the Golden Eagle mascot.

He thrived outside the Al McGuire Center, too.

Tim served the Milwaukee and international communities, traveling to Voi, Kenya, to study HIV/AIDS. He and two of his classmates were so moved by their experiences that they established Watumishi — a Kiswahili word meaning people of service — to raise funds for a library at a shelter. His deeds didn’t go unnoticed: He received the national Howard R. Swearer Student Humanitarian Award for his work in Kenya and the Marquette University Alumni Association's Rev. Pedro Arrupe S.J., Award for serving others. His yearning for international service didn’t stop, though. After graduation, he volunteered for a year as a registered nurse at a medical center in Tanzania. 

“Marquette taught me that living with a sense of interconnectedness with others is what gives each of us a sense of purpose,” says Tim, whose wife, Nicole Bodner; father; and three siblings — and soon to be a fourth — are alumni. “This strong sense of purpose has guided my success.”

Today, Tim’s spirit of giving continues as a nurse in Minneapolis at the Hennepin County Medical Center and Hennepin County Adult Detention Center. His Swahili language skills are imperative here, considering it’s the only language spoken by some inmates. He has aspirations to pursue international medicine and attend medical school this fall.

Get to Know: Timothy M. Kummer

Hometown: Manitowoc, Wis.

Someone past or present he’d like to have dinner with: Nelson Mandela

Favorite Marquette memory: Participating in “Noon-Run” twice a week.

In grade school Tim wanted to be a point guard for Marquette.  He used to play basketball in his driveway wearing hi Aaron Hutchins jersey.

Tim’s Marquette legacy: His dad is “maybe the proudest ever” alumnus, three siblings and his wife are Marquette alumni and his sister is graduating this spring from Marquette.