Veterans Day Student Spotlight: Henry Kampen

Happy Veterans Day to senior enology student Henry Kampen who has served 6 1/2 years in the U.S. Coast Guard in Seattle, Sacramento, Elizabeth City (NC) and Clearwater (FL).

The E-5, petty officer second class has spent four years as an avionics electrical technician on HC-130H planes, and was a radio operator, navigator, and airframe maintainer as well.

He initially started on the USCG Cutter Midgett (Seattle) and was involved with small boat operations, law enforcement training, navigation, and other duties. 

During his service he was awarded the Coast Guard Achievement medal after he was the acting on-scene commander as navigator of a HC-130 for a drug bust that had a street value of $6 million.

This fall he has applied his teamwork skills as a student assistant for the award-winning campus winery that processed 22 lots of wine grapes since August. The team processed 11 different varieties of grapes from campus & other fine grape-growing regions near the coast to produce wines available through the campus wine club, Gibson Farm Market and other local stores. He was also involved in its first wine canning (& was featured in this news story).

The San Diego native now considers Napa his home (where he has lived for five years with his wife), and also where he received his associates degree from Napa Valley College. 

 

Q: Why were you drawn towards attending Fresno State and getting an enology degree?

Kampen: "My Dad's side of the family all lives here, and I was born in Visalia even though I moved to San Diego when I was very young. I have an aunt, Mary Ann Kampen, an uncle, Ted Kampen, and two cousins, Ben and Brad Kampen, that also all attended Fresno State.  What really drew me here was the hands-on experience of having such a large production winery, as well as research facilities. Enology is great because it combines many of the sciences as well as having a creative aspect in the winemaking process."

 

Q: What has been your most memorable experience at Fresno State?

Kampen: "Being a part of the winery team this harvest has been amazing. Seeing everyone come together to facilitate the winemaking process has been awesome. "

 

Q: What have been some of your favorite Fresno State classes and faculty?

Kampen: "Professor Whalen's fermentation class last year, and now Dr. Pedroza's advanced sensory class. The fermentation class was a fun process where the students had a ton of freedom with the projects that we were working on, including making our own wine, beer, and mead. Advanced sensory is much more lab and science based, which is a field that I really love. We also do analytical wine tasting which is very interesting." 

Kampen: "Dr. Pedroza and Dr. Sun have had the biggest influence on me here at Fresno State. I have had a majority of my enology classes with them, and they have been hugely supportive."

 

Q: When did you start working on the campus farm, and how has it prepared you for your career path?

Kampen: "I started working at the campus winery in August 2020, and the biggest thing I've picked up is learning to have a lot of responsibility in a winery setting. It is also a huge opportunity to network with different vineyards and other winemakers that Tom knows, as well as seeing how Tom operates the winery from a logistic standpoint and not just a winemaking standpoint."

 

Q: Have you been involved with research on campus, and how will it benefit your career path?

Kampen: "I have been involved in some research projects at the winery. Currently we are conducting a project for Gusmer labs using less conventional yeast types and enzymes. I intend to pursue a graduate degree further down the road, so seeing real-world research has been eye-opening as well as inspirational."

 

Q: What was your background in agriculture before you started at Fresno State?

Kampen: "My Dad's side of the family has always been involved with dairy farming, mainly in the San Joaquin Valley. My Grandpa was a dairy farmer in Holland before he immigrated to the U.S. after World War II."

 

Q: Are you a part of any clubs/organizations at Fresno State, and traveled to any conferences?

Kampen: "I am a member of the Viticulture Club and Enology Society. Both are fantastic programs, and I have made a ton of friends there. I attended the Unified Wine and Grape Symposium in Sacramento in 2019 with the Viticulture Club."

 

Q: Have you overcame any challenges to get where you are today that have shaped who you are?

Kampen: "I joined the military shortly after high school to help pay for college. I knew I wanted a degree but didn't want to have to take out student loans, so I served six years in the Coast Guard and am now using the veteran's benefits to help with school. The military certainly shaped a big part of who I am today, it gave me the confidence to feel like I can really overcome any tough situation I find myself in."

 

Q: Are there any other interesting notes about yourself?

Kampen: "I have over 1,000 hours of flight time, 47000 nautical miles traveled, and I also am a Golden Dragon since I crossed the international date line on a boat during my military service."

 

Q: When do you plan on graduating; what's your next potential career step; and how do you plan to use your degree with eventually?

Kampen: "I may return to the Napa Valley and try to find a lab or possibly an assistant winemaker position. I am also strongly considering jumping into a master's or doctorate program, but haven't decided one way or the other yet."