Hamburg Alumni Foundation president leaves lasting legacy in district
By Francesca Bond, SUN STAFF REPORTER
The work of Hamburg High School graduate Keith Fisher to get district students back and forth on busses throughout the year has had a significant impact on so many youth in the community over the years.
Fisher’s family company, Fisher Bus, has provided transportation for the district since 1956. Fisher sold the company in 2019 but remains involved with the district.
“If you went to Hamburg, there’s a chance you rode a Fisher Bus,” Fisher said.
And now Fisher’s name will carry on in the district through a new athletic complex that Hamburg is hoping to construct during its upcoming capital project. Fisher donated $200,000 to the project. The complex, which would include Howe Field, a new pool complex, multi-use ball field, will be named after Fisher if the project receives voter approval Oct. 13.
“It’s going to be spectacular,” Fisher said. “I think public schools are fighting for kids and whatever you can do to attract people to move into your town, whether it’s classrooms, performing arts, anything like that, along with athletics, I think it definitely helps.”
Hamburg Superintendent Mike Cornell called Fisher’s donation “significant,” adding that it’s a very rare level of contribution in the area.
Fisher is a 1972 Hamburg High School graduate. He was named to the school’s Wall of Fame in 2018 and was one of the founding members of the Hamburg Alumni Foundation, where he has served as president for the last 16 years. While he was at Hamburg, he played baseball and football.
He then attended Alfred University majoring in business while skiing for the university’s team.
After announcing his charitable donation at a recent School Board meeting, Fisher stepped down this month as president. He will remain a board member of the foundation.
“I think 16 years is enough,” Fisher said.
Fisher serves as chairman of the foundation’s major fundraiser, a golf tournament. He donates to the foundation annually and has made other notable contributions to the district, including $50,000 for the construction of Howe Field and $10,000 for the district to buy a digital sign at the high school. He also contributes money to the school’s annual Thanksgiving drive.
Fisher’s family has been in Hamburg for a long time. His grandparents started a carting business on Main Street in the Village of Hamburg in 1927, Fisher said.
Fisher stepped in to run his family business, Fisher Bus Company, at age 23 and ran it until 2019. He grew another family company, Niagara Scenic Tours, which he sold in 1997 and reopened in 2006.
Many of Fisher’s relatives attended Hamburg and four generations of his family work in Hamburg in the family business.
Fisher said he would continue to support the district in various ways.
“I plan to stay involved as much as possible,” he said.