MoWest honors Thevenot family with renaming of new Houlne Center facility

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) -- A new storage facility for MoWest's state-of-the-art Houlne Center will don the name of one family long known for its dedication to the community.

Missouri Western State University announced the completion of its new 10,000-square-foot storage building Thursday located next to its new Houlne Center for Convergent Technology opened last November, an advanced center designed to prepare students for careers in manufacturing, construction and engineering.

Now, the university is renaming the new building in honor of one St. Joseph family long known for entrepreneurship and philanthropy, renaming it the "Thevenot Family Building" in recognition of their support for the Houlne Center and promoting careers in manufacturing.

The family recently provided a generous contribution to the university in support of the effort. The new storage building will be used to house equipment not currently in use, as well as raw materials, and vehicles associated with the Center, helping free up space for more programming.

“The Thevenot Family Building makes the Houlne Center even more flexible, allowing our staff to have even more state-of-the-art equipment and materials on hand while keeping the main building free for education and training,” said Dr. Elizabeth Kennedy, MoWest president, in a news release.

The family is well known for its ownership of Perka Buildings, a manufacturer and distributor of steel frames and building structures for use in a variety of industries, from agriculture to other commercial activities.

The Thevenot family’s involvement in St. Joseph spans more than two decades, including volunteer work with South Side nonprofit organizations like the South Side Business Development Board and South Side Rotary Club to work with the United Way of Greater St. Joseph and Performing Arts Association.

“It means the world to our family to support a place dedicated to curiosity, learning, and hands-on innovation,” Martial Thevenot said in a news release.

Thevenot hopes the new building serves as a strong and steady home for equipment and resources to aid and support the next generation of builders. Thevenot is set to begin serving his first term on the Missouri Western State University Foundation Board of Directors.