Starr King School for the Ministry is grateful to 2019 graduate Rev. Dr. Everett Howe and his spouse Dr. Isabella Furth for the creation of two new named scholarships! One scholarship will be in the names of the donors and the other in the names of beloved friends and colleagues: Bob and Marilyn Adams. The Adams Scholarship will be for Universalist Studies. We would like to extend our sincere thanks to Everett and Bella for their incredible generosity.
These scholarships will become fully endowed over the next five years, but Everett and Bella have generously agreed to also fund annual scholarships during this five-year period to “kickstart” the awarding of the scholarships while the endowed funds reach their intended level.
We asked Everett and Bella to tell us more about these scholarships and their motivations for supporting Starr King students on their journey to ministry.
Rev. Dr. Everett Howe & Dr. Isabella Furth
The late Rev. Drs. Marilyn and Bob Adams
Bob and Marilyn Adams were colleagues of my father in the philosophy department at UCLA. They were formidable scholars, specializing in the philosophy of religion, but I knew them as loving adult friends in the neighborhood who welcomed me into their home (often unexpected and unannounced). They became like a second set of parents to me. Marilyn taught me to bake and to sew, Bob passed on interesting lore about birdwatching and architecture, and both always had an ear. Marilyn became a friend, teacher, and confidant throughout my childhood and adolescence. She was part of the early cohort of women to be ordained into the Episcopal priesthood, and she modeled what it meant to have a spiritual life that was intellectually rigorous, committed to justice, and profoundly Universalist.
Marilyn and Bob were unfailingly supportive and generous with their time and attention throughout their lives, and they were also unexpectedly generous after their passing. We were floored to be remembered in their will,
and immediately thought the most fitting use of that money would be to endow a scholarship in their name. For both Marilyn and Bob, love was at the center.
In the course of Everett’s journey through the process of becoming a Unitarian Universalist minister, we met many people who would have liked to attend a seminary with a multi-religious justice-centered curriculum — but who couldn’t do so because of financial considerations. Our world needs the ministries of people who hear a call to justice and spirituality, and we want to do what we can to make a seminary education possible for everyone who wants to serve their community in this way. There are still many obstacles to making this possible, but we want to do our part to help people past this particular financial one.
The role of religion and spirituality in American life has been changing for some time; the COVID-19 pandemic has only accelerated this change. We need more voices supporting a liberatory spiritual movement that can change lives, create a more just society, and help fight the systems of oppression that are becoming ever more bold. We need these voices in the pulpit, yes, but also in hospitals, on the street, in organizing spaces, and in our communities. The need is urgent, and Starr King is in a unique position to help people deepen their spirituality and learn the skills that leaders of such a liberatory movement need.
Setting up an endowment with a multi-year pledge while funding a current-use scholarship is a powerful way to make an immediate impact while building a lasting legacy. For example, with a pledge of $6,000 per year for five years, a donor could allocate $5,000 annually to the endowment fund and $1,000 to an annual scholarship under the same name. This approach allows students to benefit from the scholarship right away, providing much-needed support while the endowment grows to its full potential. Once the endowment reaches its funding goal, it will begin generating annual awards in perpetuity, ensuring that the donor’s generosity continues to make a difference for generations to come.
To learn more about scholarship endowments and other endowed funds at Starr King, read posts here and here. If you are interested in starting a named scholarship or have questions about the process, contact Vice President for Advancement, Jessica Cloud at jcloud@sksm.edu or via phone at 571.438.8333.
