In 1899, a year after Mary Kimball Morgan founded Principia, she invited a small group of friends to meet with her and her husband to talk about the affairs of the school. Clarence and Minnie Morey Howard, church friends who had developed a strong interest in the fledgling school, attended that meeting. When someone asked how the school's finances were being handled, Mrs. Morgan replied, “I just give Mr. Morgan all the bills and whatever money comes in from the pupils, and he takes care of everything.” Mr. Howard responded, “It's not fair that one man should have all that fun by himself. Let's all chip in.” Thus began the Howards' legacy of leadership giving.

The Christ-Idea in Education

As early sowers of the Principia seed, Mr. and Mrs. Howard always expected that the school's needs would be met. Recognizing the inestimable value of the spiritual concept at the heart of Mrs. Morgan's vision, he was the first to characterize that concept as “the Christ-idea in education.” Indeed, throughout their long association with Principia, they thought of the school as “an idea rather than a location.”

The Howards did all they could to support Principia, even during challenging economic times. In the beginning, their financial support was modest. But as Mr. Howard's success in the business world grew, their gifts to the school grew as well. Seeing themselves as stewards, not owners, of their growing fortune, the Howards gave more than $2 million to Principia in the course of their lifetime, the equivalent of more than $31 million today.

At the time, few knew the full extent of the Howards' generosity. Consider this partial list of their substantial contributions:

• Funding for a large gymnasium, named in the Howards' honor, that contained a swimming pool and a stage for dramatic productions and concerts on the original Page and Belt campus in St. Louis

• Contributions that supported student aid and became the nucleus of Principia's endowment

• Funding for the purchase of the land for the College campus in Elsah and an advance of the money for construction of the Chapel, the first new building on that campus

• Funding for the College's first women's dormitory, which was named for Mrs. Howard

 
Architect Bernard Maybeck's rendering of Minnie Morey Howard House, circa 1931

Mr. Howard valued the good in others and magnified that good with encouragement and appreciation—and oftentimes with unsung financial support. In his later years, whenever Mr. Howard learned about a need at the school, he would invite Mary Kimball Morgan's older son, Frederic Morgan, over to breakfast and slip a check into his pocket. Then, in the late 1920s, Mr. and Mrs. Howard fulfilled their long-held desire to give Principia a single gift of $1 million, the largest gift the school had ever received.

Mr. Howard was fond of short, insightful sayings, especially those he knew from experience were true. A favorite was “You cannot receive with a closed hand—you must open up first.” Clarence and Minnie Morey Howard gave to Principia not only with an open hand but with an open heart.