Episcopal Theological Seminary of the Southwest

Leila Clark Wynn

Austin native now firmly rooted in Greenville, Mississippi, you support an array of religious, educational, environmental and cultural institutions through thoughtful and well-planned giving.

Your roots within our community run deep. You first met Seminary Founder John Hines when he moved to Austin during your early teenage years. You co-chaired our Making All Things New campaign in the late 1990s as a tribute to Bishop Hines. You earned the Master’s Degree in English Literature from the University of Texas after graduation from Smith College. Marriage then took you to Greenville in the mid-1950s.

A very active parishioner of St. James’ Church in Greenville, you are described as an “awesomely modest, Christ-centric person” by your curate and our graduate, the Rev. Patrick Sanders. Your active participation in several diocesan committees has helped grow the Church throughout the state. Survivors of Hurricane Katrina were able to begin putting their lives back together because of your caring heart and generosity.

A Life Trustee of Millsaps College, you also support the University of Mississippi and other colleges in your adopted state. In addition to serving on the Institute of Southern Culture at Ole Miss, you also donated many first editions of books written by William Faulkner – the focus of your Master’s Degree thesis at UT – to that university.

You have said that the act of giving brings a deep sense of joy to you. You don’t know what philanthropy looks like, but you know how it feels. You report feeling it when you held your newborn babies and sense it coming on whenever Willie Nelson sings “Stardust” – “The nightingale tells his fairy tale of paradise where roses grew.”

In recognition of everything you have grown through your giving, we are pleased to award you the Doctor of Humane Letters degree, honoris causa.

May 13, 2008

Austin, Texas