_{^{Brink House, Castle St., John Harriss Howe (builder and former owner)}}

Who is eligible and how to apply?

Any African-American student from the Wilmington, NC metroplex area (including surrounding counties) who is pursuing a post-secondary degree or certification in the building arts & sciences (such as associates, baccalaureate, graduate, or professional degrees in architectural or other relevant fields) is eligible for the Scholarship award. Applications are available to download (see Download Application below) and from St. Stephen AME Church of Wilmington, NC. St. Stephen will oversee the annual selection of a qualified Scholarship recipient. Church or religious affiliation of any kind is not a requirement or consideration.

St. Stephen was chosen to award the yearly scholarship because of the 19th and 20th century membership of Howe family members William C. Howe, his wife Mary Elizabeth Howe, and their daughter Athalia Howe. At the time of the scholarship’s establishment, in December 2021, Athalia’s great-granddaughter, Cynthia Brown, was an active member of St. Stephen, serving as Christian Education Director, Church Historian, and Scholarship Committee member. Her Howe family lineage, community work to uplift Wilmington’s African-American history, and her work with other organizations in awarding scholarships to deserving minority students contributed immeasurably to the founding of the Howe Scholarship. Cynthia Brown passed away on Nov. 23, 2023 and will be missed by all who knew her.

St. Mark’s Episcopal Church of Wilmington, NC, whose founding members included the Howe family patriarch, Alfred Augustus Howe, are advised of this endowment, invited to serve on the Scholarship Committee, and encouraged to support St Stephen’s widespread recruitment of qualified and deserving students who may benefit from this fund.

*****DEADLINE MAY 1*****

Spotlight On: Scholarship Committee Member Kenneth S. Chestnut, Sr.

After graduating from Wilmington’s Williston High School, Mr. Chestnut enrolled in Duke University’s School of Engineering, where he was one of three African Americans in the first class to graduate from that program (1968). In April 2023, Mr. Chestnut received the distinguished alumni award from the School of Engineering, and in November 2023, he was invited back to Duke for the unveiling of a diversity mural, which includes Mr. Chestnut’s image.

Kenneth Chestnut with diversity mural at Duke University’s School of Engineering

Lucy McCauley (McKoy descendant) & Cynthia Brown (Howe descendant)
with historic plaque: “Alfred Howe, Carpenter” (photo taken 2019) House no longer in family