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Why do I give?
“Music is as essential as food.
I'm addicted to it.”
—Carl Howard ’36
Since the establishment of NEC’s Annual Fund in 1980, Carl Howard’s yearly gift has arrived as regularly as the change of seasons. To date he has given enough to fund 10 full scholarships, a year’s worth of service on NEC’s nearly 200 pianos, or myriad other operating costs the Annual Fund helps to support.
Carl’s generosity extends beyond the Annual Fund, however. In 1993, Carl named NEC the sole beneficiary of a charitable remainder unitrust, one of the planned giving methods by which NEC supporters can achieve both their personal and their philanthropic goals. When the trust comes to NEC through his estate, it will be invested in the endowment to create annual income that will support NEC’s greatest needs.
What has motivated Carl's steadfast generosity? “My years at New England Conservatory gave me a happy emotional uplift," says this alum. "I’ve been grateful ever since."
Born in 1907, Carl has always been passionate about music. He and his father would attend rehearsals of the Handel & Haydn Society, and he began piano lessons at age eight. After graduating from MIT in 1930 with bachelor’s and master’s degrees in architectural engineering, he first worked as a piano teacher and church organist—the only jobs he could find during the Depression. To improve his skills, he enrolled in courses at NEC. There he discovered a talent for composition. His first piece won an honorable mention in NEC’s annual competition and later works won prizes.
Eventually Carl found work as an engineer and had a successful 37-year career. Music remained a vital interest, and he continues to compose music in his head to this day. “To me, music is as essential as food,” he says. “I’m addicted to it.”
Carl Howard has also never lost his passion for New England Conservatory. His goal has always been to help NEC students who, like him, need music simply to feel alive. His outright Annual Fund gifts and his bequest via the Carl C. Howard Charitable Remainder Unitrust have made this goal a reality and assure that Carl’s legacy at NEC will always be secure.