Quarterdeck 3.1
Department News
Endowed Chair in Oceanography
[43K] Mary and Louis
Scherck, 1973. (Photo courtesy of Gittings of Houston, Texas.)
The Department of Oceanography enters a new phase of development in research
and education this year with the receipt of its first endowment to fund
a faculty chair and student scholarships. The exceptional gift of $1.7 million
from Mr. and Mrs. Louis E. Scherck of Houston, Texas emerges from anonymity
and takes effect now that both Mr. Scherck and his wife, Mary Elizabeth
Showers, have passed away.
Through his generosity Mr. and Mrs. Scherck gave lasting impact to Mr. Scherck's
"conviction that the oceans of the world represent the frontier of
the future, and will play a very extensive role in both the political and
economic status that [his] great-grandchildren and beyond may expect to
encounter."
Mr. Scherck moved to Houston in 1935 after graduating from Brown University
and taking a class in money and banking at Harvard. In Houston he forged
a successful career in the oil and gas business, interrupted briefly by
his service in the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II. Mr. and Mrs.
Scherck are survived by Mrs. Scherck's three daughters, Ann Showers Butler
of Austin, Betty Showers Brown of Brookshire, and Nancy Showers Slaughter
of San Angelo, as well as ten grandchildren and nineteen great-grandchildren.
The Scherck endowment will fund a $1 million faculty chair in oceanography
and fellowships for graduate students. The Department of Oceanography receives
this munificent gift with particularly deep appreciation during these times
of financial strain in all sectors of academia. The endowment will enable
the department to attract top-notch faculty and students as it continues
to strive for excellence in teaching, research, and outreach. Mr. and Mrs.
Scherck showed tremendous insight when they acknowledged the oceans as a
lifeline for the world's future and created a resource that will benefit
the study of the oceans at Texas A&M from this year forward.
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Oceanography, Texas A&M University
rshatto@ocean.tamu.edu
URL=http://oceanography.tamu.edu/Quarterdeck/QD3.1/Scherck/scherck.html
Updated July 24, 1995
[43K] Mary and Louis
Scherck, 1973. (Photo courtesy of Gittings of Houston, Texas.)