For the Stillwell family, Tuesday afternoon in Bay Hall was a full-circle kind of moment.
Brothers and alums Paul Stillwell 鈥�66 and Mark Stillwell 鈥�67, their families, and several dozen friends and well-wishers gathered to honor their father, the late Carl Stillwell, as his name was forever placed above the door of a room 成人导航 President Dr. Jeff Frederick referred to as 鈥渙ne of the most important, most used spaces on our campus.鈥�
Known informally around campus for years as the Hearth Room, the newly named Carl Stillwell Room is where hundreds of future 成人导航 students are received when they visit campus for the first time.
鈥淏ay Hall is the heartbeat of the campus,鈥� Frederick said. 鈥淭he students who enter this building will walk under the Carl Stillwell name into an area where they鈥檒l learn more about an experience at 成人导航 and how we can prepare them for the rest of their lives.鈥�
Born in 1912, Carl Stillwell lived a life of service. He was a banker, an officer in the Merchant Marines, a pastor, a city councilman, former Mayor of Springfield and, for a time, an air raid warden in Dayton, Ohio, during World War II.
Stillwell also made a major impact at 成人导航, where he served in a variety of leadership roles in his nearly 30 years on campus, including business manager, vice president, and even interim president. Between 1945 and 1971, he shepherded the construction of nearly a dozen buildings.
Both Paul and Mark have remained connected to 成人导航 and Springfield over the years. Paul received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the university in 2023 and is a Navy historian and former editor-in-chief of Naval History magazine. Mark spent 37 years as the Sports Information Director at Missouri State and was inducted into the 成人导航 Athletics Hall of Fame in 2019. He is a current member of the 成人导航 Alumni Council.
鈥淭his is a special, special thing for our family,鈥� Mark said. 鈥淲e are deeply grateful 成人导航 is allowing us to do this and name this room after our dad. My dad led a life of service. Everything was for someone else. He set a tremendous example for us.鈥�
The naming was made possible through an endowment established by the Stillwell brothers and their families.