To be in northern Vermont is to be surrounded by evidence of the visionary generosity of Lois Howe McClure and her husband, J. Warren (Mac) McClure.

UVM and the UVM Medical Center are among the many recipients of that generosity. And it is no exaggeration to say that her support positioned the university to serve its campus and broader community of learners in richly diverse ways over the years.

Lois’s interests were broad, and her commitment to having a meaningful impact was profound. Through personal experience, she knew the impact and importance of assuring that medical students were equipped to put the needs and experiences of patients first. Knowing that Vermont faced a shortage of experts in gerontology, she helped establish the Center on Aging to anchor Vermont’s efforts to provide the best possible supports for the state’s seniors. She committed to learning and art access for both campus and the broader community by supporting UVM Special Collections (the university’s main library bears her father’s name) and the Fleming Museum.

When Lois passed away at age 98 in February 2025, staff and faculty from across campus shared their thoughts about her enduring impact, and what it was like to work with her to achieve great things with an extended community in mind.

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“You can’t walk anywhere in the hospital without seeing and feeling the impact of the McClures’ philanthropy.  The McClure Building, which was named for their gift, is the most obvious example.  They also made significant gifts to the ACC project and the Miller Building.  Over the past 45 years the McClures have made a lasting impact on where and how we are able to deliver care at UVMMC.  We are forever grateful for their generosity and vision.”

– Stephen Leffler, M.D., President and Chief Operating Officer, UVM Medical Center

”Lois McClure was an exceptional friend of the University of Vermont, and a patron of the Larner College of Medicine, the UVM Medical Center, and the community. I first met Lois about 25 years ago after she and her husband “Mac” experienced a negative medical event in Philadelphia during a trip back to Burlington. We met at a geriatric conference, and she shared the details of the episode in the context of what we, as a medical community, were doing to support the medical needs of our older folks with respect and dignity. Following this encounter, we stayed in touch, and in 2006 I asked Lois to join a working group that had been charged by UVM senior leadership to assess the status of aging-related research at the University of Vermont, the organizational structure needed to support this endeavor, and to investigate the revitalization of an Aging Center on campus. [Lois subsequently made] a gift to UVM of $5 million to endow a Center on Aging… and I was honored to be named its inaugural director. In the years since, Lois and I maintained a close relationship that resulted in many conversations regarding aging issues in our Burlington community. Lois was an intelligent, gracious, and passionate woman who in my mind will always be remembered as the person who jump-started aging research and education at UVM and the Larner College of Medicine.”

– William Pendlebury, M.D., Professor Emeritus, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine

“The McClures’ actions have always spoken far louder than their words, and this was demonstrated through their contributions to and support of the Department of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation at the University of Vermont. The McClures established the McClure Musculoskeletal Research Center in the Larner College of Medicine and created the McClure endowed Professorship of Musculoskeletal Research in the Department of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation. The extensive contributions by the McClure family have been highly significant in providing support that has allowed the members of our department to educate countless students and trainees with diverse backgrounds at various levels of their training.  In addition, their support has made it possible for us to conduct novel and innovative musculoskeletal research that has allowed our department to make advances on local, national, and international levels and become a shining star in the field of orthopaedics and rehabilitation.”

– Bruce D. Beynnon, M.S., Ph.D., McClure Professor of Musculoskeletal Research, Director of Research Department Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation

“Lois McClure was such a force for good and pillar of the community in every measurable way. At the Fleming Museum, we use art in all its forms to encourage dialogue and expand understanding of our shared human experience. We remain forever grateful for Lois’ generous support through the years, reflecting her lifelong commitment to those same values by uplifting arts and culture here at UVM and around the state.”

– Sonja Lunde, Executive Director of the Fleming Museum of Art

Lois is remembered for the joy she brought to her philanthropy, and for her partnership in not only funding good work, but in assuring its effectiveness and meaning. Though she will be missed, UVM’s extended community is forever richer because of her involvement.