Thelma Steward is a registered nurse and philanthropist from St. Louis, Missouri. She co-founded the Steward Family Foundation in 2013, created a full-tuition nursing scholarship for African American students, and has shaped healthcare and education across the region through decades of quiet, structural giving. Her work stands as a direct extension of the faith and clinical values she has held since childhood.
Table Of Content
- At a Glance
- Early Life and the Roots of a Giving Spirit
- A Career Shaped by a Historic Black Hospital
- The Steward Family Foundation: Faith and Service at Scale
- The Thelma Steward Future Nurse of Excellence Scholarship
- Milestones and Civic Leadership
- Family, Faith, and an Intergenerational Legacy
- Conclusion
- Frequently Asked Questions
At a Glance
- Location: St. Louis, Missouri
- Training: St. Louis Municipal School of Nursing
- Career: Registered nurse, newborn and premature nursery, Homer G. Phillips Hospital and Barnes-Jewish Hospital
- Philanthropy: Co-founder, Steward Family Foundation (2013); creator, Thelma Steward Future Nurse of Excellence Scholarship
- Recognition: Honorary degree, Saint Louis University (2014); Variety the Children’s Charity Woman of the Year
- Board service: St. Louis Symphony Orchestra
- Giving philosophy: Faith-driven, systems-focused, long-term
Early Life and the Roots of a Giving Spirit
Thelma Steward was born and raised in St. Louis. Her mother, Dorothy, modeled generosity early. The family often sent part of their own limited food to neighbors who had less. Thelma has said that watching her mother give from scarcity, not surplus, defined how she would later approach philanthropy. As a teenager, she went door-to-door to raise money for multiple sclerosis. The pattern was set: see a need, step forward, repeat.
A Career Shaped by a Historic Black Hospital
Thelma trained at the St. Louis Municipal School of Nursing and began her career in the newborn and premature nursery at Homer G. Phillips Hospital. For much of the twentieth century, Homer G. Phillips was one of the most significant Black hospitals in the country. It trained African American doctors and nurses at a time when many hospitals refused to treat Black patients with dignity. Thelma’s daily work placed her inside that legacy.
Later, she moved to Barnes-Jewish Hospital, still caring for infants. The disparities she witnessed in maternal and newborn care did not sit comfortably with her. Rather than accept them as fixed, she carried those observations into every initiative she would later lead. Her nursing career was not a phase she left behind; it became the filter through which she evaluated every grant and program.
The Steward Family Foundation: Faith and Service at Scale
In 2013, Thelma and her husband, David Steward, co-founded the Steward Family Foundation. David Steward is the founder and chairman of World Wide Technology, the largest Black-owned company in the United States. The wealth generated by WWT — David Steward’s net worth is estimated at over $11 billion — gave the foundation a platform for giving on a transformational scale.
The foundation’s mission is to steward the word of God through acts of service, focusing on underrepresented individuals and communities. Both Thelma and David are former Sunday school teachers. Their faith is not separate from their philanthropy; it is the engine. Grantmaking targets education, healthcare, the arts, and civic infrastructure.
In 2022, the family centralized its giving and investments under a single-family office, Steward Capital Management. This move ensures the foundation’s work will continue across generations without losing focus or momentum.
The Thelma Steward Future Nurse of Excellence Scholarship
Thelma helped design and launch the Thelma Steward Future Nurse of Excellence Scholarship at the Foundation for Barnes-Jewish Hospital. It is a full-tuition award for African American nursing students at Barnes-Jewish College Goldfarb School of Nursing. The scholarship directly tackles the underrepresentation of Black nurses in the profession. For Thelma, it is a direct line from her own career to the next generation of caregivers — a baton pass rather than a charitable side project.
Milestones and Civic Leadership
| Year | Milestone |
|---|---|
| 2013 | Co-founds the Steward Family Foundation |
| 2014 | Receives an honorary degree from Saint Louis University |
| 2018 | Funds the David and Thelma Steward Institute for Jazz Studies at UMSL with $1.3 million |
| — | Elected to the board of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra |
| — | Donates $1 million to the United Way’s Charmaine Chapman Society; among the first African American donors in the region at that level |
| — | Named Variety the Children’s Charity Woman of the Year |
Thelma Steward’s leadership is quiet and structural. She does not chase visibility or build a personal brand. When Variety honored her, she responded with a scripture: “The scriptures say, what you’ve done for the least of them, you’ve done for me.” That framing — service as obligation, not achievement — runs through everything she does. Her approach prioritizes institutions and long-term systems, not short-term recognition.
Family, Faith, and an Intergenerational Legacy
The Stewards’ children are woven into the family’s philanthropic fabric. Their son, David II, owns Polarity, a media company covering comics, graphic novels, animation, and video games. Their daughter, Kimberly, founded K Period Media, a film production company. The foundation also channels resources into the arts as a vehicle for healing trauma and reinforcing cultural identity — a natural extension of the family’s values.
Thelma and David met in St. Louis during his early days of building WWT. David often credits Thelma’s steady encouragement as a foundation for his success. Their partnership, personal and philanthropic, has remained rooted in the belief that faith without works is dead.
Conclusion
Thelma Steward’s story is built on consistency, not plot twists. The careful attention she gave to premature infants later became a full-tuition scholarship. The faith she shared in Sunday school classrooms now governs a multimillion-dollar foundation. The generosity her mother modeled with a plate of food now flows through a family office structured to sustain giving for generations. She is proof that the most lasting influence does not need a spotlight — just a clear set of values and the discipline to act on them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Thelma Steward?
Thelma Steward is a registered nurse, philanthropist, and community leader from St. Louis, Missouri. She co-founded the Steward Family Foundation and created the Thelma Steward Future Nurse of Excellence Scholarship for African American nursing students.
Is Thelma Steward related to David Steward of World Wide Technology?
Yes. She is the wife of David Steward, the billionaire founder and chairman of WWT, the largest Black-owned company in the United States.
What is the Steward Family Foundation?
Founded in 2013, the Steward Family Foundation supports education, healthcare, the arts, and community development, with a focus on underrepresented communities. Its mission is rooted in the Christian faith of its founders.
What is the Thelma Steward Future Nurse of Excellence Scholarship?
A full-tuition scholarship for African American nursing students at Barnes-Jewish College Goldfarb School of Nursing. It was created to increase diversity in nursing and is directly inspired by Thelma Steward’s own career as a registered nurse.
Where did Thelma Steward work as a nurse?
She worked in the newborn and premature nursery at Homer G. Phillips Hospital, a historic Black hospital, and later at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, both in St. Louis.
How did Thelma and David Steward meet?
They met in St. Louis during the early years of David’s career. David has often credited Thelma’s steady support as crucial during the uncertain founding days of World Wide Technology.
What role does Thelma Steward have at World Wide Technology?
She holds no operational role at WWT. Her influence is exercised through the family’s philanthropic foundation and the Steward Family Office, which manages the family’s investments and giving.
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