“The legendary philanthropist with the burdensome name is the eternal Queen Mum of Texas arts,” writes Molly Glentzer in Sunday’s (12/13) Houston Chronicle. “During much of the 20th century, she set a tone for cultural philanthropy that still inspires patronage today. Miss Ima, as she was affectionately known, was in her early 30s when she launched the Houston Symphony, determined to bring home the joys of classical music that became her spiritual center during formative, cosmopolitan years in New York and Germany…. As Will Hogg, Miss Ima’s older brother and confidante, helped to build the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, she became one of its first major patrons….. Miss Ima established the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health … She also founded the Houston Child Guidance Center, the pioneering alternative for mental health services…. Miss Ima was born … in 1882….. Eight years old when her father was elected governor and 13 when her mother died of tuberculosis, Miss Ima would spend her teens and early 20s as a defacto first lady of Texas….. She aspired to be a concert pianist…. Miss Ima was widely celebrated, like a genteel rock star, during her final decades.”
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