World
Philanthropists
Jews take 5 of top 6 spots in annual list of major U.S. givers.
Jacob Berkman
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
less than a quarter of all philanthropic
dollars given by Jews go to overtly Jewish
causes.
New York
For instance, while Soros gave $1 mil-
lion to World ORT in September, and
merica's most generous citizens
Bloomberg gave a smaller gift to the
gave less in 2010 than they have
Jewish Association for Services for the
over the past decade, but Jews
Aged, their gifts to overtly Jewish causes
remained among the top givers, according
comprise only a small proportion of their
to an annual survey by the
overall giving.
Chronicle of Philanthropy.
This year's Philanthropy
In 2010, the top
50 had one major excep-
philanthropists in the
tion: former Detroiters
United States contributed
Stephen and Nancy Grand,
approximately $3.3 billion
who ranked 39th, gave
to charity, according to the
more than $20 million of
Chronicle's Philanthropy
their $28 million in 2010
50, a list that tracks the
charitable donations to
largest gifts made by
the American Technion
individuals each year.
Society, which supports the
Stephen and Nancy Grand
That number is some
Technion-Israel Institute of
$800 million below 2009
Technology in Haifa.
and less than half of the
In June, the Grands
total made up by the
helped the Technion fin-
top 50 donors when the
ish off a 14-year, $1 billion
Chronicle first started
fundraising campaign with
keeping tabs a decade
their mammoth gift to
ago.
the school, to which they
At least 19 of the 53
also had given $10 mil-
individuals and couples
lion to create the Stephen
named on the list are
and Nancy Grand Water
Eli and Edythe Broad
Jewish, including five of
Research Institute.
the list's top six. George
The Grands are very
Soros ranked No. 1 with $332 million
involved in the Jewish world and launched
donated in 2010; New York City Mayor
their philanthropy through the Jewish
Michael Bloomberg was second at $279.2
Federation of Metropolitan Detroit.
million. Irwin and Joan Jacobs, former
Stephen Grand is a board member of
Detroiter Eli and Edythe Broad, and
Birthright Israel, while Nancy Grand
Leonard Blavatnik took spots 4 through
soon will become president of the Jewish
6, with $117 million to $119 million in
federation in San Francisco and serves
donations.
on the executive committees of the city's
Jews traditionally rank high on such
JCC as well as the American Jewish Joint
lists and figure prominently among the
Distribution Committee.
country's elite philanthropists. Jews also
Among the other Jews on the list to
make up more than half of the first 57 bil-
watch are hedge fund manager William
lionaires to join the Bill Gates and Warren
Ackman, who with his wife, Karen,
Buffet Giving Pledge - a group of ultra-
gave away $59.3 million last year. At 44,
wealthy Americans who have pledged to
Ackman already is one of Wall Street's
give away more than half of their assets
most significant players and a regular on
during their lifetime.
the dais of the UJA-Federation of New
The Chronicle's list, however, also offers
York's annual Wall Street dinner. He made
more cause for concern for those in the
his most significant Jewish contribution
Jewish nonprofit world who wring their
in the past year, leading an effort to bail
hands about the lack of giving by Jews to
out the Center for Jewish History in New
Jewish causes.
York from its $30 million debt with a $6.8
The Institute for Jewish and Communal
million gift.
Research has collected data showing that
Qualcomm founder Irwin Jacobs is
A
18
March 10 2011
one of San Diego's most generous men.
Aside from propping up the San Diego
Symphony with a $100 million-plus gift
last decade, he and his wife, Joan, have
decided to give away most of their money
through a donor-advised fund at the
Jewish Community Foundation of San
Diego, where Joan Jacobs is a board mem-
ber. Last year, according to the Chronicle,
they gave the fund $39.1 million, which
will be distributed to Jewish and nonsec-
tarian causes.
Cleveland car dealers Lee and Jane
Seidman gave $42 million in 2010 to land
them at No. 24 on the list. Most of their
giving went to University Hospitals, but
Jewish charities played heavily among
their contributions to more than 40 chari-
ties, including the Jewish Federation of
Cleveland.
Charles Kaufman, an executive at
Merck, was something of an unknown
to this annual mega-donor list. When
he died last September at age 97, he left
$53 million to charity, according to the
Chronicle. Of that, $50 million went to a
fund he and his late sister established at
the Pittsburgh Foundation. Jewish health
care is listed among the primary concerns
of the fund. He also left $3.34 million to a
variety of other charities, including those
that deal with Jewish life and culture,
among them $300,000 to Jewish Family
and Children's Service of Pittsburgh and
$50,000 to the Jewish National Fund.
Others on the Chronicle's list have
established track records with certain
Jewish charities.
Blavatnik, who came in at No. 6, sits on
the board of Tel Aviv University, the Center
for Jewish History and the 92nd Street Y
in New York. Richard Friedman, the head
of Goldman Sachs Merchant Banking
Division who ranked No. 49 with $20 mil-
lion in donations, is a board member of
the Central Synagogue in New York.
The biggest question may be whether
the youngest person ever to appear on the
list, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg,
will become a giver to Jewish causes.
Zuckerberg came in at a tie for No. 10
with Ackman, having made his first
significant charitable donation in 2010
with a $100 million gift to his Startup:
Education foundation, which will go
to help the struggling school system in
Newark, N.J., a non-Jewish cause. I I
Jews in
Top 50
1.George Soros, $332 million
2. Michael R. Bloomberg, $279.2
million
4. Irwin M. and Joan K. Jacobs,
$119.5 million
5. Eli and Edythe L. Broad, $118.3
million
6. Leonard Blavatnik, $117.2 million
9. Meyer and Renee Luskin, $100.5
million
10.Marc R. and Lynne Benioff, $100
million
10. Mark Zuckerberg, $100 million
17.William A. and Karen Ackman,
$59.3 million
18.Charles E. Kaufman, $53.3
million
24. Lawrence J. Ellison, $45.1 million
25. Lee G. and Jane H. Seidman,
$42 million
28. Lin Arison, $39 million
29. Herman Ostrow, $35 million
38. Stephen and Nancy Grand, $28.1
million
40. David M. Rubenstein, $26.6
million
41.Paul and Daisy M. Soros, $25
million
49. Iris Cantor, $20 million
49. Richard A. and Susan P.
Friedman, $20 million