(Bloomberg) – Jeff Bezos’ parents, Mike and Jackie Bezos, donated $185.7 million to the Aspen Institute this week to establish a new center for young people.
Most read by Bloomberg
This is the largest donation the Bezos Family Foundation has ever made and the largest ever given to the Aspen Institute, according to a spokesperson for the Washington, DC-based nonprofit. The new project, called the Center for Rising Generations, will use $175 million of the donation to create a permanent endowment.
The center will focus on civic engagement and leadership development, complement the Aspen Institute’s existing portfolio of youth programs and support new initiatives and partnerships, the nonprofit said in a statement. It will be led by Kaya Henderson, former chancellor of Washington Public Schools.
The parents of the world’s second richest person owe their wealth to the fact that they invested in Amazon.com Inc. very early on. They donated $245,573 to Jeff in 1995. While it is unclear how many Amazon shares they still own, their charitable activities suggest that they have been very successful with them.
In 2022, Mike and Jackie donated $710.5 million to the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center in Seattle, independently of the foundation. According to the last available tax return, the Bezos Family Foundation had assets of $113 million at the end of the year. This year, Mike and Jackie donated Amazon shares, which, taking into account a stock split in June 2022, would be worth $168 million at today’s price.
According to its website, the foundation has awarded 766 grants since its inception in 2003. Most of these grants have focused on early childhood education and youth.
Jeff Bezos, whose net worth is $193.4 billion according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, has also given some of his charitable giving to young people by building a network of tuition-free Montessori preschools across the United States.
Most read by Bloomberg Businessweek
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.
