3 Seattle Nonprofits Share $137-Million Trust

How much: $137-million

Who got it: Seattle Children’s Hospital, the University of Washington School of Law, and the Salvation Army’s Northwest Division

Who gave it: Jack MacDonald a lawyer at the Seattle office of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. At his death in September, at the age of 98, he left money that he had invested in a charitable trust after his father sold a meat company.

Where the money will go: Seattle Children’s will receive 40 percent of the trust’s annual income, while the law school and the Salvation Army will each receive 30 percent (valued at $56-million apiece). Mr. MacDonald earmarked the hospital money for research and to match gifts from other donors. He indicated that the law school should use his gift for educational efforts such as scholarships and faculty support. The trust also establishes an endowed chair in law, to be named for Mr. MacDonald. The gift to the Salvation Army is unrestricted.

Donor’s previous giving: In 2011 Mr. MacDonald pledged $50-million, anonymously at the time, to Seattle Children’s to recruit scientists and support research. He had previously donated $536,000 to the hospital.

About the donor: A frugal man, Mr. MacDonald often wore shabby clothing, rode the bus, and clipped coupons to avoid attention. Lorraine del Prado, senior director of development at the Seattle Children’s Hospital Foundation, says he “looked at himself as a custodian of assets used for something charitable and transformational.”

Donor’s connection to beneficiaries: Mr. MacDonald graduated from the law school in 1940. His mother, Katherine, was a longtime volunteer at the hospital.

How the bequest came about: Mr. MacDonald told the hospital and the university to expect bequests. The Salvation Army knew nothing about his planned gift, however, until October, when officials from Seattle Children’s informed the organization. Until then, Mr. MacDonald had given only $20 at a time to the charity.