Ariz. Real-Estate Magnate Pours Holdings Worth $129 Million Into Community Foundation

A roundup of notable gifts compiled by the Chronicle:

Arizona Community Foundation

Daryl and Christy Burton donated real estate valued at $129 million to support their Burton Family Foundation, which is housed at the community foundation. The couple focus their grant making on providing underserved youths with college and career-readiness programs, STEM education, and mentorship and leadership-development programs.

Daryl Burton is president of Reliance Management, a commercial real-estate firm in Phoenix. In October, he sold 70 percent of the company to Equus Capital Partners, a Philadelphia firm, for $1.15 billion. The Burtons started their family foundation with a $25 million gift of real estate in 2015.

Venetoulis Institute for Local Journalism

Stewart Bainum Jr. pledged $50 million to create the Baltimore Banner, a new digital news publication that will serve the Baltimore region. The nonprofit online publication is expected to launch next year with nearly 50 journalists.

Bainum Jr. is chairman of Choice Hotels International and has led a number of companies, including HCR Manor Care, which operates nursing and assisted-living facilities; Sunburst Hospitality; and Vitalink Pharmacy Services. He served as a member of the Maryland House of Delegates from 1979 to 1982 and in the Maryland Senate from 1983 to 1986.

The Venetoulis Institute is named for Theodore Venetoulis, a former Baltimore County executive and businessman who led an effort to save the Baltimore Sun from being acquired by an out-of-state hedge fund. Venetoulis died in October.

University of Michigan

Fred and Judy Wilpon gave $40 million through their Judy and Fred Wilpon Family Foundation to endow the Kessler Presidential Scholars Program, which provides financial aid and academic, social, and career-support services for college students who are the first in their families to attend college.

Fred Wilpon co-founded Sterling Equities, a real-estate development firm in New York, and was a co-owner of the New York Mets baseball team from 1987 to 2002 and sole owner of the Mets from 2002 to 2020. The Wilpons both earned bachelor’s degrees from the university in 1958. Fred Wilpon’s experiences as a first-generation student inspired this gift.

“We have learned that just giving students a scholarship is not enough,” Fred Wilpon said in a news release. “As a first-generation college student myself, I know the importance of having a close-knit community and a sense of belonging on campus. We want students to feel secure, empowered, and engaged so they can excel and become the next generation of global leaders.”

The Kessler Scholars program was named in honor of Judy Wilpon’s parents, Irene and Dr. Morris B. Kessler, who immigrated from Europe and eventually settled in Michigan. With this latest gift, the Wilpons have donated more than $75 million to the university, including $61 million to the Kessler program.

Lakeshore Park Conservancy

James and Natalie Haslam and their family gave $35 million to support extensive renovations to Lakeshore Park, a large public park in Knoxville, Tenn. Their son Bill Haslam and his wife, Crissy; their other son Jimmy Haslam and his wife, Dee; and their daughter, Ann Haslam Bailey, and her husband, Steve, all contributed to this gift.

James Haslam founded the Pilot Company, a Knoxville business that operates convenience stores and travel centers throughout North America. Bill Haslam, a former governor of Tennessee, was the president of Pilot in the 1990s. Jimmy Haslam is CEO of Pilot, and Dee Haslam is CEO of Haslam Sports. Along with her husband, she owns several professional sports teams.

Ann Haslam Bailey is a former teacher who taught at the Knoxville Adaptive Education Center, which serves elementary through high-school students who require a structured and supportive school environment with a strong mental-health component. Steve Bailey owns Volunteer Lumber Sales, a wholesale lumber-distribution company in Knoxville.

Kent State University

Edward and Mary Crawford gave $28 million for a new College of Business Administration building, which will be named Crawford Hall. In addition, the college will be renamed the Ambassador Crawford College of Business and Entrepreneurship.

Edward Crawford founded a manufacturing business in 1962 and sold it in 1992 to Park-Ohio Holdings Corporation, a global supply-chain logistics and manufacturing business. He served as U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Ireland from 2019 to 2021 and today serves as chairman of Crawford United Corporation, a holding company, and as CEO of the Crawford Group, a venture-capital firm.

Utah Valley University

Scott and Karen Smith gave $25 million gift to support the construction of a new engineering building, which will be named the Scott M. Smith Engineering and Technology Building. The name of the engineering school will be changed to the Smith College of Engineering and Technology.

Scott Smith co-founded Qualtrics, a cloud-computing company, in 2002. It was acquired by the German software firm SAP for $8 billion in 2019. He is considered an expert in marketing research and has written six books on the topic.

To learn about other big donations, see our database of gifts of $1 million or more, which is updated regularly.