January 3, 2023 | Read Time: 2 minutes
A roundup of notable gifts compiled by the Chronicle:
New York University
John Paulson gave $100 million to help pay for the newly built John A. Paulson Center, an academic complex that houses educational and performing-arts programs, sports and recreational facilities, and student and faculty housing.
Paulson founded and leads Paulson & Company, a hedge fund in New York. He earned a degree from the university’s Leonard N. Stern School of Business in 1978. Paulson is a longtime donor and has appeared on the Chronicle’s annual Philanthropy 50 list of the biggest donors in 2009, 2012, and 2015.
American Technion Society
Lynda and Stewart Resnick gave $50 million through their Resnick Foundation to establish the Stewart and Lynda Resnick Sustainability Center for Catalysis with the aim of expanding the university’s sustainability research and development efforts.
The Resnicks own the Wonderful Company, which makes Fiji Water, Pom Wonderful, and Wonderful Pistachios, among other food and beverages. The couple have given extensively to support education, agriculture, arts and culture, and other causes over the years. They have appeared on the Chronicle’s annual Philanthropy 50 list of the biggest donors four times since 2008.
Jupiter Medical Center Foundation
Johnny and Terry Gray gave $25 million to support the center’s new surgical institute, which is scheduled to open in 2023 and will be named the Johnny and Terry Gray Surgical Institute.
Johnny Gray is a retired professional race-car driver who co-founded David Gilliland Racing, a a racing team in Mooresville, N.C. He formerly served as president of Marbob Energy, an Artesia, N.M., oil company founded by his late father, John R. Gray. Johnny Gray and his family sold the company in 2010 to Concho Resources for nearly $1.7 billion.
University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Pharmacy
Joe Williams left $20 million to endow scholarships and a professorship, expand the UNMC Center for Drug Discovery, and match contributions from other donors.
Williams was president of the pharmaceutical giants Parke-Davis and Warner-Lambert. He got his start in the business early in life by working in his grandfather’s Pawnee City, Neb., pharmacy as a child. He graduated from university with a pharmacy degree and served in the Navy in World War II. Williams began his career as a traveling pharmaceutical salesman. He died in 2021.
To learn about other big donations, see our database of gifts of $1 million or more, which is updated regularly.
