Close of ’97 Brings Large Gifts to Universities, Israeli Museum
A son’s wish to honor his parents has resulted in a $42-million gift to the Israel Museum in Jerusalem. Martin D. Gruss, senior partner in the New York investment firm Gruss and Company, made the gift through the Beracha Foundation in Jerusalem, a fund established by his late parents, Joseph and…
3 Out of 4 in Los Angeles Said to Donate to Charity
DEBRA E. BLUM People in Los Angeles are not as stingy when it comes to charity as they are sometimes reputed to be, says the California Community Foundation. The foundation last month released the results of a survey it had commissioned on the charitable-giving habits and preferences of Los Angeles…
U. of Pennsylvania Receives $100-Million to Establish Cancer Institute
The University of Pennsylvania has received a $100-million pledge for cancer research from Leonard Abramson, a health-insurance executive, and his wife, Madlyn. The gift, from the Abramson Family Foundation in Jupiter, Fla., will be used to establish the Leonard & Madlyn Abramson Family Cancer…
By MARINA DUNDJERSKI
Contributor
Protestants Found to Donate a Reduced Share of Their Incomes to Social Services
THOMAS J. BILLITTERI Many church-run social services and religious programs could face money shortages in coming years because Protestant church members are donating less and less of their income to support such efforts, says a new report. An analysis of 29 Protestant denominations by Empty Tomb,…
Loeb Family Fund to Be Split Up
The $90-million Frances and John L. Loeb Family Fund, created last May by the couple’s estate, will be split into five funds. The couple’s children have decided to dissolve the foundation, the assets of which will be divided evenly and distributed into foundations controlled by each of the five…
Museum Trustee Sued Over Pledge
The Museum of Contemporary Art, in Chicago, last month sued one of its trustees for failing to fulfill a $5-million pledge. In a suit filed in the Circuit Court of Cook County, the museum alleged that Paul Oliver-Hoffmann, then chairman of the museum’s Board of Trustees, promised in November 1990…
Clinton Resumes Daily Awards Honoring Volunteers
President Clinton has started off the new year by continuing President Bush’s tradition of giving a daily “Points of Light” award to honor people who have done outstanding volunteer work. The name of the award comes from President Bush’s description of people who do community service as “points of…
The spread of democracy has led to a tidal wave of overseas grants from U.S. funds; now some reconsider international gifts More and more American corporate and foundation dollars are going to overseas causes, but many grant makers are wrestling with big questions about how much money should…
By MARINA DUNDJERSKI
Contributor
Six nights a week, counselors from a program called Streetwork brave some of New York City’s roughest neighborhoods, offering young people in trouble a free meal, a shower, and counseling at a drop-in center near Times Square. Despite their deep fear and distrust of strangers, many of the…
Ford to Spotlight Government Success
The Ford Foundation has announced a new effort to publicize innovative and successful government programs across the country. The Partnership for Trust in Government is a coalition of 22 companies, charities, and labor unions that will identify and publicize effective government programs to their…
Grant Supports Study of Youths and Drugs
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation will spend $20.5-million to try to find out what influences kids’ decisions to use or shun tobacco, alcohol, and other drugs. The foundation, which in the last six years has poured more than $100-million into efforts to prevent children from smoking, also hopes to…
Money Manager Creates Fund to Aid Hometown in N.C.; Other Donations
Julian Robertson, Jr., a New York-based financier, has committed $15-million to establish a foundation in his hometown of Salisbury, N.C. Mr. Robertson is chairman of the investment company Tiger Management. He made the gift with his wife, Josie, and his sisters, Blanche Bacon and Wyndham…
3 of Doris Duke’s Homes Will House Foundations
The tobacco heiress Doris Duke not only left $1.25-billion in cash for her charitable foundation when she died, but she also bequeathed the foundation control of her homes. She requested in her will that three of the homes, which have an estimated value of $150-million, be turned into operating…
By MARINA DUNDJERSKI
Contributor
Catalogue Aims to Sell People on Giving
A new publication being distributed to a quarter-million Massachusetts residents may help spur charitable giving in a state that lags badly in that area. “The Catalogue for Philanthropy” is a collaborative effort by some of the state’s leading grant makers and philanthropists to stimulate giving by…
By Stephen G. Greene
Contributor
At a Glance: The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation
History: Established in 1996 by the estate of Doris Duke, the heir to the American Tobacco Company fortune, who died in 1993. Areas of support: The fund will make grants in three major areas: the performing arts; the environment, including conservation and preservation; and medical research to find…