Extraordinary gift
He lived only to age 58, but Orrin W. Macleod, who was a baggage handler and ground crew member ar National Airport in Washington, DC, most of his adult life, left $1 million to the Fairfax County (VA) Public Library. The gift from his estate grew from investments, savings, and some inheritance.
Because leukemia impaired his sight before it took his life, Mr. Macleod, an avid reader, began listening to books on tape. His gift is earmarked to enhance the library’s collection of books on tape for the benefit of others whose sight may be impaired, but still enjoy reading.
An avid outdoorsman, Mr. Macleod collected antique guns and enjoyed traveling and learning anything he didn’t know previously, according to a friend with whom he worked. He has been described as a ‘salt-of-the-earth kind of guy” by a library official who worked with him on his gift.
Source: Washington Post, May 1, 1997
Modest inheritance invested well
They lived two blocks from one another in Omaha during the early 1960s and became friends through their wives, but Rabbi Myer Kripke could never have predicted that the modest $65,000 he inherited and asked his neighbor, Warren Buffet, to invest for him would grow to an incredible sum of $25 million.
The story is true. Myer and Dorothy Kripke never changed their lifestyles, but allowed the funds to compound under the guidance of their famous friend. After more than 30 years of growth, the total reached $25 million and they wanted to “put their affairs in order.”
Feeling a debt to the Jewish Theological Seminary where Rabbi Kripke was ordained, their lives were shaped, and they met one another, the Kripkes originally considered a $100,000 gift. Rabbi Carol Davidson, director of planned giving at the seminary, met the Kripkes and suggested they might want to contribute to renovation of the seminary’s tower, a project they could enjoy seeing completed during their lifetimes.
After learning that repairs would amount to $7 million, the Kripkes agreed to donate the entire amount needed to restore the 13-story tower, which they remembered fondly. In addition, the Kripkes have set up trusts that will benefit the seminary. The remainder of their “fortune” will go to other charities, including the Synagogue in Omaha where he served as Rabbi.
Source: The Commercial Appeal, Memphis, TN May 10, 1997, p. 53
