Rosy Glow The One Percent

In a column, originally written by Cousin Bob over 25 years ago, he mentioned that the rich even then were more than carrying their share of the load, not only in taxes, but also with their charitable donations. This really became apparent to me while my wife and I were hiking in Rockefeller State Preserve which consists of over 1,400 acres of park land 30 miles north of New York City.

This got me thinking of a recent series on The History Channel “The Men Who Built America.”  This show was about a group of men who some might call the “robber barons” who in the late 19th and early 20th centuries literally made the U.S. what it is today. It showed how their competitiveness with one another drove them harder and further than others. Many will say that they attained their wealth on the back of the less fortunate which in some instances cannot be denied, but these same people fail to look at all the good that they did.

Let’s think of some of the early “robber barons” names like Rockefeller, Vanderbilt, Morgan, Carnegie, and Ford. These families, while still well off, have had their fortunes diluted by distribution among family members and we the people. How you may ask did we the people benefit, well let’s take a quick look at just a few of these families.

J. P. Morgan was known as a financier and banker, but more importantly as a philanthropist. He was a noted collector of art and books and he gave most of his art to the Metropolitan Museum of Art where he was the main contributor in the establishment of the museum. Mr. Morgan also was a driving force in the building of the American Museum of Natural History.

He was a huge proponent of the public library system and his book collection helped establish the libraries in New York and other cities. His donations were responsible for the original 39 branches of the New York Public Library.  He helped in establishing the Lying-in Hospital in New York which later became New York Hospital, Cornell Medical Center. In addition to this, he increased considerably the endowments at Harvard University and Trinity College. We can go on about Mr. Morgan but let’s take a look at the next family.

It could be said that the Rockefellers were the original conservationists. It was their purchase and later donation of the land that helped establish many of our National Parks.  These include Grand Teton, Acadia, Great Smoky Mountains, Yosemite, Shenandoah, and Yellowstone. In fact, although today some may question the wisdom of it, the Rockefellers even donated the land along the East River in New York where the United Nations is headquartered.

What many do not know is that in 1884 the Rockefellers provided major funding for a college in Atlanta for African-American women which became Spelman College. It was named for the Rockefeller in-laws who were abolitionists before the Civil War.

Even today their dedication to others can be seen in their continued support of MoMA (The Museum of Modern Art), The Rockefeller University, a research university in New York, and their commitment to Memorial Sloane-Kettering Cancer Center which the family originally helped to establish.

Others have made their contributions too. The Vanderbilt’s established Vanderbilt University in Nashville Tennessee and The Carnegie’s have established Carnegie-Mellon University in Pittsburg. These families also have made many other contributions.

It should be noted that when these families were making their fortunes there were no income taxes so charitable write-offs were not a motivation. They did it because they knew it was the right thing to do. It was their way of giving to others.

Today’s robber barons are just as generous. Most of us know about the Gates Foundation, where Bill and Melinda Gates along with their friend Warren Buffet, “Take on the really tough problems.”  They are dedicated to alleviating extreme poverty and poor health in developing nations as well as fixing the failures of the American education system.

Recently cosmetics billionaire, Leonard Lauder, gave New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art an astonishing, no-strings-attached collection of Cubist art that he amassed over four decades.  The generous gift is estimated to be worth $1 billion and includes 78 works by Picasso, Braque, Gris, and Leger.

Also in the news recently was the $10 million dollar gift to the Monticello Foundation, the home of Thomas Jefferson by businessman David Rubenstein.  Mr. Rubenstein is the CEO of the Carlyle Group an “evil” Wall Street hedge fund.  This money will go to the restoration and improvement of Monticello, thereby preserving a piece of American History.

So next time you are in a museum taking in the beauty of an art collection  or hiking in a park, absorbing what mother nature has to offer, think of those who made it possible.  When you visit many of our historic sites or grab a book from the library, or think of the education that many have received, again think of those who made it possible. Remember that those that have, made and still make the attempt to give to those who do not and let it fill you with what Cousin Bob would call that… Rosy Glow.

For more info on billionaire philanthropy see the link below:

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/15-tycoons-who-won-t-leave-their-fortunes-to-their-kids-195610442.html?page=1