Ric Weiland, one of the first five employess of Microsoft and high school classmate of friend Bill Gates, left $65 million to a local gay group the Pride Foundation after his death in 2006. He was a lead programmer and developer of BASIC and COBOL programming language systems. Weiland served as a member of the Pride Foundation’s board of directors from 1997 to 2002.
The magnitude of this donation is reported in this Seattle Times article.
For the Pride Foundation, which has an annual budget of $2.5 million and endowment of $3 million, Weiland’s gift of more than $19 million will significantly expand its efforts throughout the Northwest.
The money will support anti-discrimination campaigns and programs to help youths, develop future leaders and provide scholarships.
Weiland gave another $46 million to the Pride Foundation to distribute to 10 national organizations over eight years.
Recipients will include the Lambda Legal Defense and Education Network, the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, the American Foundation for AIDS Research and the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force. For most of them, the bequest is the largest gift in their history.
Weiland reportedly suffered from depression and committed suicide on June 24, 2006 at the age of 53.
Weiland wanted more people to enjoy the ease he felt living in Seattle, so in recent years he focused on helping gays find acceptance in small towns and rural areas of the Northwest.
More details about Ric Weiland and the potential impact that this may have is posted at SeaQwa.
