The 7 Most Interesting Big Donors of 2019

One of the Chronicle’s core missions is to provide in-depth coverage of major donors — their favorite causes, the motivations behind their giving, and how nonprofits can connect with them.

Below are some of the Chronicle’s most popular and revealing portraits of big donors published in 2019:

The Giving Impulse: One Family’s Story

How generations of heirs to the Procter & Gamble fortune have nurtured a culture of philanthropy for more than a century.

How 2 Quiet Donors Became Outspoken Advocates for Wealthy African Americans to Give More

Eddie and Sylvia Brown contribute to education, the arts, and health care — often stipulating they will give only if other rich African Americans do, too.

Giving Cash and Comfort to the Most Vulnerable

Carol and George Bauer have donated millions to a number of causes, but their gifts — and her volunteer work — for infants struggling to survive are the most personal.

Digging Deep to Understand Racial Inequality and What to do About it

Jeff and Tricia Raikes draw on a diverse network of friends and colleagues to help identify their blind spots.

Outspoken Donor Says Philanthropy Must Change — Both Fundraisers and Donors

Lisa Greer, a businesswoman and philanthropist in Los Angeles, has a lot to say about philanthropy for a relative newcomer, and she’s not afraid to say it to anyone who will listen.

‘If It Were Easy, Someone Would Have Done It Already’

Irene Pritzker’s foray into funding efforts to improve schools in Ghana has been an education in itself.

‘If We Could Get Rid of Prejudice and Bigotry ...’

The centerpiece of Robert and Jane Toll’s giving is their support of a camp in Maine that aims to bring together kids of different backgrounds in the hopes of understanding one another.