Recently I have been writing articles on the wealthiest people in major cities across the United States. Today it is time to take a look at the richest woman in Dallas.
That title belongs to Margot Birmingham Perot- the widow of the late technology entrepreneur and presidential candidate H. Ross Perot, Sr.
The richest woman in Dallas
Margot has a net worth of $4.2 billion which places her as the wealthiest female in Dallas. It also makes her the 273rd richest person in the country.
Margot met Ross on a blind date and married him in 1956. They moved to Dallas in 1957, where Ross worked for IBM and Margot as a teacher.
Ross left IBM in 1962 to found his own business- Electronic Data Systems. Margot had saved up $1000 from her teaching and wrote a check to get the company started. That check proved incredibly valuable. Ross sold EDS to GM in 1984 for $1.5 billion.
So while Ross may have got all the plaudits publicly- it was Margot who kicked things off.
Philanthropy
“I always like to feel that my days were accomplishing something,” Margot Perot
We know the Perot family is incredibly wealthy, but Margot has always been very generous with her wealth. Margot Perot has always been a dedicated member of the Dallas philanthropic community.
She and her family helped endow Dallas's Margot Perot Center, which has delivered more than 120,000 babies since 1983. Being a former teacher, she also focuses on education and supports the Perot Museum of Nature and Science and the Global Fund for Children.
Margot is a founding member of the Dallas County Salvation Army Women’s Auxiliary and a member emeritus of the National Advisory Board of the Salvation Army. She has also served on the Texas Commission on the Arts and has made significant contributions to the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, the Dallas Opera, and the Dallas Museum of Art.
In 2020, Margot was named the recipient of the 91st annual Linz Award, one of Dallas’ oldest and most prestigious civic honors. The award is given to a person whose community involvement has significantly impacted Dallas in the past decade. Ross was given the same award in 1991.
Upon her nomination, Margot said. "I just think I owe it to the city of Dallas. My husband and I always felt we needed to give back because Dallas provided such an opportunity for us.”
Readers, what do you think? Have any of you met Margot? Please leave your comments in the section below.
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