In order to spread good news in 2023, I have been writing about people and organizations giving back to the community.
Readers enjoy seeing uplifting, positive stories. So today, I wanted to write about a man born and raised in Missouri and the good he has done for the community.
His name is Jack Dorsey- let's take a quick look at his story.
The Missouri billionaire
Jack Dorsey was born in St.Louis, Missouri, in 1976.
Before enrolling at the University of Missouri- Rolla, he attended a private Roman Catholic high school in St. Louis, Bishop DuBourg High School. However, he only completed two years there before transferring to New York University.
While he didn't graduate from NYU, he did come up with the idea that would make him a billionaire- an idea that would evolve into Twitter.
Twitter has since become one of the world's most popular sites and has made Dorsey a fortune. When Elon Musk purchased Twitter last year, Dorsey retained 2.4% of the company.
Philanthropy
In 2020, Dorsey pledged to give away $1 billion. These funds would be transferred into a venture called StartSmall venture to benefit projects focused on Covid-19 relief, girls' health and education, and universal basic income.Â
“The needs are increasingly urgent, and I want to see the impact in my lifetime.I hope this inspires others to do something similar. Life is too short, so let's do everything we can today to help people now."Jack Dorsey
And since making the pledge, he has been doing his best to make this accurate. In 2021, Dorsey gave away almost $725 million.
And when Dorsey sees a project he likes- he acts fast; just ask George McGraw, the head of the Navajo Water Project, which connects indigenous people to water sources.
He had one phone conversation with Dorsey's team and received $1 million.
“Within a few hours, we had an answer. And within a few days, the money was in the account. I’ve never seen anything like this.” George McGraw, the head of the Navajo Water Project.
One of Dorsey's first significant donations was to his home state of Missouri. In March 2016, Dorsey fully funded projects at 600 Missouri public schools. None of those projects would have been undertaken if not for Dorsey's generosity.
Other major donations made by Dorsey include:
- $350,000 to #TeamTrees, a nonprofit that pledged to plant 20 million trees by the end of 2019.
- In 2020 he donated $24 million to more than 40 different grantees to help with COVID relief efforts, followed by $15 million to support relief efforts in India.
- Last year, he combined with rock star Rihanna to donate a combined $15 million to 18 different climate justice groups.
Dorsey is open about his grantmaking and has created a Google Doc so anyone can look at his latest donations.
Your thoughts
What do you think of the pledge by Jack Dorsey? What organizations in Missouri would you like to see him support?
Please leave your thoughts in the comments below and share this article with others so they can join the conversation.
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