Albina neighborhood’s donation from Nike co-founder listed among biggest of 2023
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A philanthropy magazine determined that Nike co-founder Phil Knight made one of the top donations of 2023 when he and his wife allocated millions of dollars to a historically Black neighborhood in Portland.
The Chronicle of Philanthropy, a news company that reports on nonprofit organizations, published its yearly list of the biggest charitable donations on Tuesday.
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The top 11 donations cost $3.5 billion overall, but the magazine notes that most of the donors are multibillionaires. Together, the donors have an estimated net worth of $305.1 billion.
According to The Chronicle, Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett took the top spot with a donation of $541.5 million. The money went toward the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, a charitable organization named after the businessman’s first wife.
The second-place spot went to James Simons, who founded New-York-based hedge fund Renaissance Technologies. The founder’s $500 million gift was dedicated through his science and mathematics charity the Simons Foundation, and to scholarships at Stony Brook University in New York.
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Oregon resident and Nike co-founder Phil Knight was tied at No. 3 with a $400 million donation. In April, he and his wife Penny gifted the money to the 1803 Fund: an initiative dedicated to revitalizing the Albina neighborhood.
The area was once known as a hub for Black Portlanders, but the director of Albina Head Start previously told KOIN 6 that redlining and “urban renewal” in the 1970s pushed out many residents who called it home.
“Rebuild Albina officials plan to renovate the area, pay for education programs and education-related services for children and their families, and support a range of projects meant to deepen the area’s cultural roots,” the Chronicle of Philanthropy wrote. “The Knights are giving the money both personally and through their Knight Foundation.”
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Cryogenic Industries founder Ross Brown tied with the Knights for his $400 million donation to the California Institute of Technology.
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