(RepublicanNews.org) – A 96-year-old woman received a silver lining to her husband’s death which even surprised her: he left behind a stock worth $1 billion.
Ruth Gottesman’s husband, David “Sandy” Gottesman, died on September 28th, 2022, but she did not expect what she inherited afterward. In an interview with The New York Times, Gottesman said that her husband, “unbeknownst” to her, left behind “a whole portfolio of Berkshire Hathaway stock” amounting to $1 billion with the simple instructions to do whatever she thought was “right” with the money.
David Gottesman was a large shareholder and a former director of Berkshire Hathaway, a multinational conglomerate holding company based in Omaha, Nebraska, and deals with properties in various industries, including insurance, energy, utilities, freight rail transportation, manufacturing, retail, and finance. Aside from being a billionaire businessman, David was a philanthropist, like many other wealthy individuals. In 1964, he founded the wealth management firm First Manhattan.
When David’s widow discovered the large stock holding, she was unsure what to do with the large bequest. Ruth’s children advised her not to wait too long, probably due to her own advanced age, and she soon came up with an idea. Ruth decided to donate every penny of the money to the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City. The college is located in the Bronx, which is the poorest borough of the city.
Ruth said the generous donation was made not to fund a scholarship, but to allow the school’s medical students to “receive free tuition,” which the college announced in an official press release. In addition to covering future tuition costs in perpetuity, the school also announced that all current students will “be reimbursed for their Spring 2024 tuition.” Starting in August, all new and current students will be able to attend free of charge.
Ruth made an appearance at the school on Monday morning and told the student body the news herself. Students reportedly broke out into clapping and cheers and jumped out of their seats in excitement as soon as they heard the words “tuition-free.”
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