Since 1977 my wife and I have had a foundation that initially supported postsecondary scholarships and the arts in Northern California and in Maine. Over the years, we expanded both the subject-matter areas and the geographic reach of the foundation to include lifelong learning programs and integrative medicine centers across the United States and beyond. Higher education and the arts have always been at the core of our philanthropic activities.

I was born in Biddeford, Maine where my parents owned and operated a hardware and plumbing supply store. My four siblings and I worked in the store with our parents. The business was successful and all five of us attended good colleges. My three older brothers went on to become doctors and my younger sister a financial analyst in New York while I ran the family business. In the early 1960s, I was at Oppenheimer in New York before moving to California in 1963 to work with my sister and brother-in-law in the savings and loan industry. In 1970, I purchased a century-old fine arts auction house, Butterfield and Butterfield, and managed it until 1999 when I sold the company to eBay; it was then the fourth largest auction house in the world.

My wife was born in Stockholm and graduated from Stockholm University with a degree in languages and political science. She initially pursued a career in publishing and advertising in Sweden before coming to the United States. Over the years, she has been active in community affairs in the United States and in Sweden, including leadership positions with such organizations as the University of California (Berkeley) Foundation, the American-Scandinavian Foundation, the American Friends of the Karolinska Institute, and the Nobel Museum. In 1996, my wife started her own foundation to promote Swedish culture and education. Additionally, she serves as Honorary Consul General for Sweden in California.

We have been fortunate and have long felt an obligation to place the larger portion of our assets in the service of others. A principal commitment has been to expand opportunity for people to obtain higher education and the invaluable benefits that accrue to them, their families, and society as a result. Another major commitment is to enhancing quality of life for older adults by supporting lifelong learning institutes where they can learn for the joy of learning and enjoy the social facilitation of a robust learning community. We have also supported integrative medicine centers with a view to promoting wellness and the maintenance of good health along with the remediation and cure of disease. Finally, the creative arts, which we believe ennoble all mankind, have been central to our philanthropy from the start.

We salute all who contribute to the betterment of our society.