Billionaire MacKenzie Scott donates $10 million to Sacramento chapter of United Way
Billionaire MacKenzie Scott’s recent, enormous charitable donations include $10 million for the Sacramento chapter of United Way, a national nonprofit dedicated to reducing inequities in income, health and education.
United Way’s California Capital Region chapter confirmed the donation earlier this week in a statement, with regional president and CEO Stephanie Bray calling it a “game-changer.”
The chapter says the $10 million will go largely toward expanding Square One, a 20-year project launched in 2016 focused on preparing high school students for college and beyond, according to its website.
United Way’s work in 2020 has largely centered on providing relief during the COVID-19 crisis.
Scott, whose divorce from Amazon founder Jeff Bezos in 2019 made her one of the world’s wealthiest people, has donated $4.2 billion to nearly 400 charitable organizations in the past four months.
Scott announced the contributions in a post to Medium titled “384 Ways to Help,” which listed the 384 organizations to which she donated. Among them are 45 other regional United Way chapters, numerous food banks, colleges and universities, Meals on Wheels programs, Goodwill affiliates and more.
“This gift has brought us to the next level, and we are grateful to have our community of supporters by our side as we expand our Square One Project to create stronger, healthier and more compassionate communities across the greater Sacramento region,” Bray’s statement on the local United Way donation concluded.
Note: A previous version of this story referenced the wrong website for the Square One Project.
This story was originally published December 17, 2020 at 12:54 PM.
