Couple become ambassadors of giving
Weiser and his wife, Eileen, a former member of the state board of education and the National Assessment Governing Board, made a $3 million, multiyear pledge to the museum because of their support for its mission of using leaders and objects from the past to inspire people today.
| Reprinted from the Source Crainsdetroit.com January 7, 2008 | |||
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| Couple become ambassadors of giving By Sherri Begin When President George Bush appointed Ronald Weiser U.S. ambassador to the Slovak Republic in 2001, Weiser gave up all his board positions except one. The U.S. State Department "required me to resign from everything" during the four-year ambassadorship, said Weiser, founder of Ann Arbor-based real estate investment company McKinley Inc. He resigned from six nonprofit boards and a number of for-profit boards but got special permission to remain on the board of The Henry Ford, where he'd served since the 1980s. The Dearborn-based institution serves more people than any other organization in Southeast Michigan, with more than 1 million visitors each year, Weiser said. "It helps inspire people for their future — they're able to see those who've been so successful in shaping their lives." Weiser and his wife, Eileen, a former member of the state board of education and the National Assessment Governing Board, made a $3 million, multiyear pledge to the museum because of their support for its mission of using leaders and objects from the past to inspire people today. "This is a museum that provides both a cultural and educational experience — and an education on a more direct basis through the charter school," Weiser said. "Education is important to both my wife and me." The couple made the gift to help fund the restoration of the museum's railroad and for general support of its $155 million capital campaign, he said. In recognition of the gift, The Henry Ford renamed the train system the Weiser Railroad. The gift goes hand-in-hand with the time Weiser has given to The Henry Ford board, including serving as finance chair and treasurer from 1993 to 2001. In addition to their support of the museum, the Weisers support their alma mater, the University of Michigan, and a number of social service and arts and culture organizations, including the Detroit Institute of Arts, which welcomed Ronald Weiser to its board last year. The couple also provided several million dollars to fund the establishment of the public McKinley Foundation. The foundation's endowment has supported a number of initiatives, including the establishment of the Nonprofit Enterprise at Work Center to house nonprofits in the 1980s, Weiser said. He served as chairman of the incubator from 1985-2001, while Eileen Weiser served as executive director for much of that time, he said. Sherri Begin: (313) 446-1694, sbegin@crain.com |
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