Top Philanthropic Donors: Charles E. Kaufman

Mr. Kaufman, who died in September of 2010 at the age of 97, bequeathed an estimated $50-million to the Pittsburgh Foundation. Most of the gift, between $35-million and $40-million, will go to a fund he established at the foundation in 2005, the Charles E. Kaufman Foundation. The fund supports research in biology, chemistry, and physics and supports awards “for achievement in and contribution to the field and humanity,” according to its mission statement. It was created with $1.5-million from Mr. Kaufman and has since given three awards of $50,000 each to researchers. The remainder of the bequest will go to a donor-advised fund Mr. Kaufman established in 1984 with his late sister, Virginia, that supports causes in Jewish health care, land conservation, programs for older adults, and public education.

He made his fortune late in life and said he wanted to earn enough to give a lot away. According to his lawyer and the executor of his estate, Wendy Denton Heleen, he made savvy investments in the stock market and several drug and science enterprises after he retired from his position at ­Merck.

Additionally, Mr. Kaufman left $3,340,000 to 25 charities across the nation, including organizations that focus on the environment, Jewish life and culture, social services, and higher education. They include $1-million to the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, in Pittsburgh; $300,000 to Jewish Family and Children’s Service of Pittsburgh; $50,000 to the International Rescue Committee, in New York; $50,000 to the Jewish National Fund, in New York; $50,000 to Mothers Against Drunk Driving, in Irving, Tex.; and $30,000 to American Forests, in Washington.

At the age of 92, Mr. Kaufman learned how to use a computer. While online, he came across the Welch Foundation, a grant maker in Houston that supports chemical research at educational institutions in Texas. Drawing inspiration from the foundation, Mr. Kaufman called Ms. Heleen to formulate his philanthropic plans.

A lifelong bachelor with no children, Mr. Kaufman lived for most of his life in the South Hills suburbs of Pittsburgh, much of the time with his sister. He earned a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering at the University of Cincinnati in 1936 and a master’s degree in chemistry from Carnegie Mellon in 1942.

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