In October, we ran an article that discussed the need for philanthropy to fund research to cure rare diseases. Last week, we ran a story about using a charitable remainder trust (CRT) for better giving. Today, we have an article about an investor/philanthropist who put these two ideas together, leaving a legacy of research to cure brain diseases.
The estate of legendary billionaire investor Richard Rainwater will fund a series of multimillion-dollar prizes to fight degenerative brain diseases like Alzheimer’s.
“My dad approached taking on neurological research in the same way that he approached investing: He did his research,” says Todd Rainwater, 46, who is the chairman of the board of trustees at the Rainwater Charitable Foundation. During his life, Rainwater was known for his bold investments in companies like Disney, Marathon Oil and Texaco as well as finding and developing young investing talent like current billionaires Eddie Lampert and David Bonderman.
In 2009 Rainwater was diagnosed with progressive supranuclear palsy, or PSP, a rare brain disease that affects about three to six people out of 100,000 worldwide and has no cure. “We’re going to fix it before we die,” Todd Rainwater says.