About Ric Weiland

ABOUT RIC WEILAND (1953-2006)

"You don't have to be a zillionaire to be thoughtful."  Ric Weiland 2003

Ric started working with computers in high school with his friends Paul Allen and Bill Gates.  He signed his first software development contract (through his parents) when he was 16, and became one of Microsoft's first five employees.  He left the company in 1988 when he was 35 and devoted the rest of his life to thoughtful investment and philanthropy.   He was a very intentional investor, pouring over annual reports and websites, bringing his Stanford engineering prowess and Harvard Business School experience to his giving plans.  A quiet but passionate philanthropist, Ric would often start his involvement with an organization at a minimal level, just to stay under the radar.  Even as his giving increased dramatically, he rarely sought acknowledgement for his contributions.

Ric focused his philanthropy in 4 main areas, Education, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) movement, Health and Human Services and the Environment.  During his life he donated approximately $30million to more than 60 organizations around the nation.  At his death he directed his executors to divide the vast majority of his estate - then worth more than $160million - between 20 charitable benefiaries.  In 2007 the Chronicle of Philanthropy ranked Ric's bequests as the year's 11th largest charitable donation in the nation. 

Ric's philanthropy started very early in his career and his first "charitable giving plan" was created when his wealth topped about $3m.   As his wealth grew, his philanthropic plans expanded - but he often returned to the initial giving concepts he laid out for himself in his mid 30's.  These early plans became a compass for him, or a path to track what he had learned and what he hoped to impact with the community investments he was able to make.  He rarely gave anyone any advice about where to invest, or where to contribute to our community's needs.  He sure didn't think he had all the answers! Instead he encouraged everyone to be thoughtful, to think carefully about where to be involved - and not be afraid to take informed risks where there was an opportunity to make a difference.

Sadly Ric suffered from chronic depression most of life.  While he poured alot of energy into his philanthropy and aspirations to build a better world, he gave up on his struggles with mental illness and took his own life shortly after his 53rd birthday.  In a banner headline the Seattle Times called him a "humble donor" who will be remembered as someone who thought deeply about how to give his life meaning, someone who read voraciously on strategies for effective philanthropy and someone who grew to be powerful advocate  for social change.  Today his beneficiaries are grateful for his foresight and generosity and are confident that his legacy will have an impact on their programs and services for years to come.

As Ric's surviving life partner, my hope is that Credible Giving will help tell the story of high impact philanthropy.  While Ric's philanthropic intentions were carefully identified in his estate plans, the impact of his gifts are just starting to unfold.  My bet is that there will be plenty of good news ahead -- and I look forward to sharing this information on this website as it unfolds.