Robert Addison Day is an American businessman, investor, and philanthropist. He was the founder and former chairman and chief executive officer of Trust Company of the West until 2009.[citation needed] He is the chairman and president of the W. M. Keck Foundation.
Robert Addison Day | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1943 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Died | 2023 |
| Occupation(s) | Businessman, investor, philanthropist |
| Spouse | Kelly Day (divorced) |
| Children | 3 |
| Relatives | William Myron Keck (grandfather) |
Early life
Day was born in 1943 in Los Angeles, California.[1] He received a Bachelor of Science in economics from Claremont McKenna College in 1965.[2][3] He was enrolled in ROTC while at Claremont McKenna College.
Career
Day started his career at the financial firm White, Weld and Company in New York City.[2] In 1971, he founded the Trust Company of the West.[2][4] In 2001, he sold 70% of it to the Société Générale for $2.5 billion.[4]
As of September 2011, he is worth US$1.2. billion, and he is the 283rd richest person in the United States.[4] He owns 600,000 acres of timberland in Florida.[4]
Board positions
Day serves on the board of directors of Freeport-McMoRan, Fisher Scientific, and Société Générale.[2][1] He also sits on the board of trustees of the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress and the Brookings Institution, where he was chairman from 1990 to 1998.[2][3] He is a member of the Business Council.[2] From 2001 to 2003, he sat on the President's Intelligence Advisory Board.[1] He is also a member of the Alfalfa Club, the California Club, the Center for Strategic and International Studies, and the Council on Foreign Relations.[1]
Philanthropy
In 2007, Day made a gift of $200 million to his alma mater Claremont McKenna College, creating the Robert Day Scholars Program. The donation was the largest recorded gift to a liberal arts college, the largest gift in the field of economics and finance, and among the top 20 gifts ever given to a college or university at the time.[3][5]
He is the chairman and president of the W. M. Keck Foundation.
Personal life
Day is the grandson of Superior Oil Company founder William Myron Keck.[6][1] Day is married to Marlyn Gates. He has 3 children and lives in Los Angeles, California.
Politics
Day has previously been a donor and economics advisor to the former Governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger.[5] In October 2006, Day hosted a fundraiser with then-President George W. Bush, which raised US$1 million for the Republican Party.[7] In 2015, Day donated $1.1 million to Super PACs supporting Republican presidential candidates Jeb Bush and Carly Fiorina.[8]
References
- ^ a b c d e NNDB profile
- ^ a b c d e f 'Robert Addison Day Elected to Board of Trustees', on Brookings Institution website, July 06, 1998 "Robert Addison Day Elected to Board of Trustees - Brookings Institution". Archived from the original on 2007-11-02. Retrieved 2011-11-10.
- ^ a b c Claremont McKenna College document
- ^ a b c d Forbes profile
- ^ a b Larry Gordon, 'Claremont McKenna gets huge donation', in The Los Angeles Times, September 27, 2007 [1]
- ^ Haute Living profile
- ^ Gabriel Snyder, Inside Move: H'wood picks side in campaign fund fight, Variety, October 04, 2006
- ^ "Million-Dollar Donors in the 2016 Presidential Race". New York Times. 25 August 2015. Retrieved 14 October 2015.