Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez Announce $100 Million Grants to Bill McRaven and Eva Longoria as Part of the Bezos Courage and Civility Award
Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon and the second wealthiest person on the planet with an estimated net worth of $200 billion, and his fiancée Lauren Sanchez have announced that they will be granting $50 million each to retired Navy Admiral Bill McRaven and actor, entrepreneur Eva Longoria as part of Bezos’ annual Bezos Courage and Civility Award. This prestigious accolade is given to individuals who strive to find solutions to intricate problems, promote unity, and embrace civility.
The Bezos Courage and Civility Award was established in 2021 and has previously recognized individuals such as Van Jones, a lawyer and News Finder commentator, chef José Andrés, and country music legend Dolly Parton. In 2021, each recipient received $100 million from Bezos to invest in their philanthropic initiatives.
McRaven, who served as a Navy admiral and the former chancellor of the University of Texas System, plans to allocate his grant towards three primary areas:
1. Educating the children of deceased veterans, with a specific focus on those within the special operations community.
2. Addressing the mental health and brain performance needs of veterans.
3. Developing future military leaders through education.
McRaven and his wife are active members of the Special Operations Warrior Foundation board and serve as national spokespeople for the Brain Health Project, which aims to improve brain health and performance with a strong emphasis on veterans’ needs. In response to receiving the grant, McRaven expressed his gratitude: “The opportunity to use this incredible gift to help veterans and their families is the dream of a lifetime, and I am so grateful to Lauren and Jeff for giving me this opportunity.”
Eva Longoria, an accomplished actress best known for her role in the television series “Desperate Housewives,” has focused on education and entrepreneurship within the Latino community. Her Eva Longoria Foundation connects Latinos in lower-income areas with peer mentors, while her start-up fund supports Latino-owned small businesses.
Longoria shared her excitement about the impact she believes this grant can have on the country: “Of course, I am honored and thrilled personally, but I am even more excited about the potential impact we can make by investing in the strength of the Latino community. Latinos in the United States are a rapidly growing demographic with immense potential, but they disproportionately lack access to essential infrastructure and opportunities, and I’m thrilled to contribute to addressing that issue.”
In 2022, Bezos shared with News Finder that he intends to donate the majority of his wealth during his lifetime towards climate change initiatives and supporting individuals who can bring humanity together. Despite this commitment, neither Bezos nor Sanchez have signed the Giving Pledge, a pledge initiated by Warren Buffett, Melinda French Gates, and Bill Gates that encourages the world’s wealthiest people to commit to giving away the majority of their fortunes to charitable causes.
Notable signatories of the Giving Pledge include Bezos’ ex-wife, MacKenzie Scott, who helped build Amazon with Bezos and has since donated billions of her own fortune to various charitable organizations.
In addition to these substantial donations, Bezos and Sanchez have also contributed $100 million to recovery efforts in Maui following the devastating wildfires in 2023, although their donation has been met with controversy. Bezos has also given away hundreds of millions of dollars to various recipients through his Day 1 Families Fund, which he launched in 2018 and includes commitments towards combating homelessness and starting preschools.
