Widow Leaves $27 Million Estate To Alzheimer’s Group

A widow from southern California named Helen Banas lived a life uncharacteristic of her wealth. She lived in a modest home and away from the public’s eyes. When she passed away her neighbors were surprised to earn of her wealth. Ms. Banas died with an estate worth $27 million and without children. Ultimately, she decided to give her entire “estate to the Alzheimer’s Association of Orange County.” Of the donation, $10 million of the doantion will go to the national association.The donation she gave is reportedly the largest in the charity’s history. 

So how did Ms. Banas obtain such a vast amount of wealth? Well, she reportedly inherited a large sum from her husband who was a stockbroker. She then went on to build her assets through carefully investing her assets. Ms. Banas’ friends stated that she wanted to give her money to the Alzheimer’s associations because her mother suffered from the same disease.

See Calif. Widow’s $27-Million Estate Goes to Alzheimer’s Group, Philanthropy Today, Feb. 21, 2013.

Special thanks to Jim Hillhouse (Professional Legal Marketing (PLM, Inc.)) for bringing this article to my attention.