MacKenzie Scott, Billionaire Philanthropist, Files for Divorce

Less than two years after announcing her intention to give money along with her marriage, Scott split from her second husband, a teacher. Less than two years later, billionaire philanthropist Mackenzie Scott and her husband, former science teacher Dan Jewett, said goodbye.

Scott filed for divorce in King County Superior Court in Washington on Monday, according to a copy of the file. For Scott, who divorced her longtime husband, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, less than four years ago, the split means a tumultuous time kids.

Court records show Mr Jewett did not contest the divorce. The division of property is set out in a separation agreement that the couple agrees to and is not public, according to the petition. Both still live in King County, which includes the city of Seattle, according to filings. It was also a philanthropic partnership. Ms. Jewett has publicly pledged to donate her vast fortune to her charitable causes.

But recently there have been signs that this partnership is no more. Previously, the grateful nonprofit that received grants from Ms. Scott and Ms. Jewett thanked both, but the most recent recipient only thanks her.

His name disappeared from their charity last week. His letter no longer appears with her on the Giving Pledge page, where the billionaire promises to donate half of her fortune before her death. Without fanfare, his name was recently edited from a medium post Ms. Scott wrote about her gift last year. removed Ms. Jewett.

She gained global attention when she began donating money at a rate rarely seen in the philanthropic world. After her divorce from Bezos, Scott assembled a team of advisors and began quietly donating millions of dollars to charity, totaling over $12 billion in just three years.

In her May 2019 letter regarding donation pledges, Ms.Scott promised to “use the safe until it’s empty.” Bloomberg estimates her net worth at $62 billion, but her wealth is currently estimated at $27.8 billion due to her billion dollar donations and her stock market decline.

Two years later, Mr. Jewett showed her enthusiasm in her Giving Pledge letter of her own. “I am married to one of the most generous and kind people I know. With her, I pledge to inherit tremendous financial wealth to serve others.

However, he also said that he “never set out to amass the kind of wealth necessary to feel of any special significance” and thus made no public statements of any kind about his philanthropic priorities.

As recently as a week or so ago, his letter still links to her page, according to the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine, which keeps older versions of web pages. It was accompanied by a photo of the two of them appearing to be out. Hike together. Today, I only have a picture of Ms. Scott and her letter.

Scott refused to speak publicly about the donation and declined repeated requests for interviews from news outlets, including The New York Times. Her lawyers did not respond to a request for comment on Wednesday. Attempts to contact Ms. Jewett through Seattle addresses of her friends, family, former colleagues, and associates have been unsuccessful. His attorney declined to comment on the divorce through a paralegal.

Last month, Scott donated his two Beverly Hills homes to the California Community Foundation for a total of $55 million. The Foundation’s fundraising function for affordable housing receives his 90% of the value of the property. Jewett’s name, who appeared in the recent gift announcement, was nowhere to be found in the press release.

The Health Forward Foundation of Kansas City, Missouri, announced Tuesday that it received a $15 million donation from Scott. The Episcopal Health Foundation of Houston also recently announced that he received a $20 million grant from Scott. There were no announcements mentioning Jewett.

Jewett taught at Lakeside School, the famous Seattle private school attended by the Bezos children, and was popular with students and fellow teachers.

“He’s serious and not very nervous,” said Angela Royle, who met Jewett through a mutual friend. Loire, who spent weeks driving from London to Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia in a small car with Jewett in 2014, recalled the mutual friend telling her years later, after marrying Scott.

The couple got married in 2021 in California, according to divorce papers. The news of their marriage surprised even Mr. Jewett’s friends and colleagues and created a media storm far beyond his expectations, with reporters showing up at the Lakeside campus. He was preoccupied with being on campus.

His new wife has become the world’s most influential philanthropist. In his letter ‘Giving Pledge’.

Originally published at https://businessdor.com on January 27, 2023.