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Wilson Foundation’s Legacy in Western New York

"They are really going to be a significant partner for this community and it will be transformational for Western New York."

BUFFALO, N.Y. - The late Buffalo Bills owner, Ralph Wilson, set up the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation in 2012, with about $2,000,000 of his own money.

And for two years, according to forms filed with the Internal Revenue Service, that was the approximate amount which stayed in the fund.

However, after Wilson’s death in 2014, the foundation received an infusion of $1.2 billion from his estate, which was largely derived from the sale of the team for $1.4 billion six months following his passing.

Wilson had directed that the money be disbursed over 20 years, to worthwhile causes both near his native Detroit, MI and here in Western New York.

It did not take long for the foundation to start giving according to Wilson’s wishes.

Impact Felt

The foundation distributed $57 million in 2015, and another $52 million in 2016 to a host of hospitals, universities, and charitable groups, as well as programs involved in the creation of jobs and programs for youth.

Friday’s announcement that the foundation was awarding $200 million to parks and recreational facilities in both Detroit and Buffalo brings the total given by the foundation to $450 million thus far, with about $216 million of that coming to Western New York.

“I think we are just beginning to see the impact of what that will mean for our community," said Betsy Constantine, the Executive Vice President of the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo (CFGB).

Constantine describes the CFGB as a “foundation for foundations”, helping their clients (including the Ralph C. Wilson Foundation) direct their gifts to causes locally which fit their intentions.

“We are really the boots on the ground for some of our clients, particularly when they are not geographically located here," Constantine said.

In 2015 and 2016, the Wilson foundation directed nearly $20 million through the CFGB for distribution to causes in Western New York.

“A good example of our relationship with the Ralph C. Wilson foundation is ‘Built to Play’. The Wilson foundation made an investment through the Community Foundation that will ultimately support over 40 organizations in Western New York across their area of giving," said Constantine.

The Gift that Keeps Growing…and Giving

If you have a foundation with a billion dollars, you certainly have a lot to give away.

You can also make a lot, by investing the funds you have yet to distribute.

And since 2015, the Wilson Foundation- through stock investments, has annually gained tens of millions of dollars more to the point that, despite its largess, it still has an estimated billion dollars left…making it the largest philanthropic organization in Western New York.

It figures to be so, for a generation or more in the future.

“They are really going to be a significant partner for this community and it will be transformational for Western New York," Constantine said.

Clarification: In our story on Channel 2 news at 6pm we identified Constantine as the CFGB’s Executive Director. She is, in fact, its Executive Vice President.

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