Melinda Gates who divorced her billionaire husband, Bill Gates in 2021 said on Monday she would resign as co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation was launched in 2000 and is considered the second-largest charitable foundation in the world with assets as of 2020 of nearly $70 billion.
Melinda Takes A Slice Of The Pie
The foundation’s work has involved efforts to improve global healthcare and reduce extreme poverty across the world. It also helps in the area of expanding educational opportunities and access to information technology especially in the U.S.
As part of her separation agreement from her former husband Bill Gates, it was agreed Melinda would receive additional $12.5 billion from the foundation for her own charity work if she decides to leave. She has. And that’s different from the pie she got from Bill during their divorce. She said she plans to focus her new foundation on supporting groups that cater to women and families.
In a statement on Twitter, she remarked,
This is not a decision I came to lightly, Am immensely proud of the foundation that Bill and I built together and of the extraordinary work it is doing to address inequities around the world.
She announced she would effectively leave the board on June 7 and she will share more about her future plans soon.
Sorry To See Melinda Go
In his own statement on Twitter, Bill replied he was sad she decided to go.
“I am sorry to see Melinda leave, but I am sure she will have a huge impact in her future philanthropic work. Looking ahead, I remain fully committed to the Foundation’s work across all our strategies, and to realizing the opportunities we have to continue improving the lives of millions around the world.”
Melinda was a Marketing Officer at Microsoft in 1994 as Melinda French when Bill fell for her and married her. They divorced in May 2021 after 27 years of marriage, leaving many wondering what else it takes to keep a marriage, with all the success of Bill Gates.
In an exclusive interview with CBS Morning show shortly after her divorce, Melinda confessed there wasn’t any specific problem she had with Bill.
It wasn’t one moment or one specific thing that happened. There just came a point in time there was enough there that I didn’t think was healthy, and I couldn’t trust what we had.
Melinda is 59 this year, and between her and Bill they have 3 children.
Please comment and share this article, & follow us on our social media handles.
WhatsApp Channel
Telegram Channel
