Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas receives surprise $3.8M donation from MacKenzie Scott
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - Philanthropist MacKenzie Scott has pledged to give away at least half of her wealth - and this time, her pledge is going towards a North Texas organization.
On Oct. 18, the Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas said they received a surprise $3.8 million gift from Scott.
The gift is part of an $84.5 million contribution to Girl Scouts of the USA and 29 councils across the country and will help advance the organization's mission to provide life-changing experiences, mentorship and programming.
This is the largest donation to the organization ever from a single individual.
"We are so appreciative of MacKenzie Scott's gift to Girl Scouts. This is a great accelerator for our ongoing efforts to help girls cultivate the skills and connections to lead in their own communities and globally," said Sofia Chang, CEO of Girl Scouts of the USA. "The support from all our donors, including this generous support from MacKenzie Scott is critical in delivering on our work of reimagination and transformation. We are excited to prove how this investment in girls will change the world – because when one girl succeeds, we all succeed."
The GSNETX said it is grateful to all its donors and partners who have lifted the organization up to a position to benefit from an investment by a philanthropist like Scott.
"Post-pandemic, GSNETX is in a state of reimagining itself, determining who we need to be to best serve the girls of the future, particularly in communities and with families who we have not engaged in the past," said Jennifer Bartkowski, CEO of GSNETX. "This gift fuels that work, preparing us to access the resources, human capital, and strategy that will create a place of belonging and a leadership experience for every girl in our community. Without question, this gift is transformational. An investment in girls is an investment in the future of our community and we are incredibly grateful for this opportunity to change the lives of even more girls in North Texas."
Since her divorce from Amazon founder Jeff Bezos in 2019, Scott has given away more than $12 billion.