In obituaries after his 2006 suicide, Ric Wieland was called a humble and generous man.

Tina Podlodowski, who headed Lifelong AIDS Alliance at the time, told the Seattle Times, "He was terrifically smart, terrifically caring, but a very unassuming kind of guy."

She added that several organizations sought him out. "If you were smart, you didn't just want his money. What you wanted more than anything was his brain."

Marsha Botzer of the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force said, "Ric Weiland brought gentle power, honest friendship and unfailing commitment to his every act. He generously gave himself and his resources to the great tasks of justice and equality, never asking for praise or place, but always with a grace and quiet honor. I will miss this fine man, my friend. Our community has lost a champion."

"The breadth and scope of this commitment was immense and unwavering. Our community has lost a wonderful friend and leader," said Matt Foreman, executive director of the Task Force.

"Ric was an exceptionally generous man who made extraordinary contributions to our work," said  Kevin Cathcart, Executive Director, Lambda Legal.

His quiet commitment made the work of so many organizations possible - and our community is better off for it," Cathcart said.

"He often specifically asked for no special attention for his giving," said Audrey Haberman, executive director of the Pride Foundation. "He, in fact, was sometimes uncomfortable with too much recognition."

The recognition for his charitable giving that he avoided during his lifetime, is  inevitable now that his estate has begun to sort out the extraordinary generosity of his final bequests.

Link: Pride Foundation explanation of the Weiland bequest

Weiland left a total of $65 million to nearly a dozen LGBT organizations, including the Task Force and Lambda Legal. [see Qnews summary]

The Pride Foundation -- on whose board Weiland served for several years -- has become the primary recipient of his generous bequest.

Weiland's estate will distribute money to the Foundation in three different categories:

• The Foundation will get more than $16 million for its endowment. Pride Foundation will use this to fund primarily for their granting and leadership development programs, and also for "strengthening our infrastructure."
• A second $3 million gift creates a new educational scholarships endowment, which the Foundation will be able to start spending in the Spring of 2009.
• The largest gift -- $46 million -- creates what is called a "designated fund" to be managed by the Foundation for disbursement to 10 designated LGBT groups over eight years. The Task Force, Lambda Legal, GLAAD, amFar, and GLSEN are among the groups that will receive funding.

That's a staggering amount, considering that the Foundation's current endowment is $3 million, according to the Times, and its annual budget is $2.5 million. The group's total funding during the 2006/07 fiscal year was $1.7 million. Most of that amount came from individual donations.

The bequest is an incredible show of support for the Pride Foundation, which surely moves to a new level of prominence among national LGBT groups. But, beyond that, the vastly expanded endowment should allow the Foundation to help strengthen and nurture the Northwest LGBT organizations that have always been its focus.

The Foundation's grant and scholarship programs focus on Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington. Since it was founded in 1985, Pride Foundation has given more than $7.2 million to over 500 organizations and 522 students in an effort to strengthen the LGBT community.

"His gift goes beyond dollars – it is a gift of faith in our future work for equality," said Kevin Cathcart of Lambda Legal.

Another of the recipients of the designated fund will be International Gay & Lesbian Human Rights Commission -- IGLHRC. In a statement, they said of Weiland, "His generosity is reflected not only in the size of his bequest but in his unique understanding of how effective organizations develop over time rather than in a moment."

The size and nature of his bequest to Pride Foundation recognizes it as being an especially effective organization. It's certainly among the most remarkable organizations created by Seattle's LGBT community, and this gift from a "terrifically smart, terrifically caring" man confirms that.