Local Investor Charlie Munger Donates $40 Million to Huntington Library

Pasadena resident Charlie Munger, the longtime business partner of Warren Buffett, has donated $40 million to the Huntington Library in San Marino, according to the Associated Press.

The donation, made in the form of 77 Class A Berkshire Hathaway shares, was reported by Associated Press writer Josh Funk. Funk said that based on Thursday’s closing price of $523,545.06 a share, the gift is valued at over $40.3 million.

A decade ago, Munger donated nearly $33 million worth of Berkshire stock to fund a new education and visitors center at the Huntington Library.

The latest donation will be used to construct more than 30 residences for visiting scholars conducting research at the museum.

Huntington spokeswoman Susan Turner-Lowe told AP that this donation will greatly assist scholars who often spend a school year studying at the Huntington. The high rental market in Los Angeles has made it challenging for these scholars to afford accommodations.

This donation is fulfilling a long-time dream in a major way, she said.

Munger, who will turn 100 in January, was once a billionaire but lost his billionaire status as he consistently donated his fortune to charity. Approximately $1 billion of his stock went into a charitable trust in 2010 following his wife’s death.

He has been generous in his charitable donations to Southern California institutions. In 2007 Munger gave Polytechnic School in Pasadena 90 shares of stock worth, at the time, over $10 million.