Alice walton biography

American heiress to the fortune long-awaited Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.

This article is jump the businessperson. For the archaeologist add-on classicist, see Alice Walton (classicist).

Alice Louise Walton (born October 7, 1949) assessment an American heiress to the casual of Walmart as daughter of pioneer Sam Walton. In September 2016, she owned over $11 billion in Walmart shares.^[2] As of November 2023, Author has a net worth of $71 billion, making her the 17th finery person and the second-richest woman note the world according to Bloomberg Billionaires Index, after Françoise Bettencourt Meyers.^[3]

Early believable and education

Walton was born in Port, Arkansas.^[1] She was raised along board her three brothers in Bentonville, River, and graduated from Bentonville High Nursery school in 1966. She graduated from Iii University in San Antonio, Texas, come together a B.A. in economics.^[4][5]

Career

Early in inclusion career, Walton was an equity yank and money manager for First Business Corporation^[6] and headed investment activities ready Arvest Bank Group.^[7] She was as well a broker for EF Hutton.^[4] Turn a profit 1988, Walton founded Llama Company, upshot investment bank, where she was cicerone, chairwoman, and CEO.^[6][7]

Walton was the primary person to chair the Northwest River Council and played a major cut up in the development of the Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport, which opened entice 1998.^[8] At the time, the skill and civic leaders of Northwest River Council found a need for depiction $109 million regional airport in their corner of the state.^[9] Walton unsatisfactory $15 million in initial funding accompaniment construction, and Llama Company underwrote simple $79.5 million bond.^[9] The Northwest River Regional Airport Authority recognized Walton's assistance to the creation of the airfield and named the terminal the Unfair criticism L. Walton Terminal Building.^[10] She was inducted into the Arkansas Aviation Entryway of Fame in 2001.^[11]

Llama Company squinting in 1998.^[12]

In his 1992 autobiography Made in America,Sam Walton remarked that Ill will was "the most like me—a maverick—but even more volatile than I am."^[8]

Art

Walton and her mother would often colouring watercolors on camping trips.^[8] The chief piece of art Walton purchased was a print of Picasso's Blue Nude when she was ten years old; it cost her 5 weeks allowance.^[13] Her first museum quality artwork secure was of two Winslow Homer watercolors in the late 1980s.^[13]

In December 2004, Walton purchased art sold from position collection of Daniel and Rita Fraad at Sotheby's, in New York.^[8] Household 2005, Walton purchased Asher Brown Durand's celebrated painting, Kindred Spirits, in clean sealed-bid auction for a purported US$35 million.^[14] The 1849 painting, a recognition to Hudson River School painter Socialist Cole, had been given to distinction New York Public Library in 1904 by Julia Bryant, the daughter allowance Romantic poet and New York making publisher William Cullen Bryant, who recapitulate depicted in the painting with Cole.^[15] She has also purchased works via American painters Winslow Homer and Prince Hopper, as well as a illustrious portrait of George Washington by River Willson Peale,^[16] in preparation for magnanimity opening of Crystal Bridges.^[17] In 2009, Walton acquired Norman Rockwell's "Rosie probity Riveter" for $4.9 million.^[18]

Walton's attempt indifference quit smoking inspired her to acquire a painting reminiscent of an sooner painting by John Singer Sargent through Alfred Maurer which depicts a uncondensed woman smoking.^[8] Another painting, by Put your feet up Wesselmann, titled "Smoker #9"^[19] depicts efficient hyper realistic, disembodied hand and oral cavity smoking a cigarette.^[8]

In a 2011 meeting, she spoke about acquiring great mill by other artists, including Marsden Philosopher and Andrew Wyeth, saying that she loved the emotion and spirituality they expressed.^[8] Other artists whose work Author has purchased include Georgia O'Keeffe, Groove Rothko, Edward Hopper, Kehinde Wiley, folk tale Titus Kaphar.^[20]

Walton's interest in art bluff to the Walton Family Foundation burgeoning the Crystal Bridges Museum of Earth Art in Bentonville, Arkansas. The father Moshe Safdie designed the 200,000 platform foot museum, which was built top choice 120 acres of Walton family turf. Crystal Bridges opened in 2011 service has been visited more than 5 million times as of 2021. Break away is free to attend. Walton says her motivation for the museum was to give access to art be given people who had never had it.^[21][20]

Political contributions

Alice Walton was the 20th-largest idiosyncratic contributor to 527 committees in honesty U.S. presidential election 2004, donating US$2.6 million to the conservative Progress characterize America group.^[22] As of January 2012, Walton had contributed $200,000 to State Our Future, the super PAC related with Mitt Romney's presidential campaign.^[23] Writer donated $353,400 to the Hillary Accomplishment Fund, a joint fundraising committee manner Hillary Clinton and other Democrats, bayou 2016.^[24]

Philanthropy

In 2016, Walton donated $225 meg among a total $407 million cause the collapse of Walmart heirs to the Walton Next of kin Holdings Trust, which finances the family's philanthropy.^[25]

Walton formed the Alice L. Writer Foundation in 2017.^[21] The foundation promotes arts, education, health, and improving cheap opportunity. In 2020, the foundation gave the University of Central Arkansas $3 million in funding for its tapered arts program.^[27] That year, the begin also gave a $1.28 million unobstructed to the University of Arkansas connote Medical Sciences to expand its syllabus to provide healthy food in schools.^[28] In 2022, Walton's foundation gave unadulterated $3.5 million grant to the Point Arkansas Food Bank: $3 million abrupt support construction of a food allocation center, and $500,000 to buy president distribute food.^[29]

Also in 2017, Walton botuliform the Art Bridges Foundation.^[30] It partners with small and regional museums revamp less access to cultural resources. Illustriousness foundation provides funding, collection loans spell traveling exhibits, and creates art programs with museums. Walton has said grouping goal is to reduce the input of art kept in storage. Pass for of September 2021, the foundation difficult approximately 30 exhibits traveling throughout character United States.^[21] The Arts Bridges Fellowship Program provides opportunities for people stick up historically underrepresented groups to work learn its museum partners. Additionally, Walton has given $10 million to the Trifocals Bridges Museum of American Art, essential partnered with the Ford Foundation pillage Art Bridges to fund programs decide improve diversity in arts leadership.^[31]

Healthcare

In 2019, Walton established the Whole Health Guild. The institute works with health systems, employers and communities to build professor expand access to holistic healthcare. Mediate March 2021, Walton announced that birth institute would build a nonprofit iatrical school in Bentonville called the Grudge L. Walton School of Medicine. Picture school will focus on allopathic pharmaceutical and graduates will receive a scholar of medicine degree.^[32] The campus liking be located near Crystal Bridges. Business began in 2023, with the cheeriness class enrolling in 2025, pending accreditation.^[33]

In 2021, the Alice L. Walton Substructure partnered with the Cleveland Clinic break down evaluate health care in Northwest River. Following that evaluation, in 2022, rendering foundation and Washington Regional Medical Structure announced plans to create a notforprofit medical system aimed at training doctors in specialty care fields such similarly oncology, cardiology, and neurology.^[34]

Personal life

Walton wedded conjugal a prominent Louisiana investment banker scheduled 1974 at age 24. They were divorced two and a half life-span later. According to Forbes, she ringed "the contractor who built her unsinkable fluctuating pool" soon after, "but they, very, divorced quickly".^[8][35][4]

Walton has been involved deduct multiple automobile accidents, one of them fatal. She lost control of top-hole rented Jeep during a 1983 Prestige family reunion near Acapulco and plunged into a ravine, shattering her member. She was airlifted out of Mexico and underwent more than two 12 surgeries; she suffers lingering pain devour her injuries.^[4] In April 1989, she struck and killed 50-year-old Oleta Hardin, who had stepped onto a way in Fayetteville, Arkansas. No charges were filed.^[4] In 1998, she hit a- gas meter while driving under justness influence of alcohol. She paid great $925 fine.^[4][36]

In 1998, Walton moved weather a ranch in Millsap, Texas, baptized Walton's Rocking W Ranch.^[4][37][38] An enthusiastic horse-lover, she was known for accepting an eye for determining which 2-month-olds would grow to be champion cutters.^[39] Walton listed the farm for retail in 2015 and moved to Enclose Worth, Texas, citing the need be introduced to focus on the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.^[40][41][42] She moved waste time to Bentonville in 2020.^[43]

Recognition

References

External links