What to Know
- Businessman Raymond Perelman died at the age of 101.
- Perelman built a fortune buying and selling factories before becoming one of the Philadelphia region’s greatest philanthropists.
- Perelman’s son Ronald Perelman says in a statement his father passed away Monday night.
Businessman Raymond Perelman, who built a fortune buying and selling factories before becoming one of the Philadelphia region’s greatest philanthropists, has died. He was 101.
Perelman’s son Ronald Perelman says in a statement his father passed away Monday night.
In 2011, Perelman donated $225 million to the University of Pennsylvania medical school, which was renamed the Raymond and Ruth Perelman School of Medicine. The money, Penn said, sped up research, increased student aid and helped recruit faculty.
Other Perelman gifts include $15 million to what is now the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s Ruth and Raymond G. Perelman Building; $6 million to the Center for Jewish Life at Drexel University, $5 million for the Raymond G. Perelman Plaza at Drexel, and $5 million for the Kimmel Center’s Perelman Theater.
“We have lost one of Philadelphia’s great citizens," Amy Gutmann, the President of the University of Pennsylvania, wrote. "I considered Ray a dear friend—both to me and the University—and I am so gratified to know he will be remembered for the countless lives he has touched through his philanthropy."
