Controversial Heiress’ Group Awards $18.6 Million in Grants
Four years after Doris Duke’s death and a subsequent monumental fight over her estate, the foundation bearing her name Tuesday announced its first grants, totaling $18.6 million, to causes close to the tobacco heiress’ heart.
The foundation, one of the nation’s largest with an endowment of $1.25 billion, supported projects in conservation, medical research and the arts, reflecting Duke’s passion for jazz and dance.
The largest single grant, $5 million, went to the Open Space Institute and the Trust for Public Land to complete its purchase of Sterling Forest, an environmentally sensitive area on the border of New York and New Jersey.
Duke died on Oct. 23, 1993, at her Beverly Hills estate. Her last controversial act was making Bernard Lafferty, her former butler, the executor of her will. After a long court fight, Lafferty was forced to step aside amid allegations of drinking and lavish spending. He died last year.
The foundation was formed in the summer of 1996, and plans call for it to eventually award about $55 million in grants each year.
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