Businessman to Donate $20 Million to Smithsonian
The Smithsonian Institution will receive a $20-million donation from a California businessman to update its Museum of Natural History with state-of-the-art equipment and to make it more visitor-friendly.
The donation is the single largest gift in the Smithsonian’s 151-year history, said spokesman David Umansky.
The donor, Kenneth Behring, a real estate developer and former owner of the Seattle Seahawks, will formally present his gift today at a news conference.
The gift is a product of Behring’s longtime friendship with Smithsonian Secretary I. Michael Heyman, a former chancellor at UC Berkeley.
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