Warren Buffett gives $1.1B away as part of annual Thanksgiving tradition

Multi-billionaire and Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett on Monday continued his Thanksgiving tradition of donating some of his personal wealth to charity, by giving more than $1.1 billion in stock to four of his family’s foundations.

The billionaire has been making major Thanksgiving donations to the charities and foundations that his children run since 2006, according to the Associated Press. He has also given billions to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation over the years. 

Buffett has sworn to give away the majority of his $147 billion fortune before he dies, but has also outlined plans for his family to give away the wealth if he dies before he is able to donate it all. The billionaire said that his three children will be responsible for giving out the funds, but designated additional successors with the task should his children die before it is complete.

“Father time always wins. But he can be fickle – indeed unfair and even cruel – sometimes ending life at birth or soon thereafter while, at other times, waiting a century or so before paying a visit,” the 94-year-old wrote in a letter to shareholders. “To date, I’ve been very lucky, but, before long, he will get around to me. 

"There is, however, a downside to my good fortune in avoiding his notice," he continued. "The expected life span of my children has materially diminished since the 2006 pledge. They are now 71, 69 and 66.”

The billionaire did not divulge who the new successors would be if his children die, but said that the children were aware of the update and approved of the individuals.

Buffett also maintained that he has no interest in creating dynastic wealth in his family, despite his major fortune, but said that he and his wives always wanted to make sure that the family had everything it wanted.

"[The family] shared a view that equal opportunity should begin at birth and extreme 'look-at-me' styles of living should be legal but not admirable," Buffett wrote in the letter. "As a family, we have had everything we needed or simply liked, but we have not sought enjoyment from the fact that others craved what we had."

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.