H eadlines
Perelman Continued from Page 1
in the Philadelphia area and,
in the 1960s, buying Belmont
Iron Works, at the time one
of the largest structural steel
producers in the Northeast.

All of his interests were even-
tually consolidated as part of
RGP Holding Inc., of which he
was president and chairman of
the board.

He served, at various points,
on the boards of directors for
Temple University Hospital,
the National Museum of
American Jewish History and
the Albert Einstein Health
Center. He had stints as the
chairman of the board for
the Philadelphia Museum of
Art, as general chair of the
Allied Jewish Appeal and as
a trustee at Penn Medicine,
in addition to numerous other
leadership posts.

Perelman was married to
14 JANUARY 17, 2019
Ruth Caplan from 1941 until
her death in 2011. They had two
sons, Ronald and Jeffrey; the
former is one of the wealthiest
men in the world, reported to
be worth more than $9 billion
and a major donor to Chabad,
while the latter was locked in
litigation with his father that
was rumored to have ended
their speaking relationship.

Perelman is survived by his
sons, nine grandchildren and
10 great-grandchildren.

“I am saddened to hear of
the loss of Raymond Perelman,
one of our city’s great civic
leaders and philanthropists,”
Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney
said in a statement. “Throughout
his life, he demonstrated an
exceptional commitment to
Philadelphia’s advancement as
a world-class city.”
During his
lifetime, Perelman made a series of
philanthropic contribu-
tions to institutions across
Philadelphia, including to the
Jewish Federation of Greater
Philadelphia. His original
$3 million donation to the
Raymond and Ruth Perelman
Jewish Day School, with
branches in Elkins Park and
Wynnewood, was followed by
additional pledges in excess of
$3 million.

“Raymond was an incredibly
generous philanthropist who
understood the importance of
supporting Jewish identity and
investing in a Jewish future
through the Jewish Federation
and so many institutions in
our community,” said Naomi
Adler, president and CEO of
the Jewish Federation. “He was
an irreplaceable asset to our
community and we were so
fortunate to have known him.”
“Our school and its stu-
dents continue to benefit from
the Perelmans’ philanthropic
vision to this day,” said Judy
Groner, the head of school
at the Perelman Jewish
Day School.

He perhaps made no
greater gift than a $225 mil-
lion donation to the School
of Medicine at the University
of Pennsylvania, now named
after him and his wife. That
was just one among several
gifts he made to his alma
mater, including an endowed
professorship in the medical
school and to the Center for
Advanced Medicine, home to
the Abramson Cancer Center.

“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,” said Amy
Gutmann, president of the
University of Pennsylvania.

In 2014, Perelman made a
$6 million pledge for the con-
struction of the Raymond G.

Perelman Center for Jewish
Life at Drexel University (just
two years after a $5 million
pledge for the Raymond G.

Perelman Plaza on campus).

“Ray’s generous contribu-
tion to Drexel University made
JEWISH EXPONENT
Raymond Perelman as a younger man
the dream of a permanent
home for Jewish life on our
campus a reality,” said Rabbi
Isabel de Koninck, executive
director and campus rabbi
at the now-completed center.

“May Ray’s legacy continue to
be a blessing for us, helping
us to provide relevant, engag-
ing and innovative pathways
to Jewish life and learning for
our Drexel students for years
to come.”
In the same year, he
made a $50 million pledge
to the Children’s Hospital
of Philadelphia to establish
the Raymond G. Perelman
Campus and the establishment
of three research endowments.

“Thanks to his generos-
ity and advocacy, CHOP’s
Raymond G.

Perelman Campus has become the site
of ambitious breakthroughs
poised to transform the lives
of children for generations to
come,” CHOP President and
Exponent archives
CEO Madeline Bell said. “We
are extremely grateful for
his gracious spirit, enduring
friendship and unwavering
commitment to all children,
especially those living in the
city of Philadelphia.”
“I am saddened to learn
of Ray Perelman’s passing, a
friend to me and a friend to
The Kimmel Center for the
Performing Arts,” said Anne
Ewers, president of CEO of
the Kimmel Center, itself the
recipient of $6 million in gifts
from Perelman. “May Ray rest
in peace knowing his legacy
will bless generations to come.”
“Ray certainly knew the
importance of good timing —
and, of course, Ruth had some-
thing to do with that,” said Gail
Harrity, president and COO of
the Philadelphia Museum of
Art, where the main building
is named after Perelman and to
which he donated $15 million.

“He always seized the day, as
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