William Lyon Phelps Quotes

I think, charitable foundations are, in general, a good thing.

I am a huge supporter of the Waxman foundation.

Philanthropy is lost. The human spirit is suppressed. Most people want a legacy; they want to give something back, a library, a hospital wing, a donation to their church. This is a form of socialism that must go.

Capitalists' wet dreams is to be involved in charity.

Philanthropy can take the risks that others cannot or will not.

I'm like Robin Hood. I rob the rich to make these projects come alive... not really rob. It's done with a smile.

Surplus wealth is a sacred trust which its possessor is bound to administer in his lifetime for the good of the community.

I'm going to give away a lot more than half my money. I'd be happy to give that to the government if the government put together programs that were like I'm giving away to charity, in which I believe the money is effectively used to help people.

I started off with making personal donations and eventually set up my own foundation, VTCY Foundation, now known as Better Malaysia Foundation. My contributions are also made through companies that I own.

Anybody who gives away money is mostly looking at things where they think they can make a difference. I'm trying to help people who helped me, educational institutions that helped me with scholarships, or organizations that were very useful to me in growing up.

I have committed to giving away 80% of my wealth, much of it in India, but also in other countries.

The billionaire who sits on his money and doesn't do anything for the common good - I'm not interested in that person.

I think the tradition of philanthropy is far better developed in the U.S. than in India, as is the whole notion of giving away 50% of your wealth while you are still living and not waiting till you're gone.

How I see my career is very much as an entrepreneur in the field of philanthropy.

In the charitable world, I find myself giving to large projects that I think can make a large-scale impact.

America's always been very good at providing help to people in need. It hasn't been perfect, but they've been very good at it.

Over the years, we have gone beyond our businesses to take up philanthropic projects in diverse areas - from education to health care to skilling.

I wish people would go and just read about this man's life - about David Koch's life... Of the literally hundreds of millions of dollars that he has given to a variety of different hospitals.

I did commit to giving my first billion away.

I'm not a philanthropist. While I care about the poor, the issue of local or global poverty doesn't keep me up at night.

The best investment with the least risk and the greatest dividend is giving.

I'm certainly well taken care of in terms of food and clothes ... Money has no utility to me beyond a certain point. Its utility is entirely in building an organization and getting the resources out to the poorest in the world.

Boards of public charity were invented by the devil to prevent real individual charity.

May the time come when rich men and great men would think it an honor to support whole stations of missionaries in Africa, instead of spending their money on hounds and horses.

The great thing is these days I no longer have to work for a living and that all of the things that I'm able to do where money is paid as compensation for whatever it be, I'm able to donate all of that to charity. That's a wonderful position to find yourself in at the latest stages of your life and I'm proud to have walked the path that I have and I'm proud to be able to continue working and to be able to give away what I earn to some very good causes here in the Southwest.