- toledoblade.com -Out-of-this-world generosity

- toledoblade.com -: "Out-of-this-world generosity

PHILANTHROPY is alive and well in the United States. Generous donors constantly help educational institutions and charitable organizations with gifts large and small. Individuals with connections to a community usually are among the most notable donors.

That benevolence often is an expression of an axiom that dates to ancient Rome: Charity begins at home. One's own family, neighborhood, city, and country come before other responsibilities.

One new gift to the University of Pittsburgh is a remarkable exception.

The donor, Allen Cook, can stake a claim to being Pitt's biggest donor - in acreage, at least. This Wyoming cattle magnate and philanthropist gave Pitt a 4,700-acre chunk of his ranch. Mr. Cook is not a Pitt alumnus, has no ties to the university, and has never even been to Pittsburgh."