Billionaire Telecom CEO Robert Hale Jr. just made headlines for handing out $1,000 to each graduate at a ceremony at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth — and telling them the generous gift came with just one caveat: They had to give half the money, too.
While it’s too early to tell what will come of his donation, Hale tells PEOPLE that he’s already received word of at least one very grateful organization that received a $500 donation.
This isn’t Hale’s first such graduate gift — he’s been doing it for four years, first at Quincy College, then at Roxbury Community College and now, for the past two years, at the University of Massachusetts.
He says that the results have not disappointed him yet.
“We wanted to give [the graduates] the right gift to celebrate their perseverance, but also [encourage] giving to an organization or person who could use it to create that seed of philanthropy,” says Hale. “We were lucky enough to give money and it feels like we’re the ones who got the gift.”
Each graduate of UMass — where 40% of the 1,200 students in the Class of 2024 are first-generation students and 31% are people of color — received two envelopes if they were at the ceremony, a “gift” and a “gift,” with $500 inside.
They were supposed to spend one amount on themselves, Hale announced.
The other was to be donated to a person or charity in need.
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Hale, 57, and the father of three grown children, tells PEOPLE that he and his wife, Karen Hale, decided on a 50-50 plan when he gave a commencement address in Quincy four years ago at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I said to Karen, ‘These kids have been through terrible times.’ They didn’t have classes. They have to sit six feet away,” says Rob. “It’s a very diverse community for which college is struggling. Let’s find a cool way to celebrate with them.”
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The couple is known for their philanthropy. In April, Karen donated $10 million to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, and Rob celebrated crossing the 26.2-mile Boston Marathon by donating $26.2 million to various charities.
Rob says that in the past, many students who have received a $1,000 gift have given back to their colleges, particularly to programs that have benefited them. Many donations also went to local animal shelters.
“One young lady said she was a single mother with five children,” he says. “She said, ‘I’m giving $100 to each of my children and it will be the best gift they ever got.’ ”
And in general, he says he feels people are just giving more.
From left: Rob and Karen Hale.
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“I think the American people are the most generous in the world,” he says.
That spirit of giving comes from growing up in a small town in western Massachusetts, where communities took care of each other and taking care of one’s neighbors was just part of the way of life, he says.
On Monday morning, he received a letter from the West Bridgewater Community Christmas Sharing Program, an organization that has been providing gifts for families in need for the past 39 years through tree giving and donations.
Linda Santry, the organizer of the program, wrote a good news story about one of the students at the University of Massachusetts to whom Hale had just given $1,000.
“One of our local high school seniors, who may not want to be named but whose initials are MM, shocked me by giving her $500 for our Community Christmas Sharing program!!” wrote Santry. “She has been a helper for many years, delivering gifts to families or senior citizens, and we are very grateful for all her help and for this donation for the upcoming Christmas season.”
Speaking to PEOPLE, Rob Hale marvels, “How cool is that? Hopefully giving will become a part of her life.”
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Hale also hopes students will take away from his speech, which included telling how he lost a billion dollars on one company, realizing that they shouldn’t be afraid to try and fail.
Because persistence pays off.
Although 1200 students were in the class of 2024, not all of them received money. Only those who attended the ceremony received Hale’s gift, although some graduates offered good reasons for not being there to receive it.
That’s another lesson, Hale says with a laugh: Sometimes in life, “you have to show up.”
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education