A Washington man’s frugality in life allowed him to leave more than $11 million to children’s charities in Seattle.
Alan Naiman never married and never had children, but CNN reported that he fostered children throughout his life. He also looked after his brother, Daniel,ad developmental disabilities and died in 2013. Naiman died of cancer in January.
"Growing up as a kid with an older, disabled brother kind of colored the way he looked at things," friend Susan Madsen told The Associated Press.
It's no surprise, then, that he left most of his estate to charities that help sick, abandoned and disabled people, including foster care organizations, Make-A-Wish Foundation, Disabled American Veterans, his parents' Catholic church, and Pediatric Interim Care Center, a private organization that cares for babies born dependent on drugs, according to CNN.
Naiman left his work as a banker and worked for 20 years at the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services, taking on as many as two other jobs to supplement his $67,234 income.
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"He was a highly valued employee who was dependable and dedicated to his work," Washington State Department of Children, Youth and Families spokeswoman Debra Johnson told CNN.
The AP reported he saved and invested enough to make millions to add to his multimillion-dollar inheritance from his parents, according to friend Shashi Karan.
"I think he always knew that he was going to leave his money to charity," Karan told CNN.
Naiman also stayed frugal, buying shirts at the grocery store, wearing jeans from Costco and generally deal hunting, only splurging on a Scion FR-S sports car the year his brother died.
Credit: Shashi Karan via AP
Credit: Shashi Karan via AP
“It’s a nice little sports car, but it's not a Mustang or a Corvette or a Porsche that he easily could have afforded,” Karan said.
"We are so grateful to Alan, not only for his legacy, but also for the life he devoted to children," the Care Center said in a tribute in its fall newsletter.
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