Forklift Operator Donates Over $1 Million to Charity
Matel "Mat" Dawson, a forklift driver at Ford Motor Co., has donated $200,000 to Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan for scholarships. The gift brings to over $1 million the total amount Dawson has donated to charity so far.
Asked what motivates him to give, Dawson said: "I was raised like that - to help others.... I enjoy it; I can go home and sleep good now."
Dawson, 78, has worked for 59 years at Ford, and might have retired decades ago. Instead, he continues to work 12-hour days, sometimes seven days a week. Although his earnings, including overtime, can reach $100,000, he lives in a one-bedroom apartment and drives a 1985 Ford Escort. His charitable donations usually are for scholarships, which he stipulates must be given on the basis of need to students of all races and backgrounds.
"I've owned big homes and big cars and that don't excite me no more," Dawson told the Detroit News. "I just want people to say that I tried to help somebody."
Philanthropy News Digest Vol. 5, Issue 15, April 14, 1999
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