Bloomberg, Weill to Receive 2009 Carnegie Medals of Philanthropy

Joan and Sandy Weill at the New-York Historical Society's History Makers Gala on Wednesday. Photo by Amanda Gordon

Well, there's no surprise winner like President Obama, who has just won the Nobel Prize for Peace, but New Yorkers can be proud that two of the four recipients of this year's Andrew Carnegie Medlas of Philanthropy are New Yorkers Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Sanford and Joan Weill. Gordon and Betty Moore and the Koç family of Turkey have also been named winners.. The awards -- consisting of a bust of Andrew Carnegie and a bronze medal -- will be given on October 15 as part of a Medals of Philanthropy Conference in New York, featuring, among others, Patricia Stonesifer, former head of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Established in 2001 by the 21 Carnegie institutions founded by Andrew Carnegie's philanthropy, the awards are given every two years, to "one or more individuals who, like Andrew Carnegie have dedicated their private wealth to public good and who have a sustained an impressive career as a philanthropist." Among past recipients are Walter and Leonore Annenberg; Brooke Astor; Irene Diamond; Agnes Gund; George Soros; Ted Turner; and the Gates, Heinz, Hewlett, Packard, Mellon, and Rockefeller families.

Mr. Bloomberg's philanthropy recently received star attention at a U2 concert. With Mr. Bloomberg in the audience, Bono, on stage, said he is "a fellow combatant in the fight against extreme poverty and disease. Using his enormous wallet to research new treatments for malaria and stuff. " Mr. Bloomberg's gifts in 2008 alone totalled $235 million, making him the leading giver in the United States according to the Chronicle of Philanthropy. He has long been known as a generous -- although officially anonymous -- donor to the Carnegie Corporation of New York, one of the sponsors of the award. As mayor he has taken several steps to strengthen the nonprofit sector including launching NYCService, which helps nonprofits attract and use volunteers effectively. He made his fortune with the financial information company Bloomberg LP.

Although Mr. Weill fell off this year's Forbes 400 list, his and his wife's philanthropy have had over several decades a major impact at institutions including Carnegie Hall, Cornell, and Alvin Aileiy American Dance Theater. Mr. Weill is known for inspiring and coaxing others to give; in honor of his 70th birthday, he helped Carnegie Hall raise $60 million for its music education program by making a matching gift of $30 million. He is former chair and chief executive of Citigroup.

Through their foundation, which they started in 2000 with a gift worth about $5 billion, Gordon and Betty Moore fund programs in environmental conservation and science. The foundation made a $600 million gift to the California Institute of Technology and has also funded the Thirty-Meter Telescope and the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing. Mr. Moore is co-founder of Intel.

The Koç family established the first private foundation in Turkey, the Vehbi Koc Foundation, named after the family patriarch who initiated its philanthropy more than 80 years ago .The family has focused on improving the quality of Turkey's healthcare and education systems and supporting its cultural resources. Its support established Koç University in Instanbul. Koç Holdings is a conglomerate with business interests in consumer durables, automobiles, finance, and energy.

The selection committee's chairman was the president of the Carneige Corporation of New York, Vartan Gregorian. The great grandson of Andrew Carnegie, William Thomson, served as honorary chairman. The Carnegie institutions represented on the 2009 committee were Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland, Carnegie Institution for Science, Carnegie Dunfermline Trust, Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh, and Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.