Sir John Templeton, Philanthropist and Investor, 1912-2008

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The New York Sun

Sir John Templeton, who died today at 95, was a philanthropist and investor.

A “pioneer of global investing,” according to Bloomberg News, he was best known for the Templeton Growth Fund, one of the first mutual funds to offer Americans a vehicle for making foreign investments. Since its creation in 1954, the fund’s annual average return has been 13.5%.

The New York Times said also that Templeton gave away hundreds of millions of dollars much of it via the Templeton Foundation, which “serves as a philanthropic catalyst for research and discoveries relating to what scientists and philosophers call the Big Questions,” according to its website. The foundation gives away $70 million a year. He also created the Templeton Prize to foster “progress in religion.” It was first given in 1973 to a Catholic nun, Mother Teresa, and most recently this year to a physicist and philosopher, Michal Heller.

The Times reported that Templeton died from pneumonia at Nassau, the Bahamas, where he lived.

Templeton, as reported by Bloomberg, is survived by two sons, a stepdaughter, three grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren.


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