Jon Huntsman, Sr.
Brother Huntsman grew up in poverty, graduated from Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania|the Wharton School, worked as a staff member in the Richard Nixon administration, and finally worked for Dow Chemical Company before starting his own business in 1982. That business grew into a multi-billion dollar company, Huntsman Chemical. He is a devout member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and serves as an Area Seventy and as a member of the Fifth Quorum of the Seventy. He has also served as stake president and mission president in the Washington D.C. Mission.
In 2007, Huntsman co-founded a new private equity firm, H&G Capital Partners, joining former Bain Capital executive Robert C. Gay to focus on investments in middle market companies. Among Huntsman's partners is Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Steve Young.
He is the father of current Utah governor Jon Huntsman, Jr. and the son-in-law of the late member of the quorum of the twelve, David B. Haight.
Huntsman has been an important donor to several causes, both locally in Utah and nationally. One of his most notable causes is his co-founding of the Huntsman Cancer Institute. His namesake HCI building holds this quote "Selfless giving unto others represents one's true wealth."
Other notable causes include: his co-operative fundraising initiatives for his fraternity, Sigma Chi; the Wharton School, which named its main building after him; the University of Utah, which named its main arena after him; a new law library at Brigham Young University, which at his request was named after Howard W. Hunter; notable family philanthropy in earthquake ravaged Armenia and a new library at Southern Utah University, which he also requested be named after someone else; and recently the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University.
Huntsman currently serves as an Area Seventy and as a member of the Fifth Quorum of the Seventy in the Church. Brother Huntsman's son Peter married a daughter of M. Russell Ballard. Brother Huntsman's daughter is married to a son of Bonnie D. Parkin, who served as the Church's General Relief Society President from 2002 until March 2007.
Huntsman has been married to his wife Karen for nearly 50 years, and they are the parents of 9 children and have over 70 grandchildren, two of whom are adopted from China and India (the children of Gov. Huntsman). Their oldest son, Jon Huntsman, Jr., was elected governor of Utah in 2004 and their second oldest son, Peter R. Huntsman, Sr., took over as CEO of the Huntsman Corporation from Huntsman; Huntsman remains as the chairman to the corporation.
Huntsman authored and published the book "Winners Never Cheat: Everyday Values We Learned as Children (But May Have Forgotten)" in 2005, published by Wharton School Publishing. In the book, Huntsman conveys moral lessons drawn from his life's experience.
Time Magazine identified Huntsman as the sixth largest philanthropist in the United States in 2000.[1] In 2007, Huntsman gave $750 million in contributions and donations, placing him second on The Chronicle of Philanthropy's list of the nation's top 50 givers.
References
External links
- Huntsman Cancer Foundation.
- Jon M. Huntsman from Utah History Encyclopedia.
- Huntsman Corporation
- Philanthropy videos of Jon Huntsman from Salt Lake City to Armenia GoodTube.org
