Mary Porter

Ms. Porter inherited money from her family. Her father, Elmer Porter, was a physician and businessman known in her hometown of Pottstown, Pa., for helping the needy. Ms. Porter, who was 98 when she died in 2009, bequeathed her entire estate, worth $43.9-million, to the Community Foundation of Broward. Ms. Porter lived in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., in Broward County, in her later years. She directed half of the bequest to establish a fund to support 20 charities in perpetuity. Thirty percent of the bequest will create a fund to support arts programs and local education projects, such as School Is Cool, which seeks to raise the graduation rate of high-school students. The rest was earmarked to start a general fund to support other projects at the foundation. An ardent jazz fan, she also set up during her lifetime the Mary Porter Fund for the Gold Coast Jazz Society to support the nonprofit’s programs for youths.