Lee G Seidman

Mr. Seidman is the retired founder of the Motorcars Group, a chain of automobile dealerships, in Cleveland. Mr. Seidman, 79, and his wife, Jane, 70, pledged $42-million to University Hospitals, in Cleveland, for its cancer center, which the organization has named the University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center. The Seidmans’ connection to University Hospitals goes back to their infancies; they were both born there. The gift also continues a change in their philosophy of giving that they made several years ago. In previous years, said Mr. Seidman, the couple rarely declined requests for charitable donations, making small gifts to many types of charities. But after Mr. Seidman retired in 2000, the couple started devoting more time to their philanthropy. In 2005 they began taking courses through the Wealth and Giving Forum, a New York group, which advises wealthy philanthropists, and over time they came to believe they could make a greater difference if they concentrated their giving in larger amounts and in one or two geographic areas or on one or two nonprofits.