Packard, David and Lucile
By Jason Van Elst
Graduate Student, Grand Valley State University
Biographical Highlights
Historic Roots
David Packard was born September 7, 1912 in Pueblo, Colorado. As a young boy he had an interest in science and electricity which spurred him into attending college at Stanford University where he received his Bachelors (1934) and, later, Masters (1939) degrees in electrical engineering (O'Hanlon 2000).
During his time at Stanford, David developed a friendship with William R. Hewlett and, after completing their Masters Degrees in 1939, they founded the Hewlett-Packard Company in a garage in Palo Alto, California (Ibid.). The company grew and was incorporated in 1947, when David became its president (Hewlett-Packard 2002). He continued as either president or chairman of the board until his retirement in 1993; though, he took a short leave of absence from 1969-1971 to serve in the Nixon administration as the Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Defense Department.
During his time with Hewlett-Packard, David helped bring the company from its garage beginnings to a Silicon Valley pioneer and a multinational enterprise with more than 100,000 workers and fiscal revenues greater than $30 billion at the time of his retirement (O'Hanlon 2000). With the personal wealth he developed and the encouragement of his wife, Lucile (whom he married in 1938), David decided it was time he gave back to the community (Hewlett-Packard 2002). He began to devote a good deal of time to philanthropy, funding many foundations, fellowships, and community projects.
During his career and until his death in March 1996, Packard was active in numerous professional, educational, civic, and business organizations. These included: the Institute of Electronics and Electrical Engineers; the National Academy of Engineers; the National Instrument Society of America; co-founder and chairman of the American Electronics Association and the Monterey Bay Aquarium Foundation; chairman of the Monterey Bay Aquarium and Research Institute; vice chairman of the California Nature Center; trustee of the Herbert Hoover Foundation, American Enterprise Institute, and Hoover Institute; and director of the Wolf Trap Foundation; Boeing, Caterpillar, Chevron, Genetech, and Beckman Laser Institute business organizations (Ibid.).
In addition, David Packard performed civic duties by serving in a number of capacities. He was on President Reagan's Blue Ribbon Commission on Defense Management. He worked with the US-USSR Trade and Economic Council. He chaired the U.S.-Japan Advisory Commission. Packard also sat on the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (Ibid.).
Lucile Salter (1915-1987) started volunteering her time in the 1930s at the Stanford Convalescent Home (Gauvin 2002). After her marriage to David Packard in 1938, she became actively involved in the start of the Hewlett-Packard Company. She also became an active voting member of the board after the company's incorporation (Hewlett-Packard 2002).
As the company grew, and the Packards' wealth increased, Lucile felt a strong need to give back to the community in the area of health. Once again, she became involved in the Stanford Convalescent Home and soon served as a board member. She also was chairwoman of the board of the Children's Health Council (Gauvin 2002). Lucile provided a grant for the creation of The Children's Hospital. Through her help, Stanford University Hospital merged with the Children's Hospital and the Lucile Salter Packard Children's Hospital, as it is known today, was born (Ibid.). The Packards provided a gift of $40 million of the $100 million needed for the expanded Children's Hospital.
Yet, perhaps their greatest philanthropic contribution came in 1964 when the couple began the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. Lucile Packard played a major role in creating the Foundation, and also in its operation, proposal evaluation, and grant making (David and Lucile Packard Foundation 2002). The organization's purpose is to help support universities, national institutions, community groups, youth agencies, family planning centers, and hospitals that are dependent on private funding and volunteer leadership (Ibid.).
David and Lucile Packard's efforts in philanthropy started with their need to give back to society due to their own wealth and personal growth. David believed that in business "management has a responsibility to its employees, to its customers, and to the community at large" (O'Hanlon 2000). This helps to explain his need to give. Lucile felt blessed by her family's success and wanted to give as much as possible; she had a special interest in children's causes (David and Lucile Packard Foundation 2002).
David and Lucile Packard challenge their foundation to base decisions on the same values they used to guide their lives: integrity, respect for all people, belief in individual leadership, commitment to being effective, and capacity to think big (Ibid.). It was these values that made them strive to give what they did during their lives and after.
Importance
- The accomplishments of David Packard left his mark in all the areas of our society - the private, public and philanthropic sectors. In a most direct way, through his role as a business leader, he helped change the culture and practices of business management. He developed what is known as the "HP way of management" that promotes building worker loyalty with medical benefits, flexible schedules, open offices, decentralized decision making, and worker input to make a stronger business (San Francisco Bay Area Council of IEEE 1996). Through his involvement in various committees and organizations, Packard helped to further shape the way business and industry are managed today.
Additionally, Packard played a small role in political affairs. He worked as advisor to several presidential committees as well as Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Defense Department (Ibid.). He helped develop trade and economic policies with the USSR as well as Japan through his service on political committees.
Packard's biggest role as a member of his community was through the work of the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. His philanthropy has made possible the funding of hospitals, youth groups, family planning, community groups, universities, national institutions, and research institutions (Hewlett-Packard 2002). Among the Foundation's more notable accomplishments are the Lucile Salter Packard Children's Hospital, the Monterey Bay Aquarium and Research Institute, educational fellowship programs, support of the performing arts and public radio, and support for family health and planning in Nigeria to help ease suffering of children and the under-funded local agencies (Business Wire 2000). At the time of David Packard's death, in 1996, the foundation annually awarded over $200 million to various organizations; by 2001, it had raised its annual awards to over $650 million (Ibid.).
Lucile Packard's greatest contribution to society was her work with children's organizations such as the Lucile Salter Packard Children's Hospital. Equally as important is the work she put into helping to create the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. In appreciation for her contributions to children's causes, a separate foundation was created in her memory in 1996 - the Lucile Packard Foundation for Children's Health (Lucile Packard Foundation for Children's Health 2002). Though partially funded by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, the Lucile Packard Foundation for Children's Health operates completely independently and focuses on promoting, protecting, and sustaining child health (Ibid.).
Ties to the Philanthropic Sector
The ties of David and Lucile Packard to philanthropic causes are almost too numerous to count. In their lives they created one of the largest philanthropic based foundations in the world, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. They were key supporters in numerous areas of many communities with their donations creating projects like the Monterey Bay Aquarium, the Lucile Salter Packard Children's Hospital, educational fellowships, family planning and child care organizations, and various performing and visual art foundations. After their deaths the influence they had on the betterment of society and community is still being felt.
The Lucile Packard Foundation for Children's Health was established in 1996 in the memory of the contributions Lucile Packard gave to children's causes. Upon the Death of David Packard, the bulk of his wealth, an estimated $7 billion, was left to the couple's foundation (David and Lucile Packard Foundation 2002). The David and Lucile Packard Foundation is among the wealthiest charities in the world today, awarding over $650 million in 2001.
Key Related Ideas
The David and Lucile Packard Foundation was created from the couple's belief that America is home to a unique type of organization, the not-for-profit organization, that is needed to provide funding and volunteer leadership for charitable causes (Ibid.). It was also this belief that led them to support numerous other philanthropic causes. The foundation is based on an ideology David Packard applied as co-founder and chairman of the board of Hewlett-Packard. His ideas include integrity, respect for all people, support of individual leadership, commitment to effectiveness, and the capacity to think big (Ibid.).
Important People Related to the Topic
At one time or another, the four children of David and Lucile Packard (David, Nancy, Susan, and Julie) have all been involved in the causes of their parents (San Francisco Bay Area Council of IEEE 2002). Today, their three daughters are actively involved in their parent's foundation (David and Lucile Packard Foundation, Board of Trustees). Nancy Packard Burnett currently sits on the board of trustees and is chairman of the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. Susan Packard Orr also sits on the board of trustees and serves as an officer of the Foundation. Julie E. Packard is on the board of trustees and serves as vice chairman.
William Hewlett, who was co-founder of the Hewlett-Packard Company, worked with David Packard to build one of the largest technology companies in the world. The wealth both partners acquired individually through the growth of their company would eventually be used to help causes in society. William Hewlett established the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation In 1966 to support causes in the areas of education, health, and culture (Fund Raising Management 2001).
Related Nonprofit Organizations
There are many other foundations like that of the David and Lucile Packard Foundation but very few that operate on a comparable scale to their $17 billion in assets (Ibid.). The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation had assets of roughly $9 billion in 2001 (Ibid.). The Ford Foundation had grants totaling $931 million in 2001 (Ford Foundation 2002). The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation had grants totaling over an amazing 4.8 billion in 2001 mostly towards global health and education (Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation 2002).
Related Web Sites
The David and Lucile Packard Foundation Web site contains information about the foundation's history, program areas, grants awarded, and publications. "The Foundation provides [national and international] grants to nonprofit organizations in the following program areas: Conservation; Population; Science; Children, Families, and Communities; Arts; and Organizational Effectiveness and Philanthropy" (http://www.packard.org/).
The Ford Foundation Web site (http://www.fordfound.org/) contains information about the foundation's history and grant making, publications, programs and policies. The Foundation's mission is to strengthen democratic values, reduce poverty and injustice, promote international cooperation, and advance human achievement.
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Web site contains information about the foundation's grant areas and stories of recipients. The Foundation is "dedicated to improving people's lives by sharing advances in health and learning with the global community"(http://www.gatesfoundation.org/). Dominant areas of interest include addressing HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis in Africa and globally, making vaccinations accessible in undeveloped countries, providing public access to technology through libraries, and creating smaller schools.
The purpose of the David Packard Center for Technology and Educational Alliances is "to promote the effective use of technology, encourage the study of science and mathematics, and develop educational alliances with community institutions" (http://www.poly.edu/edu/packard/index.cfm). This Web site, located at Polytechnic University, provides information on an annual science forum for high school students, continued technology training for pre-collegiate teachers, and more.
The Hewlett-Packard Company Web site offers information on the company, its founders, and its extensive line of products available for purchase (http://www.hp.com/).
The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation Web site contains information grants, publications and program areas. The Foundation's mission is "to promote the well-being of humanity" by concentrating on providing grants for "conflict resolution, education, environment, family and community development, performing arts, population, and U.S.-Latin American relations" (http://www.hewlett.org/).
Bibliography
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Grants. [updated 30 July 2002; cited 1 December 2002]. Available from http://www.gatesfoundation.org/grants/default.asp.
David and Lucile Packard Foundation. Program Description. [updated 3 September 2002; cited 8 September 2002]. Available from http://www.packard.org/index.cgi?page=about.
David and Lucile Packard Foundation. Board of Trustees. [updated 3 September 2002; cited 8 September 2002]. Available from http://www.packard.org/index.cgi?page=board.
David and Lucile Packard Foundation. Grants Awarded. [updated 5 February 2002; cited 8 September 2002]. Available from http://www.packard.org/index.cgi?page=grants.
Ford Foundation. Financial Information. [updated 7 September 2002; cited 8 September 2002]. Available from http://www.fordfound.org/about/financial.cfm.
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Hewlett-Packard. About HP: History and Facts. [updated 3 September 2002; cited 2 December 2002]. Available from http://www.hp.com/hpinfo/abouthp/histnfacts/timeline/index.htm
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O'Hanlon, Charlene. "David Packard: High Tech Visionary," Computer Reseller News (13 November 2000). In Proquest [database online]. Cited 28 September 2002. Available from Grand Valley State University Library.
San Francisco Bay Area Council of Institute of Electronics and Electrical Engineers. "David Packard, HP Co-founder, Dies at 83," IEEE Grid (May 1996). [updated 20 May 2002; cited 2 December 2002]. Available from http://infoserv.infoserv.com/grid/grid5.96/5zz.html [no longer available].
——— "Hewlett Leaves Bulk of $9 Billion Fortune to Hewlett Foundation." Fundraising Management 32 (2001): 1, 9-10. In Proquest [ database online]. [cited 28 September 2002]. Available from Grand Valley State University Library.
————- "The Packard Foundation to Invest Millions in Africa's Most Populous Country." Business Wire (27 August 2000): In Proquest [database online]. Cited 28 September 2002. Available from Grand Valley State University Library.
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