Bernard “Bernie” Marcus, the Jewish billionaire founder of Home Depot who donated extensively to Jewish causes, died in Boca Raton, Fla. He was 95.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) called Marcus “a good friend and a great American.”
“Bernie’s life story bears every hallmark of the American dream. A son of immigrants made something out of nothing, and now leaves his entire nation better than he found it,” McConnell stated. “This is especially true of Bernie’s adopted home of Atlanta, Ga., where he built a great American company and where he returned so many of the fruits of his success in generous philanthropy.”
“Creating an engine of hundreds of thousands of American jobs is a monumental legacy, in itself. But Bernie rightly took greatest pride in honoring the Jewish calling of tzedakah, making a tremendous difference for worthy causes—from autism and cancer research to veteran and community support,” the senator added. “Countless lives improved and saved are an enduring testament to Bernie Marcus’s generosity. Today, we join his wife, Billi, and the entire Marcus family in remembrance of a big heart and a life well lived.”
Morton Klein, national president of the Zionist Organization of America, stated that Marcus was an “extraordinary Zionist, American patriot, business giant, philanthropic titan, devoted ZOA supporter and my dear friend.”
“I can’t imagine the world without Bernie Marcus,” Klein said. “The world and I will never be quite the same.”
Marcus was a member of the Republican Jewish Coalition board of directors.
“Bernie was truly one of the greats of his generation. He came from poverty to build a company that today employs over 500,000 people. He was an extraordinary leader, whose warmth and caring were evident to everyone he met,” stated Norm Coleman and Matt Brooks, national chairman and CEO respectively of the RJC.
Marcus and his wife Billi Marcus “gave away billions of dollars to causes that directly improved the lives of his fellow Americans: children with autism; veterans fighting post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injuries and substance abuse; cancer patients and others,” the RJC leaders stated.
They noted that he also built the Georgia Aquarium and “supported many Israeli and Jewish causes, including the Israel Democracy Institute.”
“Bernie was a patriot who generously shared his resources, his wisdom and his eloquence to defend capitalism, freedom and our republic,” they added. “The RJC was proud to feature Bernie in an ad we ran in battleground states in the 2012 election, in which he shared his concerns for America’s future under President Obama.”
Blessing in disguise
Born to Russian Jewish immigrants in 1929, Macrus grew up in a Newark, N.J., tenement, according to a Home Depot statement. “He dreamed of becoming a doctor. When his family couldn’t afford medical school, he enrolled in pharmacy school and received a degree from Rutgers University,” the company stated. “Bernie said he’d often cut classes to sell Amana freezers door-to-door.”
After graduating, Marcus worked at the O’Dell’s and Vornado, and he became chairman of the board and president of Handy Dan Improvement Centers, which was part of Daylin, in 1972, Home Depot stated.
“While working for Daylin, Bernie formed a friendship with Arthur Blank that would last for the rest of his life,” Home Depot said. “The watershed moment in Bernie’s career came when he was fired from Handy Dan in April 1978, along with Arthur and Ron Brill. Bernie was faced with the prospect of reinventing himself at 49.”
With a “vision of a one-stop shop for do-it-yourselfers, something that did not exist in the home improvement retail landscape at the time,” Marcus launched Home Depot, opening stores in Atlanta. “From those first stores in 1979, Bernie and his fellow founders grew a business that created jobs worldwide—eventually employing more than 500,000 associates,” the company said.
Home Depot added that “giving back was part of Bernie’s upbringing,” adding that Marcus said, “My mother taught me to be generous. She believed that the more you give, the more you get.”
“Bernie would practice the Jewish tradition of tzedakah throughout his life,” the company said. “In his book Kick Up Some Dust: Lessons on Thinking Big, Giving Back and Doing It Yourself, he writes, ‘I was able to do things my parents could only dream about … and have focused on helping those I will never meet.'”
Jared Powers, CEO of the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta—named for Marcus—called the late businessman “a visionary philanthropist, devoted community leader and beloved friend to our agency and the entire Jewish community.”
“Bernie’s enduring generosity and unwavering philanthropic support to the Marcus JCC transformed our organization in ways beyond measure, ensuring that our agency remained innovative, vibrant, inclusive and a safe hub for Jewish life,” Powers stated. “His tremendous philanthropy shaped the Marcus JCC’s past and present and has inspired countless individuals and future generations to celebrate their Jewish values and connect with each other.”
“His legacy lives on in the spaces he helped create, the lives he impacted and the community he strengthened,” he added. “The entire Jewish community in Atlanta is better for having Bernie Marcus as its champion and role model.”
Home Depot stated that Marcus “was an inspiration in many ways. He was a master merchant and a genius with customer service. Together with Arthur Blank and Ken Langone, Bernie helped create a nation of doers who could tackle any project, large or small. He loved our customers.”
“He also loved the associates who made the company what it is today,” the company said. “He never lost sight of his humble roots, using his success not for fame or fortune but to generously help others. In business and in charity, Bernie was unparalleled in generosity and goodwill.”
Marcus is survived by his wife Billi, three children and grandchildren.
Thanks for this uplifting and informative aritcle about a true tzaddik and Jewish success story. We need many more stories like these.