Giving It All Away: The Doris Buffett Story Book

When she was a toddler in Omaha, her parents called her Mary Sunshine.

Warren Buffett's big sister Doris has never lost that quality, despite personal problems that would have soured others on the world. The "retail" philanthropist known as the Sunshine Lady derives such joy from helping others on a one on one basis that emotional abuse by a mother who may have been bipolar, a string of horrific marriages, nearly losing her home after the 1987 stock market crash, two bouts of cancer, and, worst of all, estrangement from her own children, have never hardened her heart.

Instead, her own problems have caused empathy for others, evident since childhood, to deepen over the years. She has donated $100 million of her own money, mostly to individuals in trouble through no fault of their own, often taking the time to call them personally to determine the best way to help. At 82, her goal is to give away her entire fortune, which remains substantial despite her generosity and the stock market crash of 2008.

"She identifies with the underdog," Warren says.

Perhaps more important than the material gifts she bestows is her message, resonating through her own example: We can all write our own destiny. We can all maintain nobility, optimism and selflessness in the face of uncertainty and pain. And caring for others more than we do for ourselves is the most rewarding thing in life.

Publishers Weekly

Starred Review.

Doris Buffet, the 82-year-old sister of billionaire Warren Buffet, has a simple life mission: to give away her millions before she dies ("'My goal... is for the last check I write to bounce'"). The oldest of three, Doris was raised by an unstable, emotionally abusive mother and a frequently absent father (a businessman and four-term Congressman). Adulthood provided little relief: Doris dropped out of college dropout, embarked on four disastrous marriages, suffered from depression, and maintains stormy relationships with her own grown children. It wasn't until Doris's mother died in 1975 that Doris found her niche in "retail" philanthropy, giving away her inheritance ($100 million and counting) in large part directly to individuals who write to her Sunshine Lady Foundation seeking funds for any number of reasons: to afford a glass eye, start school, or simply furnish a new bedroom for a child. Though Warren declined to help Doris in lean times and holds some opposing views (especially regarding their mother), he speaks admiringly of her here. Zitz, a journalist befriended by Buffet, lets the dynamic philanthropist-who he describes as "a combination of Gandhi, Santa Claus and Lucille Ball"-tell the majority of her own story, making this more an oral history than a conventional biography, and a lively, inspirational read for fellow philanthropists and those who depend on them. Photos.
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