Melinda French Gates marked, on Friday, her last day as the co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which she co-founded alongside her ex-husband, Bill Gates, over two decades ago.
“I’m holding a complicated mix of emotions today,” she wrote in a letter to staff posted on her X account. “I’m sad to be saying goodbye, proud of all we accomplished, energized by what’s ahead, and excited to see what you do next. But the emotion I feel most strongly right now is gratitude.”
“I recognize what a gift it is that, for the past twenty-five years, you’ve been such an enormous part of my life,” the philanthropist and advocate added. “I’m incredibly impressed by you and so glad to have had this chance to work with you.”
“As you know better than anyone, the work we do here every day isn’t always glamorous-there are lots of spreadsheets, lots of slide decks, lots of inconveniently timed meetings to accommodate a globe’s worth of time zones-but the impact you and our partners are having in the world could not be more important,” French Gates continued.
She mentioned the foundation’s achievements, including more healthy kids celebrating their fifth birthdays and more women in control of their own resources and bank accounts.
“More farmers coaxing lifechanging surpluses out of small family plots. More students stepping onto college campuses prepared to learn and lead,” she added. “After twenty-five years of traveling on behalf of this foundation to see our partners in action, I can assure you that it is real-and it’s in no small part because of you.”
She has been leading the foundation since 2000, and the organization has made nearly $78 billion in grant payments in the almost 25 years since its establishment.
French Gates’ departure had been anticipated for several years. Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates announced their divorce in May 2021. At the time, they said they would allow themselves a trial period through 2023 to determine if they could continue working together to oversee their massive charitable foundation. Last month, she announced her exit.
As part of her separation agreement from her former husband Bill, French Gates said she will receive an additional $12.5 billion for her charitable work.
When French Gates initially announced her departure, Gates thanked his ex-wife, with whom he shares three children, for all her “critical contributions.”
“As a co-founder and co-chair Melinda has been instrumental in shaping our strategies and initiatives, significantly impacting global health and gender equality,” he wrote in a statement posted to LinkedIn. “I am sorry to see her leave, but I am sure she will have a huge impact in her future philanthropic work.”
