Hale, the founder of Granite Telecommunications and co-owner of the Boston Celtics, was the final speaker at the graduation ceremony on Thursday, which took place amid rainy conditions. In his speech, Hale shared his financial hardships, including bankrupting his company to the tune of $1 billion, which at one point resulted in death threats to his family. Still, the businessman encouraged the students to persevere and be charitable just before he gave the cash gift.
“Karen and I — my lovely wife who’s here to support me — we decided after this talk of giving let’s act on giving. As I mentioned you have weathered turbulent times, you weathered today. You should be celebrated. We want to celebrate with you,” Hale said.
“The first $500 is our gift to you, the second $500 is for you to give to somebody else or another organization who could use it more than you. Share in the joy of the gift of giving. Congratulations.”
There were some 1,200 students that graduated this year, making the grand gift total $120,000. Forbes estimates that Hale’s net worth is $5.4 billion.
Hale prepared 3,000 envelopes with $500 each for the ceremony. The leftover funds went to the university’s general scholarship fund, a UMass Dartmouth spokesperson told the Truth Voices.
Those gift recipients were made up of 40% first-generation college students and 31% of students of color. They likely started their college careers during the peak of the coronavirus pandemic, which Hale referred to as “the most turbulent time in my 57 years of American history.”
