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Atlanta Philanthropist Bernard Marcus Receives the Highest Honor to be Conferred Upon Georgians

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Savannah, GA—December 19, 2008.  The Office of the Governor and the Georgia Historical Society to name Atlantan Bernard Marcus as a Georgia Trustee in Savannah on Saturday, February 14, 2009 at 7:00 pm.  Marcus and Marguerite Neel Williams of Thomasville (honored posthumously) will be the first Georgians in 260 years to receive this honor, which recognizes their profound commitment to philanthropy and service in their communities and throughout the state.

Bernard Marcus is co-founder of The Home Depot, Inc., an innovative Georgia company that revolutionized the home improvement business with its warehouse concept.  He served as chairman of the board until his retirement in 2002.  He remains director emeritus.

The Governor’s Office, in partnership with the Georgia Historical Society, has reconstituted the Georgia Trustees, a governing body originally chartered and appointed by His Majesty King George II of England in 1732 to establish a new colony in North America.  The original Georgia Trustees founded the Georgia colony upon the principle of Non Sibi, Sed Aliis, “Not for Self but for Others” and through their vision and philanthropy they established and governed the colony until their disbandment in 1752 when Georgia became a royal colony. Each year, the Governor will annually appoint new Trustees whose history-making accomplishments and service reflect the original Trustees’ ideals.   

The names of the new Trustees will be placed on the roll with the original Trustees from 1732 and they will be inducted by the Governor at the Georgia Historical Society’s annual Georgia Days Birthday Bash and Awards Gala in Savannah on the site of the founding of the Colony of Georgia.  This highly-anticipated event will take place on the Riverfront in Downtown Savannah, at the Hyatt Regency, and will include dinner, dancing, and a keynote address featuring Washington political insiders James Carville and Mary Matalin.  The Gala will conclude two weeks of educational events designed to bring history to life for Georgia’s schoolchildren.

Marcus is a civic and philanthropic community leader whose personal impact extends throughout Georgia and beyond.  Chairman of The Marcus Foundation, his areas of philanthropic focus include Jewish causes, children, medical research, and free enterprise.  While perhaps best known for his generous support for the Georgia Aquarium and Georgia Tech’s nanotechnology center, Marcus and his wife Billi, through The Marcus Institute at Emory University, have championed the cause for children and adolescents with neurological disorders including autism, cerebral palsy, developmental delay, behavioral disorders, and fetal alcohol syndrome.  In 2005, they received the Salvation Army’s highest honor – the Others Award for their efforts.  Recently, Marcus created Project Share in conjunction with Atlanta’s famed Shepherd Center under which he has pledged to underwrite the costs of treatment, housing, and transportation for any U.S. soldier who has incurred brain and spinal injuries in Iraq or Afghanistan, a humanitarian act for which he received the USO’s 2008 Patriot Award.  In September 2008, The Marcus Institute joined forces with Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta to create the Marcus Autism Center, which will offer expanded services for children with autism. Bernie and Billi Marcus were recently inducted into the National Spinal Cord Injury Association's "Hall of Fame”.  Marcus has also received The Woodrow Wilson Award for Public Service, Inc. 500’s Bernard A. Goldhirsh Award, induction into the Junior Achievement U.S. Business Hall of Fame, Jewish Federation of Great Atlanta’s Lifetime Achievement Award, the Golden Plate Award from the Academy of Achievement at the International Achievement Summit, and the Anti-Defamation League’s America’s Democratic Legacy Award.   

For more information about the Georgia Trustees, Georgia Days, or the GHS Birthday Bash and Annual Awards Gala, please visit www.georgiahistory.com or call 912.651.2125.