Dan Snyder is a successful entrepreneur who is known for owning Snyder Communications and Washington Football. Snyder is now 55 years old, but he started his career in business in 1985 when he was just 20. The company soon went public, and he sold the business in 1999. He then used the proceeds from the sale to purchase the Washington Football team, a team that is now worth over $3.5 billion.
Philanthropic Activities
Snyder has been widely recognized for his philanthropic efforts that have made a difference in the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. Snyder started the Washington Charitable Foundation in 2000 after selling his company. His goal was to give back to the community by helping children and leveraging the assets of Washington Football. The foundation has taken part in a wide range of efforts in the Washington, D.C., area, but it has also engaged in activities around the world.
Charitable Efforts in Washington, D.C.
Dan Snyder initially started by doing charitable activities in his local community. Snyder had been a resident of Washington, D.C., since he was a young child, and his businesses were headquartered in the city. As a result, he felt a strong calling to give back to the city that had helped him to achieve prominence.
Read Program
Today, Snyder and his foundation give back to children by funding school workshops. The workshops use the uniquely engaging assets of Washington Football to get disadvantaged children excited about learning. Some initiatives have involved having football players read to children in schools while other initiatives have brought children out to games in exchange for high academic achievement. Overall, the program has helped over 38,000 students in elementary school. Additionally, the program has helped over 12,000 seventh graders in four disadvantaged communities that were strategically targeted.
Loads of Love
Another major initiative that Snyder has led involves helping children who struggle to afford the cost of cleaning their laundry. Snyder recognized that many children in poor communities do not have access to reliable laundry facilities. Additionally, doing laundry takes time that disadvantaged parents often do not have. Therefore, he launched Loads of Love in an effort to make a difference. The program places laundry facilities inside schools so that students can clean their clothes while they study. The program has been a success by reducing the burden on disadvantaged children while increasing school attendance.
International Philanthropic Efforts
Snyder has also engaged in philanthropic efforts that have aimed to help the world. He recognizes that the U.S. is relatively advantaged compared to the rest of the world, so he aims to make a difference by sending resources where they are desperately needed abroad. One of Snyder’s first international charity efforts took place in the aftermath of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami in Thailand. He sent resources to feed affected families and provide them with temporary shelters.
Snyder has also engaged in substantial philanthropic efforts in the Caribbean. When Hurricane Matthew hit the Caribbean in 2016, Snyder knew that he needed to lend a hand. He enlisted the support of two players from Washington Football who personally visited Haiti to deliver urgently needed supplies. The resources were sent to Hospital Bernard Mevs in Port Au Prince, Haiti. Snyder’s efforts were so impactful that Obie Wilchcombe, the Minister of Tourism in the Bahamas, recognized Snyder for his contributions.
Recent Philanthropic Efforts
2020 was an unprecedentedly difficult year for everyone, so Snyder saw an opportunity to give back. When George Floyd was murdered in May 2020, he gave $250,000 of his own money to raise awareness about the unique challenges that people of color face. Snyder’s contributions were particularly impactful because of his experience dealing with people of diverse backgrounds on his football team and because of his experience in similar philanthropic efforts.
Dan Snyder also gave back to his community in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Snyder volunteered to allow FedExField to be used as a site for mass testing during the pandemic. He also gave $100,000 to the Capital Area Food Bank to assist families that were struggling with the unexpected economic disruption.
The bottom line is that Daniel Snyder has made an enormous difference in both his community and the world. With additional efforts, Snyder plans to continue making a difference in the future.
