Introduction
David Sanford "Sandy" Gottesman (born April 26, 1926) is an American businessman and billionaire.
Early life
He was born to a Jewish family in New York City, the son of Esther Garfunkel and Benjamin Gottesman. He has two siblings, Milton and Alice. He is a nephew of American pulp-paper merchant, financier and philanthropist Samuel Gottesman.
Career
Gottesman founded the investment advisory firm First Manhattan in 1964. He began a friendship with Warren Buffett in 1962. He was an early investor in Berkshire Hathaway and today owns 16,100 shares, worth $3.5 billion in 2015. He joined the Berkshire Hathaway board of directors in 2003. In 2008, Gottesman donated $25 million to the Yeshiva University Medical School. This gift was used to form the Ruth L. and David S. Gottesman Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, which operates as a stem cell research center.
Personal life
Gottesman lives in Rye, New York with his wife, Ruth, to whom he has been married for over sixty years. Ruth has a master's degree in Developmental Education and a Ed.D. in Human Cognition and Learning in the area of Educational Psychology both from Teachers College at Columbia University. Together, they have three children and seven grandchildren. He is an avid swimmer.