Bella Wexner, noted philanthropist, 93

[Deathwatch Central <cdw@slick.org>]

Tuesday, November 6, 2001 

By Kathy Lynn Gray 
Dispatch Staff Reporter 

Bella Cabakoff Wexner, a noted philanthropist and mother of The Limited
founder and chairman Leslie H. Wexner, died in New York on Sunday after
a long illness.

Mrs. Wexner, 93, who had been one of her son's chief business advisers,
was an emeritus board member of The Limited at the time of her death.

A retail pioneer in her own right, Mrs. Wexner was named the youngest
buyer at the former F&R Lazarus when she was 21. She remained actively
involved in retailing for more than seven decades.

She developed a reputation as a noted philanthropist and intensely
private person.

Her charitable contributions came on the local, national and
international levels, targeted toward humanitarian and health causes.
She gave millions of dollars to organizations that touched her life or
her passions.

"There's no question that Bella Wexner qualifies as one of the largest
cumulative donors ever in the history of Children's Hospital,'' said
Children's spokeswoman Pam Barber. "She had a nearly 20-year giving
history with Children's.''

In 1985, she donated $3 million to build the Wexner Center for
Pediatric Research, which opened several years later. The gift was in
memory of her sister, Ida Cabakoff, who had been treated at Children's
in the early 1920s.

"Through research, the impossible becomes possible and then the
possible becomes reality,'' Mrs. Wexner said during dedication
ceremonies.

Dr. Grant Morrow, medical director of the research institute since its
opening, described Mrs. Wexner as quiet and gracious.

"She was generally an energetic person,'' Morrow said. "I saw her as
being thoughtful and responding appropriately with good ideas.''

With her son, Mrs. Wexner also made history at the United Way of
Central Ohio.

In 1989, they were the first to make a $1 million personal donation to
the agency. Their names are inscribed in marble in the lobby of the
United Way of America headquarters in Alexandria, Va.

Mrs. Wexner appeared at her son's side in many philanthropic settings
in the 1980s and early 1990s.

"The meaning in life comes from giving,'' she said in a rare interview
in 1985. Money, she said, buys happiness only when the wealthy spend it
to build better lives for others.

Mrs. Wexner moved to Columbus in 1912 with her parents, Lena and Harry
Cabakoff, who had emigrated from Russia to escape persecution. She had
five brothers and sisters.

After working more than 20 years at Lazarus, she teamed with her
husband, Harry L., to open a women's clothing store on State Street in
1951.

The store was named Leslie's after their son and became his training
ground. The Wexners closed their store in 1964 to join their son after
he opened his first The Limited store. That store, at Kingsdale
Shopping Center in Upper Arlington, opened in 1963.

Mrs. Wexner had served on The Limited board since its inception in
1963, when her husband and son were the only other members. She was
secretary, and her husband was chairman until his death at age 76 in
1975. Mrs. Wexner remained on the board for 34 years.

Her energy and community standing in the Columbus area fueled the start
of efforts such as Marburn Academy, a Columbus school for children with
learning disabilities; the Golda Meir Club of Central Ohio, a
fund-raising organization for the Jewish community; and Hadassah
Hospital, a teaching facility in Jerusalem.

She also made significant contributions to the Columbus Jewish
Foundation and the Columbus Museum of Art.

She served on boards for the Heritage House, Leo Yassenoff Jewish
Center, OperaColumbus, Columbus Symphony, ProMusica and BalletMet.

Mrs. Wexner's concern for the rights of the elderly culminated in 1990
in a campaign that raised $20 million to renovate and expand Heritage
House, a seniors community on the East Side that is now called Wexner
Heritage Village in honor of her contribution.

But her generosity extended far beyond Columbus. In 1999, she and her
daughter, Susan Wexner of New York, donated money to renovate Israel's
first dental school building into the Wexner Building for Dental
Medicine and the Dr. Izador I. Cabakoff Center for Advanced and
Continuing Education in Dentistry in Jerusalem. The center was named
after Mrs. Wexner's brother, who had been a dentist in Columbus.

In 1984, she raised $11.5 million as Columbus chairwoman of Bonds for
Israel. And in 1991, son Leslie gave $5 million in Mrs. Wexner's honor
to a learning center at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in
Washington.

"The (museum) will teach the next generation the tragic lessons that my
generation learned the hard way,'' Mrs. Wexner said at the time.

Mrs. Wexner remained far from the spotlight during her everyday life.

She owned a home in Palm Beach, Fla., which she sold in the early
1990s. In recent years, she had lived in New York with her daughter.

Besides her children, Mrs. Wexner is survived by daughter-in-law
Abigail Wexner and four grandchildren.

A funeral is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. today at Agudas Achim Synagogue,
2767 E. Broad St.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations be made to Wexner
Heritage Village or the Wexner Center for Pediatric Research.

Dispatch Business Reporter Debbie Gebolys contributed to this story.


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