John D. Goldman (born August 18, 1949) is an American businessman and philanthropist in
San Francisco, California
San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
. He is a member of the Haas family through his mother.
Biography
Goldman was born to a
Jewish
Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
family on August 18, 1949, in
San Francisco
San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
,
the son of
Rhoda (née Haas) and
Richard Goldman
Richard N. Goldman (April 16, 1920 – November 29, 2010) was an American billionaire philanthropist who was the co-founder of the Goldman Environmental Prize in 1990 with his wife, Rhoda Haas Goldman, an heir to the Levi Strauss fortune. He fo ...
.
He is the 2nd eldest of four children: Richard Goldman (deceased 1989),
Douglas E. Goldman, and
Susan R. Gelman.
His grandfather was
Walter A. Haas,
the former president and chairman of
Levi Strauss & Co
Levi Strauss & Co. ( ) is an American clothing company known worldwide for its Levi's ( ) brand of denim jeans. It was founded in May 1853 when History of the Jews in Germany, German-Jewish immigrant Levi Strauss moved from Buttenheim, Bavaria, ...
; his great-grandfather was
Abraham Haas
Abraham Haas (1847 – August 8, 1921) was an American businessman, co-founder of Hellman, Haas & Co. (later Haas, Baruch & Co., which ultimately merged with Smart & Final), and patriarch of the Haas family, the primary shareholders of Levi Str ...
, the founder of Hellman-Haas Grocery (which became
Smart & Final
Smart & Final is a chain of warehouse-style food and supply stores based in Commerce, California, which developed through a series of mergers and expansions. The oldest of the combined companies, Hellman, Haas & Co., was founded in 1871 in Lo ...
); and his great great-grandfather was
Simon Koshland
Simon Koshland (1825–1896) was a Bavarian-born American businessman, and wool merchant. He is the patriarch of the Koshland and Haas family of San Francisco.The Jews of San Francisco, by Martin A. Meyer, Ph.D., Emanu-El, San Francisco, June 1 ...
was then one of the largest wool merchants in the United States. He was raised in the
Presidio Heights
San Francisco, in the US state of California, has both major, well-known neighborhoods and districts as well as smaller, specific subsections and developments. While there is considerable fluidity among the sources, one guidebook identifies fiv ...
neighborhood of
San Francisco
San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
.
In 1967, he graduated from
Lick-Wilmerding High School
Lick-Wilmerding High School is a private college-preparatory high school located in San Francisco, California, United States.
History
Lick-Wilmerding High School was founded on September 21, 1874, as the California School of Mechanical Arts, a ...
.
He graduated with a B.A. from
Swarthmore College
Swarthmore College ( , ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1864, with its first classes held in 1869, Swarthmore is one of the e ...
and with a M.B.A. from
Stanford University
Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...
in 1975.
After school, he served in the Office of the Legislative Analyst for California.
In 1978, he accepted a position as the state's assistant secretary of transportation under governor
Jerry Brown
Edmund Gerald Brown Jr. (born April 7, 1938) is an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 34th and 39th governor of California from 1975 to 1983 and 2011 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic P ...
.
In 1981, he purchased a chain of children's clothing stores named ''Jamboree'' but the business failed.
In 1986, he joined the Richard N. Goldman and Company (later Goldman Insurance Services) which was founded by his father.
In 1991, he became president and in 2002, the family sold the business. After his mother died in 1998, he served as a trustee of the Richard and Rhoda Goldman Fund.
Philanthropy
In 2000, he was named chair of the
Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco where he has served since 1987 (including as campaign chairman in 1991 and chairman of the Israel and overseas committee since 1998).
Both his grandfather (1958–1959) and father (1980–1982) had served before him.
In the 1990s, he served as president of the San Francisco-based Jewish Family and Children's Services.
In 1990, he won Dinkelspiel Award for outstanding service by a young community leader.
In 2001, he was appointed president of the
San Francisco Symphony
The San Francisco Symphony, founded in 1911, is an American orchestra based in San Francisco, California. Since 1980 the orchestra has been resident at the Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall in the city's Hayes Valley, San Francisco, Hayes Valley ne ...
where he was succeeded by Sakurako Fisher (wife of
William S. Fisher) in 2012.
Goldman and his wife have established three separate charitable funds, the John and Marcia Goldman Foundation (with a focus on needy and
disadvantaged youth in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties), the Serrano Foundation (a public fund), and the Jewish Community Endowment Fund (limited to Jewish agencies).
Goldman also serves on the Board of Managers of
Swarthmore College
Swarthmore College ( , ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1864, with its first classes held in 1869, Swarthmore is one of the e ...
, the Board of Governors of the Insurance Industry Charitable Fund (IICF), the
Stanford University
Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...
Athletic Board.
He serves as a trustee of several of his family's foundations: the Walter and Elise Haas Fund, the Richard and Rhoda Goldman Fund, and the Goldman Environmental Foundation.
He also serves on the board of the
Wildlife Conservation Society
The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) is a global 501(c)(3) organization, 501(c)(3) non-governmental organization, headquartered at the Bronx Zoo in New York City, with a mission to save "wildlife and wild places across the globe". Founded in ...
; as a member of the President's Council of the Coyote Point Center for Environmental Education; on the board of
Project Open Hand; and board member of the
Trust for Public Land
The Trust for Public Land is a U.S. nonprofit organization with a mission to "create parks and protect land for people, ensuring healthy, livable communities for generations to come". Since its founding in 1972, the Trust for Public Land has compl ...
.
He previously served as President of the Board of
Jewish Family and Children's Services and is a former board member of the Institute on Aging of
Mount Zion Health Systems.
He has also served with
United Jewish Appeal
The Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA), formerly the United Jewish Communities (UJC), is an American Jewish umbrella organization for the Jewish Federations system, representing over 350 independent Jewish communities across North Ameri ...
and
AIPAC
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC ) is a pro-Israel lobbying group that advocates its policies to the legislative and executive branches of the United States. It is one of several pro-Israel lobbying organizations in the ...
.
Personal life
On May 29, 1977, he married Marcia Koshland who is also
Jewish
Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
.
[Meeker, p. 109] They have two children: Aaron Goldman (born 1980) and
Jessica Goldman Foung (born 1983).
His wife is an autism educator and serves as director of education with the Pacific Autism Center For Education in San Jose.
The couple are members of
Congregation Emanu-El Emanu-El, Temple Emanu-El, Congregation Emanu-El, or variants may refer to:
United States
*Temple Emanu-El (Birmingham, Alabama)
* Temple Emanu-El (Tucson), Arizona, formerly Temple Emanu-El
* Temple Emanuel of Tempe, Arizona
*Congregation Emanu- ...
in San Francisco.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goldman, John D.
1949 births
Haas family
American philanthropists
Swarthmore College alumni
Stanford Graduate School of Business alumni
Businesspeople from the San Francisco Bay Area
Businesspeople from California
Living people
Koshland family
Lick-Wilmerding High School alumni