NEWS RELEASE

DEO GRATIAS FOUNDATION

William R. Stott, Jr., President
David Freeman, Executive Director/Vice President
Douglas L. Johnson, Director of Communications

Media Contact: Doug Johnson
Deo Gratias Foundation
3239 Betsy Lane
Oak Hill, VA 20171-1615
clubdojo@aol.com
(703) 963-0845
deogratias.co/
April 11, 2019

Benedictine Oblate establishes
Deo Gratias Foundation

OAK HILL, VA. – Poet, teacher, ornithologist, athlete, counselor, former university president, Naval Special Forces (BUDS Training), international guide and teacher (Master Naturalist Program) and Benedictine Oblate, William R. Stott, Jr. of Oak Hill, Virginia announces the launch of his newly established charitable foundation, “Deo Gratias.” Drawing insights from decades of working directly with impoverished communities in Central America and Haiti, the foundation, whose name means, “Thanks be to God,” will affect lasting change by empowering communities to work together to end the cycle of hunger and poverty.

In Central America, the Foundation will work with small communities to build capacity, expand markets and create new jobs. Stott emphasizes that his foundation will require the engagement of entire communities. “Everyone must contribute. We will require local businesses, churches, families and schools to work together to achieve goals and positive outcomes. We will also fund projects that increase and strengthen opportunities for women to provide income for their families and participate as leaders in community and economic development,” said Stott.

The newly established foundation is a continuation of the philanthropic work begun by Stott and his wife in 1968. In celebration of the birth of their fourth child, they adopted a child through Save the Children for $15 a month. “That was a lot of money back then,” said Stott. “But we believed that like the story of the loaves and fishes, our needs would be provided for if we shared what we could. Now, five decades later we have had, by the grace of God, an extraodinarily rich and blessed life. All of our forays and failures, fits and starts, ups and downs, along with many successes have been attended by wonder and a desire – even a compulsion – to share.

Since 1995, the couple have given over $15 million to causes and programs that preserve, sustain and value life from conception to grave. When Peggy died from Alzheimer’s disease in February 2017, Stott decided a fitting tribute to his wife would be to establish a foundation that would inspire others to participate in their philanthropic mission through financial support. Thus, the Deo Gratias Foundation was established and formally granted 501(c)(3) status from the Internal Revenue Code in April 2019.

Stott’s home parish is Saint John Neumann Catholic Community in Reston, Virginia. For more information about Deo Gratias Foundation’s funding guidelines, making a contribution, or to schedule an interview with William R. Stott, Jr., please contact Doug Johnson at (703) 963-0845 or clubdojo@aol.com.