Raymond Sackler facts for kids

Raymond Sackler (February 16, 1920 – July 17, 2017) was an American doctor and a successful businessman. He worked with his brothers, Arthur M. Sackler and Mortimer Sackler, to build important pharmaceutical companies. These companies helped develop and make medicines available around the world.

Growing Up and Education

Raymond Sackler was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1920. He went to Erasmus High School and then attended New York University. There, he earned a bachelor's degree in 1938.

At that time, it was sometimes hard for certain students to get into medical schools in the U.S. Because of this, Raymond started his medical studies in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1938. He studied there until 1940.

When World War II began, he stayed in Scotland. He volunteered to help the British Home Guard. He also helped by watching for enemy planes. Later, he returned to the U.S. and finished his medical degree in 1944 at Middlesex University School of Medicine.

In 1944, Raymond Sackler married Beverly Feldman. They had two sons named Richard S. Sackler and Jonathan D. Sackler. Beverly Sackler passed away in 2019.

His Work and Business

As a Doctor

Raymond Sackler became a certified psychiatrist in 1957. He was also a respected member of the American Psychiatric Association. With his brothers, Arthur and Mortimer, he helped start the Creedmoor Institute for Psychobiological Studies in New York City.

At this institute, they did research on serious mental health conditions. Their work earned them awards for scientific research from the Medical Society of the State of New York. In 1998, the University of Cambridge gave Sackler an honorary Doctor of Law degree.

In the Pharmaceutical Industry

Raymond Sackler and his brother Mortimer used what they learned from their research to create and grow many pharmaceutical companies. These companies focused on developing and making medicines. Sackler was very involved with Purdue Pharma in the United States and Canada. He also helped expand Mundipharma, Ltd., which operates in Europe, Asia, and Africa.

These companies became very successful. Before he passed away, Forbes magazine estimated Raymond Sackler's wealth to be around $13 billion.

Giving Back: Philanthropy

Raymond Sackler and his wife, Beverly, were very generous. They used their foundations to support important research programs. These programs focused on science, biology, and engineering.

They also supported the arts. The Sacklers were recognized by famous museums like the British Museum and the Louvre. They also helped create the Sackler Wing (now renamed) at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. This wing used to house the ancient Temple of Dendur.

In 1980, Raymond Sackler and his brothers started special doctoral programs at two U.S. universities. These were the Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences at Tufts University and the Sackler Institute at New York University School of Medicine. Raymond and Beverly also supported the Raymond and Beverly Sackler Medical Research Centre at the University of Cambridge. They helped fund an MD/PhD program and new cancer research there.

The Sackler Faculty of Medicine at Tel Aviv University was also supported by Raymond and his brothers starting in 1964. This faculty includes schools for medicine and dental medicine. Tel Aviv University also gives out two international science prizes that the Sacklers helped fund.

At Leiden University in the Netherlands, Sackler supported a laboratory for astrophysics. He also helped create a special professorship for American History there. Raymond Sackler was a key person in setting up a program that allows American students to study medicine at Tel Aviv University's Sackler School of Medicine.

In 2010, the Sackler Foundation created a science fund at the National Academy of Sciences (USA). This fund helps support scientific programs. In 2011, they also started a lecture series in neuroscience at Cardiff University.

In recent years, some institutions have decided to remove the Sackler family name from their buildings. For example, in 2021, the Metropolitan Museum of Art removed the Sackler name from several galleries. In 2022, the British Museum also announced it would rename areas that had been named after Raymond and Beverly Sackler.

See also

• Sackler family