Tributes to Bill Davidson, founder and guiding light of the William Davidson Institute, continued to stream in following his death Friday at age 86. Davidson has been remembered as a generous man who shared his wealth, knowledge and vision.
“Bill Davidson was a business visionary, a great philanthropist, and a dedicated family man,” said WDI Executive Director Robert Kennedy. “He built Guardian Industries into one of the world’s leading industrial firms. He funded universities, hospitals, and other charities around the world. And it was a joy to see him with the family he loved so much.
“I had the privilege to work for Mr. Davidson over the past six years. He was incredibly generous to the University of Michigan. One of the nice things was that it was never about him. Bill always encouraged us to do aim high and to accomplish great things. The thing he said most often was, ‘How can I help?’
Services for Davidson were held at noon Tuesday at Congregation Shaarey Zedek, 27375 Bell Road in Southfield. (To view a slideshow tribute to Davidson, click
here.)
Davidson died Friday at his home in Bloomfield Hills surrounded by family. He was the dear husband of Karen W. Davidson; father to Marla Davidson Karimipour and Cyrus Karimipour, Ethan Daniel Davidson and Gretchen Davidson, Mary Aaron and Jonathan Aaron, Elizabeth Reaser and Emily Reaser; grandfather to Catriona Karimipour, Asher Davidson, Oliver Benjamin, and Hugh Aaron; brother of Dorothy Davidson Gerson and Bud Gerson; uncle to Matthew and Marysia Gerson, and Ralph and Erica Gerson; and great-uncle to Stephanie and Madeline Gerson.
Kenneth Lieberthal, who is the William Davidson Professor of Business Administration at Michigan’s Ross School of Business, said a key obligation in Jewish tradition is to “repair the world.”
“Bill Davidson took that obligation very much to heart,” Lieberthal said.
Lieberthal, who serves on the Institute’s board of directors, said WDI is one of many examples of Davidson seeing a need and asking how he can help.
“He established the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan when he realized in the early 1990s how poorly prepared most East European countries were to shift to market economies after the fall of communism,” Lieberthal said. “He established WDI to address those needs in all economies undertaking a market transition. Bill then kept WDI up to date, expanding its mandate to enable it to act on a broader canvas as he saw new opportunities. At WDI as elsewhere, he nurtured those institutions he supported and remained a source of wise advice and assistance.”
At the ceremony celebrating the creation of the Institute in 1992, Davidson told the crowd: “We are not just educators, administrators or businessmen, we are co-workers for the cause of economic and social freedom.”
Ross School Dean Robert J. Dolan, who also serves as president of WDI, said Davidson had a bold vision in establishing the Institute. While it was an inspiring one, Dolan said, it was also a challenging one. It was all made possible by Davidson’s “most generous financial support, and more importantly, by his great guidance and leadership.”
“A presentation of plans for his Institute was sure to be met with hard questions, which inevitably proved to be the precisely correct set of questions to be posed,” Dolan said. “Boldness was encouraged, as long as it came from a foundation of careful analysis. His often-expressed ‘You’re doing great’ never lost its inspirational value.
“We at the Institute look forward to carrying on the kind of work he encouraged us to and, our sadness at his passing is in proportion to the gratefulness we have for the opportunity to have worked with him.”
In addition to the Institute, Davidson gave millions to the university and was on U-M’s biggest donors. Davidson endowed the William Davidson chair in Business Administration, which is currently held by Lieberthal, a WDI board member. In 2007, Davidson endowed a chair to honor his longtime friend and WDI board member Tom Lantos. WDI Executive Director Robert Kennedy holds that chair.
He also donated millions for construction of new facilities and building improvements at the business school and around campus. Fittingly, the main gathering place at the newly-opened Ross School has been named the Davidson Winter Garden in his honor. The glass-enclosed public space facilitates gatherings both big and small of students and faculty, and is the figurative and literal center of Ross’ collaborative learning community.
University of Michigan President Mary Sue Coleman said Davidson's impact on U-M will "last for generations."
"His generosity as an adviser, a business executive, and a philanthropist enhanced the teaching and research experience for U-M students and faculty," Coleman said. "He did not hesitate to share his knowledge and expertise, and our university is stronger for it.
"It was always a pleasure to spend time with him, and my thoughts are with Karen and their family," she said. "We will miss him, and we will honor his legacy as a dedicated and successful alumnus."
Davidson may have been best known as the managing partner of the Detroit Pistons and majority owner of Palace Sports and Entertainment.
Lieberthal said anyone who accompanied Davidson to a Pistons basketball game “knows how passionately engaged he was in every move and outcome.”
U-M Athletic Director Bill Martin said Davidson was a “giant” in the sports and business worlds, “and a very, very close friend of many of us here at the University of Michigan.”
“His ability to relate with everyone within in a given community was so impressive,” Martin said. “He made everyone feel important. The state of Michigan has lost a great leader and the University of Michigan has lost a great friend.”
Dolan said one of the great things in life is that people get to pick their teachers – not so much by signing up for a class with someone, but by whom they adopt as their model of behavior.
“One did not have to be with ‘Mr. D’ for very long to figure out that there were lifelong learning opportunities in whatever you did with him,” Dolan said. “Whether it was discussing the strategic plan for his Institute, having dinner, or attending a Pistons game, they all offered lessons in leadership. Seemingly complicated questions were boiled down to essentials, and then answered with the more parsimonious general principles.
“Addressing a dilemma by asking, ‘What would Mr. D do?’ has always been a most worthwhile practice for me - one that I plan on continuing, even though, sadly, my very enjoyable days learning from him have ended,” Dolan said.
Kennedy said Davidson was a great man who leaves behind a “huge legacy.”
“I will miss him and will always remember the impact he had on me, the University, and everyone he came into contact with,” he said.