What do you do when you feel especially loyal to an institution that has nurtured you for over 40 years? One answer: give a gift of $105 million. The New York Times has the fascinating back story on how Jan Vileck, a Czech immigrant who came to the U.S. with only two suitcases "full of useless stuff," became an eminent researcher in New York and wound up making one of the largest gifts ever to a school or health care institution in New York City:

"A scientist who hid from the Nazis as a child, escaped a Communist regime, did pioneering medical research and made a fortune on a blockbuster drug will give $105 million to the New York University School of Medicine, his professional home for four decades... The donation by the scientist, Jan T. Vilcek, 72, is one of the four or five largest ever given to a school or health care institution in New York City, and among the biggest in the nation."