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Person

Judith Avery

Location:

California
Occupation:

Retired board member, philanthropist, and political contributor

Judith Avery is the daughter of R. Stanton Avery, the founder of Avery Dennison Corporation and the inventor of self-sticking labels. 1 She previously sat on the board of the Durfee Foundation along with her two brothers Russell and Dennis, which was founded by her parents. 2 As of April 6, 2022, Avery is retired from the board.

Avery was president of the Baytree Fund, a private foundation that dissolved in 2018 3 and paid $21 million of its assets to the Durfee Foundation. 4 Avery was reportedly a member of the Democracy Alliance (DA), 5 a network of wealthy individuals and corporations that support the progressive movement in the United States. 6

She has made contributions directly to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, and to Democratic candidates, including Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), and former Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg. 7

Background and Education

Judith Avery is the daughter of R. Stanton Avery, the inventor and producer of self-adhesive labels and founder of the Avery Dennison Corporation. 8 Her mother was Dorothy Durfee, a former public-school teacher. 9

She graduated from Stanford University in 1959. 10

Career

Avery sat on the board of the Durfee Foundation along with her two brothers Russell and Dennis. The foundation was established in 1960 by her parents Stan and Dorothy with approximately $30 million in assets and a regional focus on Los Angeles County. 11 The foundation mainly provided grants to talented individuals, recognizing the value of the investment in leaders and entrepreneurs. 12 As of the 2019 tax return, the foundation had assets totaling over $54 million. Avery is retired from the board and her daughter Carolyn is foundation president as of April 6, 2022. 13

Avery was president of the Baytree Fund, a private foundation that dissolved in 2018  14 and paid the bulk of its assets to the Durfee Foundation ($21 million) and to Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund ($2,798,979). Baytree also contributed smaller amounts of its remaining funds to Planned Parenthood of Northern California, Voter Participation Center in Washington, D.C., and several local California food banks. 15

Dorothy Durfee Avery Loan Forgiveness Program

Democracy AllianceIn 2006 Avery gifted $10 million to the Stanford Graduate School of Education to establish a loan program for Stanford Teacher Education Program (STEP) students whose loans could be forgiven after four years of teaching in public schools or private schools for low-income students. The loan program was named the Dorothy Durfee Avery Loan Forgiveness Program, after Avery’s mother who was a former public-school teacher. 16 STEP was founded in 1959 as a result of a $900,000 grant from the Ford Foundation. 17

Avery was reportedly a member of the left wing organization Democracy Alliance (DA), 18 a network of wealthy individuals and corporations that support the progressive movement in the United States. 19 DA was organized by billionaire George Soros and has funneled hundreds of millions of dollars to Democratic organizations that do not disclose their donors. 20 Investment areas for Democracy Alliance include healthcare for all, racial equity, and an inclusive economy, with a focus on “building the power of the New American Majority: people of color, LGBTQ individuals, women, and millennials who are driving progressive social change.” 21 Individuals are required to pay a membership fee, 22 and they pledge at least $200,000 annually to liberal organizations recommended by Democracy Alliance. These donations have helped many liberal organizations including Media Matters for America, the Center for American Progress, the Center for Community Change, and the Center for Popular Democracy. 23 DA does not disclose its membership. 24

Political Contributions

Avery has contributed to the Democratic Party and Democratic candidates over the years, including the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. She has contributed directly to Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA), Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), former Rep. Xochitl Torres Small (D-NM), Rep. Susie Lee (D-NV), and 2020 Democratic presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg. 25

References

  1. “R. Stanton Avery, 90, Inventor and Producer of Self-Sticking Labels.” The New York Times. December 22, 1997. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.nytimes.com/1997/12/22/business/r-stanton-avery-90-inventor-and-producer-of-self-sticking-labels.html
  2. “’On-boarding’ the Next Gen: The Durfee Foundation’s Approach.” National Center for Family Philanthropy. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.ncfp.org/2014/10/20/on-boarding-the-next-gen-the-durfee-foundations-approach/
  3. “Baytree Fund.” OpenCorporates. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://opencorporates.com/companies/us_ca/C2645071
  4. Baytree Fund. Return of Private Foundation (Form 990-PF). 2018.
  5. Bill McMorris. “Judith Avery: The Left-Wing Billionaire’s Club.” The Washington Free Beacon. August 14, 2012. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://freebeacon.com/democracy-alliance/the-left-wing-billionaires-club/
  6. “About the DA.” Democracy Alliance. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://democracyalliance.org/about/
  7.  “Donor Lookup – Judith Avery.” Open Secrets. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.opensecrets.org/donor-lookup/results?cand=&employ=&name=avery%2C+judith&order=desc&sort=D&state=CA&zip=
  8. “R. Stanton Avery, 90, Inventor and Producer of Self-Sticking Labels.” The New York Times. December 22, 1997. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.nytimes.com/1997/12/22/business/r-stanton-avery-90-inventor-and-producer-of-self-sticking-labels.html
  9. “R. Stanton Avery.” National Center for Family Philanthropy. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.ncfp.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/R.-Stanton-Avery-NCFP-1999-r-stanton-avery-1.pdf
  10. “Gift to Stanford Teacher Education Program frees its graduates from debt.” Stanford Graduate School of Education – GSE News. April 27, 2015. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://ed.stanford.edu/news/gift-stanford-teacher-education-program-frees-its-graduates-debt
  11. “’On-boarding’ the Next Gen: The Durfee Foundation’s Approach.” National Center for Family Philanthropy. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.ncfp.org/2014/10/20/on-boarding-the-next-gen-the-durfee-foundations-approach/
  12. “Grantmaking Programs.” National Center for Family Philanthropy. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.ncfp.org/knowledge/grantmaking-programs/
  13. Durfee Foundation. Return of Private Foundation (Form 990-PF). 2019.
  14. “Baytree Fund.” OpenCorporates. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://opencorporates.com/companies/us_ca/C2645071
  15. Baytree Fund. Return of Private Foundation (Form 990-PF). 2018.
  16. [1] “Gift to Stanford Teacher Education Program frees its graduates from debt.” Stanford Graduate School of Education – GSE News. April 27, 2015. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://ed.stanford.edu/news/gift-stanford-teacher-education-program-frees-its-graduates-debt
  17. “Learning from the Experts.” Stanford Magazine. July/August 2017. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://stanfordmag.org/contents/learning-from-the-experts
  18. Bill McMorris. “Judith Avery: The Left-Wing Billionaire’s Club.” The Washington Free Beacon. August 14, 2012. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://freebeacon.com/democracy-alliance/the-left-wing-billionaires-club/
  19. [1] “About the DA.” Democracy Alliance. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://democracyalliance.org/about/
  20. “Democracy Alliance.” The Washington Free Beacon. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://freebeacon.com/democracy-alliance/
  21. “Strategy.” Democracy Alliance – Investments. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://democracyalliance.org/investments/strategy/
  22. “Democracy Alliance.” Ballotpedia. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://ballotpedia.org/Democracy_Alliance
  23. Joe Schoffstall. “Soros Donor Network Quietly Launched New Big-Money Entities.” The Washington Free Beacon. May 19, 2020. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://freebeacon.com/democrats/soros-donor-network-quietly-launched-new-big-money-entities/
  24. “Democracy Alliance.” Ballotpedia. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://ballotpedia.org/Democracy_Alliance
  25. “Donor Lookup – Judith Avery.” Open Secrets. Accessed April 6, 2022. https://www.opensecrets.org/donor-lookup/results?cand=&employ=&name=avery%2C+judith&order=desc&sort=D&state=CA&zip=
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