Donald Worthington Reynolds (September 23, 1906 – April 2, 1993) was an American businessman and philanthropist. He was the founder of Donrey Media Group, a communications company with newspaper, broadcasting and cable television holdings, and outdoor advertising.
Reynolds was the son of Gaines W. Reynolds, a wholesale grocery salesman, and his wife, Anna Louise. Born in Fort Worth, Texas, he grew up in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and got his first job in the newspaper business selling papers at the local railroad station.[1]
In high school, Reynolds decided he wanted to attend the University of Missouri's School of Journalism. He worked during high school and successive summers at a meat packing plant to pay for his studies. While at the University of Missouri, he was initiated into Pi Kappa Alpha. He graduated in 1927.[2]
Reynolds' first business venture was a photo engraving plant. He then purchased and sold the Quincy Evening NewsinMassachusetts, using the proceeds from that sale to buy the Okmulgee Daily TimesinOklahoma and the Southwest Times RecordinArkansas. Those two papers launched the Donrey Media Group. Operating mostly in small towns, the group grew to include more than 100 businesses, including newspapers, radio stations, television stations, cable television operations, and billboard companies. Perhaps his biggest success came with the ownership of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the largest newspaper in Nevada.
Reynolds interrupted his newspaper career to serve in the military during World War II, initially in military intelligence and, later, as the officer in charge of the Pacific and London editions of the "soldiers' newspaper," Yank, the Army Weekly. He attained the rank of Major, received the Legion of Merit, Purple Heart and Bronze Star Medal during his military service, and returned to civilian status in 1945.
He focused his business acumen on businesses located in small but growth-oriented communities, and these communities often were the recipients of the Foundation's earliest charitable grants.
Reynolds died on April 2, 1993, on a cruise ship in the Mediterranean Sea, at the age of 86. A large sum of money from his business ventures went to the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation.
Reynolds left three children on his death: Nancy, Donald, and Jonathan. Forbes Magazine noted that Reynolds's three children were to receive trust income of $50,000 a year for life, but would be left only $1 if they were to unsuccessfully contest his will. The bulk of the estate was left to The Donald W Reynolds Foundation.
The Donald W. Reynolds Foundation continued his lengthy legacy of charitable giving through 2015,[5] funding programs for capital grants, aging and quality of life, cardiovascular clinical research, and journalism. In accordance with its articles of incorporation, the Foundation was designated to terminate rather than continue in perpetuity. Its board of trustees determined that the foundation would cease to make grants by the year 2022. In fact, the foundation liquidated its assets and closed its doors at the end of 2017.[6][7]
^Leckey, Andrew (2018-05-02). "Fred W. Smith of Reynolds Foundation Has Died". Donald W. Reynolds Center for Business Journalism. Retrieved 2020-01-17. Reynolds passed away at the age of 86 in 1993 and left proceeds from the sale of his Donrey Media Group of newspapers and broadcast stations to form a foundation that would give out grants to worthy causes until it closed its doors before 2022. It beat that deadline, closing its doors late last year.
