Miguel Bezos
Miguel Ángel Bezos | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1945 Santiago de Cuba, Cuba |
| Occupation(s) | Businessman, philanthropist |
| Known for | Providing seed capital to establish Amazon.com, co-founder of the Bezos Family Foundation |
| Spouse | Jackie Bezos |
| Children | Jeff Bezos (adoptive), Mark Bezos, Christina Bezos |
Miguel Ángel "Mike" Bezos Pérez (; born ) is a Cuban-American billionaire and philanthropist who provided the seed capital to establish Amazon.com. He is also a co-founder of the Bezos Family Foundation.
He is the adoptive parent of Jeff Bezos, father to Mark Bezos, and spouse of Jackie Bezos.
Early life
Born in 1945 in Santiago de Cuba, Cuba, Miguel Ángel Bezos grew up alongside his siblings. His father, a native of Spain, operated a lumber mill, while his mother sold fabric and baby clothes. Initially supporters of Fidel Castro, the family’s business was confiscated when Castro embraced Marxism–Leninism. At age sixteen, Miguel obtained a U.S. refugee visa and departed Havana for Miami on July 21, 1962.
After arriving, he was housed at Camp Matecumbe with other Cuban refugee youth. Soon thereafter, he and his cousin Ángel enrolled at Salesianum School in Wilmington, Delaware, residing in accommodations provided by The Oblates of Saint Francis de Sales, the Catholic religious order.
Adult life
Completing high school at 17, Bezos briefly relocated to Washington, D.C.. He earned a scholarship to attend the University of Albuquerque in New Mexico, where he initially pursued mechanical engineering before switching his major to computer science, from which he graduated. During his studies, he met Jackie Gise, whom he later married. Jackie is the mother of Jeff Bezos, whom Miguel formally adopted with consent from Jeff’s biological father Ted Jorgensen. After graduating in 1968, Miguel began working for Exxon in Houston, Texas. The couple had two additional children: Christina and Mark Bezos. Miguel maintained a 32-year career with Exxon.
In 1995, Miguel and Jackie provided Jeff with a $245,573 loan to launch Amazon.com, acquiring a 6% ownership stake. Jeff and Jackie serve as co-founders and principal benefactors of the Bezos Family Foundation, which has contributed $710.5 million to the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center. The family later moved from Texas to Florida.