The Alexander and Margaret Stewart Trust provides support for innovative scientists researching cancer and for exceptional non-profit organizations striving to improve the quality of life for children and for people with cancer residing in the District of Columbia.
The Trust is committed to:
Alexander Stewart was born in New Brunswick, Canada in 1829 and moved to Wausau, WI in 1849. He was an intelligent and enterprising young man.
Alexander Stewart married Margaret Gray, with whom he had three children: Margaret, Mary, and Helen.
An employee of the Levi Fleming sawmill, Mr. Stewart was paid in lumber, which he then sold. In 1872, he acquired the Walter McIndoe Mill and formed the A. Stewart Lumber Company. It became the Wisconsin Valley’s largest mill.
Alexander Stewart served three terms in the U.S. Congress from 1895-1901. After serving, the Stewarts settled in Washington, DC and built a house on Massachusetts Avenue which now is the Luxembourg Embassy.
The Trust awarded its first grants in 1948.
Today, Alexander & Margaret Stewart Trust sustains the Stewart family’s legacy by continuing to achieve the Trust’s charitable goals, as expressed in the wills of the Stewart sisters. Since its inception in 1948, the Trust has issued approximately $125M in grants (in 2019 dollars).
William J. Bierbower has served as Stewart Trustee for 30 years, most recently as Executive Trustee. A Washington, D.C., attorney, he advises charitable foundations and corporations on implementing complex charitable programs and business ventures to advance science and engineering technologies. His career includes service as Chief Counsel at NASA and the Advanced Research Project Agency-Energy (ARPA-E).
George Hamilton has served as a trustee of the Stewart Trust since 2004. A native of Washington, DC, George co-founded an international non-profit organization focused on building healthy communities and cities in the U.S. and overseas by addressing climate change, environmental health, and social and economic justice. George has more than 30 years of non-profit leadership experience.
Ms. Munson, a Managing Director of Rockefeller Capital Management and a member of its Management Committee, represents Rockefeller Trust Company, N.A. in its role as directed corporate trustee of the Stewart Trust, a role that it has held since 2013. Liz specializes in advising high-net-worth individuals and families, particularly in trust and estate planning and philanthropic matters. Prior to joining Rockefeller, Liz was a partner in White & Case’s Private Clients Group, where she practiced from 1983 to 2001, focusing on tax and estate planning for high-net-worth families, and work for foundations and other nonprofit entities.
Ms. Rucker has 25+ years of experience in the Nation’s Capital in the fields of grants management, organizational development, and nonprofit leadership. She has served in leadership positions with the United Way of the National Capital Area, the DC Trust, Friendship House Association, and Community of Hope. Lisa serves on the Boards of Washington Latin and Global Citizens Public Charter Schools and is a long-time resident of the District.
Dr. Newman provides the trustees with medical and strategic insights for implementation of Stewart Trust goals and programs. Dr. Newman served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Children’s National Hospital from 2011 through June of 2023. He joined Children’s National as a surgical fellow in 1984, following a general surgery residency at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School. Dr. Newman became Surgeon-in-Chief in 2003, and led many Children’s initiatives, including the hospital’s Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation, and its Research and Innovation Campus at Walter Reed. Dr. Newman is a professor of surgery and pediatrics at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences. He is the author of a 2017 medical memoir, Healing Children: A Surgeon’s Stories from the Frontiers of Pediatric Medicine. Dr. Newman is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and received his medical education at Duke University.
The position of Stewart Trust Medical Advisor was held previously by distinguished Drs. Judson Randolph and Robert Parrot.
