Belle W. Baruch Foundation Donates to SCICU in Honor of SCICU Life Trustee Minor Mickel Shaw

The Belle W. Baruch Foundation, in honor of the significant community involvement and philanthropy of Minor Mickel Shaw, has donated $5,000 to the SCICU Undergraduate Research Program. Through The Daniel-Mickel Foundation, Minor Mickel Shaw and her family have contributed more than $1.7 million to SCICU over a 50+ year period. A large proportion of this financial support has been focused on SCICU’s undergraduate student/faculty research program.

Shaw is deeply involved in independent higher education in South Carolina, as she has served on the Wofford College board and as adviser to the both Riley Institute at Furman University and the School of Pharmacy at Presbyterian College. Shaw currently chairs the Duke Endowment Board of Trustees.

Shaw has served as board chair for both the Belle Baruch Foundation and SCICU. Both Shaw and her father Buck Mickel chaired the SCICU Board of Trustees. Shaw served on the SCICU board for 14 years, and was board chair 1995-1997. Buck Mickel was on the SCICU board for 7 years early in SCICU’s history (1956-1963). Mickel was named an SCICU Life Trustee in 1991, and Shaw followed in her father’s footsteps as Life Trustee in 2011.

The Daniel Foundation was created by Charles Daniel in 1948 and renamed as The Daniel-Mickel Foundation in 1993. Much of Daniel’s philanthropy was a result of his co-founding of Greenville-headquartered Daniel International Construction Company, once recognized as the largest construction company in the world. Buck Mickel followed his uncle Charles Daniel as leader of the foundation. Shaw succeeded Mickel as chair of the foundation. Since its inception, The Daniel-Mickel Foundation has contributed more than $46 million towards education, arts and culture, health and human services, and the environment in South Carolina.

The Belle Baruch Foundation is dedicated to providing significant opportunities for research among South Carolina’s colleges and universities. The foundation, established in 1964 following the death of Belle W. Baruch, seeks to preserve Hobcaw Barony’s unique natural and cultural resources for research and education. Hobcaw Barony is a 16,000 acre research reserve located on the coast near Georgetown, SC. The plantation is an unparalleled site for research in the environmental sciences. Two major research institutes operate at Hobcaw Barony, with one institute focusing on marine biology and coastal sciences and the other conducting research in coastal ecology and forest science.

In addition to world-class scientific research opportunities, Hobcaw Barony holds social research significance with over 70 cultural sites on the plantation, including cemeteries, slave cabins, and the Baruch’s previous residences.

Please click here to read more about SCICU’s tribute to The Daniel-Mickel Foundation and Minor Mickel Shaw in 50+ years of service and support to SCICU.