He was a third-generation Alaskan, banker, and philanthropist. Edward Rasmuson passed away on Tuesday, January 4, 2022, at his home in Anchorage, according to a press release. He succumbed to brain cancer, following a year of treatment.
Cathy and Ed Rasmuson gather in 2015 with daughters Laura Emerson (at left) and Natasha von Imhof in Yakutat, the Rasmuson family’s first Alaska home back in the early 1900s. The totem pole was commissioned to honor the Foundation’s 60th anniversary and erected in collaboration with the Yakutat Tlingit Tribe.
Rasmuson was born on August 27, 1940 to his Alaska-born father Elmer E. Rasmuson and Lile Vivian Rasmuson. Over the course of 30 years, Rasmuson moved through the ranks of the family business – National Bank of Alaska – starting out as a teller, becoming a branch manager in Southeast Alaska, and ultimately leading an organization as chairman of the board. Along the way, he graduated from Harvard College.
Rasmuson Foundation President and CEO Diane Kaplan, who was hired as the Foundation’s first employee in 1995 said:
“One of Alaska’s tallest trees has fallen. Ed’s intense love of Alaska inspired a generation of board members and staff. He was a mentor in all matters Alaska and modeled how effective leaders balance work with a full and satisfying life. With Ed, you always knew where you stood. He gave the Rasmuson staff the encouragement and resources to pursue our passions so long as the aim was to benefit Alaskans.”
In July 2000, he orchestrated the sale of the National Bank of Alaska to Wells Fargo, which fueled the foundation’s growth in assets and giving. Over the next 20-plus years, he steered the organization making it the largest private funder in Alaska. Since 1955, Rasmuson Foundation has provided more than $475 million in charitable donations to benefit Alaska.
Rasmuson was 81 years old and, for much of his life, considered one of the most influential and generous men in Alaska. Click here for more information.