This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
It was Jan. 6, 1992, when Jon Huntsman Sr. stopped by the Travelers Aid Society and dropped off a $1 million check for homeless programs.
He then went across the street and gave another $1 million to the St. Vincent de Paul Center to help the needy.
The industrialist-philanthropist was about to undergo prostate-cancer surgery and had decided to provide significant cash to a cause in which he believed.
"I was at the St. Vincent de Paul Center when I got the news," said Matt Minkevitch, executive director of The Road Home shelter. "It's one of those moments you never forget, and you remember exactly where you were at the time."
That was the birth of the Huntsman Homeless Trust Fund, which led to fundraising efforts that provide a third of the annual operating revenues for the shelter.
The rest of the $15 million budget comes mostly from federal, state and local grants.
"We need to raise $5.3 million in private contributions each year," Minkevitch said. "We raise half of that amount through the annual mediathon" in which radio and television stations team up for two days at The Road Home and gather money from listeners and viewers.
The Huntsman Foundation then matches the mediathon's donations up to $1 million.
This year's mediathon will be held at The Road Home on Wednesday and Thursday. A dozen radio stations from Bonneville Communications and Broadway Media will promote the event from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. each day. KUTV-Channel 2 will televise the mediathon all day on Wednesday, and KSL-Channel 5 will run periodic segments during the day.
Minkevitch said the yearly contributions and Huntsman matches have allowed the fund to grow to about $7 million, providing a base in which several hundred thousands of dollars in annual interest can be tapped for homeless programs.
The fund is overseen by a three-member board, including Huntsman's daughter, Christena Durham, and two veteran investment bankers, Pete Ellison of Zions Bank and Mike Pazzi of Wells Fargo.
The recent announcement by Salt Lake City officials that The Road Home will be closing once four smaller shelters (spread throughout the city) come online, Minkevitch noted, doesn't alleviate the need for donations to keep the programs going.
The Road Home is much more than beds for the homeless, he said, noting the nonprofit places folks in temporary housing and pays all or part of the rent.
"We have 1,300 people at the [Road Home] facility and another 1,700 in housing," Minkevitch said. "Tonight, of those who will be at The Road Home shelter, 260 will be children."
He said the donations are needed "now more than ever," especially with frigid weather settling in and increasing the need for emergency shelter.
Jon Huntsman Sr.'s son Paul Huntsman is owner and publisher of The Salt Lake Tribune.