Impor­tant update on LOI review process

Impor­tant update on LOI review process

One Lifetime Leads to Another

Explore Jack Murdock's life and his legacy continuing through the Murdock Trust.

Jack’s Early Years

The Seeds of Tektronix

Tektronix and Beyond

1975-1984

1985-1994

1995-2004

2005-2014

2015-2025

Jack’s Early Years

  1. Jack Murdock is born in Portland, Oregon

  2. 16-year-old Jack Murdock writes an autobiography as a school assignment at Franklin High School

  3. Jack opens the Murdock Radio and Appliance Company after graduating high school

The Seeds of Tektronix

  1. Jack begins working with Howard Vollum

  2. Jack begins his service in the Coast Guard during World War II

Tektronix and Beyond

  1. Jack and Howard co-found Tektronix in Beaverton, OR

  2. Tektronix has 300 employees and sales
of $4 million

  3. Tektronix has 3,000 employees and sales of $32 million

  4. Jack elected Chairman of the Board at Tektronix

  1. Jack tragically dies in a seaplane accident on the Columbia River at the age of 53

  2. The M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust is founded, per Jack’s instructions in his will

1975-1984

  1. The M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust is founded under the leadership of three Trustees (Jim Castles, Paul Boley, and Walter Dyke)

  2. Dr. Sam Smith becomes the first Trust Executive Director

  3. The Trust holds its first grants meeting, awarding 14 grants to nonprofits in Oregon and Washington

  4. The Trust expands its giving to include Montana

  5. The Trust expands its giving to include Alaska

  6. The Trust expands its giving to include Idaho

1985-1994

  1. 1,000th grant awarded

  2. Lyn Swanson joins as Trustee, succeeding Paul Boley

  3. Ford Anderson becomes the second Trust Executive Director

  4. The Trust moves its offices to Broadway in downtown Vancouver, WA

  5. The Trust launches the Murdock College Science Research and Partners in Science programs

1995-2004

  1. Neal Thorpe and John Castles join as Trustees, succeeding Walter Dyke and Jim Castles, respectively

  2. Neal Thorpe becomes the third Trust Executive Director

  3. The Trust launches nonprofit support programs under the name 'Enrichment Programming,' which would go on to include Board Leadership, Essentials of Development, Vision & Call, and more

2005-2014

  1. Dr. Steve Moore becomes the fourth Trust Executive Director

  2. Jeff Grubb joins as Trustee, succeeding Neal Thorpe

  3. 5,000th grant awarded

2015-2025

  1. The Trust celebrates 40 years of partnering with Pacific Northwest Nonprofits

  2. Jeff Pinneo joins as Trustee, succeeding Lyn Swanson

  3. The Trust moves its offices to the Vancouver Waterfront

  4. The Trust surpasses $1 billion in lifetime grants

  5. Romanita Hairston becomes the fifth Trust CEO

  6. The Trust moves to a sectoral model of grantmaking to strengthen investment in specific areas of focus

Explore More of Our 50th Anniversary

‹ More about the 50th 50 Years of Impact ›