Bill and Melinda Gates announce they are getting divorced
Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates — who is worth an estimated $130 billion — and his wife, Melinda, are getting a divorce after 27 years of marriage, the couple announced Monday in a joint statement.
“After a great deal of thought and a lot of work on our
relationship, we have made the decision to end our marriage,” a statement from
the billionaire philanthropist couple, tweeted from both of their personal
Twitter accounts at 4:30 p.m. EST, reads.
“Over the last 27 years, we have raised three incredible
children and built a foundation that works all over the world to enable all
people to lead healthy, productive lives,” the statement goes on.
“We continue to share a belief in that mission and will continue
our work together at the foundation, but we no longer believe we can grow
together as a couple in this next phase of our lives. We ask for space and
privacy for our family as we begin to navigate this new life.”
Bill Gates, one of the wealthiest men in the world and worth
a reported $130 billion, made his fortune as the co-founder of Microsoft — a
venture he started in 1975, about 20 years before he tied the knot with
Melinda.
The two started dating in 1987 after meeting at a trade show
in New York before getting married on New Year’s Day in 1994 in Hawaii, TMZ
reported.
Melinda Gates briefly worked for the company in their
marketing department before she was appointed as General Manager of Information
Products in the early 1990s, TMZ reported.
She left the company in 1996 so she could focus on starting
a family.
In 2000, the couple started the Bill and Melinda Gates
Foundation and have since donated about $50 billion to charity for initiatives
across the globe.
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