While only a small percentage of children are adopted every year, some estimates say that 7 per cent of US children are adopted and it is interesting that two of the four richest people in the world right now are adopted.
When we think of the world’s most successful entrepreneurs, we usually admire their sharp business sense, vision, and determination. But there’s one detail from the early lives of Steve Jobs, Jeff Bezos, Larry Ellison and Dave Thomas that isn’t talked about much, it is that they all three were adopted.
Jobs, the co-founder of Apple, Bezos, the founder of Amazon, Ellison, the co-founder of Oracle and Dave Thomas, the man who started Wendy’s, were raised in adoptive families that gave them love, stability, and support. Adoption alone didn’t make them who they were, but it likely played a role in shaping their resilience, creativity, and hunger to succeed.
Steve Jobs
Steve Jobs was born to Abdulfattah Jandali, a Syrian student, and Joanne Schieble, an American woman of Swiss-German roots. Joanne’s parents didn’t approve of the relationship, so she chose adoption. At first, the couple lined up to adopt Steve changed their minds because they wanted a girl. Eventually, Steve was adopted by Paul and Clara Jobs, a working-class couple who promised to save for his college education.
Jobs was deeply attached to his adoptive parents and always considered them his real family. In fact, he once dismissed his biological parents as nothing more than “a sperm and egg bank.” The love and encouragement he received at home fueled his curiosity and creativity, qualities that became the foundation of his groundbreaking work at Apple and Pixar.
Jeff Bezos
Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, was born to a teenage mother, Jacklyn Gise, in Albuquerque, New Mexico. His biological father, Ted Jorgensen, left early, and Jacklyn later married Miguel Bezos, a Cuban immigrant who adopted Jeff and gave him his last name.
Miguel, who worked as an engineer at Exxon, and Jacklyn raised Jeff with steady values and a strong work ethic. From a young age, Jeff loved tinkering and inventing things — he even turned his garage into a mini-lab.
This curiosity, combined with the support of his adoptive father and mother, eventually led Jeff to create Amazon, which grew from an online bookstore into the world’s largest e-commerce giant.
Larry Ellison
Larry Ellison, co-founder of Oracle, also had a tough start in life. He was born in New York to a single mother, who was just 19 years old at the time. When he was only nine months old, she gave him up for adoption.
Larry was raised on the South Side of Chicago by his great-aunt and great-uncle. His adoptive mother, in particular, gave him love and care, but his adoptive father was often harsh and critical, telling Larry he would never amount to much.
Instead of breaking him, this criticism fueled Larry’s determination to prove himself. He went on to create Oracle, one of the biggest software companies in the world, and became one of the richest men on the planet.
Dave Thomas
Dave Thomas, the man who started Wendy’s, also had a personal connection to adoption that shaped his life. He was born Rex David Thomas and was adopted as a baby by Rex and Auleva Thomas in New Jersey.
Life wasn’t easy for him as he lost his adoptive mother when he was just five years old, and later went through more family hardships. But instead of giving up, Dave grew stronger. These tough experiences made him more caring and empathetic toward others.
As he became successful, Dave never forgot those early struggles. They inspired him to speak up for children in need of families. He went on to create the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, which works to help kids in foster care find safe, loving, and permanent homes.
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