Sarah Belk Gambrell, Charlotte philanthropist from Belk retail family, dies at 102
Philanthropist Sarah Belk Gambrell, a prominent member of the Belk department store family, died Thursday in Charlotte at 102.
Gambrell was the only daughter of William Henry Belk, founder of the Belk retail chain, and rose from an apprentice buyer of ladies’ ready-to-wear to a half-century career as a director and officer of the company. Her money left an equally durable legacy, benefiting colleges and universities, YWCAs, medical research, arts, music and history.
Michael Marsicano, president and CEO of Foundation for the Carolinas, called Gambrell “a pioneer for women in philanthropy, paving the way for the next generation of female philanthropists and inspiring us all with her generosity.
“On a more personal level, I will remember Mrs. Gambrell as a sincerely kind, caring, sophisticated and cosmopolitan woman. Her legacy will live on through the Gambrell Foundation, which is funding some of Charlotte’s most forward-thinking initiatives,” Marsicano said in a statement.
The namesake foundation was created in 1988 “to help bridge the gap of inequities in society, wherever they may exist,” according to its website. The foundation is now led by Gambrell’s daughter, Sally Gambrell Bridgford.
The Gambrell Foundation focuses on education, at-risk youth and “vibrant communities,” relying on a network of community leaders and volunteers to find ways to make a lasting impact in the city and region. It made $7 million in grants last year, according to its 2019 annual report.
In February, Queens University of Charlotte opened the Sarah Belk Gambrell Center for the Arts and Civic Engagement, for which the Gambrell Foundation gave $10 million. The city’s newest performing arts venue replaced the 54-year-old E.H. Little Fine Arts Center and put the university’s seven arts disciplines under one roof.
“Charlotte lost a gem this week with the passing of the brilliant, lovely philanthropist, Sarah Belk Gambrell,” Queens President Dan Lugo said in a statement.
“As an honored trustee emerita, the mark she left on Queens and the Queen City is everlasting. We are so proud to honor her memory at Queens with the recently renovated Sarah Belk Gambrell Center for Arts and Civic Engagement — which, thanks to her family’s generous contribution, will live out her dream to bring arts to the community and inspire young people to become civically engaged.”
Gambrell served on numerous boards but had a special soft spot for the YWCA, serving on its North Carolina and national boards, as an honorary member of the New York board and on the World YWCA Council.
She was a shrewd businesswoman and negotiator who leaves a legacy of admiring women who learned from her as a mentor, Kirsten Sikkelee, CEO of YWCA Central Carolinas, wrote Friday.
“Since her days as a newlywed in New York City, Sarah was always a YWCA champion,” Sikkelee said. “Her deep support of our YWCA in Charlotte was transformative, from renovating our fitness center to fortifying our racial justice and advocacy work to committing to future affordable housing on our campus.”
In a video posted on the Gambrell Foundation site, Gambrell explained her devotion to the organization.
“They’d come to learn and improve their education,” she says. “So many great women it gave an opportunity for leadership.”
She adds that the Charlotte community should “think of others and their needs.
“We need to learn to value the other person, because they’re important. They’re just as important as you are. To know that is important.”
Selling cotton dresses for $1
Gambrell was born in Charlotte as the second of six children of Mary Irwin Belk and William Henry Belk. She attended public schools and graduated from Virginia’s Sweet Briar College in 1939.
She began her retailing career in 1947 as an apprentice in the ladies’ ready-to-wear department of the Charlotte Belk buying office, according to an obituary her family provided. She once recalled selling pants for 39 cents and “door buster” cotton dresses for $1.
Married to investment banker Charles Glenn Gambrell, she moved in 1952 to New York City to coordinate the company’s women’s wear and cosmetics businesses. As she had at the YWCA, she advocated for the role of women working for Belk.
As a major stockholder, Gambrell served for 56 years as a director and officer of the many Belk store corporations and was elected to the first Belk Inc. board when they consolidated in 1998, serving until 2005. Belk was sold in 2015 to a New York private equity firm for $3 billion.
“Sarah Belk Gambrell spent her career at Belk as an innovator, change-maker and visionary, helping to shape Belk into a beloved and trusted destination for fashion,” Belk said in a statement Friday. “She boldly paved the way for countless female leaders who followed in her footsteps. Mrs. Gambrell is woven into the fabric of Belk and we are proud to honor her memory.”
Money helps universities, arts, LGBT kids
Gambrell also took on community leadership and philanthropic roles, many of them focused on education.
She served on the trustee boards of Johnson C. Smith University, Queens University of Charlotte, Union Theological Seminary and Presbyterian School of Christian Education and Warren Wilson College, among others. She created a scholarship fund at Furman University and endowed a professorship at Union Theological Seminary.
Her husband’s battle with Parkinson’s disease — he died in 1983 — led to Gambrell’s long service on the board of the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation. She also served as vice president and honorary director of the NYU Cancer Institute and on the boards of the UNC Cancer Center in Chapel Hill, the North Carolina Community Foundation, the Foundation for Good Business and Florence Crittenton Services in Charlotte.
Her love of the arts and music led to gifts to organizations including the Mint Museums, the Charlotte Philharmonic Orchestra, Opera Carolina, the Charlotte Museum of History and the Hezekiah Alexander Foundation.
In 2017, Gambrell lent her family’s influential name to the cause of Charlotte’s gay, lesbian and transgender youths, announcing a $1.5 million foundation gift to help build North Carolina’s first homeless shelter for LGBT kids. The money helped Time Out Youth, a gay youth advocacy group, buy and renovate an office building as a support hub, including the shelter, for LGBT youth.
Among honors recognizing her work were the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award presented by the New York Southern Society and honorary doctorates by Johnson C. Smith University, Furman University, UNC Asheville and Erskine College. She received the Spirit Award for outstanding contributions to the Charlotte arts in 1996.
A private service will be held, a family spokesman said.
This story was originally published July 31, 2020 at 12:45 PM.