François-Henri Pinault, family pledge $113 million to rebuild Notre Dame
Just hours after Notre Dame was devastated by a fire, French billionaire François-Henri Pinault pledged that he and his family would donate 100 million euros ($113 million) to help reconstruct the cathedral, Agence France Presse reported.
Pinault, who is married to actress Salma Hayek, is the CEO of the international luxury group Kering, the parent company of luxury brands Yves Saint Laurent, Balenciaga, Gucci and Alexander McQueen. He’s also the president of the French holding company Groupe Artémis, which owns Christie’s.
Actress Salma Hayek's husband François-Henri Pinault has pledged €100 million to the #NotreDame rebuild following the tragic fire. #TMS7pic.twitter.com/ncAsNsTNfo
— The Morning Show (@morningshowon7) April 15, 2019
“My father [François Pinault] and I have decided to release as of now from the funds of Artemis a sum of 100 million euros to participate in the effort that will be necessary for the complete reconstruction of Notre Dame,” Pinault wrote in a statement.
"Mon père (François Pinault) et moi même avons décidé de débloquer dès à présent sur les fonds d'Artemis une somme de 100 millions d'euros pour participer à l'effort qui sera nécessaire à la reconstruction complète de Notre Dame", écrit François-Henri Pinault
— William Plummer (@PlummerWilliam) April 15, 2019
Pinault and Hayek were wed less than a mile from the cathedral. She expressed her sadness about the cathedral fire on Instagram:
A post shared by Salma Hayek Pinault (@salmahayek) on Apr 15, 2019 at 2:50pm PDT
Pinault’s offer joined many others already pouring in, along with expressions of shock and grief. Several sites are accepting donations, including the Friends of Notre Dame de Paris, which had raised the funds for the renovations that were taking place when the fire broke out.
The Fondation du Patrimoine, a private nonprofit organization that raises money to preserve French cultural sites, plans to launch an “international appeal” so “our Lady can be reborn from the ashes.” It promised that all funds would go to the cathedral.
Call for donations to help rebuild Our Lady of Paris, Notre-Dame cathedral, after the brutal fire that has partly destroyed it. 🙏
The Fondation du patrimoine is a private organization dedicated to saving french cultural and natural heritage.
➡https://t.co/QAB3kFhsK0pic.twitter.com/0fv4Nc3fl1— Fondation du patrimoine (@fond_patrimoine) April 15, 2019
The Basilica of the National Shrine in Washington also launched a fundraising campaign for Notre Dame here.
“We will rebuild,” French President Emmanuel Macron vowed to reporters Monday. “We will rebuild Notre Dame because this is what the French expect, because this is what our history deserves, because it is our destiny.”
This article originally appeared on HuffPost.