The Lucile Packard Foundation for Children’s Health remembers the life and legacy of Tad Taube, 94, who passed away on September 13, 2025.
For decades, Tad Taube was a prominent philanthropist in the Bay Area and among the most generous donors to Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford since it opened in 1991.
“We believe that it’s important to invest in the children of today, because they are our citizens and leaders of the next generation,” Taube said in 2018. “They should be given every opportunity to grow with optimum health.”
Reflecting this deep commitment to children’s health, Tad and his wife, Dianne, made a transformative $20 million gift to support construction of the new Main Building at Packard Children’s Hospital in 2018. Since their foundational gift, countless families have walked through the Tad and Dianne Taube Pavilion to receive life-changing treatments and care.
Born in Kraków, Poland, in 1931, Taube immigrated to the United States in 1939, just months before the outbreak of World War II. Rooted in his family’s early experiences, he was guided throughout his life by a deep commitment—not simply to give back, but to share opportunities with others.
This steadfast purpose shaped a philanthropic legacy that continues to make a global impact. With a focus on collaborative partnerships, he established Taube Philanthropies to advance educational, cultural, and community organizations across the Bay Area, Poland, and beyond. Throughout his lifetime, Taube’s financial support and volunteerism also made important contributions to a wide array of programs, centers, and capital projects across Stanford University.
“From his very first gift, it was clear that Tad saw giving not just as generosity, but as a responsibility to help others, to lift up those in need, and to make the world better than he found it. It was an honor to witness that commitment firsthand, and to see how he has benefitted the lives of so many children and families,” said Harvey Cohen, MD, professor emeritus of pediatrics.
At Packard Children’s, Tad and Dianne generously supported programs to help kids of all ages—from advancing groundbreaking research on pediatric cancer, to establishing the Taube Youth Addiction Initiative and the Taube Stanford Concussion Collaborative. The Taubes’ philanthropy also extended to investing in the future of pediatric care through the establishment of an endowed professorship in global health.
Together, Tad and Dianne have offered hope and healing to children and teens facing some of life’s most challenging diagnoses, while also empowering the researchers dedicated to discovering new cures.
“We are so honored that Tad Taube chose to go all in on our mission for mothers and kids, again and again,” said Cynthia Brandt, president and CEO of Lucile Packard Foundation for Children’s Health.
“He and Dianne have changed the lives of our patients and families through their visionary investments.”
