Lauren Sánchez has been quietly working behind the scenes for four years to assist Amazon founder Jeff Bezos in wisely donating his huge money to various charities.
Sánchez spoke candidly about her charity efforts, space travel, and what makes her relationship with Bezos work so well in their first sit-down interview as a couple at their enormous Washington, D.C. home.
Last Monday, the pair named country music great Dolly Parton the third recipient of the Bezos Courage & Civility Award, a $100 million donation given to someone they believe is working to make the world a better place.
“The work that we’re doing with the Bezos Courage and Civility Award I think needs to have a voice,” Sánchez said. “And the people that we’ve chosen so far, Van Jones, Jose Andres, Dolly Parton, they all have such stories to tell. I just feel honored to be able to be a part of what they’re doing for this world.”
Sánchez, 52, a former Emmy-award-winning journalist from Albuquerque, New Mexico, says she wants to give back because of her modest beginnings. The mother of three stated that she gave $1 million to This Is About Humanity, which assisted in the construction of educational learning spaces for migrant children at the US-Mexico border, and that she met with migrant families during a recent trip to the border.
Sánchez is also the vice chair of the Bezos Earth Fund. It has been to Colombia and Gabon as the pair fulfils their $10 billion promise to aid Africa’s restoration movement, battle climate change, and conserve wildlife.
Sánchez’s desire to give back, whether through the Bezos Academy’s tuition-free, Montessori-inspired preschools for impoverished children or by mailing a check to Parton, comes at a time when Americans are split into many topics.
Sánchez and Bezos stated that they intended to provide “a little bit of sunshine” to those who settle conflicts through togetherness rather than confrontation. “We wanted to magnify their voices since bad voices appear to get magnified in our environment,” she explained.
Bezos, the founder of aerospace manufacturing and spaceflight services business Blue Origin, has stated that he is paving the route to space and believes that everyone who wants to travel will be able to do so during his lifetime.
“I do [believe space travel will be attainable for everyone]. Let me give you an example. The Wright brothers flew this tiny little plane, just a couple hundred feet. And if you told the Wright brothers a hundred years from now, there’s going be a 787 that carries 400 people, they’d laugh,” Bezos said.
Sánchez stated that she plans to travel to space in 2023. When asked who she intends to bring with her, she smiled and answered, “It’ll be a lovely group of gals.”
The traditionally secretive couple’s adoration for one another was on full show, with Bezos declaring at one point, “Lauren is the most generous, most big-hearted person that you would ever meet. So, she is an inspiration in that way. She never misses a birthday. The network of people that she gives birthday presents to is gigantic. And that’s just a small example.”
The pair also quipped that their average Saturday night is… well, quite typical.
“We can be kind of boring,” Sánchez laughed. “I would say normal. We have dinner with the kids. That’s always fun and a great conversation. There’s seven between us, so there’s a lot of discussion. And then we watch a movie … by committee. It takes a long time to find that movie.”
“We probably spend more time picking the movie than we need to,” Bezos smiled.
When they aren’t working on philanthropic projects, Sánchez says they like flying closer to Earth. Sánchez, a certified pilot, established Black Ops Aviation in 2016, the first female-owned and controlled aerial film and production company focusing on television and movies.
“I’ve also learned how to fly the helicopter,” Bezos said, laughing. “And she’s a horrible backseat pilot. She’s terrible!”
“I’ve realized that when I’m in the back of the helicopter when he’s flying, I just kind of have to look out the window, just kind of enjoy the scenery,” Sanchez chuckled. “I’m like, ‘No, no. Pull up. Okay. Okay, Slow down. But he’s very good.”
What is it about their relationship that makes it work?
“We’re really great teammates, and we also have a lot of fun together,” Sanchez said. “And we love each other … We always look at each other and we’re the team.”
Bezos added, “It’s easy. We bring each other energy, we respect each other. So, it’s fun to work together.”