Bernard Marcus, billionaire cofounder of The Home Depot, dies at 95

ATLANTA - Bernard Marcus, the co-founder of Home Depot who helped grow the Atlanta-based business into a global company, has died at the age of 95.

The Home Depot announced Marcus's death on Tuesday morning.

Marcus was born in 1929 as the son of the son of Russian Jewish immigrants and grew up in New Jersey. His first dream was to become a doctor, but his family couldn't afford to enroll him in medical school. He then enrolled in pharmacy school, eventually graduating from Rutgers.

(The Home Depot)

Instead of getting into the medical field, however, Marcus found his true passion when he would skip class to sell freezers door-to-door. His knack for selling quickly allowed him to work up the corporate ladders at O'Dell's and Vordnado Inc. He became the chairman of the board and president of Handy Dan Improvement Centers Inc. in 1972. It was there that he made the partnership that would shape the rest of his life by meeting Arthur Blank.

Marcus, Blank, and Ron Brill were all fired from Handy Dan in 1978. At 48, Marcus got into business with the two men, working with investment banker Ken Langone to secure financing to open the first Home Depot in Atlanta. Since then, the company has helped shape the nature of home improvement, eventually growing to over 2,300 stores and employing more than 500,000 associates.

After the business made him a billionaire, Marcus turned his focus on giving back, donating millions to healthcare in Atlanta. 

"I was able to do things my parents could only dream about... and have focused on helping those I will never meet," he wrote in his book "Kick Up Some Dust: Lessons on Thinking Big, Giving Back and Doing It Yourself." 

In 2010, Bernie and his wife Billi joined The Giving Pledge, a commitment led by billionaire Warren Buffett to give away most of their money during their lives.

The couple started The Marcus Institute, now known as the Marcus Autism Center, a not-for-profit subsidiary of Children's Healthcare of Atlanta that treats more than 5,500 children annually.

(The Home Depot)

Marcus, Blank and other philanthropists and organizations partnered with actor Gary Sinise to launch the Gary Sinise Foundation Avalon Network with the aim of helping treat post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injuries and substance abuse.

Marcus helped create Project Share with Atlanta's Shepherd Center, with The Marcus Foundation underwriting the housing, transportation and care costs for military personnel receiving treatment for brain or spinal injuries at the center.

Outside the healthcare field, Marcus and his wife built the Georgia Aquarium, dedicating the Downtown Atlanta building in 2005 to the people of Georgia and Home Depot customers.

Politically, Marcus was a supporter of conservative causes, financially supporting Donald Trump's presidential campaigns and other Republican nominees. 

"The entire Home Depot family is deeply saddened by the death of our co-founder Bernie Marcus," a spokesperson for The Home Depot wrote in a statement. "We owe an immeasurable debt of gratitude to Bernie. He was a master merchant and a retail visionary. But even more importantly, he valued our associates, customers and communities above all. He’s left us with an invaluable legacy and the backbone of our company: our values."

The company said Marcus's philanthropic work will be continued through his foundation. You can learn more about it here.