Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), previously branded as the 'William H. Gates Foundation', is a private foundation founded by Bill and Melinda Gates. It was launched in 2000, and is said to be the largest private foundation in the United States, holding $50.7 billion in assets. The primary aims of the foundation are, globally, to enhance healthcare and reduce extreme poverty, and, in the US, to expand educational opportunities and access to information technology. The foundation, based in Seattle, Washington, is controlled by its three trustees: Bill and Melinda Gates, and Warren Buffett. Other
USS Thomas S. Gates Panama, during which she made two major drug seizures (4.5 tons of cocaine) from "Go-Fast" speedboats off El Salvador. The warship also conducted a special forces exercise called Trident Warrior and a submarine tracking and gunnery exercise with the Peruvian Navy. In March 2003, "Thomas S. Gates" was homeported at Pascagoula and was assigned to Destroyer Squadron 6. On 21 March 2004, "Thomas S. Gates" rendezvoused with cruise ship "Celebrity Summit", of Royal Caribbean International Cruise Lines, in the central Caribbean. The cruiser's embarked USCG Enforcement Detachment boarding team, with the cooperation of the cruise ship's captain and security force,