By Tracey Primrose
The Sobrato family, the first multi-generational signers of the Giving Pledge, made a promise 13 years ago to dedicate their wealth to charitable causes.
As real estate developers, they helped build a sleepy agricultural region into a global tech innovation center. John Albert Sobrato, 86, the patriarch, says the family was “fortunate,” while his son, John Michael Sobrato, 64, claims that as Silicon Valley was being built, they were “in the right place at the right time.” While father and son are not wrong, theirs is a multi-layered family success story rooted in hard work and the American dream.
The first Sobrato in the United States was John Massimo Sobrato, a native of Italy, who served as an American infantryman during WWI and was honored with a Purple Heart. Brave in battle, it was John’s culinary skills that caused American officers to suggest that after the war, he migrate to the U.S. to apply his skills as a chef. John took that advice, moved to the Bay Area, and during Prohibition, owned and operated a series of small speakeasies. He then opened John’s Rendezvous, which occupied a half city block in the North Beach section of San Francisco and was considered by many to be the best restaurant in the city.
At 39, John Massimo returned to the alpine town of Susa, where he was born, in search of a bride. He fell in love with Ann Ainardi, they married, and in 1939, their son John Albert was born. At Ann’s urging, the Sobrato family purchased five acres in Atherton, where they supplemented WWII rations with home-raised poultry and produce. When the war ended, the couple sold one of the Atherton parcels, pocketing more profit than the restaurant produced in the prior four years.
When her husband died in 1952, Ann sold the restaurant and used the proceeds to start developing real estate. Her only child, meanwhile, was being formed by Jesuits as a student at Bellarmine College Preparatory in San Jose and, later, Santa Clara University. Starting in his junior year, John Albert began selling real estate part time and, after graduating, founded a brokerage firm before setting his sights on developing commercial properties in Santa Clara Valley. In 1983, after his own Santa Clara graduation, John Michael Sobrato, joined his dad in business.
Today, what started with Ann Sobrato’s pioneering vision is one of the largest developers and owners of commercial real estate in Silicon Valley, with many projects under development. John Michael Sobrato says that the family’s desire to use their resources to build a more equitable world, starting with those in need in their own backyard, keeps them continually focused on expanding the business.
In 1996, well before the Giving Pledge was created by Warren Buffet, Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates, the Sobratos started a foundation, which has turned out to be a labor of love and a true family affair. John Albert’s wife, Susan, and daughters, Lisa and Sheri, were instrumental in getting the foundation off the ground and continue to play active roles, as does John Michael’s wife, Timi, and the Sobrato’s seven grandchildren.
The Sobratos have been extraordinarily generous to Jesuit institutions. Both John Albert and John Michael Sobrato served on Santa Clara’s Board of Trustees and have made sizeable contributions to the university, including John Albert and Susan’s transformative $100 million gift to build the Sobrato Campus for Discovery and Innovation, the largest in the school’s 174-year history.
John Michael Sobrato says that the family has always had a close affinity for the Jesuit mission. “What I really value and find quite distinctive about the Jesuits is their focus on being in community and trying to address the problems of the day. Education is a way to do that,” he says.
Two Sobrato grandsons, John Matthew and Jeff, both attended Bellarmine, like their grandfather. In 2010, when his wife, Abby Sobrato, died of cancer, John Michael recalls that the Bellarmine community encircled and supported his sons in a way that would be hard to imagine anywhere else. He also believes that their time at Bellarmine, coupled with the Jesuit influence, has been foundational for his boys. John Matthew, inspired, in part, by the Jesuit commitment to social justice, spent nearly a decade as a teacher and administrator working with underserved students in East San Jose. He currently serves as the Director of Impact and Learning for Sobrato Philanthropies.
John Michael Sobrato was the first Bay Area donor to raise his hand to join the Provincial Circle, the Jesuits West Province’s leadership giving group, where benefactors commit $100,000 per year to the province. He also served as co-chair of the capital campaign in support of the province’s novitiate in Culver City, California, and its health care/retirement community, Sacred Heart Jesuit Center (SHJC) in Los Gatos, California. He and his father donated the funds to name the reception foyer at SHJC in memory of Fr. Paul Locatelli, SJ, a close family friend who served as president of Santa Clara University, who died in 2010.
Education, health care, affordable housing and sustainability are among the family’s top philanthropic priorities. “Sadly, there are a million problems in the world today, and you really have to be strategic and concentrate your resources on a few key things,” says John Michael. As a couple, he and his wife, Timi, are using their personal philanthropy to support a type of Congressional election reform called ranked-choice voting. The Sobratos say that this new approach “allows all eligible voters the ability to participate in the primary process, creates more choice, and incentivizes increased accountability by politicians.”
The Sobratos’ generosity is in their DNA. As a young boy, John Albert watched his dad dole out cash to waiters and busboys who needed help with rent, groceries or gas. He saw his mother volunteer in a local hospital and a food pantry.
On the Sobrato Philanthropies’ website, John Albert and Susan Sobrato appear in a brief video talking about their family mission. It is nothing short of a love letter and a guidebook for all the Sobratos to come. John Albert says:
“It is our hope that our grandchildren and future generations believe in God. I think that’s number one. With that comes integrity, dealing ethically and honestly with everyone. I was also taught by the Jesuits at Bellarmine High School about being a man for others, that’s their motto. At Santa Clara, I was taught the three Cs of competence, conscience and compassion. I think that’s a really important tagline. We think you have a moral obligation to spread your wealth around. We call it the Sobrato Family Foundation for a reason. We want all the members of the family to be engaged.”
