Sylvia Bloom was a frugal New York City resident who worked as a legal secretary for 67 years before retiring at the age of 96. Without telling her family and friends, Bloom managed to save over $9 million during her lifetime simply by observing the way the lawyers she worked for invested their money.

“She was a secretary in an era when they ran their boss’s lives, including their personal investments,” said Jane Lockshin, Bloom’s niece. “So when the boss would buy a stock, she would make the purchase for him, and then buy the same stock for herself, but in a smaller amount because she was on a secretary’s salary.”

Bloom passed away soon after she retired in 2016, and nobody knew about the millions she had saved until last week, when her $6.24 million donation to the Henry Street Settlement, a social services organization in New York City, was made public.

“I realized she had millions and she had never mentioned a word,” said Lockshin, who was the executor to Bloom’s estate. “I don’t think she thought it was anybody’s business but her own.”

Though Bloom left a small portion of her fortune to family and friends, she donated $8.2 million to charity.

“We were all agape, just blown away,” said David Garza, Henry Street’s executive director, adding that Bloom’s donation will fund the Expanded Horizons College Success Program. This program aims to help underprivileged students get ready for college and graduate from college on time.

The additional $2 million of Bloom’s bequest would go to Hunter College and another scholarship fund that has yet to be announced.

We applaud this legal secretary for her amazing humbleness, to give quietly the millions she saved during her lifetime through her hard work and acute observations to such noble causes. May she rest in peace.

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