Alan Shawn Feinstein, a Rhode Island philanthropist who channeled millions of dollars to schools and programs to help children, died on Sept. 7, according to his obituary. He was 93.
He founded the Cranston-based Feinstein Foundation in 1991. According to its website, the foundation encourages children to “do good deeds and be kind.”
Feinstein, a Cranston resident, graduated from Boston University and Boston Teachers’ College. He taught in Mansfield and Newton, Massachusetts and in Bristol, Rhode Island.
Feinstein’s commitment to world hunger began in the 1980s, and he aligned himself with Brown University’s World Hunger Program after retiring from teaching. That led to the creation of the Feinstein Foundation.
In 2021, Feinstein sat down for an interview with Rhode Island PBS Weekly to discuss his career and commitment to helping children. More than 600,000 youths have participated in the Feinstein Leadership School Program and are recognized as Feinstein Junior Scholars for “promising to do deeds to make a better place.”
Here is that conversation. A link to the full interview can be found here.
Alan Shawn Feinstein met and married Dr. Pratarnporn “Pat” Cheimwichit, in 1963. They would be married for 61 years, but a trip to his bride’s native Thailand changed Feinstein’s life.
He was writing children’s books, and his work caught the eye of King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand, who granted him a private audience.
“He was probably the richest man in the world,” Feinstein said. “It was an eye-opening experience on a world of wealth and privilege that really I had ... never come close to before.”
The king’s interest in Feinstein’s work helped the teacher-author recognize the impact he could have on the lives of children. So when his wife was offered a position as a child psychiatrist in Rhode Island in 1964, the couple returned to the United States. Feinstein continued to teach and write and even authored a successful financial guide.
A newsletter he wrote came to the attention of a doctor in India who “took a shine to it” and introduced it to newspapers worldwide.
“My column was appearing in Russia, Finland and Japan. And I guess they gave me a lot of seemingly clout because with that kind of a following, it was appealing to other people in this country,” Feinstein said.
A groundbreaking guarantee
After his initial success, Feinstein decided to branch out into the collectibles business with a focus on currency.
"(I) went into selling of various — for lack of a better term — exotic products,” he said. “For example, currency from overseas, often demonetized currency, meaning it was no longer legal tender but had a collectability air about it.”
While Feinstein realized that his venture might generate little or no sales, he devised a groundbreaking strategy. He would send customers stamps and paper bills and waited until they were satisfied with the goods before cashing their checks. The guarantee proved to be irresistible.
“I will send you out your order. I will hold your check,” Feinstein said. “If for any reason you’re unhappy, just return your order, I’ll send you your check.
“That brought in several millions of dollars.”
Feinstein’s growing wealth allowed him to pursue charitable ventures. It would lead to his work with Brown University and eventually, his foundation.
“For 15 years, I would offer $1 million each year to anti-hunger agencies throughout the country who used my money as a spur for their fundraising,” he said. “Well. That worked very well as an incentive for a while until, it grew so big, that’s when we decided to turn all those funds and the future over to our schools and expand and use it to expand our school program.
“I wanted the schools to encourage the youngsters to reach out and do good to people, not only for the people they did it for, but for themselves, their values. To know that they could make a difference in the lives of others.”
A life richly rewarded — and rewarding
Through the years, Feinstein would garner several awards, including honorary doctorates from Providence College, Salve Regina University, Johnson and Wales University, Roger Williams University, Rhode Island College, the University of Rhode Island and the New England Institute of Technology.
His philanthropy resulted in service awards from the American History Society, the American Red Cross and the Rhode Island Hall of Fame. He received the President’s Medal at Brown University and Rhode Island College and was named Rhode Island Citizen of the Year by the March of Dimes.
During his 2021 interview, Feinstein said he hoped that his work would continue.
“I had no idea that I would be in a position to impact positively in the lives of 250,000 people,” he said. “I hope that the children that I may have made an impression on will turn around and make that impression on their own children someday.
“I think a lot of them will.”
I had no idea that I would be in a position to impact positively in the lives of 250,000 people.
