A low-key Trump megadonor’s massive gifts to an anti-vaccine group founded by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. have been revealed.
Timothy Mellon, the reclusive heir to the Mellon banking empire, gave two sprawling properties in Connecticut to Children’s Health Defense last year, according to documents obtained by The New York Times.
A series of deeds shows that two adjacent properties in Lyme—100-7 Joshuatown Road and 62 Joshua Lane, located at the intersection of the Connecticut and Eightmile Rivers—add up to about 300 acres. They feature a pool, a tennis court, and multiple buildings, reports The Times.
The records also indicate that Mellon, 83, gave both properties to Children’s Health Defense last August. Days later, Mellon signed an agreement for Clipper Properties to maintain the parcels of land.
The properties were appraised at a total of $5.5 million this year, according to The Times. It was sold in August for $0, with Mellon agreeing to cover improvement and maintenance costs while retaining his access to parts of the properties, including a family cemetery.
The Health Department and Children’s Health Defense did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Beast. Kennedy resigned from the anti-vaccine group in 2024 before his confirmation hearings.
In a text message to The Times, Mellon said the donation was none of the paper’s business and declined to comment.
Though Mellon has largely evaded the public eye, his donations to Trumpworld have made noise over the years. In October, after American troop salaries were caught in the crossfire of a government shutdown, Mellon pledged $130 million to keep service members paid.
“He’s a great gentleman,” President Donald Trump said at the time. “He’s a great patriot. He’s obviously a very substantial man, and he contributed $130 million toward the military in order to make up any difference. So he wanted to see the military get paid.”
Previously, Mellon donated millions to groups that backed Trump’s 2024 campaign, including a hefty one-time gift of $50 million to a PAC supporting Trump. Mellon also made donations to Kennedy’s presidential campaign, which ultimately flamed out.
Mellon is the grandson of longtime Treasury Secretary Andrew W. Mellon. Andrew, in turn, was the son of Thomas Mellon, founder of Mellon Bank, which made his family filthy rich for generations.
Mellon’s father, Paul, bred racehorses. When Fortune published its first list of the wealthiest Americans in 1957, it estimated that Paul, his sister, and his two cousins were among the eight wealthiest people in the U.S.
“In the world of politics, you want your name mentioned,” Trump said of Mellon after he made the $130 million donation. “He doesn’t.”
