o sui generis (unique) was Benjamin Franklin that if he hadn’t existed, we might have invented him. Reading a list of his accomplishments, each one enough for most innovators to peg an entire legacy, is both humbling and startling: inventor of the Franklin stove, author of Poor Richard’s Almanac, member of the Continental Congress, ambassador to France, inventor of the bi-focal lens, scientist, statesman and entrepreneur. And that’s not to mention establishing the first U.S. lending library or experimenting with electricity. “Benjamin Franklin is our first founding father to turn 300, but with him, we somehow are not talking about an historical figure. We are celebrating a living legacy. Look around you and there’s almost nothing that wasn’t affected by him,” says Dr. Rosalind Remer, Executive Director of the Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary Commission.

The youngest son of 11 children, Franklin went to work at his father’s candelry at the age of ten, before moving on to his brother’s printing shop where he was to find his writing voice behind such memorable nom de plumes as ‘Silence Dogood.’ From there he was an ambitious young man on the move, meeting each new challenge as if it were simply opportunity in disguise.

But like all enduring legends, Franklin’s story is not simply about raw accomplishment, but personal character as well. Personifying this character, and cementing our admiration for him, is the sentence he wrote to sign off a letter to his mother in 1750, “I would rather have it said, ‘He lived usefully,’ than, ‘He died rich.’”

In the matter of money, Franklin was not illiterate. He had been so successful at printing that he was able to retire at the age of 42 to pursue what we would call, “philanthropic activities.” An incomplete list of “Franklin-firsts” include: establishing a university, a hospital, a library, a militia, a postal service, a firefighting company, a fire insurance company and advocating for the lighting, cleaning, paving and policing of city streets.

In many ways, Franklin’s life personifies the qualities the Foundation supports. “There are numerous character values such as thrift, curiosity, civic generosity, honesty and loyalty that are optimized in the life of Benjamin Franklin,” says Foundation President, Dr. John M. Templeton, Jr.

As part of the celebration surrounding Franklin’s 300th birthday, the Foundation joined with The Pew Charitable Trusts, Lenfest Foundation and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to support the multi-year event, featuring an interactive traveling exhibit, a series of events and programs, and commemorative activities throughout the nation and the world.

The international traveling exhibition, Benjamin Franklin: In Search of a Better World, opened in Philadelphia on December 15, 2005 at the National Constitution Center and will travel to four U.S. cities before going on to Paris, France. It conveys the singular genius, wit and imagination of Benjamin Franklin through a series of interactive multimedia displays, combined with the largest collection of original Franklin artifacts ever assembled. Visitors see chronological periods of Franklin’s life titled “Character Matters,” “B. Franklin Printer,” “Civic Visions,” “The Search for Useful Knowledge,” “The World Stage,” as well as a concluding section that asks “Do You See Yourself in Franklin?”

It’s hard to imagine this last question being asked of Jefferson or Washington in quite the same way. More than any other of the founding fathers, Franklin seems the most accessible. As Walter Isaacson has written, “each new age can relate to him because, more than any other, he is the founding father who winks at us.”

Accompanying the exhibit is the handsome book, Benjamin Franklin: In Search of a Better World featuring contributions from leading scholars including: J. A. Leo Lemay, Walter Isaacson, Edmund S. Morgan and Page Talbott. Published by Yale University Press and available in bookstores nationwide, the Foundation is pleased to donate a copy of the book to each public library system throughout the United States.

The Foundation’s support of the Franklin Tercentenary also stems from the inspiring nature of Franklin’s search for meaning in his own life. “There is clear and compelling evidence that Benjamin Franklin was on a spiritual journey, one based on religious traditions,” says Arthur Schwartz, Executive Vice President of the Foundation. “His ideas often changed and matured, he struggled with these questions, but Franklin never dismissed a theistic worldview.”

(Click here for “The 13 step Plan”)

www.benfranklin300.org or www.templeton.org/funding_areas/show_profiles.asp?p=11289&b=2|67