> Quotation needed about mother's involvement. "In 1980, she discussed with then-IBM Corp. Chairman John Opel, who was also on the United Way committee, the bu

> Quotation needed about mother's involvement. "In 1980, she discussed with then-IBM Corp. Chairman John Opel, who was also on the United Way committee, the business IBM was doing with Microsoft. Opel, some accounts say, knew little about the venture, but mentioned Mary Gates to IBM executives who introduced Microsoft at a meeting of IBM's top-level management committee a few weeks later." http://articles.latimes.com/1994-06-11/news/mn-2837_1_mary-gates http://articles.latimes.com/1994-06-11/news/mn-2837_1_mary-g... The episode is a textbook example of "social connections" at work.