Francis L. Abreu
Charitable Trust
PO Box 502407
Atlanta, GA 31150
770-649-7381

Francis L. Abreu (1896-1969)
May Patterson Abreu (1891-1976)

In 1977, the Francis L. Abreu Charitable Trust in Atlanta was established under the will of May Patterson Abreu to honor her husband, Francis, who died in 1969. Prior to the creation of this trust, a tradition of philanthropy and a legacy of art already had begun in Georgia and Florida by this southern family.

Francis L. Abreu (1896-1969)
Born in 1896 to Diego and Marie Jova Abreu, the owners of a Cuban sugar plantation, Francis became a renowned architect known in Florida and Georgia for his distinctive designs that blend Spanish and Mediterranean influences.

Francis divided his time during his youth between his boyhood homes in upstate New York and Cuba. He attended Cornell University, where he ran on the track team, and after returning from service in the US Navy during World War I, earned a bachelor's degree in architecture. After graduation, Francis moved to Fort Lauderdale -- where his parents now were living -- at the beginning of the city's real estate boom. The following five years were among the busiest in his career, as he began designing numerous homes for the city's elite. His first clients were his mother's friends who were in need of winter homes. His architectural designs featured barrel tile roofs, twisted columns, arched walk-ways, antique lanterns, iron gates and heavy dark wooden doors. Today, however, he is best known for his commercial and public buildings.

In 1928, Francis L. Abreu, Architect was the firm hired to design parts of the famous Cloister Hotel on Sea Island, Georgia. Abreu also designed many homes on Sea Island, including the home of playwright Eugene O'Neil, which is often considered the largest and most attractive home on the island. While living in Sea Island, he met James Robeson and made him a partner in a new firm called Abreu & Robeson. The firm had offices in Atlanta and Brunswick. In Atlanta, Francis Abreu worked on the design of the hospitals, banks and government projects, including the Trust Company of Georgia tower and the original Saint Joseph's Infirmary.

May Patterson Abreu (1891-1976)
In the 1920s, like many Americans, May's father found himself in financial ruin. May took a job at Porter and Porter, one of Atlanta's premier interior design firms, to help her father financially. During this time, she was being courted by James J. Goodrum, an Atlanta area investment banker at Trust Company of Georgia. James managed the initial public offering of shares of the Coca-Cola, Co. through the corporate finance department of the bank for the group of investors, led by the Woodruff family and their friends, who had purchased the company from the Candler family. Although James had made wise financial decisions and was among the city's wealthy citizens, May refused his marriage proposals until she had completely paid off her father's debt. In 1926, when her father was debt-free, May married James. Sadly, James died after only two years of marriage.

May and Francis
Francis and May met on Sea Island and married on 14 April, 1938. After their marriage, they were active members of Atlanta society during the 1940s and 1950s and were staunch patrons of the arts. May enjoyed the opera, arts and the symphony, while Francis preferred golfing, hunting and fishing. However, while Francis may not have shared May's love for cultural events, he did attend events to be social. May and Francis lived on West Paces Ferry Road in the home that is now headquarters for the Southern Center for International Studies.

May was an active participant in many charities in Atlanta, supporting the Atlanta Humane Society and the American Red Cross, as well as individual citizens. After the Depression, May provided several people with financial assistance to help them get back on their feet. One day when walking down Peachtree Street in Atlanta, May saw one of these people look at her and cross the street to avoid repayment. At Christmas, she sent "paid in full" messages in her Christmas cards to all who had received money from her with the simple message, "Merry Christmas."

May established the Francis L. Abreu Charitable Trust in her will to honor her husband. Today, the Trust carries on the tradition of giving begun many years ago and continues to benefit the Atlanta area arts and cultural programs, education, health associations, human services, children and youth services.

The tradition is carried on by their son Peter and his children, Michael, Claire and Katherine, along with the family attorney, John A. Wallace of the King and Spalding law firm. The Abreu family is active in the Atlanta area and gives time to different interests to carry on the tradition.

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