Eddie Van Halen Left a Seven-Figure Endowment to a Children’s Music Foundation

As the old saying goes, you can’t take it with you. While the claim that money ‘doesn’t matter’ shows a lack of understanding about how the real world works, it’s also worth noting that what we do with that money is what’s really important. And it appears that guitar god Eddie Van Halen had his priorities straight when it came to his legacy, having left a children’s music foundation an endowment of at least a million dollars.

As reported by Loudwire, yesterday Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation (MHOF), an organization that helps kids get music education in schools throughout the United States, revealed that Eddie had left them a seven-figure donation that will help improve the foundation’s technology, hire more staff, and work with schools to provide more music education.

Said MHOF president and CEO Felice Mancini:

“Eddie’s support and friendship over the years meant the world to us and to his fans. His passion for music and our work created a strong bond, which is evident in his extraordinary bequest.”

“To know how much our foundation meant to Eddie is intensely humbling and gratifying to all of us. We know that Eddie’s family is confident that his powerful legacy and values live on through our efforts.”

Eddie’s son Wolfgang Van Halen helped facilitate the gift, and added the following:

“The work they do for music education was always something that was important to my father…[MHOF] are champions for our musicians of the future, and it is my privilege to continue supporting that mission and carrying on my pop’s legacy.”

Normally, this is the part where I offer my personal, MetalSucks-ass take on whatever this article is about…but there’s really only one take here, right? This is fucking awesome, Eddie Van Halen continues to be a legend after his death, and kids should get into music.

If you want to donate to Mr. Holland’s Opus, you can do so at their website.