Wal-Mart heir John Walton died yesterday when his plane crashed shortly after take off. Readers of this blog may wonder why I am writing about his death, and what exactly his death has to do with conservative Hispanic issues. The answer lies in education, and what John Walton had done for education of poor and less fortunate students (who are heavily minority students).

The Wall Street Journal writes:

Mr. Walton, an heir to the Wal-Mart family fortune and the 11th richest American according to Forbes magazine, had been a stalwart and courageous advocate of using consumer choice and competition to reform failing schools. In 1998, Mr. Walton joined with financier Ted Forstmann and former Walt Disney Co. head Michael Ovitz to create a $200 million scholarship fund so that low-income students in urban areas could attend private schools. He also sat on the board of CEO America, a leading clearinghouse for school choice efforts, and had contributed the start-up budget for the Black Alliance for Educational Options, a pro-choice group of black educators led by former Milwaukee school superintendent Howard Fuller. Mr. Walton’s friend, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, said last night that “John Walton’s legacy of investment in education and commitment to the youth of our country was an example to all of us.”

As a philanthropist, Mr. Walton shunned the limelight, but he emerged briefly last November when he explained to Fortune magazine why he was so passionate about education reform: “Our family has come to the conclusion that there is no single area of activity that would have the breadth of impact that improving K-through-12 education in America would have.” said Mr. Walton. “It would have a positive impact on every single societal challenge we face, from crime to productivity to economic health and growth, to true equality.”

Fortunately, the battle for Mr. Walton’s causes will continue. This year he contributed $360,000 to help get a “paycheck protection” initiative on the ballot for California’s special election on November 8th. The measure would require public employee unions — including teachers unions — to get permission from their members before using dues for expressly political purposes. The outcome could determine the future pace of all educational reform efforts in California and other states.

Update: Derek, in the comments section, provides a link with more information on John Walton. The San Diego Union Tribune writes:

Walton focused his giving on creating school choice for the poor. He supported charter schools and contributed $50 million to the Children’s Scholarship Fund, the nation’s largest privately funded school voucher program, with Wall Street financier Ted Forstmann.

Educator Dennis McKeown remembered that soon after he opened King-Chavez Academy of Excellence in Barrio Logan, Walton made an unannounced visit.

Walton pronounced the campus a winner and asked McKeown if there was anything he could do. McKeown said that the bathrooms needed cleaning.

“Where’s the mop?” Walton asked. McKeown said Walton spent the next 25 minutes mopping the school’s bathrooms.

The two stayed in touch, and the Walton Family Foundation recently donated $540,000 to McKeown’s latest project, the reform of King Elementary School in San Diego.

“Any time a hippie like me can connect with an aristocrat like that, I think it’s just God being good,” McKeown said.

Although Walton was a major contributor to the failed state campaign to create a system of taxpayer-funded vouchers for private schools, he also gave a great deal of money to public schools.

He gave money to the School Futures Research Foundation, which helped start Nubia Leadership Academy, Holly Drive Leadership Academy, Promise Charter School and the former Sojourner Truth Learning Academy, as well as King-Chavez.

In 2003, San Diego city schools announced a three-year, $3 million grant from the Walton Family Foundation to help raise student achievement at some of the city’s lowest-performing schools.

In 2000, Walton donated $100,000 to support a failed attempt to oust San Diego schools trustee Fran Zimmerman, who opposed the back-to-the-basics educational reform championed by superintendent Alan Bersin.

The San Diego Natural History Museum, of which Christy Walton is a board member, has been a recipient of the Waltons’ generosity, as is the Mingei International Museum and the San Diego Zoological Society.

Mick Hager, executive director of the Natural History Museum, described Walton as a quiet man who retired early to bed yet craved athletics and adventure, from scuba diving and skiing to sailing and flying.

“He was a wonderful friend to the museum, and he was a wonderful friend to San Diego,” Hager said.

Walton was an Army veteran who served with the Green Berets as a medic during the Vietnam War. He worked as a crop duster in the 1970s and built boats in the 1980s. He attended the College of Wooster in Wooster, Ohio.

Update: More on John Walton and the Children’s Scholarship Fund (CSF) here.