On January 12, 2016, David Bowie passed away at the age of 69.  He died after an 18-month battle with cancer.  In his will, Bowie requested that his remains be taken to Bali and be cremated there in accordance with Buddhist rituals.

Despite declaring himself gay in 1972, Bowie was married twice.  His first wife, Mary Barnett, gave birth to his son Duncan.  He married his second wife, Iman, in 1992 after declaring in 1983 that he was a closet heterosexual.  He had a second daughter Alexi by Iman in August 2000.

Bowie had an ongoing spiritual journey.  In 1967, he showed an interest in Buddhism.  In 1992, when he married Iman, he said a church wedding was a must because God had sanctified their wedding.  That same year, he recited the Lord’s Prayer at one of his concerts.  In 1993, Bowie said that he was sure of the existence of God, but in 2005, he said that he was “not quite an atheist.” 

As part of his will, he left 50% of the estate to his wife Iman and 25% to each of his children.  Alexandria, at 15, will have her portion of the estate held in trust until she’s 25 years of age.  There was no mention of charitable giving through his estate.

Bowie was lauded for his professional career.  His personal and spiritual journey might be described as searching and confused.  And his estate plan?  How would you describe it?

Bill High

Bill is CEO & Founder of Vyne Legacy. He works with families to equip them with tools to build multigenerational legacies, and he teaches givers and financial advisers on transformational biblical generosity. He is the co-author with David Green of Giving It All Away and Getting It All Back Again: The Way of Living Generously.

Published March 1, 2016

Topics: Culture Commentary

Family LegacyInheritance