Bastian was a co-founder of WordPerfect and played a key role in Utah's LGBTQ+ community.
(Al Hartman | Salt Lake Tribune file photo) Bruce Bastian, co-founder of WordPerfect and a philanthropist who supported arts and LGBTQ+ organizations in Utah, died June 16, 2024, at age 76. Here he is pictured at a 2016 event.
| June 17, 2024 4:24 pm
Bruce Bastian, a key figure in Utah's tech and LGBTQ+ communities, has passed away.
Bastian died Sunday morning at the age of 76, according to Troy Williams, executive director of the Utah Equality Association.
Bastian is a co-founder of WordPerfect, a word processing application that he launched with professor Alan Ashton as a graduate student at Brigham Young University in 1979. Originally designed for the city of Orem, WordPerfect became hugely popular in the '80s and '90s.
By 1991, the privately held company, with Bastian as chairman, was the fourth-largest publisher of personal-computer software, behind Microsoft, Lotus and Novell, according to The New York Times. In 1994, Novell bought WordPerfect and brought Bastian onto its board of directors, but he resigned a year later.
Bastian donated much of his fortune through the BW Bastian Foundation, which has given grants to dozens of LGBTQ+ organizations and arts nonprofits over the years. (Disclosure: The Salt Lake City Tribune is one of the nonprofits that has received grants from Bastian's foundation.)
News of Bastian's death spread through local nonprofit and community groups Sunday morning.
“No one has had a greater impact on the lives of LGBTQ people in Utah,” Williams wrote in the Equality Utah newsletter.
In a statement to The Salt Lake Tribune, Williams added: “All of our progress as a community over the past 30 years is due to Bruce. He was our mentor, our mentor, and most importantly, our friend.”
Williams said Bastian's impact “cannot be overstated,” adding, “Without his love and support, we would not be where we are today. In honor of his remarkable life, we will recommit ourselves to his great passion: promoting liberty and equality for all Americans.”
Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall said Sunday Social Media Platform XHe said he was “saddened” by Bastian's death.
“He leaves behind an incredible legacy for Salt Lake City, our state, and beyond,” Mendenhall wrote, “one that we can all emulate — one that strives to make the world a better place through leadership in technology, advocacy for LGBTQ+ rights, and support for those in need in the arts and our community.”
Many of the organizations Bastian supported took time to remember his philanthropic work and personal legacy.
In an Instagram post, Project Rainbow Utah called Bastian its “biggest supporter from the beginning.”
The Human Rights Campaign called Bastian, who served as its director for 22 years, a “champion for LGBTQ+ rights.”
“It's impossible to overstate the monumental mark he left on LGBTQ+ advocates in Washington, D.C., Utah and beyond,” HRC President Kelly Robinson said in a statement. “Bruce stood up for each and every one of us and elevated the beautiful diversity of our community, and that's a legacy we should all be proud of and carry forward.”
The group also recognized Bastian's contributions to the 2004 blockade of the Federal Marriage Amendment, which would have recognized marriage only between a man and a woman. According to Ballotpedia, a digital encyclopedia of American politics, Bastian donated $364,000 to the blockade of the Utah Marriage Amendment. The Tribune reported at the time that Bastian contributed “half” of the group's budget to fight the amendment.
His philanthropy also extended to the performing arts. Bastian supported organizations such as the Utah Symphony Orchestra and Utah Opera and Ballet West. He donated 55 Steinway pianos to the University of Utah's Kingsbury Hall during its renovation. In 2010, President Barack Obama appointed Bastian to the President's Advisory Council on the Arts.
Bastian spoke about the experience and how he became interested in funding the arts to Salt Lake City Weekly in 2010. “If you don't want to be an emotionless robot, you need artistic things in your life. If you believe in nurturing the spirit, art touches the soul,” Bastian said.
“Most people think about gay rights and HRC. [Human Rights Campaign] “I don't think people realize my connection to art when they hear my name. It's just part of the way life is. I'll be remembered by what I'm remembered by,” Bastian told City Weekly in 2010.
Bastian is survived by her husband, Clint Ford, four sons, Rick (Heather), Darren (Lisa), Jeff (Christy) and Robert (Amy), three brothers, and 14 grandchildren. Two of her siblings, Louis Bastian and Connie Embry, have already passed away.
A memorial service has not yet been announced.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
