James LeVoy Sorenson

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James LeVoy Sorenson (1922-) is the founder of Sorenson Companies, a parent company of 32 corporations. A noted philanthropist, he is currently the richest man in Utah and 50th in the U.S., according to Forbes World's Richest People. With only a high school diploma, he made a fortune in local real estate before expanding in other directions such as innovative technology. Sorenson holds roughly 60 patents, and is credited with a number of medical inventions including the disposable surgical mask and the disposable venous catheter. One of his companies, Sorenson Genomics, has also begun a genetic database known as the Molecular Genealogy Research Project, and claims to be the only laboratory in the world to have successfully identified victims of the 2004 tsunami in Thailand.

On Wednesday, February 15, 2006, Sorenson received the "Giant of Our City" award in Salt Lake City, Utah for his philanthropy and effort in identifying the tsunami victims.