Meet the Mars family, heirs to the Snickers and M&M's candy empire, who avoided the limelight for years

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The company has been criticized for not giving enough, especially as one of the largest private companies in the US. Mars Inc. says it makes anonymous contributions. The Smithsonian National Museum of American History. Mark Wilson/Getty Images In 2012, they donated $5 million to the Smithsonian National Museum of American History for renovations and a new gallery bearing their name. In 2012, Jacqueline Mars received the first-ever Foundation for the National Archives' "Heritage Award," for her support of the National Archives and other arts and cultural institutions in Washington, DC. The US Equestrian Team Foundation, of which she is an honorary life trustee, also gives Jacqueline B. Mars National Competition and Training Grant awards each year. These grants "provide training and competition resources for U.S. athletes who have never competed on an Eventing Olympics or FEI World Championships Team and have earned, via results and potential, the opportunity to travel to another part of the country to compete," according to the foundation. Jacqueline also played a role merging the Opera with John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and made a multi-year commitment to support the Washington Performing Arts' programs. "The family has always believed that the biggest contribution toward the world we want tomorrow is through the good that Mars, Inc. can do every day, and the family reinvests the vast majority of any profit made back into the company," a company spokesperson previously told BI. In 2017, the company made a $1 billion investment in a sustainability program that will contribute to the UN's Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Climate Agreement. It also donated $26 million in pandemic relief to communities most affected by the crisis. The Mars Wrigley Foundation supports educational and health-related causes by "providing oral health education and care, improving lives in mint and cocoa-growing regions, and creating resilient and vibrant communities," according to its website.