The security guard owned a fortune of 196 billion. When he passed away, his family was shocked when they read the will

No one could have imagined that an elderly man who sat every day guarding cars at a small store would own such a huge fortune. Notably, when he passed away, his family was "excited" when they read the will.

Only working as a security guard, a 92-year-old man in the US surprised many people when he left behind a "huge" fortune after his death. What surprised everyone the most was that this man chose who would inherit his property.

Ronald Read, an American, used to work as a janitor and security guard at a gas station in Vermont. When he passed away, he left behind an asset of up to 8 million USD, equivalent to more than 196 billion VND. This huge amount of assets completely surprised his family, because when he was alive, Ronald Read was just a security guard with a modest income.

It is known that he grew up in a poor farming family in Dummerston, Vermont. Every day, he walked 4 miles (6.4 km) to high school and became the first high school graduate in his family. During World War II, he joined the United States Army and served in Italy as a military policeman. After being discharged from the Army in 1945, Read returned to Brattleboro, Vermont and worked as a stewardess and mechanic for about 25 years. After retiring, he worked as a part-time janitor at JC Penney for 17 years until 1997.

Everyone knows that Ronald Read is a very quiet and frugal person. Mr. Read maintained a frugal lifestyle throughout the last years of his life. Therefore, his children were surprised to learn that their father, who was always frugal, was actually a millionaire.

However, a friend and neighbor of Read's revealed that he knows how to use his money wisely: "I'm sure if he earned $50 a week, he would invest $40 in those accounts". This shows the answer that he owns a fortune worth 8 million VND from living frugally and investing wisely.

While many people are confused about who Read will leave that money to, there are also many people who are curious about his past. "My dad is a hard worker. But I don't think anyone knows he's a secret millionaire," said the man's children.

Besides, there are also many people who find it difficult to understand that Read would leave a large amount of money to someone, and many people are curious about his past. Previously, Read served in North Africa, Italy and the Pacific theater during World War II. After the war, he returned home to work at a gas station and as a janitor, then got married and had two children.

At the age of 38, Read bought a 3-bedroom house for 12,000 USD (more than 294 million VND) to live with his family. Read is famous for his simple lifestyle and only spending money on necessities. Every morning, he and his wife go to eat at a cafe. Even though his coat was torn, he still did not throw it away but kept it to wear. "I'm sure if he was making $50 a week, he could have invested $40 of it," said Read's neighbor, Mark Richards.

According to research, he is a good stock picker and has the ability to hold many shares and stocks for a long time. Ronald Read chose to buy and hold Blue chip stocks - a type of stock that brings stable income, low risk and not high dividends. These stocks often belong to companies with large market capitalization.

Read owned at least 95 shares at the time of his death. Many of those shares may have been held for decades. However, Read's family, relatives and friends did not know this.

Information said that Mr. Read left a total of 2 million USD (equivalent to more than 49 billion VND) for his family. He donated all the remaining money to the local library and hospital.

Read left $4.8 million to Brattleboro Memorial Hospital, where he frequented, not for treatment but for breakfast. The money Read contributed was used by the hospital to support infrastructure improvements and general modernization projects.