Never Before Made Public Documents Unveil Relationship Between Sacklers and Helena Foulkes
GoLocalProv News Team and Josh Fenton
Never Before Made Public Documents Unveil Relationship Between Sacklers and Helena Foulkes
Foulkes, who ran for governor in Rhode Island in the 2022 Democratic primary and is now raising money for another run in 2026, has repeatedly told the media and voters that she took action against the opioid crisis while President of CVS.
But she never made mention of her close relationship with the Sacklers, the family that many believe was the most significant cause of the opioid crisis — and tied to the overdose deaths of nearly 1 million people in the United States and thousands in Rhode Island.
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In documents secured by GoLocal — letters and emails accessed through a public records request filed in Connecticut — unveil how Jonathan Sackler, a Vice President of Purdue Pharma, was a major supporter of the Foulkes’ family center — The Dodd Center.
Jonathan Sackler and other members of the family were, in fact, major benefactors of the Dodd Center for two decades. The Dodd Center is named in honor of Foulkes’ grandfather and uncle — both U.S. Senators. The Center is housed at the University of Connecticut.
As GoLocal unveiled in an investigative report published earlier this year, Foulkes' uncle, Chris Dodd, has been criticized for using his office as a U.S. Senator to protect Purdue Pharma and delaying action to combat the opioid crisis.
Foulkes served on the board of The Dodd Center for 12 years — from 2009 to 2022, and for many of those years, she chaired the board.
She is refusing to discuss her personal and her family’s financial relationships with the Sacklers.
Foulkes declined to be interviewed for this story.
Foulkes "Angry" at Purdue Pharma
Foulkes claimed that when she learned about the opioid crisis as President of CVS in 2014 that she took action, and she was “angry” at opioid manufacturer Purdue Pharma.
Foulkes, in the interview with GoLocal on August 29, 2022, said about her role in the opioid crisis at CVS, “My big thing is I came in 2014 and I am very proud of the changes that I made, I really am. I took a leadership role both inside the company and with my peers [fighting opioids].”
In another interview on GoLocal LIVE in 2022, Foulkes said, "I am absolutely devastated for the families that have gone through [the opioid crisis]. It is just crushing for them and for me to think about that. I'm also really angry. I am angry because Purdue Pharma in particular lied to all of us, and that really makes me angry.”
“You know, all I can say is that as soon as we saw what was going on we took action and I feel very strongly about that,” said Foulkes.
CVS, today, is being sued by the U.S. Department of Justice for its role in the opioid crisis, and for a number of years during which the government alleges the abuse took place, Foulkes was President.
But, newly unveiled documents show that Jonathan Sackler served on the Board of Directors of the Foulkes' family Dodd Center for four additional years after the time she said she was “angry.”
The Sackler money kept flowing into Foulkes’ Dodd Center, according to documents secured by GoLocal.
And, even while running for Governor in Rhode Island, Foulkes has fundraised thousands of dollars from another family confidant who is a top lobbyist for Purdue Pharma.
All during these years, while Foulkes' family Dodd Center was taking Sackler money, hundreds of thousands of Americans were dying of opioid overdoses.
Sacklers Part of the Dodd Center “Family”
Documents secured by GoLocal through a public records request to the University of Connecticut unveil how Jonathan Sackler served on the board of the Foulkes' family Dodd Center and how his parents donated hundreds of thousands of dollars in support of the Dodd Center.
GoLocal’s multi-month investigation uncovered emails that unveil that Jonathan Sackler was a major supporter of The Dodd Center while Foulkes served as Board Chair.
All mentions of the Sacklers and their ties to UConn and the Dodd Center have since been scrubbed from the respective organizations' websites.
One of the emails secured by GoLocal from the Dodd Center to Jonathan Sackler was dated 2018 — four years after Foulkes claims she was “angry” at Purdue Pharma.
At the time, he was the Vice President of Purdue Pharma. The email from The Dodd Center thanked Jonathan Sackler for all of his service as a board member and contributor.
“After Thursday, while you will [no] longer be an active member of the board, we will continue to regard you as part of the Dodd Center family,” said the email, dated Monday, September 24, 2018.
The letter was signed by Glenn Mitoma, Ph.D. Director of the Dodd Center and cc'ed both Foulkes and her uncle, former Senator Chris Dodd.
Mitoma no longer works for The Dodd Center. He is now a lecturer at Columbia University and did not respond to emails or calls.
In a letter to Sackler dated September 20, 2018, related to the email, the Dodd Center wrote to Jonathan Sackler, “I write to express my heartfelt gratitude for your years of service as an Advisory Board member of the Thomas J. Dodd Research Center long before, and since its inception in 1996. Words simply cannot express our profound appreciation for your faithful efforts, your wise counsel and your staunch leadership on behalf of the Dodd Center and its multifaceted programs.”
“Your longstanding commitment and dedication to the Dodd Center is immeasurable. Over the years, you volunteered your time, approached the task at hand both judiciously and efficiently, and brought an invaluable perspective to defining and shaping our strategic initiatives,” states the letter.
Jonathan Sackler's deep involvement was not the only Sackler tie to The Dodd Center.
His parents — Raymond and Beverly Sackler — underwrote the “Raymond and Beverly Distinguished Lecture Series” at the Dodd Center.
Raymond Sackler was one of the three brothers who created the massive Purdue Pharma empire. He and his wife pumped millions into the Dodd Center and UConn as a whole — a reported $4.5 million. UConn would not release the details on the Sacklers' donations.
"Please note that we are not able to provide records responsive to your request for donor information, as those are maintained by the UConn Foundation, which is a private entity and as such it is not subject to FOI," wrote Megan Philippi, Director of Public Records, University Communications at UConn in an email to GoLocal on February 24, 2025.
At the dedication of the Dodd Center on October 15, 1995, UConn President Harry Hartley made sure to thank Dr. Raymond Sackler for his role in the center's development and his role on the Advisory Council.
The donations and the service on the board of The Dodd Center went on for decades. And much of it while Foulkes served and chaired the board.
The Sacklers and the Foulkes family were intertwined.
The New York Times wrote in Raymond Sackler's obituary:
"OxyContin, introduced in 1995, was Purdue Pharma’s breakthrough palliative for chronic pain. Under a marketing strategy that Arthur Sackler had pioneered decades earlier, the company aggressively pressed doctors to prescribe the drug, wooing them with free trips to pain-management seminars and paid speaking engagements. Sales soared. By 2001, prescriptions for OxyContin were generating more than $1.5 billion a year — surpassing sales of Viagra — and accounted for some 80 percent of the company’s revenue.
Another email, this one, again after Foulkes became CVS president in 2014, and after she claimed she was “angry” about Purdue Pharma, outlined how the Sacklers were continuing to pour money into the Dodd Center under her board leadership to fund the Sackler Lecture Series.
An email dated March 2015, from Glenn Mitoma, executive director of the Dodd Center to Foulkes, her uncle former Senator Dodd, and Dodd’s long-time political advisor Stephen Kinney — GOLOCAL WILL PUBLISH A SEPARATE REPORT ABOUT KINNEY.
Dear Sen. Dodd, Steve, and Helena,
I am finalizing the details for the Dodd Center Board Meeting and Sackler Lecture/Dinner on April 9th and wanted to touch base with you about timing.
We currently have the Board Meeting scheduled from 12-2pm. The Sackler events begin at 4pm with a reception, followed by the Lecture at 5pm, and a Dinner at 7pm. Given the gap between the end of the board meeting (2pm) and the beginning of the Sackler Lecture reception (4pm), I wanted to seek everyone’s input on shifting the meeting forward by an hour or 90 minutes.
Helena, I know that you will not be able to join us on campus due to travel, but if you would be available to call in during one of these times, let me know.
I am hoping to send out a note to the full board later this week with details about the meeting and the event.
All the best,
Glenn
Foulkes was not "angry" - the relationship between the Sacklers and her family was firmly bonded.
COMING: Foulkes' Family Relationship to Stephen Kinney
Editor's Note: Jonathan Sackler died June 20, 2020, at the age of 65, and his father, Raymond, died July 17, 2017, at the age of 97. Both were board members and made billions from Purdue Pharma.
This story was first published 4/23/25 7:04 AM