Mr. R. Brinkley Smithers, a recovering alcoholic, marshaled his personal and family fortune into the nation’s largest foundation in support of alcoholism research, education, prevention, and treatment – the Christopher D. Smithers Foundation.

In the fifties, Brink Smithers forged a close working relationship with Professor Harrison Trice at the School of Industrial and Labor Relations. Together, they conducted a number of pioneering studies on alcoholism.