Three Massachusetts philanthropists ranked among the nation’s 50 largest donors

By Beth Healy, Globe Staff

Three Massachusetts philanthropists ranked among the nation’s 50 largest donors to charitable organizations in 2012, according to the Chronicle of Philanthropy. Only New York and California had more residents on the list.

The three Boston donors tied others on the list for 40th place, giving $30 million each to local universities.

Joseph O’Donnell of Boston, founder of the Boston Culinary Group, and his wife Katherine gave $30 million to Harvard University. Venture capitalist Richard D’Amore of Waltham gave $30-million to Northeastern University for its school of business, and Clean Harbors founder Alan McKim, also pledged $30-million to Northeastern University’s business school.

Warren Buffett, the famous investor, was the largest donor in the nation, at $3.1 billion, followed by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, who gave $499 million.

Among all the gifts from top-50 donors around the country last year, New England organizations benefited from 16 of them, including 11 to Massachusetts groups, 4 in Maine and 1 in New Hampshire.

Boston-area recipients included Hebrew SeniorLife, Boston College, Boston College High School, the Dr. Miriam and Sheldon G. Adelson Medical Research Foundation, the Chelsea Jewish Foundation and Gateways: Access to Jewish Education.

Maine organizations included College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor, the Northeast Harbor Library, Parish of Saint Mary and Saint Jude, Mount Desert Land and Garden Preserve. In New Hampshire, the top donors gave to Dartmouth College.