The most memorable holiday gift

“Right after World War II, my father was saving to buy himself a new suit. Instead he bought me a brand-new red tricycle.”
—Ron Baron, founder, Baron Capital

“The Barbie Dream House. It is basically where I manifested my adult life!”
—Carolyn Rafaelian, founder, Alex & Ani

“A picture of my son’s essay from first grade, saying I was his hero and that he wanted to be just like
me when he grew up.”
—Mark Cuban, owner, Dallas Mavericks
“My folks didn’t have much money, but I was very excited when I was eight and my dad brought me home a cardboard box with holes in it—so I knew something was alive. There was a pigeon inside! He worked on the railroad, so he had caught it and brought it home. From that point on, I have always had pigeons.”
—Frank VanderSloot, founder, Melaleuca health products
“I was about 11 and my brother was eight. We got up early, went downstairs before my parents and ripped into our packages. We each got a pellet gun and proceeded to use the antique bulbs on the tree for target practice. It started out as each of us shooting just one and by the time our parents came down, all the antique bulbs were destroyed. The guns were taken away. I don’t remember ever seeing them again.”
—Bob Parsons, founder, GoDaddy

As told to Madeline Berg