Richard Lee, left, owner of the Blue Sky Shop/dispensary, teaching Chris McCatheran about medical marijuana plants. Credit: Peter Dasilva/European Pressphoto Agency

The popularity of pot clubs in the Bay Area has led to a burgeoning crop of medical marijuana millionaires. Call them the ganja riche. Like many of their nouveaux predecessors, they are trying to figure out what to do with their cash.

Some are giving to charity, but you will not see any fanfare or buildings named in their honor. Medicinal marijuana remains a legal gray area, and nothing — even philanthropy — is simple when it comes to the proceeds. Oakland’s medical marijuana headquarters, Oaksterdam University, could not even sponsor a local food bank.

“They refused our sponsorship because of other money they get from the federal government,” said Richard Lee, founder of Oaksterdam.

While marijuana money and munchies might sound like the perfect fit, the food bank worried that such a partnership would have put the federal dollars it receives in jeopardy.

“We appreciated the offer from Oaksterdam and gave it due consideration,” said Brian Higgins, the food bank’s spokesman. “In the end, it was not worth the risk.”

The sense of legal uncertainty is created by the maze of laws surrounding medical marijuana. California voters approved it, but it remains a federal crime.

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