Casey Ribicoff (born Lois Ruth Mell; December 5, 1922 – August 22, 2011) was an American philanthropist, socialite and the second wife and widow of
United States Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare
The United States secretary of health and human services is the head of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, and serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all health matters. The secretary is ...
and later United States Senator from
Connecticut
Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...
,
Abraham Ribicoff
Abraham Alexander Ribicoff (April 9, 1910 – February 22, 1998) was an American Democratic Party politician from the state of Connecticut. He represented Connecticut in the United States House of Representatives and Senate and was the 80th ...
. Ribicoff was the President of the ladies auxiliary of Mount Sinai Medical Center in
Miami Beach, Florida
Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida. It was incorporated on March 26, 1915. The municipality is located on natural and artificial island, man-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay, the ...
and in 1963 became the first woman to be selected to serve on the hospital's board of trustees.
As a socialite, she was known as a great woman of style who, after years of appearing on best-dressed lists, was inducted into the International Best-Dressed Hall of Fame in 1988.
Ribicoff counted among her friends
Bill Blass
William Ralph Blass (June 22, 1922 – June 12, 2002) was an American fashion designer. He was the recipient of many fashion awards, including seven Coty Awards and the Fashion Institute of Technology's Lifetime Achievement Award (1999).
Early ...
(of whose estate she was the principal executor).
Ribicoff also counted
Nancy Kissinger
Nancy Sharon Kissinger (née Maginnes; born April 13, 1934) is an American philanthropist and socialite, and the wife of former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. The couple married on March 30, 1974, in Arlington, Virginia.
Life and career ...
,
Barbara Walters
Barbara Jill Walters (born September 25, 1929) is an American broadcast journalist and television personality. Known for her interviewing ability and popularity with viewers, Walters appeared as a host of numerous television programs, including ...
,
Annette de la Renta
Annette de la Renta (born 24 December 1939) is an American philanthropist and socialite, the widow of the Dominican fashion designer Oscar de la Renta. She was named to the International Best Dressed List Hall of Fame in 1973.
Birth and childho ...
,
Dominick Dunne
Dominick John Dunne (October 29, 1925 – August 26, 2009) was an American writer, investigative journalist, and producer. He began his career in film and television as a producer of the pioneering gay film ''The Boys in the Band (1970 film), ...
and
Tom Brokaw
Thomas John Brokaw (; born February 6, 1940) is an American retired network television journalist and author. He first served as the co-anchor of ''The Today Show'' from 1976 to 1981 with Jane Pauley, then as the anchor and managing editor of '' ...
among her close friends.
President
Jimmy Carter
James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...
appointed her to the board of the
Kennedy Center
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (formally known as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, and commonly referred to as the Kennedy Center) is the United States National Cultural Center, located on the Potom ...
, a seat in which she served for twenty years.
References
External links
*New York Times Obituar
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ribicoff, Casey
1922 births
2011 deaths
People from Chicago
Philanthropists from Illinois
American socialites
20th-century American philanthropists