John Langeloth Loeb Jr.

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(born May 2, 1930) is an American businessman, former

United States Ambassador to Denmark The first representative from the United States to Denmark was appointed in 1827 as a Chargé d'Affaires. There followed a series of chargés and ministers until 1890 when the first full ambassador ''(Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipoten ...

, and former Delegate to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

. He is an advocate for religious freedom and

separation of church and state The separation of church and state is a philosophical and jurisprudential concept for defining political distance in the relationship between religious organizations and the state. Conceptually, the term refers to the creation of a secular sta ...

, having founded the George Washington Institute for Religious Freedom in 2009. Loeb continues to serve as chairman of the George Washington Institute.

Early life and education

John Langeloth Loeb, Jr. was born on May 2, 1930 in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. His parents were businessman

John Langeloth Loeb Sr. John Langeloth Loeb Sr. (November 11, 1902 – December 8, 1996) was an American investor and executive who served as president of Loeb, Rhoades & Company. Early life and education Loeb was born to a Jewish family on November 11, 1902, in St ...

(1902–1996) and

Frances Lehman The Lehman family is a prominent family of Jewish German-Americans who founded the financial firm Lehman Brothers. Some were also involved in American politics. Members have married into the prominent Morgenthau, Loeb, and Bronfman families. The ...

(1906–1996). Loeb's father and his paternal grandfather, Carl M. Loeb (1875–1955), were founders of Loeb, Rhoades & Co. Loeb's mother was a granddaughter of

Mayer Lehman Mayer Lehman (January 9, 1830 – June 21, 1897) was a German-born American businessman, banker, and philanthropist. He was one of the three founding brothers of the investment bank Lehman Brothers. Early life Mayer Lehman was born in 1830 to ...

(1830–1897), one of the three founders of

Lehman Brothers Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. ( ) was an American global financial services firm founded in 1847. Before Bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers, filing for bankruptcy in 2008, Lehman was the fourth-largest investment bank in the United States (behind Gol ...

. Loeb is the grandson of Arthur Lehman (Senior Partner at Lehman Brothers and founding president of Lehman Brothers) and

Adele Lewisohn Lehman Adele Lewisohn Lehman (May 17, 1882 – August 11, 1965) was an American philanthropist and member of the Lehman family. Biography Adele Lewisohn Lehman was born to a Jewish family on May 17, 1882 in New York City, the daughter of Emma (née Cah ...

. He is a great-grandson of

Adolph Lewisohn Adolph Lewisohn (May 27, 1849 – August 17, 1938) was a German Jewish immigrant born in Hamburg who became a New York City investment banker, mining magnate, and philanthropist. He is the namesake of Lewisohn Hall (which formerly housed the Schoo ...

and grand-nephew of former

New York Governor The governor of New York is the head of government of the U.S. state of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor has a ...

and U. S. Senator

Herbert H. Lehman Herbert Henry Lehman (March 28, 1878 – December 5, 1963) was an American Democratic Party politician from New York. He served from 1933 until 1942 as the 45th governor of New York and represented New York State in the U.S. Senate from 194 ...

. His father is of

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

background. Loeb and his father share the middle name Langeloth in honor of family friend and businessman John Jacob Langeloth (1852–1914). Loeb received his M.B.A. in 1954 from

Harvard Business School Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top business schools in the world and offers a large full-time MBA p ...

Government and public affairs

On July 30, 1981, President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

appointed Loeb to the post of United States Ambassador to

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

. He served in this post until September 1983. Upon his return to the United States, he was appointed a delegate to the 38th session of

. He also served as special advisor to Governor

Nelson A. Rockefeller Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller (July 8, 1908 – January 26, 1979), sometimes referred to by his nickname Rocky, was an American businessman and politician who served as the 41st vice president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. A member of t ...

on environmental matters (1967–1973) and chairman of New York State Council of Environmental Advisors (1970–1975). Loeb was Chairman of the Keep New York State Clean Program (1971-1975). He was a delegate to the Republican National Convention in 1992 and an alternate delegate to the Republican National Conventions in 1988 and 1992.

Organization memberships

Loeb is one out of a group of one-hundred trustees who work for the

American-Scandinavian Foundation The American-Scandinavian Foundation (ASF) is an American non-profit foundation dedicated to promoting international understanding through educational and cultural exchange between the United States and Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Swede ...

. Loeb is chairman of the board of trustees of the Winston Churchill Foundation of the United States (see

Churchill Scholarship The Churchill Scholarship is awarded by the Winston Churchill Foundation of the United States to graduates of the more than one hundred colleges and universities invited to participate in the Churchill Scholarship Program, for the pursuit of rese ...

). Loeb serves on the board of advisors of the Department of Ophthalmology at Columbia University Medical Center. From 1966 to 1994 Loeb served on the board of trustees of the Museum of the City of New York.

George Washington Institute for Religious Freedom

Loeb founded the George Washington Institute for Religious Freedom (GWIRF) in 2009 with the goal of raising people' awareness about the roots of religious freedom and the separation of church and state in the United States and the importance of these principles. Loeb serves as GWIRF's chairman.

Loeb Institute

In 2016, Loeb, through the John L. Loeb Jr. Foundation and the George Washington Institute for Religious Freedom, donated $2.5 million to establish the John L. Loeb Jr. Institute for Religious Freedom at George Washington University. The institute operates within the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences.

Awards and honors

On May 7, 1969, Loeb was made a Churchill Fellow of Westminster College in Fulton, MO, site of Winston Churchill's famous Iron Curtain speech. Upon leaving his ambassadorial post in 1983,

Margrethe II of Denmark Margrethe II (; Margrethe Alexandrine Þórhildur Ingrid, born 16 April 1940) is Queen of Denmark. Having reigned as Denmark's monarch for over 50 years, she is Europe's longest-serving current head of state and the world's only incumbent femal ...

awarded him the Grand Cross of the

Order of the Dannebrog The Order of the Dannebrog ( da, Dannebrogordenen) is a Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single class known a ...

. She also bestowed a Danish crest and

coat-of-arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its w ...

. In 1992,

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

created him a

Commander of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

. In 2010, he was invited to deliver the

Memorial Lecture at Lehman College

CUNY , mottoeng = The education of free people is the hope of Mankind , budget = $3.6 billion , established = , type = Public university system , chancellor = Fél ...

. He also has an honorary

Doctor of Laws A Doctor of Law is a degree in law. The application of the term varies from country to country and includes degrees such as the Doctor of Juridical Science (J.S.D. or S.J.D), Juris Doctor (J.D.), Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), and Legum Doctor (LL. ...

degree from

Georgetown University Law School The Georgetown University Law Center (Georgetown Law) is the law school of Georgetown University, a private research university in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1870 and is the largest law school in the United States by enrollment and t ...

(1980) and was Person of the Year in 2005 at the Danish American Society.

Personal life

Loeb has been married three times.Loeb website: Family
retrieved July 16, 2013 In 1960, he married his first wife, Nina Sundby, with whom he has a daughter. His second wife was Meta Martindell Harrsen with whom he has a son, Nicholas Mears Loeb. In 2012, Loeb married his third wife, Sharon J. Handler. Loeb financed the creation of the Loeb Visitors Center at the

Touro Synagogue The Touro Synagogue or Congregation Jeshuat Israel ( he, קהל קדוש ישועת ישראל) is a synagogue built in 1763 in Newport, Rhode Island. It is the Oldest synagogues in the United States, oldest synagogue building still standing in t ...

National Historic Site in

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is an American seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, Rhode Island, Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, ...

References

External links

George Washington Institute for Religious Freedom
{{DEFAULTSORT:Loeb, John Langeloth, Jr. 1930 births Ambassadors of the United States to Denmark Jewish American philanthropists Florida Republicans Harvard Business School alumni Hotchkiss School alumni Lehman family Living people Carl M. Loeb family Harvard College alumni Commanders of the Order of the British Empire