June Rockwell Levy (1886-1971) was an American philanthropist who was inducted into the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame alongside her husband in 1999. In 1963, she received the

Order 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 ...

from Queen

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 ...

. She was known as the "First Lady of Burrillville."

Biography

June Rockwell Levy was born on June 14, 1886, in Brooklyn, N.Y. In 1891, she moved with her family to

Bristol, Rhode Island Bristol is a town in Bristol County, Rhode Island, US as well as the historic county seat. The town is built on the traditional territories of the Pokanoket Wampanoag. It is a deep water seaport named after Bristol, England. The population of ...

. She studied in

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and at Rosemary Hall, later going to the

Rhode Island School of Design The Rhode Island School of Design (RISD , pronounced "Riz-D") is a private art and design school in Providence, Rhode Island. The school was founded as a coeducational institution in 1877 by Helen Adelia Rowe Metcalf, who sought to increase the ...

. Due to a sickness, she was unable to receive a degree from the school. She was a Trustee of Lincoln School, Chair of the Providence Art Club's Ladies Board, President of the Providence Garden Club, and Northwest Community Healthcare (which she would serve 51 consecutive terms as president of). She funded Burrillville, Rhode Island's Town Hall, high school, library, community theater, public health nursing buildings and an indoor ice‐skating rink. The June Rockwell Levy Foundation was created in honor of her in 1947. In addition to funding scholarships to the

University of Rhode Island The University of Rhode Island (URI) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Kingston, Rhode Island, United States. It is the flagship public research as well as the land-grant university of the state of Rhode Isla ...

and University of Brandeis, the foundation donated extensively to medical establishments. The University of Rhode Island awarded Levy an honorary degree.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Levy, June Rockwell 1971 deaths 1886 births American women philanthropists Members of the Order of the British Empire Philanthropists from Rhode Island People from Brooklyn Rhode Island School of Design alumni Philanthropists from New York (state) 20th-century American philanthropists People from Bristol, Rhode Island 20th-century women philanthropists