Maiko Jeong Shun Lee, Viscountess Rothermere (born 1949) is a Japanese-born Korean

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

and

patron Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, art patronage refers to the support that princes, popes, and other wealthy and influential people ...

the arts The arts or creative arts are a vast range of human practices involving creative expression, storytelling, and cultural participation. The arts encompass diverse and plural modes of thought, deeds, and existence in an extensive range of m ...

active in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

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and

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. She is the widow of the 3rd Viscount Rothermere, proprietor of British newspaper the ''

Daily Mail The ''Daily Mail'' is a British daily Middle-market newspaper, middle-market Tabloid journalism, tabloid conservative newspaper founded in 1896 and published in London. , it has the List of newspapers in the United Kingdom by circulation, h ...

'', whom she married in 1993, having been his mistress for many years.

Charity work

Lady Rothermere has been a patron of the Philharmonia Orchestra since 2001, is a trustee, and has also served as chairman of the endowment fund since 2005. She was a trustee of The Prince's Drawing School until 2013. She was also involved in a project commissioned by

the Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

, which raised finance for a film that followed the rebuilding of the

Gwanghwamun Gwanghwamun () is the main and south gate of the palace Gyeongbokgung, in Jongno District, Seoul, South Korea. It is located at a three-way intersection at the northern end of Sejongno. As a landmark and symbol of Seoul's history as the capita ...

Gate at the Gyeongbokgung Palace in

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

, South Korea. She is also trustee of the Friends of the Alola Foundation, supporting the lives of the women and children in

East Timor Timor-Leste, also known as East Timor, officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is a country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the coastal exclave of Oecusse in the island's northwest, and ...

. Lady Rothermere was a major contributor to the endowment fund for the Leslie H Blumgart chair in Surgical

Oncology Oncology is a branch of medicine that deals with the study, treatment, diagnosis, and prevention of cancer. A medical professional who practices oncology is an ''oncologist''. The name's Etymology, etymological origin is the Greek word ὄγ ...

at the

Memorial Sloan–Kettering Cancer Center Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK or MSKCC) is a cancer treatment and research institution in Manhattan in New York City. MSKCC is one of 72 National Cancer Institute– designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers. Its main campus is ...

. She has also set up a fund to support the education of children at Siwon House in South Korea. In 2009 Lady Rothermere was awarded the Moran-Jang medal, one of the highest honours given to Korean civilians by the

Republic of Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

. It was given to Lady Rothermere in recognition of her work in promoting Korea's image to the rest of the world, and for her outstanding charitable work. In 2009 Lady Rothermere set up the Lady R Foundation whose stated aim is "to bring comfort and relief to the forgotten, the overlooked and the stigmatized in today’s society; to give a voice to those who have no voice, through lack of education, opportunity, illness or having been ostracized in their community". The foundation's first project in May 2010 was to take the

Philharmonia Orchestra The Philharmonia Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London. It was founded in 1945 by Walter Legge, a classical music record producer for EMI Classics, EMI. Among the conductors who worked with the orchestra in its early years were Rich ...

conducted by

Vladimir Ashkenazy Vladimir Davidovich Ashkenazy (, ''Vladimir Davidovich Ashkenazi''; born 6 July 1937) is a Soviet-born Icelandic pianist, chamber music performer, and conductor. Ashkenazy has collaborated with well-known orchestras and soloists. In addition, ...

, to Sorokdo Island, a community of

leprosy Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a Chronic condition, long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the Peripheral nervous system, nerves, respir ...

sufferers, off the coast of

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

. In addition, the renowned Korean musician, songwriter and singer,

Cho Yong-pil Cho Yong-pil (; born March 21, 1950) is a South Korean singer-songwriter who is considered one of the most influential figures in South Korean popular music (K-pop). He debuted as a member of the rock band Atkins in 1968 and made his solo debut ...

, also performed at the event.The Philharmonia at Sorokdo
In 2010 Lady Rothermere received the CICI Stepping Stone Bridge Award for helping Korean musicians make inroads into foreign countries and for her work with charity and volunteer programs. In 2012 Lady Rothermere became the first patron in living memory of the charity Veterans Aid ( http://veterans-aid.net ), founded in 1932 as a direct response to the needs of the veterans of the First World War it continues its vital work today, looking after British and Commonwealth ex-servicemen and women in crisis. In 2013, the Lady R Foundation secured permission for a Korean War Memorial to be built in central London and South Korea’s President

Park Geun-hye Park Geun-hye (; ; born 2 February 1952) is a South Korean politician who served as the 11th president of South Korea from 2013 until Impeachment of Park Geun-hye, she was removed from office in 2017. Park was the first and to date only woman ...

was joined by the

Duke of Cambridge Duke of Cambridge is a hereditary title of nobility in the British royal family, one of several royal dukedoms in the United Kingdom. The title is named after the city of Cambridge in England. It is heritable by agnatic, male descendants by pr ...

at the ceremony to break ground for the memorial as part of her state visit. The memorial was completed and unveiled in 2014. Also in 2014, the Lady R Foundation organised a performance of

Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten of Aldeburgh (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, o ...

’s ''War Requiem'' at the

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London, England. It has a seating capacity of 5,272. Since the hall's opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the world's leading artists from many performance genres ...

on Remembrance Sunday to commemorate the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War. Performed by the

Royal Choral Society The Royal Choral Society (RCS) is an amateur choir, based in London. History Formed soon after the opening of the Royal Albert Hall in 1871, the choir gave its first performance as the Royal Albert Hall Choral Society on 8 May 1872 – the choir' ...

and

London Philharmonic Orchestra The London Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO) is a British orchestra based in London. One of five permanent symphony orchestras in London, the LPO was founded by the conductors Thomas Beecham, Sir Thomas Beecham and Malcolm Sargent in 1932 as a riv ...

, the soloists included British bass-baritone

Bryn Terfel Bryn Terfel Jones (; born 9 November 1965), is a Welsh bass-baritone opera and concert singer. Terfel was initially primarily associated with the roles of Mozart, particularly '' Figaro'', '' Leporello'' and ''Don Giovanni,'' but he has subsequ ...

References

External links

The Lady R Foundation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rothermere, Maiko Jeong-Shun Lee, Viscountess British viscountesses by marriage Living people 1949 births British socialites

Maiko A is an apprentice geiko in Kyoto (in Tokyo it is geisha). Their jobs consist of performing songs, dances, and playing the or other traditional Japanese instruments for visitors during banquets and parties, known as . are usually aged 17 ...

Moran Medals of the Order of Civil Merit (Korea) British people of Korean descent