Sharon Percy Rockefeller

{{Infobox officeholder

| image = National Medal of Arts and National Humanities Medal Presentations (49102403847) (cropped).jpg

| caption = Rockefeller in 2019

| office = First Lady of West Virginia

| governor = Jay Rockefeller

| term_label = In role

| term_start = January 17, 1977

| term_end = January 14, 1985

| predecessor = Shelley Riley Moore

| successor = Shelley Riley Moore

| birth_name = Sharon Lee Percy

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1944|12|10|mf=yes}}

| birth_place = Oakland, California, U.S.

| death_date =

| death_place =

| occupation = Chief executive officer of WETA-TV

| spouse = {{marriage|John Davison Rockefeller IV|1967}}

| children = 4, including Valerie and Justin

| parents = Charles Harting Percy
Jeanne Valerie Dickerson

}}

Sharon Lee Percy Rockefeller (born December 10, 1944) is married to former West Virginia Senator John Davison "Jay" Rockefeller IV and served as that state's First Lady from 1977 to 1985 during her husband’s terms as governor.

Life

Rockefeller was born in Oakland, California, on December 10, 1944, a twin daughter of Senator Charles Harting Percy (1919—2011) and Jeanne Valerie Dickerson, who died in 1947. She earned a Bachelor's degree at Stanford University and later studied at Morris Harvey College and West Virginia Wesleyan College. Her twin sister Valerie was murdered in 1966 at the family home by a mysterious intruder.{{cite news|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/2011/06/14/newly-disclosed-account-surfaces-in-1966-valerie-percy-murder-case/ |title=Newly disclosed account surfaces in 1966 Valerie Percy murder case |newspaper=The Chicago Tribune |date=June 14, 2011 |first1=Robert |last1=McCoppin |first2=Glenn |last2=Wall |access-date=September 23, 2014 }}

In 1967, she married John Davison "Jay" Rockefeller IV (born 1937). He is the son of John Davison Rockefeller III (1906—1978) and Blanchette Ferry Hooker (1909—1992) and is part of the famous Rockefeller family. She and her husband have four children and seven grandchildren.

In 2005, she was diagnosed with colon cancer and underwent chemotherapy and radiation therapy.{{Cite web| title = WETA's Percy Rockefeller Diagnosed With Cancer| date = 26 July 2005| access-date = 2015-07-28| url = http://www.adweek.com/fishbowldc/wetas-percy-rockefeller-diagnosed-with-cancer/1886}} Her cancer has since metastasized in the bones.{{Cite AV media| title = Watch now: Cancer: The Emperor of All Maladies |access-date = 2015-07-28| url = https://www.pbs.org/video/story-cancer-emperor-all-maladies-cancer-conversation/}} Her experience prompted her to convince filmmaker Ken Burns to produce the 2015 documentary Cancer: The Emperor of All Maladies. {{Cite web| title = Dome - Diagnosis Inspires Documentary| access-date = 2015-07-28| url = http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/news/publications/dome/dome_october_2014/diagnosis_inspires_documentary}} It is adapted from the book of the same name by Siddhartha Mukherjee.

On November 21, 2019, she was awarded the National Medal of Arts by then-U.S. President Donald Trump.{{Cite web |title=President Donald J. Trump to Award the National Medal of Arts and National Humanities Medal |url=https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/briefings-statements/president-donald-j-trump-award-national-medal-arts-national-humanities-medal/ |access-date=November 21, 2019 |work=whitehouse.gov |via=National Archives}}

The Rockefellers live in the Northwest quadrant of Washington, DC and retain a permanent residence in Charleston, West Virginia."West Virginia's First Ladies," West Virginia Division of Culture and History, June 2007.

Career

As First Lady of West Virginia, Rockefeller promoted the Public Broadcasting Service; helped establish a centralized system to assist mentally disabled children; and founded Mountain Artisans, a quilting business for low-income artisans. She also campaigned to bring down utility costs and to improve care for the elderly.

After her husband was elected to the United States Senate in 1985, she became chief executive officer of WETA-TV in Washington, D.C. She later became chairwoman of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.(14 Sep 2008), [https://web.archive.org/web/20080914134232/http://www.weta.org/about/inside/officersandtrustees/bio/Sharon+Percy+Rockefeller "Sharon Percy Rockefeller"], WETA website (archived 25 Jan 2021): " . . . a member of the board of directors of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting for 12 years, including four years as chairman."

She is a former member of the Steering Committee of the Bilderberg Group.{{Cite web|url=http://www.bilderbergmeetings.org/former-steering-committee-members.html|title=Former Steering Committee Members|work=bilderbergmeetings.org|publisher=Bilderberg Group|access-date=2014-02-08|archive-date=2014-02-02|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140202095633/http://www.bilderbergmeetings.org/former-steering-committee-members.html|url-status=dead}} She has also been the chairperson of the National Gallery of Art.{{Cite web|url=http://www.artnews.com/2019/09/27/national-gallery-of-art-darren-walker-mitchell-rales/|title=National Gallery of Art Names Darren Walker Trustee, Mitchell Rales Appointed President|last=Selvin|first=Claire|date=2019-09-27|website=ARTnews|language=en-US|access-date=2019-09-28}}

References

External links

[https://web.archive.org/web/20080914134232/http://www.weta.org/about/inside/officersandtrustees/bio/Sharon+Percy+Rockefeller Sharon Percy Rockefeller biography, WETA]
[https://web.archive.org/web/20091011060539/http://people.forbes.com/profile/sharon-percy-rockefeller/62930 Sharon Percy Rockefeller Profile - Forbes.com]
{{C-SPAN|15926}}

{{succession box|title=First Lady of West Virginia|before=Shelley Riley Moore|after=Shelley Riley Moore|years=1977 – 1985}}

Category:1944 births

Category:Living people

Category:American women chief executives

Category:American media executives

Category:First ladies and gentlemen of West Virginia

Category:National Gallery of Art

Category:Members of the Steering Committee of the Bilderberg Group

Category:People from Charleston, West Virginia

Category:Politicians from Chicago

Category:Businesspeople from Oakland, California

Category:Rockefeller family