Marylou Whitney

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Marylou Whitney (b. Marie Louise Schroeder, December 24, 1925, Kansas City, Missouri) is a prominent socialite. Whitney has many seasonal residences, first and formost her "Cady Hill" estate in Saratoga Springs New York, a massive camp in the Adirondacks, a farm near Lexington, Kentucky, a winter home in Florida and a residence in Alaska where her current husband is from. She is also a noted philanthropist.

Married to Frank Hosford in 1948, and after a divorce, to Cornelius Vanderbilt "Sonny" Whitney in 1958. CV "Sonny" Whitney died in 1992, leaving Marylou with an estate estimated at the time of $100 million. In October 1997 Marylou married John Hendrickson (b. 1960), a (then) 32-year-old tennis champ and former aide to Governor Walter Joseph Hickel of Alaska. John had proposed to Marylou in Buckingham Palace.

Her late husband's family were a major force in thoroughbred horse racing and in 2003, she made a $100,000 donation to the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation, an organization that stables approximately seven hundred thoroughbred horses at twenty-five farms throughout the United States with a mission of finding new homes through adoption by private citizens.

"Marylou Whitney Stables" owns Birdstone, the 2004 Belmont Stakes and Travers Stakes winner.

Marylou suffered a stroke in early 2006 which serious curtailed her activities in Saratoga during the 2006 meet (late July through early September) when traditionally she is crucial social figure. She has been called "The Queen of Saratoga" for her constant support for the Upstate NY community. While recovering she did manage to still take a figuratively large roll in the leadership of horse racing for New York. Marylou is the honorary chairwoman of Empire Racing Associates, one of the firms vying to replace the New York Racing Association, whose franchise to run Saratoga, Belmont Park and Aqueduct expires on Dec. 31, 2007.

As of early 2007 Marylou was still having physical therapy for recovery from the stoke but down to just six hours week. She has declared that she will be back in full force for the Saratoga race seasin in 2007.

[edit] Breast cancer activist

Marylou Whitney and John Hendrickson donated $2.5 million for the Marylou Whitney and John Hendrickson Cancer Facility for Women at the University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Center. The building was dedicated in Lexington, Kentucky in December, 2001 by officials from the University of Kentucky and the McDowell Cancer Foundation.[1]

The Marylou Whitney and John Hendrickson Cancer Facility for Women is 45,465 square feet and opened in 2002. It provides multidisciplinary ambulatory care for women suffering from breast cancer, gynecologic cancers, and lung, hematologic, gastrointestinal and urologic cancers.[2]

Philantropist and thoroughbred owner and breeder Marylou Whitney co-chaired the annual luncheon to raise funds to battle breast cancer for The Breast Cancer Research Foundation. About $100,000 was raised for the Foundation.[3]

[edit] Adirondacks

Upon CV's death in 1992, Marylou inherited Whitney Industries a largely gravel and lumber business with 51,000-acres of critical Adirondack real estate. With John taking the lead in negotiations, some 14,700-acres were sold to New York State for $17.1 million. This only after seeking initially rights to develop 40 exclusive shoreline estates on the western stretch of the Whitney estate. That public request set off environmentalist to push New York State into doing a deal.

The lands acquired are called the William C. Whitney Park.

[edit] External links

• August 24, 1998, New York Magazine article on Marylou Whitney.
• Saratogian newspaper April 1, 2007 interview