Lynn Sakowitz Wyatt (born July 16, 1935) is the daughter of the late Bernard Sakowitz and Ann Baum as well as the sister of Robert T. Sakowitz. She is a well known Houston socialite, philanthropist and third-generation Texan. Her grandfather started the Sakowitz Department Store chain. Her husband, Oscar Wyatt, is an energy executive, the founder of Houston's Coastal Corporation—now owned by El Paso Corporation—and current CEO of NuCoastal LLC. Lynn and Oscar Wyatt have four sons [Douglas, Steve, Trey and Brad]. The couple resides in the Houston neighborhood of River Oaks.[1] During the height of the oil boom in the 1970s and early 1980s, the family mansion in Houston was known as the "Wyatt Hyatt" becoming a "home away from home" for the likes of HRH Princess Margaret, HSH Princess Grace of Monaco, Bill Blass, Joan Collins, Mick Jagger, His Majesty King Hussein and Queen Noor of Jordan.
Lynn Wyatt has appeared in American Vogue (magazine), Harper's Bazaar, Town & Country and W (the high-fashion/social magazine of Fairchild Publications) through the years. She is a friend and patron of some of the couturiers of our time and of the twentieth century – Valentino, Karl Lagerfeld, Emanuel Ungaro, Bill Blass, Jean Paul Gaultier and many others. She was inducted into the International Best Dressed List Hall of Fame in 1977.
In 1982, the Government of France honored her with admission to the prestigious Order of Arts and Letters, rank of Chevalier, for her significant contribution to the enrichment of the French cultural inheritance. In 2007, the French government promoted her to the Order's rank of Officier, adding to an already impressive and extensive list of honors, awards and recognitions. She received the Woodson Medal from the Houston Forum. Twice she was named Houston's Most Fascinating by the Texas Medical Center Library. In May 1980, former Texas Governor William P. Clements commissioned her as Ambassador of Goodwill for the state. In 2000, she was recognized as "Socialite of the Century" by Texas Monthly magazine. More recently, she was declared a Cadillac Texas Legend by KHOU/Channel 11, the CBS affiliate in Houston. She has been the recipient of numerous awards for women’s achievement from places as faraway as Rome (Most Elegant Woman Award) and as near as Birmingham, Alabama (Woman of Outstanding Achievement).
To benefit the Red Cross and the American Hospital of Paris, she chaired the prestigious, annual Bal de la Rose in Monaco, turning the "Bal" into an entire weekend of festivities. Because of her deep friendship with the late Grace Kelly, Prince Rainier asked her to be a Founding Trustee of the Princess Grace Foundation U.S.A. (on which Board she continues to serve) and to chair the inaugural Gala in Washington, D.C. She turned what would have been a one-night celebration into a charity event that encompassed lunches, a style show, a brunch at the U.S. Department of State and a cocktail reception and gala at the White House, both of which were attended by President Ronald Reagan and Mrs. Nancy Reagan. She was appointed to the Board of the U.S. Naval Academy by President Reagan, serving for eight years. An advisor for the Academy when it first considered accepting women, her duties included inspecting a number of the Navy's ships. She also helped raise funds for the Naval Academy.
Other charitable commitments include Houston Grand Opera (Recipient of the Masterson Award; Member of the Founders' Council for Artistic Excellence, Life Patron and Vice Chairman; she chaired the Opera's record-setting 50th anniversary Golden Jubilee Gala, which raised $2.5 million and brought in internationally recognized stars like Sir Roger Moore, Sarah, Duchess of York, Renée Fleming, Bryn Terfel, Philip Glass and Sir Elton John; she will be honored at HGO's Yellow Rose Ball on April 10, 2010), Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (Founding Trustee, Film Department), Houston Ballet (Board and Executive Committee Member) and the Alley Theatre (Executive Committee and Board Member). A Special Advisor to Professor Luc Montagnier, Nobel Laureate in Medicine and Physiology (2008) and President of the World Foundation for Medical Research and Prevention, Mrs. Wyatt contributes generously to charities around the world including the Elton John AIDS Foundation, Brilliant Lectures Series International Youth Leadership Program (Chair Emeritus and host of the Series' parade of speakers/mentors including Queen Noor, Sir Sidney Poitier, Lauren Bacall, and Dr. Maya Angelou), Star of Hope Mission for the Homeless (Life Trustee and every year, Honorary Trustee of the Trees of Hope benefit gala) and many other worthy causes. In 2008, she was elected to the inaugural board of the Houston-based Medical Prevention and Research Institute. Many of these charitable commitments reflect a personal interest in disease prevention, human health and wellness and complementary/integrative medicine. This interest is reflected in her personal routine of aerobics, yoga, pilates and the practice of martial arts. Regarding the latter, she is a Black Belt First Degree in TaeKwonDo.