Rachel Robinson
Rachel Robinson | |
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Rachel Robinson (third from left) on March 2, 2005, accepting the Congressional Gold Medal for her husband from President George W. Bush | |
Born |
Rachel Annetta Isum July 19, 1922 Los Angeles, California, United States |
Spouse(s) | Jackie Robinson (m.1946-1972; his death) |
Children |
Jackie Robinson Jr., Sharon Robinson, David Robinson |
Rachel Robinson (born Rachel Annetta Isum; July 19, 1922) is a former nurse and the widow of baseball player Jackie Robinson. She was born in Los Angeles, and attended the University of California, Los Angeles. There, she met Jackie in 1941, and they married in 1946, the year before Robinson broke into the big leagues. Their son, Jackie Robinson, Jr., was born in November 1946. The Robinsons would later have a daughter, Sharon, and another son, David.
After Jackie Robinson's retirement from baseball in 1957, Rachel Robinson pursued her nursing career, eventually becoming an Assistant Professor at Yale School of Nursing and later, the Director of Nursing at the Connecticut Mental Health Center.[1]
In 1973, after Jackie died, Rachel founded the Jackie Robinson Foundation. In 2009, she received the UCLA Medal from Chancellor Gene Block for her lifetime achievements. The UCLA Medal is the university’s highest honor and was created to "honor those individuals who have made extraordinary and distinguished contributions to their professions, to higher education, to our society, and to the people of UCLA."
In 2007, she was awarded the Commissioner's Historic Achievement Award by Commissioner Bud Selig.[2]
She currently resides on a 60-acre (240,000 m2) farm in Salem, Connecticut.[3]
Robinson was portrayed by Ruby Dee in the 1950 film The Jackie Robinson Story and by Nicole Beharie in the 2013 film 42.
See also
Footnotes
- ↑ Lee, Cynthia (May 5, 2009). "Rachel Robinson to receive UCLA's highest honor". UCLA Today.
- ↑ "Commissioner honors Rachel Robinson". MLB. 2007-04-15. Retrieved 2007-04-15.
- ↑ "Rachel Robinson Encounters a Slur". The New York Times. May 15, 1997.
External links
- Jackie Robinson Foundation Website
- Timeline in the Life of Jackie and Rachel Robinson
- USA Today Q&A
- Rachel Robinson's oral history video excerpts at the National Visionary Leadership Project
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