Jean Rather, a visual artists best known as the wife of journalist Dan Rather for 67 years, died Tuesday from cancer, her family announced. She was 89.
“Jean was a steadfast advisor and rock of true Texas grit during every storm. She was also the kind of wife who could meet presidents, kings and queens, draft dodgers, criminals, and corporate suits every day with equal ease and a stunning smile,” the family wrote in their obituary, posted on Facebook.
Born in Smithville, Texas in 1935, Jean Rather started in radio, according to her family, but became a painter and collage maker. “She attended art classes at American University and Mary Mount Manhattan College. Through careful study of master artists’ paintings and sculpture in museums in England, France, Italy, Russia, Israel, Greece, Turkey, and Southeast Asia, Jean created a unique contemporary philosophy and style,” the family said.
“Jean was a tremendous mother and grandmother, making every game, cheering on every win, putting Band-Aids on every skinned knee, and serving as a confidante and friend to all her family members,” the family also said.
Among her artistic endeavors, Jean Rather served as Painter Member and the Vice Chair of the Art Commission of the City of New York for 8 years. She also served on multiple nonprofit boards, including the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, UT Press, and the Harry Ransom Center.
She’s survived by Dan Rather, 93, and their son Danjack and his partner, Ann Prunty, and grandson Martin in New York; daughter Robin and her partner, Mike Marler, and grandson Andy in Austin.
In lieu of flowers, the Rather family suggests donations to the Ann Richards School for Young Women Leaders in Austin.
“She never forgot where she came from, never lost her Texas roots, and never wavered from her fierce independence and endless creativity,” the Rather family wrote also.