Charles Harting Percy (September 27, 1919 – September 17, 2011), also known as Chuck Percy, was an American businessman and politician. He was president of the Bell & Howell Corporation from 1949 to 1964, and served as a Republican
U.S. senator
The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...
from
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...
from 1967 until 1985, following a defeat to
Paul Simon
Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter known for his solo work and his collaborations with Art Garfunkel. He and Garfunkel, whom he met in elementary school in 1953, came to prominence in the 1960s as Sim ...
. He was mentioned as a Republican presidential hopeful from 1968 through 1988. During his Senate career, Percy concentrated on business and foreign relations.
Early life and education
Charles Harting Percy was born in
Pensacola
Pensacola ( ) is a city in the Florida panhandle in the United States. It is the county seat and only city in Escambia County. The population was 54,312 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Pensacola metropolitan area, which ha ...
Florida
Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
, the son of Edward H. Percy and the former Elizabeth Harting. His father, an
Alabama
Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...
native descended from illustrious colonial-era
Mississippi
Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...
ans and
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
ns, was at various times an automobile salesman and bank cashier. His Illinois-born mother was a concert violinist. Edward was a son of Charles Brown Percy and Helen Leila Herndon of the powerful Herndon family of Virginia. Elizabeth Harting was a daughter of Phineas Fredrick Harting and Belle Aschenbach.
The family moved to
Chicago
Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
when Percy was an infant. As a child, he had entrepreneurial energy and held jobs while attending school. In the mid-1930s, his pluck brought him to the attention of his
Sunday school
]
A Sunday school, sometimes known as a Sabbath school, is an educational institution, usually Christianity, Christian in character and intended for children or neophytes.
Sunday school classes usually precede a Sunday church service and are u ...
teacher, Joseph McNabb, the president of
Bell & Howell
Bell and Howell is a United States brand of cameras, lenses, and motion picture machinery. It was originally founded as a company in 1907, and headquartered in Wheeling, Illinois. The company was acquired by Böwe Systec in 2003. Since 2010, the ...
, then a small
camera
A camera is an instrument used to capture and store images and videos, either digitally via an electronic image sensor, or chemically via a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. As a pivotal technology in the fields of photograp ...
company.
Percy completed high school at
New Trier High School
New Trier High School (, also known as New Trier Township High School or NTHS) is a public four-year high school whose main campus for sophomores through seniors is in Winnetka, Illinois, United States, with a campus in Northfield, Illinois, for ...
. He entered the
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...
on a half tuition scholarship, and worked his way through college with several part-time jobs. He completed his degree in
economics
Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services.
Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...
in 1941, and was a member of the
Alpha Delta Phi
Alpha Delta Phi (; commonly known as Alpha Delt, AD, ADPhi, A-Delt, or ADP) is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity. Alpha Delta Phi was originally founded as a literary society by Samuel Eells in 1832 at Hamilton College in ...
fraternity.
Business career
Percy started at Bell & Howell in 1938 as an apprentice and sales trainee while he was still in college. In 1939 he worked at Crowell Collier.
He returned to Bell & Howell in 1941 to work full-time after graduating from the University of Chicago. Astute at business, within a year he was appointed a director of the company. Percy served three years in the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...
during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
and returned to the company in 1945.
In 1949, the
Jaycees
The United States Junior Chamber, also known as the Jaycees, JCs or JCI USA, is a leadership training service organization and civic organization for people between the ages of 18 and 40. It is a branch of Junior Chamber International (JCI). A ...
named Percy one of the "Outstanding Young Men in America", along with Gerald R. Ford Jr., of
Michigan
Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...
, future
U.S. president
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...
Texas attorney general
The Texas attorney general is the chief legal officer of the .
After Joseph McNabb died in 1949, Percy was made the
president
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Film and television
*'' Præsident ...
of Bell & Howell. He was instrumental in leading the company during a period of financial success and growth. During his leadership, Percy expanded Bell & Howell, raising revenues 32-fold and the number of employees 12-fold, and listing the company on the
New York Stock Exchange
The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is the List of stock exchanges, largest stock excha ...
. While continuing to manufacture movie cameras and movie and sound projectors for military, commercial, and home use, in the late 1940s the company diversified into the production of
microfilm
A microform is a scaled-down reproduction of a document, typically either photographic film or paper, made for the purposes of transmission, storage, reading, and printing. Microform images are commonly reduced to about 4% or of the original d ...
. It later entered the rapidly expanding markets of information services as well.
Political career
In the late 1950s, Percy decided to enter politics. With the encouragement of then
U.S. President
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...
, Percy helped to write ''Decisions for a Better America'', which proposed a set of long-range goals for the Republican Party. He belonged to the moderate and liberal wing of the Republican party, led by Eisenhower during his presidency and later closely identified with
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
New York may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* ...
Governor
Nelson A. Rockefeller
Nelson Aldrich "Rocky" Rockefeller (July 8, 1908 – January 26, 1979) was the 41st vice president of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977 under President Gerald Ford. He was also the 49th governor of New York, serving from 1959 to 197 ...
. In 1958, Percy served on the Rockefeller Foundation's Special Study Fund, essentially working as an informal advisor to Rockefeller's campaign for Governor of New York.
Percy first entered electoral politics with a run for
governor of Illinois
The governor of Illinois is the head of government of Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its we ...
in
1964
Events January
* January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved.
* January 5 – In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patria ...
, which he narrowly lost to Democratic incumbent Otto Kerner. During his gubernatorial campaign, Percy reluctantly endorsed conservative Republican
presidential nominee
In United States politics and government, the term presidential nominee has two different meanings:
# A candidate for president of the United States who has been selected by the delegates of a political party at the party's national convention ...
Barry Goldwater
Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was an American politician and major general in the United States Air Force, Air Force Reserve who served as a United States senator from 1953 to 1965 and 1969 to 1987, and was the Re ...
, his future Senate colleague. Goldwater fared poorly throughout the country, although he did marginally better in Illinois than in the nation at large.
U.S. senator
The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...
from Illinois. However, his 21-year-old daughter Valerie was murdered at the family home on the morning of September 18, late in the campaign. Her death was thought to have been caused by an intruder. After Illinois state police interviewed more than 14,000 people, spent over $300,000, and pursued 1,317 leads, lead No. 273 was the most viable, leading them to Francis Leroy Hohimer and Frederick Malchow, whom they believed committed the murder while robbing the house. The men were part of gang of Mafia-backed thieves that would rob wealthy homes. Chicago detectives are certain of at least 30 jobs the gang pulled, with an excess of $3,000,000 in jewels and cash. Testimony from several key people after the murder stated Hohimer confessed to them that he killed Percy because she woke up. However, no physical evidence was ever found to connect either of them to scene, and nothing was stolen from the home that night. The crime was never solved despite a lengthy investigation.
U.S. Senate
After his daughter's death, Percy and his opponent both suspended campaigning for a couple of weeks following Valerie's death. He upset Democratic Senator
Paul Douglas Paul Douglas may refer to:
* Paul Douglas (Illinois politician) (1892–1976), American economist and US senator
* Paul Douglas (actor) (1907–1959), American film actor
* Paul P. Douglas Jr. (1919–2002), United States Air Force officer
* Paul L. ...
(a former professor of Percy's at the University of Chicago) with 56 percent of the vote.
After Percy appeared on the television show ''
Face The Nation
''Face the Nation'' is a weekly news and Sunday morning talk show, morning public affairs program airing Sundays on the CBS radio and Television broadcasting, television network. Created by Frank Stanton (executive), Frank Stanton in 1954, ''Fa ...
'' on January 15, 1967, with the other newly elected Republican Senators, the then President Lyndon Johnson noted privately that he thought Percy would make a fine president if the opportunity should ever arise.
On December 12, 1967, Senator Percy met with South Vietnamese President Thieu and assured him that "no responsible people in either the Democratic or the Republican Party favored US withdrawal from South Vietnam."
In 1967, Senator Percy introduced a bill to establish a program to stimulate production of low-cost housing. Percy's proposal was the first of its kind to provide home ownership to low-income families, and it received strong support from Republicans in both the House and the Senate, although it ultimately did not pass. When asked why he selected housing for his first major legislative proposal, Percy said: "Of all the problems I ran across during three years of campaigning, first for the governorship and then for the Senate, the most appalling in their consequences for the future seemed to be the problems of the declining areas of the city and countryside, the inadequacy of housing." Percy voted in favor of the
Civil Rights Act of 1968
The Civil Rights Act of 1968 () is a Lists of landmark court decisions, landmark law in the United States signed into law by President of the United States, United States President Lyndon B. Johnson during the King assassination riots.
Titles ...
and the confirmation of
Thurgood Marshall
Thoroughgood "Thurgood" Marshall (July 2, 1908 – January 24, 1993) was an American civil rights lawyer and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1967 until 1991. He was the Supreme C ...
to the
U.S. Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...
, joined other
Rockefeller Republican
The Rockefeller Republicans were members of the United States Republican Party (GOP) in the 1930s–1970s who held moderate-to- liberal views on domestic issues, similar to those of Nelson Rockefeller, Governor of New York (1959–1973) and Vi ...
s in voting against the Supreme Court nominations of
Clement Haynsworth
Clement Furman Haynsworth Jr. (October 30, 1912 – November 22, 1989) was a United States federal judge, United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. He was also an Unsuccessful nominations to the Supr ...
and
George Harrold Carswell
George Harrold Carswell (December 22, 1919 – July 13, 1992) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern Di ...
, but did vote for
William Rehnquist
William Hubbs Rehnquist (October 1, 1924 – September 3, 2005) was an American attorney who served as the 16th chief justice of the United States from 1986 until his death in 2005, having previously been an associate justice from 1972 to 1986. ...
in 1971.
When in the Senate less than two years, Percy was mentioned as a Republican hopeful for the 1968 presidential nomination. ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' columnist James B. Reston referred to him as "the hottest political article in the Republican Party". In 1970, Percy spoke about his enjoyment of ''
The Autobiography of Malcolm X
''The Autobiography of Malcolm X'' is an autobiography written by Muslim American minister and activist Malcolm X in collaboration with American journalist Alex Haley. It was released posthumously on October 29, 1965, nine months after his assas ...
'', saying "Every white person should read it."
In 1972, Percy sought a second term to the Senate. In the general election, he defeated Congressman
Roman Pucinski
Roman Conrad Pucinski (May 13, 1919 – September 25, 2002) was an American Democratic Party (United States), Democratic politician from Chicago, Illinois. He was a United States House of Representatives, U.S. Representative from 1959 to 1973 ...
by a landslide. He gave up his seat on the important Senate Appropriations Committee for one on the Foreign Relations Committee.
Senator Percy in 1974 introduced legislation making the national maximum speed limit permanent, which became law in January 1975, remaining in effect until it was amended in 1987 to allow on rural Interstate highways and finally repealed in 1995.
In 1978, as Percy was completing his second term, he appeared invincible. Percy was considered so strong that the Democratic Party was unable to persuade any serious candidates to challenge him in that year's election. Alex Seith, a
dark horse
A dark horse is a previously lesser-known person, team or thing that emerges to prominence in a situation, especially in a competition involving multiple rivals, that is unlikely to succeed but has a fighting chance, unlike the underdog who is exp ...
candidate, was his Democratic challenger. Seith had never before sought elected office but had served as an appointee on the
Cook County
Cook County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Illinois and the second-most-populous county in the United States, after Los Angeles County, California. More than 40 percent of all residents of Illinois live within Cook County. ...
Zoning Board of Appeals for twelve years, nine as chairman.
At that time, Percy's reputation as a moderate Rockefeller Republican, contrasted with Seith's ostensible hard-line
foreign policy
Foreign policy, also known as external policy, is the set of strategies and actions a State (polity), state employs in its interactions with other states, unions, and international entities. It encompasses a wide range of objectives, includ ...
positions, combined to make Percy suddenly vulnerable in the weeks before the election. Percy had earlier worked to broaden the base of the Republican Party and was an outlier to more conservative elements. Sensing his probable loss, Percy went on television days before the polling and, with tear-filled eyes, pleaded with Illinois voters to give him another chance. He said, "I got your message and you're right ... I'm sure that I've made my share of mistakes, but your priorities are mine." He won re-election 53% to Seith's 46%.
After the Republicans won control of the Senate in 1980, Percy became chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee. That year he gave a luncheon in honor of the 16th Karmapa of Tibet at the United States Capitol with other Tibetan Buddhists and congressmen. He served in the Senate until the end of his third term in January 1985, after narrowly losing to Congressman
Paul Simon
Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter known for his solo work and his collaborations with Art Garfunkel. He and Garfunkel, whom he met in elementary school in 1953, came to prominence in the 1960s as Sim ...
in
1984
Events
January
* January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888.
* January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...
. Critics had accused Percy of paying more attention to foreign affairs than to the domestic issues of his constituents. After Percy's defeat, no Republican would win a senatorial race in Illinois until Peter Fitzgeraldin 1998, and no Republican would ever win Percy's old seat again.
In 2006, writing about the influence of political lobbies on the U.S. relationship with
Israel
Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
, political theorists
John Mearsheimer
John Joseph Mearsheimer (; born December 14, 1947) is an American political scientist and international relations scholar. He is R. Wendell Harrison Distinguished Service Professor in the University of Chicago.
Mearsheimer is best known for dev ...
and
Stephen Walt
Stephen Martin Walt (born July 2, 1955) is an American political scientist serving as the Robert and Renee Belfer Professor of international relations at the Harvard Kennedy School. A member of the realist school of international relations, Walt ...
wrote that they believed Percy's loss was the result of a campaign waged against him by the
American Israel Public Affairs Committee
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC ) is a pro-Israel lobbying group that advocates its policies to the legislative and executive branches of the United States. It is one of several pro-Israel lobbying organizations in the ...
(AIPAC). They note that despite a generally pro-Israel voting record, Percy incurred AIPAC's wrath by declining to sign the AIPAC-sponsored "Letter of 76" protesting President Ford's threatened "reassessment" of U.S. Middle East policy in 1975. Percy also called PLO leader
Yasser Arafat
Yasser Arafat (4 or 24 August 1929 – 11 November 2004), also popularly known by his Kunya (Arabic), kunya Abu Ammar, was a Palestinian political leader. He was chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) from 1969 to 2004, Presid ...
more "moderate" than some other Palestinians. Earlier that year, Percy and the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Dante Fascell argued that
Karl Linnas
Karl Linnas (August 6, 1919 – July 2, 1987) was an Estonian who was sentenced to death during the Holocaust trials in Soviet Estonia in 1961–1962. He was later deported from the United States to the Soviet Union in 1987.
Linnas was tried ...
, a former concentration camp commander who was to be deported from Pennsylvania to Estonia who lied in the papers he used to enter the United States, should not be sent to the Soviet Union. Linnas was found to have ordered, and participated in, the murders of Jews and other prisoners. Percy's view, shared by Fascell, Representative Donald L. Ritter of Pennsylvania, and the Helsinki Commission, was that Linnas should be deported, just not to the Soviet Union as it “would be an acknowledgement that the USSR has formally taken over Estonia.”
While in the Senate, Percy was active in business and international affairs. Although he explored the possibility of running for president in both 1968 and 1976, he did not run either time. During the early 1970s, he clashed with President Nixon and criticized the U.S. conduct of the
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...
.
In 1977, Percy and Sen. Hubert H. Humphrey—responding to the 1973 OPEC oil embargo and high energy prices in general—created the
Alliance to Save Energy
The Alliance to Save Energy is a bipartisan, nonprofit coalition of business, government, environmental, and consumer groups based in Washington, D.C. The Alliance states that it advocates for "energy-efficiency policies that minimize costs to so ...
to encourage a national commitment to energy efficiency. Percy was the founding chairman of the organization.
Percy was mentioned again for the presidency in 1980 and 1988, but his candidacies did not progress beyond the exploratory stage. In 1981, three congressional staffers (Bill Strauss, Elaina Newport, and Jim Aidala) of Percy's Subcommittee on Energy, Nuclear Proliferation, and Government Processes formed the political-satire group the
Capitol Steps
The Capitol Steps was an American political-satire group that performed from 1981 to 2020. Most of the Capitol Steps' material parodied well-known contemporary songs. The songs were interspersed with other routines, including a spoonerism routin ...
, which performed for 40 years.
Perhaps Percy's most important act, and his longest-lasting legacy, was ending the practice of nominating
federal judges
Federal judges are judges appointed by a federal level of government as opposed to the state/provincial/local level. United States
A U.S. federal judge is appointed by the U.S. president and confirmed by the U.S. Senate in accordance with Articl ...
from a pool of candidates generated by the Chicago political machine. He implemented a system of consultation with, and advice from, groups of legal experts, including the professional bar association, a practice considered novel at the time. One of his nominees,
John Paul Stevens
John Paul Stevens (April 20, 1920 – July 16, 2019) was an American lawyer and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1975 to 2010. At the time of his retirement, he was the second-oldes ...
, was selected by President
Gerald Ford
Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. (born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was the 38th president of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, Ford assumed the p ...
as a justice of the
United States Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...
.
Marriage and family
Percy was a
Christian Scientist
Activists, politicians, and military figures Activists
*Tsianina Redfeather Blackstone (1882-1985) – Native American singer and activist
* Bonnie Carroll – President and founder of the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS)
*Henry ...
. During World War II, he married Jeanne Valerie Dickerson. They had twin daughters, Valerie and
Sharon
Sharon ( 'plain'), also spelled Saron, is a given name as well as a Hebrew name.
In Anglosphere, English-speaking areas, Sharon is now predominantly a feminine given name, but historically it was also used as a masculine given name. In Israel, ...
(born 1944) and a son Roger (born 1946). After Jeanne Percy's death in 1947, Percy married Loraine Diane Guyer in 1950. They had two children: Gail (born 1953) and Mark (born 1955).
One of his twin daughters, Valerie Percy, was murdered at age 21 in her bedroom in the family home in
Kenilworth, Illinois
Kenilworth is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States, north of downtown Chicago. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census it had a population of 2,514. It is the newest of the nine suburban North Shore (Chicago), North Shore c ...
, near Chicago, during his senatorial campaign in September 1966.Chuck Goudie, "Questions about Valerie Percy murder outlive her father" '' Daily Herald'', September 18, 2011; accessed December 10, 2016 She had been beaten and stabbed to death in her bed while the family was in residence. Although Valerie's stepmother allegedly briefly glimpsed the killer, and considerable resources were devoted to solving the crime, the identity of the murderer remains unknown. The wife of a first responder physician to the scene stated in 2016 that her late husband, Dr. Robert Hohf, felt that "the crime scene had been cleaned up" by the time he arrived to the Percy home early on the morning of September 18, 1966.
In 1967 her twin sister Sharon Percy married
John D. Rockefeller IV
John Davison "Jay" Rockefeller IV (born June 18, 1937) is an American retired politician who served as a United States senator from West Virginia (1985–2015). He was first elected to the Senate in 1984, while in office as governor of West Vir ...
. He became a politician and was later elected Democratic
governor of West Virginia
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...
(1977–1985). He served as a
United States senator
The United States Senate consists of 100 members, two from each of the 50 U.S. state, states. This list includes all senators serving in the 119th United States Congress.
Party affiliation
Independent Senators Angus King of Maine and Berni ...
for West Virginia from 1985 until 2015.
Percy remained active after leaving political office but suffered from
Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...
in later years. He died on September 17, 2011, at the Washington Home and Community Hospice in
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
United States Junior Chamber of Commerce
The United States Junior Chamber, also known as the Jaycees, JCs or JCI USA, is a leadership training service organization and civic organization for people between the ages of 18 and 40. It is a branch of Junior Chamber International (JCI). ...
*1955 World Trade award World Trade Award Commission
*1956 National Sales Executives Management award
*1962 Business Man of Year award '' Saturday Review''
*1962 Statesmanship award
Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate school, graduate business school of Harvard University, a Private university, private Ivy League research university. Located in Allston, Massachusetts, HBS owns Harvard Business Publishing, which p ...
Association of Chicago
*1962 Humanitarian Service award Abraham Lincoln Center
*1986 Humanitarian of the Year award
Save the Children Fund
The Save the Children Fund, commonly known as Save the Children, is an international non-governmental organization. It was founded in the UK in 1919; its goal is to improve the lives of children worldwide.
The organization raises money to imp ...
*1965 Top-Hat award
National Federation of Business and Professional Women's Clubs
Nevin, Susan B. (January 17, 1967). "Something Doing: Clubwomen to Pioneer in First Crafts ContestFebruary 1 Is the Date" ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette''. p. 19. Retrieved June 8, 2023.Business and Professional Women's Foundation (BPW) is an org ...
*1965 Business Administration award
Drexel Institute
Drexel University is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Drexel's undergraduate school was founded in 1891 by Anthony Joseph Drexel, Anthony J. Drexel, a financier ...
*1982
UNICEF
UNICEF ( ), originally the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, officially United Nations Children's Fund since 1953, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing Humanitarianism, humanitarian and Development a ...
World of Children award
*Lifetime Achievement Award
Alliance to Save Energy
The Alliance to Save Energy is a bipartisan, nonprofit coalition of business, government, environmental, and consumer groups based in Washington, D.C. The Alliance states that it advocates for "energy-efficiency policies that minimize costs to so ...
*Commander
French Legion of Honor
The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and civil. Currently consisting of five classes, it was ...