Jacqueline Mars (born October 10, 1939) is an American heiress and investor. She is the daughter of Audrey Ruth (Meyer) and Forrest Mars Sr., and the granddaughter of Franklin Clarence Mars, founders of the American

candy Candy, alternatively called sweets or lollies, is a Confectionery, confection that features sugar as a principal ingredient. The category, also called ''sugar confectionery'', encompasses any sweet confection, including chocolate, chewing gum ...

company Mars Inc. the '' Bloomberg Billionaires Index'' estimated her net worth at US$46.6 billion, ranking her the 23rd-richest person in the world. In the annual ranking of the richest women in the world in 2023, Forbes estimated her fortune at $38.3 billion and placed her in fourth place.

Early life

Jacqueline Mars was born on October 10, 1939. She was graduated from Miss Hall's School in

Pittsfield, Massachusetts Pittsfield is the most populous city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Pittsfi ...

. Mars participated as an equestrian in many horse shows during her youth. She is a 1961 graduate of

Bryn Mawr College Bryn Mawr College ( ; Welsh language, Welsh: ) is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as a ...

and her degree is in anthropology.

Career

Mars is an heiress among the members of the Mars family that founded and owns

Mars Incorporated Mars, Incorporated (doing business as Mars Inc.) is an American multinational corporation, multinational manufacturer of confectionery, pet food, and other food products and a provider of Animal welfare, animal care services founded on June 23 ...

, holding shares in the company. As a member of the family, her shares of Mars, Inc. and other assets were estimated by ''Forbes'' magazine in April 2024 to be worth $38.5 billion, making her the 19th richest American, and #34 on its list of "The World's Billionaires". Mars was active in Mars, Inc. from 1982, when she joined the company as food product group president. She spent the majority of her time working for the Mars Foundation, a philanthropic nonprofit supported by the company. She retired in 2001. In June 2019, ''Forbes'' listed her as the wealthiest resident living in Virginia, with an estimated $28.1 billion net worth.

Personal life

Mars married David H. Badger in 1961. They had three children: Alexandra Badger born , Stephen M. Badger born , and Christa M. Badger born . She divorced Badger in 1984. She married Harold 'Hank' Vogel in 1986, with whom she resided in Bedminster, New Jersey. They divorced in 1994. Mars, like her siblings, is known for living frugally and avoiding the public eye. Mars is a trustee of the U.S. Equestrian Team. She owns a working organic farm that is protected in perpetuity by the Land Trust of Virginia.

2013 automobile crash

On October 4, 2013, at the age of 74, Mars was involved in a car crash on

U.S. Route 50 U.S. Route 50 or U.S. Highway 50 (US 50) is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching from Interstate 80 (I-80) in West Sacramento, California, to Maryland Route 528 (MD 528) in Ocean City, Maryland, on the Atlantic ...

in Aldie, near her home in The Plains in

Northern Virginia Northern Virginia, locally referred to as NOVA or NoVA, comprises several County (United States), counties and independent city (United States), independent cities in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. ...

. Her vehicle crossed the highway center line and struck a Chrysler minivan carrying six passengers. One person died at the scene and another, who was pregnant, subsequently miscarried. Mars was charged with

reckless driving In United States law, reckless driving is a major moving violation related to aggressive driving that generally consists of driving a vehicle with willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property. It is usually a more serious o ...

. She told a witness after the crash that she had fallen asleep at the wheel. Mars subsequently pleaded guilty to the

misdemeanor A misdemeanor (American English, spelled misdemeanour elsewhere) is any "lesser" criminal act in some common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished less severely than more serious felonies, but theoretically more so than admi ...

charge of reckless driving, with tests having revealed no drugs, alcohol, or medications in her system that could have caused a blackout.

Philanthropy

Mars is the Chairman Emeritus of the board of directors for the

Washington National Opera Washington National Opera (WNO) is an American opera company in Washington, D.C. Formerly the Opera Society of Washington and the Washington Opera, the company received Congressional designation as the National Opera Company in 2000. Performance ...

and is on the board of the National Sporting Library and Fine Arts Museum. Mars also sits on the National Advisory Council of the Journey through Hallowed Ground, a foundation promoting American heritage in the region stretching from

Gettysburg, Pennsylvania Gettysburg (; ) is a borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Adams County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the borough had a population of 7,106 people. Gettysburg was the site of ...

Monticello Monticello ( ) was the primary residence and plantation of Thomas Jefferson, a Founding Father, author of the Declaration of Independence, and the third president of the United States. Jefferson began designing Monticello after inheriting l ...

, the home of

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...

that is situated just outside

Charlottesville, Virginia Charlottesville, colloquially known as C'ville, is an independent city (United States), independent city in Virginia, United States. It is the county seat, seat of government of Albemarle County, Virginia, Albemarle County, which surrounds the ...

. Mars is a routine donor to the

League of Conservation Voters The League of Conservation Voters (LCV) is an American environmental advocacy group. LCV says that it "builds political power for people and the planet." Through its affiliated super PAC, it is a major supporter of the Democratic Party. The org ...

. She has also donated to the

National Air and Space Museum The National Air and Space Museum (NASM) of the Smithsonian Institution is a museum in Washington, D.C., in the United States, dedicated to history of aviation, human flight and space exploration. Established in 1946 as the National Air Museum, ...

, the Washington Performing Arts Society. In 2011, she received the inaugural Heritage Award granted by the Foundation for the National Archives. In 2021, she made a $1.25 million donation to help house " Angels Unawares", a sculpture by Timothy Schmalz, at

The Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Catholic research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is one of two pontifical universities of the Catholic Church in the United States – the only one that is not primarily ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mars, Jacqueline Living people American billionaires Businesspeople in confectionery Female billionaires Mars family Bryn Mawr College alumni 1939 births Businesspeople from Virginia People from Bedminster, New Jersey People from The Plains, Virginia