London: Jennifer Ward Oppenheimer, who served as head of De Beers’ philanthropic arm, has died at the age of 50. She suffered from a brain tumor, South African newspaper Business Day reported last week.
Ward Oppenheimer graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University, where she received a law degree, according to her wedding announcement in The New York Times from 1994. She married Jonathan Oppenheimer, who later became an executive at De Beers, while she was an associate in the London office of New York law firm Davis, Polk & Wardwell.
“De Beers mourns the tragic loss of Jennifer Oppenheimer,” the company said in a statement. “Jennifer was a vibrant force for good, and as a former chairperson of the De Beers Fund, she inspired us and touched the lives of thousands of people. The hearts of everyone at De Beers are with her adoring husband Jonathan and their beautiful children Samuel, Isabel and Nathaniel.”
Jonathan Oppenheimer has held several positions at De Beers, including head of the chairman’s office at De Beers Consolidated Mines. He is the son of the miner’s former chairman, Nicky Oppenheimer.
