John Kerry served as the US Secretary of State under the Barack Obama administration. He is an American politician who also served in the US Senate and contested during the US presidential elections of 2004 but lost out to President George W. Bush who was heading for his second term in office. Considered a Vietnam War hero, Kerry served with the United States Navy for some time before joining politics.
John Kerry’s Biography
It was as John Forbes Kerry that the former US Secretary of State was born on December 11, 1943, in Aurora, Colorado. He was brought up alongside three other siblings by their parents, Richard John Kerry and Rosemary Isabel Forbes.
Inspired by a father who served as a Foreign Service officer, Kerry enlisted in the naval reserve in 1966 and served until 1978. In his years with the Navy, Kerry fought in the Vietnam War and was a recipient of the Silver Star, Bronze Star, 3 Purple hearts, and Combat Action Ribbon.
His first brush with politics came in 1972 when he contested for Congress of Massachusetts’ 5th District but lost to the Republican candidate, Paul W. Cronin. In 1982, he was elected the Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts and served in that capacity from 1983 to 1985 when he was elected to become the US Senator for Massachusetts.
He remained a senator until 2003 when he decided he was giving the presidency a shot but was defeated in 2004 by George W. Bush who was re-elected with total votes of 62,040,606 to Kerry’s 59,028,109.
Although there were beliefs that he was going to give the presidency another try in 2007, he decided he was instead, going to support Barack Obama and go for a fifth time to the Senate which he won. In 2012, John Kerry was nominated by Obama to replace Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State and was subsequently confirmed by the Senate.
Since leaving office in 2017, Kerry has worked as the chairman of the Bank of America Global Advisory Council among other international and humanitarian roles.
Education
Until 1949, when the family settled in Washington, D.C., he was raised as a military brat. For his education, Kerry went to the Fessenden School in Massachusetts and later continued at St. Paul’s, Concord, New Hampshire. Next, he moved to Yale University from where he graduated in 1966.
He attended the Boston College Law School from 1973 to 1976. In addition to that, Kerry was given honorary degrees from various universities. He was given Doctor of Laws from the University of Massachusetts Boston, Kenyon College, and Boston College, and Doctor of Public Service from the Northeastern University.
Wife And Daughter
Senator John Kerry has a very interesting history when it comes to relationships. He has dated many women including Cornelia Guest, American model Denice D. Lewis, and actresses, Morgan Fairchild and Catherine Oxenberg.
Also, he has walked down the aisle twice thus far. The first time he got married was in 1970 to Julia Thorne. The couple was blessed with two children, Alexandra Forbes Kerry who was born in 1973, and Vanessa Bradford Kerry born in 1976. While Alexandre is a filmmaker, Vanessa is a physician.
After 12 years of being together, Julia Thorne, who was mostly raised in Italy, asked for a separation from her John. It was, however, until 1988 that the two were finally divorced.
The next woman to become the wife of John Kerry is Teresa Heinz. Before the two of them met, Teresa was once married to former the United States Senator John Heinz who lost his life in a plane crash in 1991.
The first time Kerry and Teresa met was at an Earth Day rally in 1990. The next time that the two met again was after the death of her first husband in 1992 and they began dating a year after that. They decided to get married in 1995.
Although John and Teresa do not have any children together, he has two from his previous marriage while she has three from hers: André Heinz, Christopher Heinz, and H. John Heinz IV.
Net Worth
On his own, John Kerry is a very rich man who has been named among the richest US politicians. When he was in the Senate, he was said to be the richest among others. At the moment, he has a net worth that has been estimated to be over $270 million.
Teresa Heinz Kerry, on the other hand, has a net worth that is even greater, estimated to be between $700 million to a billion dollars. That said, they both maintain their fortune separately based on the prenuptial agreement they signed. Teresa got her wealth as an heiress to the H. J. Heinz Company assets left to her by her husband.
Height And Other Facts
Through his mother, he is related to the Forbes family as well as the highly popular Dudley–Winthrop family.
When he was in college, Kerry got involved in sports, playing for the Yale University hockey and soccer teams. He also got involved in debate sessions.
He was not the brightest student in college as he never got an A.
Kerry’s wife, Teresa Heinz Kerry, was born in Mozambique before she moved to South Africa where she studied at the University of the Witwatersrand.
While John is a survivor of prostate cancer, Teresa is a survivor of breast cancer.
A man who served in the US Navy, John Kerry has a height of 6 feet 4 inches (193 cm).
