Blanchette Ferry Rockefeller of Alzheimer's Disease, on November 29, 1992, at the age of 83. Blanchette was buried at the Rockefeller Family Cemetery, Sleepy Hollow, New York. The Blanchette Rockefeller Neurosciences Institute (BRNI) at West Virginia University in Morgantown, West Virginia is named in her honor. Blanchette Ferry Rockefeller Blanchette Ferry Hooker (October 2, 1909 – November 29, 1992) was the wife of John D. Rockefeller III and mother of Jay Rockefeller. She was twice president of the Museum of Modern Art. Blanchette Ferry Hooker was born in Manhattan, New York on October 2, 1909. She was the daughter of Elon Huntington Hooker,
Founder's Hall (Rockefeller University) business, from which he retired in 1897. His efforts at philanthropy were formally guided from 1891 by Frederick T. Gates, a Baptist minister who had previously (1889) recommended to Rockefeller that he establish the University of Chicago. Much of Rockefeller's early philanthropy was on a comparatively small scale, and it was soon clear that larger-scale endeavors needed to be organized to properly guide his charitable giving. Gates suggested to Rockefeller that he establish a medical research institute that would be on a par with major European institutions of the period. In June 1902, Rockefeller made a commitment of $1 million