Jorie Butler Kent, the driving force behind the non-profit arm of travel agency Abercrombie & Kent and the former wife of A&K founder Geoffrey Kent, has died at the age of 95.
Butler Kent, who died Jan. 16, received the Museum of Polo Iglehart Award last year, according to the Polo Museum and Hall of Fame.
Tributes posted on social media by people who knew Butler Kent paint a picture of a remarkable and pioneering woman.
Kent called her “his partner in many of life’s great adventures.” Together they founded Friends of Conservation to save black rhinos from poaching in Kenya.
“This became her life’s mission and ultimately inspired the creation of A&K Charities, which continues to make a difference around the world today,” Kent wrote on Instagram.
Reute, Butler Kent’s daughter, has led conservation efforts since 2009 and will continue to do so, Kent said.
Photo credit: Abercrombie & Kent
“Jori was a woman of incredible strength, conviction and grace,” Kent said. “Everyone who met her felt her passion and her unwavering belief that one person can truly make a difference. Her loss is deeply felt, but the legacy she left behind and the countless lives she changed will endure for generations to come.”
“Jorie’s vision and compassion helped establish our commitment to giving back to the communities we visit. Her legacy lives on in every life we touch through our philanthropy,” Abercrombie & Kent said on Instagram.
The Polo Museum praised Butler Kent’s skills as a champion equestrian and competitive polo player. Her grandfather and father founded the Oak Brook Polo Club in Illinois in 1922. Butler Kent became the first woman to lead a polo club there, according to the museum.
Butler Kent became the first woman to win the USPA Handicap in 1972 and has won two U.S. Opens, two Gold Cups, two Continental Cups, two Butler Handicaps, two Cadillac Cups and a Rolex World Cup.
