Wesley M. LePatner, a newly elected trustee of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, was among the four people killed by a gunman in a Midtown office building on Monday.
LePatner was senior managing director at Blackstone, the headquarters of which are located at 345 Park Avenue, where the shooting took place. At Blackstone, she was global head of its Core+ Real Estate division and the CEO of the Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust. She was among the investment firm’s highest-ranking women. She had worked at Blackstone since 2014, joining the firm from Goldman Sachs.
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In a statement, LePatner’s family, which includes her husband Evan LePatner and two children, said, “She was the most loving wife, mother, daughter, sister and relative, who enriched our lives in every way imaginable. To so many others, she was a beloved, fiercely loyal and caring friend, and a driven and extraordinarily talented professional and colleague. At this unbearably painful time, we are experiencing an enormous, gaping hole in our hearts that will never be filled, yet we will carry on the remarkable legacy Wesley created.”
LePatner had just been elected to the Met’s board in February. Prior to joining the board, she had been a member of the Met’s Friends of European Paintings group, which gives its members access to tours of the museum and private collections, as well as talks and receptions.
In a statement announcing her appointment, board cochairs Candace K. Beinecke and Hamilton (“Tony”) E. James said, “Wesley’s deep expertise and knowledge will be an invaluable addition to the Board, and we look forward to working with her to advance the Museum’s mission.”
Met director Max Hollein told the New York Times that LePatner “was a very successful woman, but someone who immediately engaged with deep understanding, empathy and serious commitment. We thought she would be for decades at the Met and be a key part of the institution.”