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Karen
LeFrak. A most interesting lady. Tiny little lady,
bright sunny face, always very neatly turned out, often in soft
colors. Long blonde hair; a style she might have had since girlhood.
A ready smile and friendly but nevertheless with a certain abiding
reserve. She and her husband, Richard (pictured)
are active in many of the city’s major philanthropies. He
is the son of the late Sam LeFrak who built an
enormous apartment real estate empire in New York City. The elder
Mr. LeFrak passed away this year after a long illness, leaving
a centimillion dollar fortune divided (one hears) equally between
his four children, and the business in the hands of his eldest
son.
The aforementioned reserve of Mrs.
LeFrak betrays a lively and intense
interest and passion in: her family – she
has two sons, both in their thirties; she raises
championship standard poodles (if you have ever
attended or watched a major dog show, such as
the Westminster, you’ve seen her collect
dozens of ribbons, most often blue), and she
is an accomplished concert pianist.
The LeFraks are a very close couple. Unlike many couples in their
set, they rarely, if ever, are away from each other for a twenty-four hour period.
They divide their time between Manhattan and their rambling Stanford
White-inspired weathered shingle cottage near the ocean in Southampton.
Mr. LeFrak devoted a long time to studying White interiors and authentically
reproducing them for this house. The house has one remarkable room for two (or
possibly three?) of her prize winning poodles, all light, white and airy (with
cornices of dozens and dozens of blue ribbons) and everything needed for impeccable
grooming and training (and play). It is an elaborate abode for the dogs and yet
upon inspection, it is really just thorough, reliable and kind.
In another part of the house there is an octagonal (or sexagonal?) room off one
of the main rooms, containing only a beautiful concert grand piano placed in
the center, on which Karen LeFrak practices daily. There is an impeccability
about the place, unfussy yet exacting. Dark, highly polished natural wood floors,
lots of windows letting in lots of light, white walls, shades of white fabrics
cover the furniture. You can see, you can feel, that the lady of the house (and
no doubt the man too) is highly disciplined in pursuing and maintaining (her)
interests, and that she realizes great ongoing satisfaction from them. Accomplishment,
achievement, yet with a signature modesty, unheralded, unremarked about, yet
remarkable. A most interesting lady. And a nice one too. |
Albemarle,
Rufus
Aston, Muffie Potter
Basso, Dennis
Benedict, Daniel
Capehart, Jonathan
Cominotto, Michael
Curry, Boykin
Dahl, Tessa
DeWoody, Beth Rudin
Duchin, Peter and Brooke
Duff, Patricia
Eaton, Phoebe
Fales-HIll, Susan
Fekkai, Frederic
THE FULL LIST
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