Midtown Tragic Shooting: Blackstone Executive and Jewish Community Figure, Wesley LePatner, meets grim end in deadly assault
Wesley LePatner, Prominent Real Estate Executive and Philanthropist, Dies in Tragic Shooting Incident
Wesley LePatner, a renowned figure in the real estate industry and a dedicated philanthropist, was tragically taken in a mass shooting in Midtown Manhattan on Monday. The incident, which also claimed the life of NYPD officer Didarul Islam, occurred at 345 Park Avenue.
LePatner served as the Global Head of Core+ Real Estate and the Chief Executive Officer of Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust. Her career at Blackstone began in 2014, where she built a multibillion-dollar real estate business that mirrored a startup, managing rapid growth and market challenges. Prior to Blackstone, she started at Goldman Sachs.
In addition to her professional accomplishments, LePatner was deeply involved with major cultural and charitable organizations. She was elected to the board of trustees of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and served on the advisory board for Nareit (National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts). LePatner also held a significant role as a board member of the UJA-Federation New York, a major Jewish philanthropic organization.
Recognizing her contributions, UJA-Federation New York honoured LePatner with the Alan C. Greenberg Young Leadership Award in 2023. This award celebrated not only her rapid professional ascent but also her efforts in supporting the advancement of women in the real estate industry, with Blackstone’s President & COO Jon Gray noting that she "pays it forward from generation to generation."
Head of School Ariela Dubler and President of the Board of Trustees Ben Archibald of the Heschel School, a Jewish day school near Lincoln Square, where LePatner also served as a board member, described her as a "uniquely brilliant and modest leader and parent, filled with wisdom, empathy, vision, and appreciation." They expressed their sympathy for her family and stated that they will hold LePatner's lessons close, learn from her actions and commitments, and honor her memory with their own deeds.
Blackstone remembers LePatner as "brilliant, passionate, warm, generous, and deeply respected." The UJA-Federation of New York is "devastated by the tragic loss" of LePatner. Dubler and Archibald wrote that "There are no right words for this unfathomable moment of pain and loss."
LePatner is survived by her husband, Evan, and her two children. The community mourns the loss of a remarkable individual who made a significant impact in both the real estate industry and the philanthropic world.
- The tragedy at 345 Park Avenue, which took the life of Wesley LePatner, a prominent real estate executive, extends beyond the real estate sphere, as she was also involved in politics, serving on the board of trustees of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the advisory board for Nareit.
- Despite her early demise, Wesley LePatner left an indelible mark in the realms of real estate and crime-and-justice, being a key player in the UJA-Federation New York, an organization involved in significant philanthropic works and general-news due to its contributions to Jewish communities, where she held a board position.
