Lana Marks facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Lana Marks
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|---|---|
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| United States Ambassador to South Africa | |
| In office January 28, 2020 – January 20, 2021 |
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| President | Donald Trump |
| Preceded by | Patrick Gaspard |
| Succeeded by | Reuben Brigety |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Lana Bank
November 18, 1953 East London, South Africa |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse |
Neville Marks
(m. 1976) |
| Children | 2 |
Lana J. Marks was born on November 18, 1953. She is a businesswoman from South Africa who later became an American citizen. She started her own fashion company, Lana Marks. She also served as the United States Ambassador to South Africa from 2020 to 2021.
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Early Life and Education
Lana Bank was born in East London, South Africa. Her father, Alec Bank, moved from Lithuania when he was a child. He was a successful builder and a leader in the Jewish community. Lana went to Clarendon High School for Girls in East London. She can speak Xhosa and Afrikaans.
Marks loves playing tennis. She played for Bermuda and won bronze medals for the United States in the Maccabiah Games in 1985. She also played in the South African Open and reached the qualifying rounds of the French Open.
Career Highlights
Lana Marks was the CEO and designer of her fashion company, Lana Marks. This brand is famous for making fancy accessories from special leathers. They are known for creating some of the most expensive handbags in the world. When actress Helen Mirren won an Academy Award in 2007, she carried a handbag designed by Lana Marks. Today, Lana's daughter runs the company. Lana Marks stores can be found in places like Palm Beach, New York, Beverly Hills, and Dubai.
Serving as Ambassador to South Africa
President Donald Trump chose Lana Marks to be the United States Ambassador to South Africa on November 14, 2018. An ambassador is a special representative sent by one country to another. Marks had known President Trump for over 20 years. The Senate, which is part of the U.S. government, approved her appointment on September 26, 2019. She officially started her job on January 28, 2020, after meeting with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Lana Marks said her main goals as ambassador were to help young people and women. She also wanted to improve trade between the U.S. and South Africa. One important achievement was helping to sign a deal between the U.S. and NuScale to develop 2,500 megawatts of nuclear power in South Africa.
She resigned from her role as ambassador on January 20, 2021, after President Joe Biden took office.
Personal Life
Lana Marks married Dr. Neville Marks, a psychiatrist, in 1976. They lived in Bermuda before moving to Florida in 1987. They have two children.
Marks was a close friend of Diana, Princess of Wales. Marks shared that they had planned a trip to Italy together in August 1997. Marks had to cancel because her father had a heart attack. Princess Diana then went to Paris with her partner Dodi Fayed, where they were later involved in a car accident.
Since 2010, Marks has been a member of Mar-a-Lago, a private club in Palm Beach. She joined because she felt other clubs in the area did not welcome Jewish members.
Images for kids
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Lana Marks and Joe Phaala, the South African Deputy Minister of Health, greet each other as they mark the delivery of 720,000 face masks.
