- Born
- Birth nameMaria Teresa Thierstein Simões-Ferreira
- Teresa Heinz Kerry grew up in Mozambique's capital, Lourenço Marques (now called Maputo). Her father, José Simões-Ferreira, was an oncologist and tropical disease specialist, and "Teresinha" (her nickname in Portuguese) led a privileged existence. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Romance Languages and literature from the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa. She graduated from the Interpreters School of the University of Geneva before moving to the United States to work at the United Nations as a translator. She is fluent in five languages: English, Spanish, French, Italian and her native Portuguese.
She married ketchup magnate and U.S. Senator John Heinz in 1966, and they had three sons. She became a United States citizen after marrying Sen. Heinz and retiring from her U.N. translator job. She met Sen. John Kerry in 1990, after Heinz introduced them. (This was the only known time that Teresa and John Kerry met while she was married to Heinz). After John Heinz died in a airplane accident in 1991, Teresa inherited his $500 million fortune. She and John Kerry ran into each other again at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil at a United Nations-sponsored environmental summit. They were married in 1995.
Heinz Kerry currently manages several Heinz foundations, disbursing money to various social and environmental causes. Heinz Kerry is beneficiary of her late husband's trusts, making her extremely wealthy in her own name, and a powerful trustee of Heinz family wealth.
Ironically, Teresa was a registered Republican for most of her voting life. In the early 2000s, she changed her registration to Democrat. Should Senator Kerry be elected President, Teresa will be the second foreign-born first lady.
- IMDb mini biography by: Anonymous
- SpousesJohn Kerry(May 26, 1995 - present)H. John Heinz(February 5, 1966 - April 4, 1991) (his death, 3 children)
- Children
- Sons, with John Heinz: Henry John IV (b. 4 November 1966), André Heintz (b. 12 September 1969) and Chris Heinz (b. 20 March 1973).
- Stepmother of Alexandra Kerry and Vanessa Kerry.
- Speaks five languages: English, Spanish, Portuguese, French and Italian. Portuguese is her native tongue.
- As a child in Mozambique, she played the piano and loved climbing trees. She has said to have broken her wrist several times doing so.
- Sister of José Pedro and Margarida Helena (1945-1963).
- (when asked of her opinion of her husband running for President)Honestly, I was a little nervous. I knew that having someone in your family run for president was a huge responsibility. I knew that it meant a lot of hard work and traveling around the country, but I also knew that John is the right man to lead this country and that this country needs him. I'm very proud of his decision to stand up for what he believes and for working very hard to bring about change in this country.
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content
