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Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert, Sarah Jackson, and Mykenna Maniece
Updated
- The Hunt family is one of the wealthiest families in America, thanks to early investments in oil.
- They're widely known as the owners of the Kansas City Chiefs.
- Lamar Hunt founded the team in 1959; his son, Clark Hunt, is now its CEO.
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The Kansas City Chiefs are used to making headlines for their Super Bowl wins, star quarterback, and connections to Taylor Swift. But this time, it's kicker Harrison Butker and members of the Hunt family — who own the team Butker plays for — making waves online following his controversial commencement speech at Benedictine College, a small Catholic school in Atchison, Kansas, earlier this month.
In his address on May 11, Butker told women in the audience they'd been told "the most diabolical lies" about the value in pursuing a career. He also told men to be "unapologetic" in their masculinity and fight "the cultural emasculation of men."
His words immediately drew backlash, including from the sisters of Mount St. Scholastica, nuns affiliated with the college. They wrote in a statement on their website that his words "seem to have fostered division."
However, the wife and daughter of Chiefs CEO Clark Hunt, Tavia Shackles Hunt and Gracie Hunt, appeared to support Butker in respective social media posts and TV appearances.
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The Hunt family's connections to the Chiefs run deep, as Clark's father, Lamar Hunt, was the team's founder and original owner. But the real story of the Hunt family begins with American oil tycoon, H.L. Hunt.
Here's everything you need to know about the Hunt family dynasty, worth an estimated $24.8 billion.
Rachel Askinasi contributed to an earlier version of this report.
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Haroldson Lafayette Hunt made his fortune in the oil industry.
In 1964, The New York Times reported that almost 30 years after H.L. Hunt founded the Hunt Oil Company, his family had an estimated fortune of $700 million (around $7 billion in today's money).
At the time of the report, the company was producing oil and natural gas in 12 states, including Texas, Louisiana, and North Dakota.
With his great success in the oil business, H.L. Hunt reportedly invested profits in other industries, such as publishing, cosmetics, and even pecan farming.
Encyclopedia Britannica reported that Hunt funded Facts Forum, his foundation for producing conservative, anti-Communist radio and television programs, from 1951 to 1956.
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Hunt died in 1974 with an estimated net worth between $2 billion and $3 billion.
His fortune was put into trusts for each of his 15 children, whom he had with three different women.
One of his sons, Ray Lee Hunt, is the wealthiest of all 15 siblings.
Forbes reported that Ray Lee Hunt has a net worth of $7.2 billion, as of May 2024. He is chairman emeritus of Hunt Consolidated, Inc. which includes Hunt Oil Company, Hunt Energy, and Hunt Realty Investments.
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Ray's sister, Caroline Rose Hunt, founded Rosewood Hotels & Resorts in 1979 after her father left her The Rosewood Corporation.
Rosewood Hotels & Resorts was sold to New World Hospitality (now known as Rosewood Hotel Group) in 2011 for $229.5 million, per AP News and PR Newswire.
Caroline Rose Hunt died in 2018 at age 95.
Their brother, William Herbert Hunt, led their oil and gas company Petro-Hunt.
Before his death in April 2024, William Herbert Hunt served as an advisor to management at Petro-Hunt. Per the company website, his family continues to own and operate Petro-Hunt, which, in addition to its focus on oil and gas also purchases minerals and royalties, invests in real estate, and also partially owns an oil refinery.
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Another brother, Lamar Hunt, cofounded the American Football League.
Per the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Lamar Hunt founded the American Football League (AFL) in 1959 to rival the National Football League (NFL) after being refused access to buying a franchise. Since the AFL and NFL officially merged in 1970, the Lamar Hunt Trophy has been awarded to the winner of the AFC Championship.
Lamar also founded the Kansas City Chiefs (originally known as the Dallas Texans), which the family still owns today.
Lamar's four children and his wife, Norma Hunt, inherited the Kansas City Chiefs after he died in 2006.
Norma Hunt died in 2023 at the age of 85, leaving siblings Clark Hunt, Sharron Hunt Munson, Lamar Hunt Jr., and Daniel Hunt, as co-owners of the team, Forbes reported.
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Clark Hunt, 59, is the chairman and CEO of the Chiefs organization.
Per the Kansas City Chiefs, Hunt took over as CEO in 2010 and hired Andy Reid as head coach in 2013. Since then, the Chiefs have created a winning dynasty with three Super Bowl wins in five seasons led by Reid, quarterback Patrick Mahomes, and tight end Travis Kelce.
In addition to the Chiefs, the Lamar Hunt family owns the MLS team FC Dallas and a minority stake in the Chicago Bulls.
Forbes reported that in addition to being chairman and CEO of the Chiefs, Clark Hunt is also chairman and CEO of FC Dallas, while his brother Dan Hunt is the soccer club's president.
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The Lamar Hunt family also has a large real-estate portfolio built under Hunt Midwest, based in Kansas City.
According to the company's website, Hunt Midwest is a "privately held real estate development company" with "more than $2.5 billion of developed projects" including senior living communities and residential, multifamily, and industry-focused locations like SubTropolis.
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Clark Hunt is married to Tavia Shackles Hunt.
The couple married in 1993 and have three children together: Gracie, Ava, and Knobel.
Shackles Hunt is from Kansas City, Missouri, and was involved in beauty pageants, winning Miss Missouri Teen USA, Miss Kansas USA, and finishing second runner-up at the Miss USA pageant, People reported.
She has also worked as director of the Chiefs Women's Organization.
"I love being a leader of it and organizing events to familiarize our extended football family with Kansas City and plug them into serving the community," she told Her Life Magazine in 2018.
"It bonds us together on the field and off the field to gather to serve the community and enjoy fellowship together," she added.
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Their daughter, Gracie Hunt, was crowned Miss Kansas USA in 2021 and works in public relations for the Chiefs.
Gracie Hunt, 25, grew up playing soccer but was forced to stop after suffering four concussions. She then pivoted to beauty pageants, winning Miss Texas Teen International in 2016, Miss Texas International in 2018, and Miss Kansas in 2021.
Hunt now works in public relations for the Chiefs and acts as an NFL brand ambassador, sharing her life with her 571,000 followers on Instagram.
She is also a philanthropist, having founded Breaking Barriers Through Sports in 2016. According to her website, the organization "aims to give people a positive identity and confidence through athletics and living a healthy lifestyle."
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Tavia and Gracie seemed to voice their support for Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker following his controversial commencement speech in May 2024.
Nearly a week after Butker's address, Shackles Hunt shared photos of her and her daughters on Instagram as well as a diagram documenting the pros and cons of stay-at-home parenting and a screenshot of an article on the happiness of married couples. In the lengthy caption, Shackles Hunt wrote that she's always encouraged her daughters to be educated and "chase their dreams," but noted that she also wants them to know that finding a spouse and raising a family "is one of the greatest blessings this world has to offer."
"Affirming motherhood and praising your wife, as well as highlighting the sacrifice and dedication it takes to be a mother, is not bigoted," she added. "Someone disagreeing with you doesn't make them hateful; it simply means they have a different opinion."
Given the post's themes of motherhood and faith, fans were quick to connect Shackles Hunt's words to those of Harrison Butker, who, in his commencement address, spoke about his wife, Isabelle, and how she embraced "one of the most important titles of all: homemaker."
Meanwhile, Gracie Hunt was asked about Butker's speech on an episode of "Fox & Friends."
"I really respect Harrison and his Christian faith and what he's accomplished on and off the field," she said. Hunt also praised her mother's ability to stay home with her and her siblings while they were growing up, but added that "there are many women out there who can't make that decision."
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As of February 2024, the Hunt family has a combined net worth of $24.8 billion.
Per Forbes, the Hunts are the 12th richest family in the US behind other familial dynasties like the Walton family, Mars family, and Cathy family.
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