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Doria Ragland

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Doria Ragland
Ragland (right) in May 2018, with daughterMeghan Markle
Born
Doria Loyce Ragland

(1956-09-02)September 2, 1956(age 68)
Cleveland,Ohio,U.S.
EducationUniversity of Southern California(MSW)
Occupation
  • Yoga Instructor
Spouse
​
​
(m.1979;div.1987)​
ChildrenMeghan Markle
FamilyPrince Harry, Duke of Sussex(Son-in-Law)

Doria Loyce Ragland(born September 2, 1956)[1][a]is the mother ofMeghan Markleand the ex-wife of American retired television lighting director and director of photographyThomas Markle Sr..Ragland holds a degree in social work and is a former makeup artist andyogainstructor.

Early life

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Doria Ragland was born inCleveland,Ohio,to nurse Jeanette Arnold (1929–2000) and her second husband Alvin Azell Ragland (1929–2011),[3]an antiques dealer who sold items at flea markets.[4]Ragland's maternal grandparents, James and Nettie Arnold, respectively worked as abellhopand anelevator operatorat theHotel St. RegisonEuclid Avenuein Cleveland.[3][5][6]Her parents moved toLos Angeleswhen Ragland was a baby[3]and later divorced. In 1983, her father married kindergarten teacher Ava Burrow,[7]who is near to Ragland's age; the two remained close after that marriage also ended in divorce.[8]Ragland has two older maternal half-siblings, Joseph (known as "JJ"; 1949–2021) and Saundra Johnson (born 1952), and a younger paternal half-brother, Alvin Joffrey Ragland.[9]

Various contemporary records state that the Ragland family descend from Richard "Dick" Ragland, born into slavery c.1792 inChatham County,North Carolina;his son, Stephen Ragland (1848-1926) ofJonesboroinGeorgia,lived long enough to experience theabolition of slaveryin 1865. The family's Ragland surname came from slave-owner William Ragland, aMethodistplanter and land speculator who had emigrated during the eighteenth century fromCornwall,England,to North America.[10][11]Doria's daughterMeghan Marklehas claimed that a genealogy test revealed that she is 43%Nigerian.[12]

Career and education

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After leavingFairfax High School,[4]Ragland worked as a temporary assistant makeup artist on the set of the television showGeneral Hospitalwhere she met future ex-husband Thomas Markle, Sr.[13]Ms. Ragland worked as a travel agent and owned a small business.[14]After divorcing Markle, Ragland completed her undergraduate degree, aBachelor of Artsin psychology.[4]In 2011, she earned aMaster of Social Work(MSW) from theUniversity of Southern California.[15]After passing California's licensing examination in 2015, she was employed as a Social Worker for three years at the Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services Clinic inCulver City.[16][17][18][19]Ragland has also worked as a yoga instructor.[20]In 2020, it was reported that she would teach a jewelry making course atSanta Monica College.[21]In the same year, Ragland becameCEO,CFOand secretary of a care home firm inBeverly Hills,called Loving Kindness Senior Care Management.[22]

Personal life

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Ragland marriedlighting directorThomas Markleon December 23, 1979, atHollywood'sParamahansa YoganandaSelf-Realization Fellowship Templein a ceremony performed by Brother Bhaktananda.[23][15]Their daughter,Meghan,was born in 1981. The couple separated when their daughter was two years old.[24]They divorced in 1987.[20][25]

Ragland resides inView Park–Windsor Hills,California,[26][27]in a house inherited from her father in 2011.[4]She has accompanied Meghan to public events and attended her 2018wedding to Prince Harryin Berkshire.[28][29]Ragland became a grandmother on May 6, 2019. She flew to the United Kingdom to see her grandson,Prince Archie of Sussex,and his parents.[30]In July, she attended Prince Archie's christening at the private chapel atWindsor Castle.[30]Her granddaughter,Princess Lilibet of Sussex,was born on June 4, 2021, inSanta Barbara, California.[31]

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^A genealogical blog published by theNew England Historic Genealogical Societycontains an essay by a staff member that says she was born September 15, 1956.[2]

References

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  1. ^Morton, Andrew(April 17, 2018).Meghan: A Hollywood Princess.Grand Central Publishing.p. PT19.ISBN978-1-5387-4734-6.Archivedfrom the original on August 5, 2018.RetrievedMay 23,2018.
  2. ^Child, Christopher C. (May 18, 2018)."Meghan Markle's maternal family".Vita Brevis.New England Historic Genealogical Society.Archivedfrom the original on May 23, 2018.RetrievedMay 23,2018.
  3. ^abcDriscoll, Kara."Meghan Markle has an extraordinary connection to Ohio".Dayton Daily News.Archivedfrom the original on May 19, 2018.RetrievedMay 18,2018....While Meghan Markle is headed across the pond for the royal wedding, her roots are deeply connected to Ohio.
  4. ^abcdAlexander, Harriet; Lockhart, Keely (May 8, 2019)."Meghan Markle's family: from her diplomat uncle to cannabis-growing nephew, who will meet the royal baby boy?".The Telegraph.Archived fromthe originalon December 4, 2022.RetrievedDecember 10,2022.
  5. ^Morton, Andrew(2018).Meghan: Von Hollywood in den Buckingham-Palast. Ein modernes Märchen.Heyne Verlag.ISBN978-3-641-23580-2.Archivedfrom the original on August 5, 2018.RetrievedMay 18,2018.
  6. ^DeMarco, Lauren (May 8, 2018)."Meghan Markle's surprising Cleveland connection: The Royal Wedding".Cleveland Plain Dealer.Archivedfrom the original on May 18, 2018.RetrievedMay 21,2018.
  7. ^Freeman, Kasey (November 27, 2017)."Prince Harry's American fiancee has ties to Chattanooga".WRCB-TV.RetrievedAugust 17,2018.
  8. ^"Why most of Meghan Markle's family won't make it to the royal wedding - Macleans.ca".Macleans.ca.April 13, 2018.Archivedfrom the original on June 11, 2018.RetrievedJuly 19,2018.
  9. ^"Meghan: From actress to duchess".BBC News.October 15, 2018.RetrievedDecember 11,2018.
  10. ^Wells, J.B."The Ragland Family Of Meghan Markle".Readkong.RetrievedApril 12,2023.
  11. ^Royston, J. (April 18, 2023)."Tabloid Slammed Over Meghan Markle, Kate Middleton Slavery Stories".Newsweek.RetrievedFebruary 10,2024.
  12. ^Crawford-Smith, James (September 11, 2023)."How Meghan Markle Discovered She is 43 Percent Nigerian".Newsweek.RetrievedMay 11,2024.
  13. ^"Harry & Meghan".Netflix.
  14. ^Morton, A. (April 12, 2018).Meghan: A Hollywood Princess(304 pages).Michael O'Mara Books, 2018. p. Chapter 2 – Growing up Markle.ISBN978-1782439653.Archivedfrom the original on June 15, 2018.RetrievedJune 15,2018.She (Doria) also worked as a travel agent....
  15. ^abCarroll, Leslie (2010).Notorious Royal Marriages: A Juicy Journey Through Nine Centuries of Dynasty, Destiny, and Desire.Penguin Publishing Group. p. 468.ISBN978-1-101-15977-4.Archivedfrom the original on August 5, 2018.RetrievedMay 19,2018.
  16. ^Dewan, Angela (May 19, 2018)."Doria Ragland: Meghan Markle's mother by her side on wedding day".CNN.Archivedfrom the original on May 20, 2018.RetrievedMay 19,2018.
  17. ^Smithers Peckham, Tina (April 30, 2018)."Doria Ragland: 7 Things to Know About Meghan Markle's Mother".Entertainment Tonight.Archivedfrom the original on May 22, 2018.RetrievedMay 21,2018– via Yahoo News.
  18. ^Williams, Janice (May 19, 2018)."Who is Doria Ragland?".Newsweek.Archivedfrom the original on May 19, 2018.RetrievedMay 19,2018.
  19. ^"Meghan Markle's mother has reportedly quit her job at a Los Angeles mental health clinic".New York Post.May 15, 2018.Archivedfrom the original on May 22, 2018.RetrievedMay 21,2018– via Fox News.
  20. ^abPorter, Lauren (May 19, 2018)."Who Is Meghan Markle's Mom? 7 Things To Know About Doria Ragland".Essence.Archivedfrom the original on May 17, 2018.RetrievedMay 17,2018.
  21. ^Jackson, Dory (August 28, 2020)."Meghan Markle's Mom Doria Ragland Starts New Job Teaching Jewelry Design".Us Weekly.RetrievedApril 30,2022.
  22. ^Blackett, L'Oréal (September 28, 2020)."What We Know About Doria Ragland's New Job".Bustle.RetrievedSeptember 12,2021.
  23. ^Chhabra, Shivani (May 25, 2018)."Did you know Meghan Markle's parents got married at an Indian temple?".India Today.Archivedfrom the original on May 26, 2018.RetrievedMay 26,2018.
  24. ^Tauber, Michelle (February 6, 2019)."The Truth About Meghan Markle's Dad — and the Letter She Wrote Him After the Wedding".People.RetrievedNovember 12,2021.
  25. ^Jones, Richard (May 17, 2018)."Thomas Markle Snr: How Meghan Markle's reclusive father helped propel her into the spotlight".The Telegraph.ISSN0307-1235.Archived fromthe originalon May 18, 2018.RetrievedMay 18,2018.
  26. ^Willgress, Lydia; Boyle, Danny (November 8, 2016)."Who is Meghan Markle? Everything we know about Prince Harry's girlfriend".The Daily Telegraph.London. Archived fromthe originalon November 12, 2016.RetrievedNovember 12,2016.
  27. ^Morris, Regan (September 27, 2017)."'Meghan who?' LA shrugs over Harry's hometown girlfriend ".BBC News.Archivedfrom the original on September 30, 2017.RetrievedNovember 28,2017.But Markle's mother lives in the View Park-Windsor Hills neighborhood, one of the wealthiest primarily African-American areas in the US.
  28. ^AOL Staff (May 16, 2018)."Meghan Markle's mom Doria Ragland seen headed to London amid drama around Meghan's father".aol.com.Archivedfrom the original on May 19, 2018.RetrievedMay 19,2018.
  29. ^"What You Need to Know About Meghan Markle's Mother Doria Ragland".Town and Country.May 19, 2018.Archivedfrom the original on May 19, 2018.RetrievedMay 19,2018.
  30. ^abFurness, Hannah (July 7, 2019)."Modernity meets tradition as Prince Harry and Meghan show first official pictures of Archie Mountbatten-Windsor's christening".The Telegraph.UK.RetrievedJuly 7,2019.
  31. ^Foster, Max; Said-Moorhouse, Lauren (June 6, 2021)."Meghan and Prince Harry welcome second child".CNN.RetrievedJune 6,2021.
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