You’re probably familiar with Vanessa Williams from her 1984 title as Miss America. Being the first African American woman to win the title, Williams made quite the noise when she was crowned.
She made even more noise when she resigned her title, but that’s a story for another day.
The former Miss America got married three times, and the first time to Ramon Hervey II lasted ten years, while the second time to Rick Fox lasted six years.
Now, Williams is happily married to former businessman and real estate agent Jim Skrip.
But besides being Vanessa Williams’ husband, what do we know about Jim Skrip? Let’s see!
A Biography of Jim Skrip
Jim Skrip is mainly known for being Vanessa Williams’ husband, but there’s much more to him than being married to a famous person.
Skrip was born on the 1st of January 1960, making him a Capricorn. He was born in Buffalo, New York, and still resides there. His parents are Fredrick Skrip and Annette J. Skrip, but little is known about them.
The father, Frederick, was reportedly a businessman, and he died while Jim was still young. Meanwhile, Annette died in 2011.
He reportedly has two brothers, Martin and Michael, but we’re unsure how old they are.
Before marrying Vanessa Williams, Jim Skrip went into many business ventures. He worked as an accountant and later became a real estate agent.
He graduated from St. Bonaventure University, a private college in New York, with a bachelor’s degree in accounting.
Jim Skrip’s Career: From Accounting to Real Estate
Jim Skrip’s career kickstarted shortly after his graduation. After earning his bachelor’s degree, he moved to Dallas and worked at a famous accounting firm, Arthur Andersen. Shortly after, he decided that accounting wasn’t for him, and he started working in real estate instead.
He started as an assistant controller for a prominent real estate firm. After a while, he left Dallas, moved to San Francisco instead, and accepted a job offer as a chief financial officer at a software firm.
Afterward, Skrip returned to real estate and was employed as a director of asset management at a real estate company.
The former businessman reportedly works as the Director of Finance and Operations at The Harvey School, a private school in New York.
Jim Skrip’s Relationship With Vanessa Williams
Jim Skrip and Vanessa Williams tied the knot in 2015. Since then, they’ve been inseparable, but when did they meet?
The First Conversation
Skrip and Williams met for the first time on a Nile River cruise in Egypt, where they were both vacationing by coincidence. According to Williams, the Egyptologist tour guide on the cruise was shipping them together (pun intended!), but because Williams was with her daughter, she thought Jim wouldn’t take the first step.
So, she took matters into her own hands and started their first conversation. According to her, he was wearing a Buffalo Sables shirt on the cruise, so she walked over and asked him whether he was from Buffalo, saying that her mother was from there as well.
Before they both knew it, they were having dinner together. It lasted three hours, and Williams said there was so much in common between them, so the connection was inevitable.
The Marriage
Not long after their first meeting, Vanessa Williams and Jim Skrip tied the knot in 2015. They chose Buffalo, New York because their families were there. Additionally, they decided to have an Egypt-themed wedding to pay tribute to the country that connected them for the first time.
Williams also chose to have her engagement ring made at a local jeweler in Buffalo called Bomi. Skrip designed the ring himself, and they chose a local jeweler to pay tribute to the city.
The former Miss America wore two custom-made dresses by Carmen Marc Valvo for the wedding. One featured gold leather petals to make Williams look like an Ancient Egyptian Goddess to match the wedding’s theme.
Their Previous Marriages
Before marrying Vanessa Williams, Jim Skrip was married, but not much is known about his previous relationship. He reportedly married Williams before his first marriage was annulled, which urged them to remarry in a Catholic church in 2016.
They celebrated their second wedding on their first anniversary, and Williams reportedly wore a traditional dress by Pamella Roland with a pink waist.
Jim wasn’t the only one married before. Vanessa Williams was also married twice before settling on him.
In 1987, she married Ramon Hervey II, a public relations specialist. Together, they had three children, but they got divorced in 1997.
Two years later, she married Rick Fox, the NBA basketball player. The couple had one daughter together and ended their relationship in 2005.
What Is Jim Skrip’s Net Worth?
Unlike his famous wife, Jim prefers to keep his personal life under wraps, so there isn’t much information about his annual salary or earnings. His net worth is estimated at $10 million, but that’s not necessarily true.
It’s not hard to believe he’s wealthy, having had plenty of investments in real estate and other business ventures.
Final Thoughts
Though most people are familiar with Vanessa Williams, not everyone knows her third and current husband, Jim Skrip. In a 2016 interview, she described Skrip as “a real man” with integrity and romance.
Jim is a former businessman Vanessa met on a Nile River cruise in Egypt. The couple tied the knot in 2015 and had no children together. Instead, Jim is the stepfather of Williams’ four children from her previous marriages.