About Mary

A St. Louis native, I attended Southeast Missouri University as an English/ Journalism major and have lived with my husband and two sons in Phoenix, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. and now Milwaukee.

As a life-long active civic and non-profit sector volunteer, I was honored by my appointment to the Wisconsin Humanities Council, an affiliate of the National Endowment of the Humanities, by Governor Tommy G. Thompson in 1994.  I served for seven years, including two years as chair of WHC.  I have had the privilege of being invited to the White House for the National Endowment of the Arts and Humanities Medal Awards Ceremony several times.

In 2013 I was again honored when Governor Scott Walker appointed me to the Wisconsin Arts Board, an affiliate of the National Endowment for the Arts.  I am currently serving as chair of the Strategic Planning Committee. In 2015 I was elected Vice Chair of  the WAB.

Volunteer stints have also included numerous committee chairmanships in the Junior Leagues of Phoenix, Los Angeles, Washington, D. C. and Milwaukee.  I received the award for Junior League of Milwaukee Sustainer of the Year in 2006.  I have been an elected member of the Executive Board of the Rite Hite YMCA, and currently serve as a board member of Festivals of Cedarburg, Inc.  Other non-profit and charitable organizations I have worked with include the Welfare Auxiliary of Children’s Hospital, Future Milwaukee, Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design Scholarship Committee, the Milwaukee Symphony League and the Mequon (Wisconsin) Community Foundation.

Professional organizations include the Milwaukee Press Club and Professional Dimensions, an invitational organization for dynamic professional women.  You can also find me on Linkedin.

I founded the Milwaukee Book and Author Dinner in 1997 to benefit the work of the Wisconsin Humanities Council.  Working closely with the former Harry W. Schwartz Bookshops, New York Publishing houses and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, this successful fundraising dinner brought four stellar authors on book tours to Milwaukee each year.

Personal interests have included a partnership with my husband Curt in Great Lake Stable, a thoroughbred horseracing enterprise based in Chicago.

Recent News about Mary

Media Escort & Author Tours, Serving Milwaukee and Madison Wisconsin