Congratulations to our co-Activist for the month of October 2020—Mary Ann Feldheim! Mary Ann grew up in Northeast Ohio as the oldest of five children. Her father was a factory supervisor for a Model shop and her mother stayed home caring for the children. Mary Ann has fond memories of growing up in the country and roaming the woods, and of course, looking after her younger siblings.
She has been married to her wonderful husband, Larry, for 46 years! One winter’s night while digging out Larry’s truck from their snow-filled driveway in Ohio, Larry announced he was moving to Florida in the spring and asked if she was coming. The decision was easy, and they moved to Delray Beach in June of 1985.
Mary Ann is very well-educated, receiving her Bachelor’s and Master’s of Nursing from Kent State University. Later, she earned a PhD in Public Administration from Florida Atlantic University. Mary Ann’s career included being an Operating Room Supervisor at the Cleveland Clinic and as a Dialysis Educator at New York Hospital before their move south.
Upon moving to Florida, they immediately purchased a boat, and Larry earned his Captain’s license. They spent most weekends on the ocean fishing and then sailing. Larry became a Charter Captain and sailing instructor in South Florida and the Caribbean, while Mary Ann worked for a hospice during their years in South Florida while working on her PhD. They moved to Central Florida in 1997, when Mary Ann was offered a position at the University of Central Florida teaching public administration and nonprofit management.
Mary Ann retired in 2019 and became active with the Democrats coordinating the onboarding of new volunteers for the SemDems. She joined the SemDems to support ethical, democratic governance and to advocate for responsible public service. Mary Ann says that through her participation with the SemDems she feels, “that I can make a difference in the upcoming election by welcoming all new volunteers to the SemDems and connecting them to volunteer opportunities.”
Outside of volunteering with the SemDems, Mary Ann and Larry are sailors and have traveled the Caribbean frequently on their own boats, on chartered boats, and on cruise ships. In 2019 (luckily), they took a four-month cruise around the world on Holland America’s Amsterdam. They left from Fort Lauderdale and cruised through the Panama Canal, stopping in Peru and Chile before going to Easter Island. They then travelled to Tahiti, Bora Bora, New Zealand and Australia. Their ship was the last to visit Komodo Island before it was closed to visitors to protect the Komodo Dragons. On the return part of the trip, the ship stopped in Singapore, India, Oman, Jordan and then travelled through the Suez Canal into the Mediterranean Sea. In Europe they visited Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Norway, Scotland, and Ireland before returning home. Mary Ann states, “It was an amazing adventure!”
Additionally, Mary Ann is an avid reader and says, “reading allows me to travel virtually and to experience diverse cultures and experiences.” The SemDems are so thankful for Mary Ann’s dedication and for helping our volunteers to get their “sea legs!”