Former FIU First Lady Mary Ann Wolfe remembered

President Mark B. Rosenberg sent the following message to the FIU community on Thursday, July 14, 2016.

Dear members of the FIU community,

It is with a heavy heart and a deep sense of appreciation that I inform you that our FIU family has lost one of our own. FIU’s former First Lady Mary Ann Wolfe passed away on Monday.

The wife of FIU’s third president, Gregory B. Wolfe, who himself recently passed, Mary Ann brought elegance, style, charm and class to this university. One of our founders, Paul Gallagher, often said that when Dr. Wolfe was named president, FIU received a double bonus: Mary Ann. Her exuberance, radiance and zest for life were energizing for our entire community.

With a deep intellectual curiosity, knowledge of classical and modern literature, as well as an unmatched poise, taste and warmth that was apparent to anyone who met her, Mary Ann proved to be the perfect match for our FIU.

FIU was still a young institution when Dr. Wolfe became president. During his tenure, he dreamt of transforming FIU from an upper-division university to a full, four-year university. And with Mary Ann at his side, he did. They embraced this institution with open arms. Together, they put FIU on the map – giving us an identity and direction.

Mary Ann, like President Wolfe, was determined to help make FIU “higher education’s beacon in Miami.” Part of this would be accomplished through opening FIU’s doors to the world – from diplomats and heads of state to artists, entertainers and public intellectuals.

In her own way, Mary Ann was a pathbreaker. A year after graduating from UCLA in 1944, she began working for the federal government in the newsroom of the Office of Inter-American Affairs. She also served as a selection officer for the Peace Corps before joining the Women’s Bureau. Before moving to Miami, she coordinated the Youth Program of the Women’s Bureau of the United States Department of Labor.

When Dr. Wolfe served as President of Portland State University in Oregon, Mary Ann was a member of the board of the Portland Red Cross and the YWCA, where she directed a million-dollar capital funds drive. In 1971, the labor commissioner of Oregon appointed her a member of the State Advisory Council on Sex Discrimination in Employment. She also served on countless volunteer boards including the Massachusetts State Board of the League of Women Voters and the Tegucigalpa, Honduras, Damas Voluntarias.

Mary Ann always had a love for writing. In addition to drafting many of Dr. Wolfe’s speeches, she worked as a Newsweek stringer in Honduras and a writer for Miami Today.

Mary Ann is a reflection of what FIU stands for – care, compassion and impact. Her academic, governmental and volunteer excellence served this institution well, and we’re fortunate to have had such a first lady.

Today, our thoughts are with the Wolfe family. She is survived by her children Laura Ann, Gregory Nelson and Melissa Helene Wolfe; grandchildren Galen Nelson and Anna Wolfe Pauly and Marie Elise Wolfe-Callahan; and great-grandchild Ko Sugihara Pauly.

Sympathy cards can be sent to the Wolfe family at 9831 Costa del Sol Blvd., Doral, FL 33178. More information will be forthcoming.

Sincerely,

Mark B. Rosenberg
President