[vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”2900″ border_color=”grey” img_link_target=”_self” animation=”no-animation” scroll_animation=”disable” delay=”0.1″ img_size=”medium”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_text_separator title=”January 2015 MRW Member Profile- Kathleen Ross” title_align=”separator_align_center” color=”grey”][vc_column_text]If we had a ranking of Most Enthusiastic MRW Members, Kathleen Ross would certainly hold a very high position in that ranking. We should’ve been keeping count of the women she’s brought into our club. I know for certain that I am one of the people who came back to MRW, thanks to Kathi’s generous invitation to “come to a meeting as my guest.” (The rest is history!) Even if you found your way to MRW by another route, you’ll enjoy getting to know more about this outstanding member, who has served the club in so many capacities—including a stint as recording secretary and many years’ service as head of our May Silent Auction. Come to think of it, Kathi’s story will reveal why she’s the perfect Silent Auction chair! –Deb Kaczmarek, President
Tell us a little about your growing up years.
I grew up in a big Victorian house in a small town in northern Michigan (Central Lake) with two younger sisters. Dad was the doctor in town (and the neighboring towns). My mom died when I was young, and Dad remarried. We gained a stepmother and three more sisters (one older than me and the others younger). We also had two cousins (Cheryl & Jan) who spent summers with us. It was kind of like a girls’ camp and lots of fun.
Talk a bit about the class or teacher that had the greatest impact on you.
First grade: Mrs. Stoel taught all 43 of us to read.
Fifth grade: Mrs. Childs taught us all to knit, even the boys. She also told us we could learn anything as long as we knew how to look it up, we could teach ourselves.
Describe one highlight of your professional life.
When I worked for Rost & Rost Law Firm in Topeka, Kansas, I was put in charge of a multi-million dollar estate auction. I didn’t think I could do it, but my boss, Tom Rost, kept assuring me I could. I hired appraisers and security. I arranged transportation to move the assets (indoor and outdoor furniture, jewelry, art, vintage pieces, etc.) from southern Kansas to Topeka. I rented a building for the auction and hired an auction house. The auction house arranged the advertising. It was a three day auction. (Before the auction, I was put in charge of the deceased’s funeral. He had lots of money, but no family. It was a grand send-off with a beautiful casket, his favorite music and lots of white flowers as he wanted.)
Who is your favorite political figure of all time?
Dick Cheney. One very snowy night in Wyoming, when Dick Cheney was my Representative, I spent an evening with him and Senator Alan Simpson and my friend, Suzanne, at the Elks Club, shooting the breeze and drinking beer. (Everyone else left because of the storm.) Dick Cheney is one of the smartest men I’ve ever met.
What current issue confirms that you are a Republican?
I want much smaller government. I want taxes rolled back. I want to get rid of Obamacare.
What is your favorite MRW memory?
It’s not really a memory, but all the wonderful friends I’ve made at MRW.
What is your favorite way to spend your spare time?
Cooking, baking or reading a good book.
Tell us one thing that your MRW friends don’t know about you.
We’re going to retire very soon. (Even my boss doesn’t know that yet.)[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”2788″ border_color=”grey” img_link_target=”_self” animation=”no-animation” scroll_animation=”disable” delay=”0.1″ img_size=”medium”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_text_separator title=”Mary Ann Sexton” title_align=”separator_align_center” color=”grey”][vc_column_text margins=”0 0 35px 0″]This month’s member profile features the woman who, more than anyone else, is responsible for bringing me back to MRW after a years-long absence. Let me explain. Mary Ann Sexton has been my friend for decades. We raised our children together; we led a church music program together; we worked in politics together, early on as pro-life Democrats! But Mary Ann discovered before I did that MRW’s Saturday breakfast meetings deserved a place in our busy lives. I’ll never be able to thank her enough for persisting in the invitations that (eventually) convinced me to rejoin this terrific organization.
Even before Mary Ann retired from her full-time job as a database manager, she found ways to lend a hand with MRW’s various projects. And now she’s found a few spare moments to tell us about herself. I’m sure you’ll enjoy getting to know her as much as I have.–DK
Tell us a little about your growing up years.
I was the oldest of 10 children in Omaha, Nebraska, attended parochial grade and high school. Being the oldest of 10 meant I had to do lots of household chores and help take care of my younger siblings. I was in elementary school when the Nixon/Kennedy race occurred, and it was the first election I can recall knowing about.
Talk a bit about the class or teacher that had the greatest impact on you.
My high school piano teacher inspired me to really learn music, and I subsequently went on to major in music at the college level and to become a church musician.
Describe one highlight of your professional life.
The first Christmas after I became a parish music director and director of the choir had to be a highlight. I’d worked REALLY hard with the volunteer choir, and things went extremely well.
Who is your favorite political figure of all time?
I don’t know that I have one.
What current issue confirms that you are a Republican?
I am solidly and unabashedly pro-life. The Democrats abandoned the unborn.
What is your favorite MRW memory?
Just that I always enjoy the food and the conversations. I think I most enjoyed Mary Pawlenty’s talk.
What is your favorite way to spend your spare time?
Doing counted cross stitch or quilting.
Tell us one thing that your MRW friends don’t know about you.
Many probably don’t know I once considered myself a Democrat. But the parties have changed and I’ve gotten wiser, so now I am a Republican.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]