Ann Lynne Sihvonen Mayo

Ann Lynne Sihvonen Mayo, R.N. passed away peacefully on July 12, 2012, after a prolonged illness, she was age 63. As a ten year Stage 3 pancreatic cancer survivor, she continually kept her physicians in awe with her ability to fight any health issue that presented itself. She attributed this to her “Sisu” (loosely translated from Finnish to English, it means “strength of will, determination, perseverance, and acting rationally in the face of adversity”).

Mrs. Mayo was born on June 5, 1949 in El Dorado, AR to Mr. Sulo Victor Sihvonen of International Falls, MN and Mrs. Thelma Marie Beatrice Ruiz Sihvonen of Metarie, LA. She was raised in Crossett, AR where she participated in Girl Scouts and graduated from Crossett High School in 1967. During her senior year of High School, she was the Major of the Eaglettes and she attended Arkansas Girls State. In 1971, Mrs. Mayo received her Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing from Baylor University where she met her husband. Following her mother’s advice “that every woman needs to be able to support herself if the need arises,” she took the Texas nursing exam and became a Registered Nurse in 1971. On September 24, 1972, she wed Jerry Gene Mayo of Pritchett, CO. Shortly thereafter they began a family.

She started working for the Plano Independent School District in 1985 at Harrington Elementary School as the office clerk. She became the School Nurse at Saigling Elementary School where she worked from 1989 to 2001. For part of that time, she shared nursing duties at Weatherford, Daffron, and Davis Elementary Schools. She volunteered her time at the Plano Children’s Medical Clinic for several years and was nominated for School Nurse of the Year for Region 10 in 1995. During this time, she formed many precious bonds with the staff and students; all of whom she loved deeply.

In 2001, widowed with her children grown and ready for a new challenge, she became the School Health Coordinator for the Plano ISD. Mrs. Mayo’s responsibilities included preparing numerous state mandated annual reports, implementing state legislation regarding school health, preparing the annual budget for school health, and numerous other operational and supervisory tasks. With her renowned attention to detail, she worked tirelessly to ensure the health and safety of some 47,000 students of the Plano ISD by maintaining a competent and competitive nursing staff. To accomplish this goal, she organized and provided over 20 hours of professional training annually. She was a strong advocate for having one nurse in every school and lobbied for a school to be named after Winnie Lyle, Plano’s first School Nurse. At the end of her tenure, seventy-one School Nurses and five Clinic Management Assistants were in her charge. In 2004, she went to work for Region 10 as a Head Start/Early Head Start Health Services Consultant where she stayed until her retirement in 2008. Throughout her career, her dedication to the health of students was unwavering and her clinic and office were always a safe haven for children and staff with colorful decorations and numerous pink flamingos.

Mrs. Mayo was a devoted daughter, sister, wife, mother, and friend. She volunteered as a co-leader for her daughter’s Girl Scout Troop 1060 for 12 years and as Den Mother for her son’s Cub Scout Den for Pack 220. For numerous years she volunteered in the classroom or as homeroom mother while her children attended Harrington Elementary School and she was an active member of the Carpenter Middle School, Clark High School, and Plano East Senior High School Band Boosters. Nature and camping were lifelong passions and she delighted in yearly visits to see relatives and friends in northern Minnesota. Without hesitation, she would volunteer to go to Camp Classen with the PISD school children any time she got a chance. During the last few years that she worked and through April 2011, her innate sense of duty and natural drive to care for others lead her to spend a substantial portion of each year taking care of her elderly mother and even more elderly aunt. Becoming a grandmother in 2006 gave her a new focus and a special glow. She loved her grandchildren, “To the moon and back!”

A staunch Tea-Party Conservative and lifelong member of the RNC, she remained fiercely patriotic for our United States until her passing. Anyone visiting her at the hospital this past July 4th, left with an American Flag and a stern reminder of the unlimited opportunities available to them because they were in America.

She is survived by her two children, daughter Amy Boland Mayo McLin of San Antonio and son John Sihvonen Mayo of Plano, Texas; Son in Law, Ian Michael McLin of San Antonio; three grandchildren, Thomas Boland McLin, Catherine Pender McLin and Elizabeth Ann McLin; also by her brother John Phillip Sihvonen of Covington, LA and sister Sue Boland Sihvonen of Gretna, LA. She is preceded in death by her parents and her husband.

A Memorial Service will be held at The First Presbyterian Church of Plano, located at 1500 Jupiter Rd., Plano, TX 75074. The service will be held on Saturday, July 21, 2012 at 2:00pm. A reception in honor of her life will follow the service.

In lieu of flowers, those wishing to honor Ann Mayo’s life and memory can make a donation to the National Association of School Nurses, Attention: Financial Officer, 8484 Georgia Avenue, Suite 420, Silver Spring, MD 20910.