Mary Ann Kirkham

Mary Ann Kirkham died April 10, 2020, in Bellevue, Wash. She was 97. She was born Mary Ann Reynolds in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 8, 1922, to William H. and Irene Reynolds. Growing up in Silver Spring, Md., Mary graduated from the Academy of the Holy Names in 1940 and from the College of Notre Dame in Baltimore in 1944. She earned a Master's Degree in Social Work from The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., in 1948. She was a child welfare worker in Rockville and Cumberland, Md., from 1945 to 1948, when she moved to Toledo, Ohio. There, she was employed by the Toledo Child and Family Agency. Her duties included hosting a weekly radio show about social work. It was in Toledo that, on a blind date, she met her future husband, Lindsay Jack Kirkham, Jr., a physician completing his residency in Detroit, Mich. They married on July 15, 1952, and moved to Mason City, Iowa, living in the Forest Park neighborhood before relocating to 222 6th St. NW in 1955. In that large home, they raised their seven children until 1973, when the family moved to 517 S. Shore Dr. in Clear Lake. During her years in Iowa, Mary was active in many organizations including the Phoenician Club, Woman's Club and Guild of Holy Family Church. In 1955, she was one of the founders of the organization now called the Mental Health Center of North Iowa. She worked as a therapist at the center from 1973 to 1977, and then was a freelance adoption investigator from 1977 to 1980. In 1977, she was presented with the center's Distinguished Service award. She wrote guest opinion pieces for the Globe-Gazette in 1964 and 1969 on social work. The couple relocated from Clear Lake to Honolulu in 1982 and lived there until 1988, when they retired to Sun City West, Ariz., before making their last move, to the greater Seattle area in the late 1990s. Mary had many interests, but her greatest was for acting. Very shy as a child, she came out of her shell with the help of an elocution teacher and developed a lifelong love of the theater and performing. She frequently performed dramatic readings of poems and other pieces for events, and once performed before the governor of Maryland. After moving to Mason City, she performed dramatic readings for a variety of civic organizations and was active in the Mason City Community Theater. In her first year in town, she landed the role of the newlywed in "Father of the Bride." In 1973, she directed two one-act plays, "Adaptation" and "Next!" A loving mother, devoted spouse, and good friend, Mary was a terrific storyteller with a wonderful sense of humor. She loved to entertain friends in her home. When her children were young, she regularly packed them into a station wagon and drove to the Twin Cities to experience live performances at the Guthrie Theatre and the Chanhassen Dinner Theatre. An avid reader, she loved literary fiction and classic poetry. She was an avid seamstress who made costumes for nearly every production she or her children were involved in. Later in life, she became an accomplished quilter. After moving to Hawaii, Mary studied acting at the University of Hawaii and later was nominated for Best Actress in the state's Po'okela theater awards three years in a row, winning for "'Night Mother" and "Da." The third nomination was for the title role in "The Madwoman of Chaillot." In 1985, she landed a small speaking role opposite Tom Selleck in an episode of "Magnum, P.I." called "The Treasure of Kalaniopu’u." For several years, she volunteered as a tour guide at Hawaii's famed Iolani Palace. In the late 1980s, she made a return visit to North Iowa to act in a production of "Plaza Suite" at the Clear Lake High School auditorium. Later, in Arizona, she taught acting and directed staged readings. After the move to Seattle, Mary was heavily involved in the early years of her grandchildren's homeschooling, teaching them French and coaching them in acting. She was preceded in death by her husband, her sister Elizabeth Hanson, and her brothers William and Joseph Reynolds. She is survived by children Clifford of Seattle, William of Elizabeth, N.J., Richard of Bellevue, Wash., Maura of Madison, Wis., Jeffrey (and daughter-in-law Eileen) of Seattle, Christine (Tina) of Salt Lake City, Utah, and Douglas of Bothell, Wash.; and by grandchildren Kaille Kirkham of Tokyo, Japan, and Campion Kirkham of Seattle. Her ashes will be interred at Purdy Walters of Floral Hills cemetery in Lynnwood, Wash. A memorial service will be planned for a future date.