Foundation Mourns Mary Ann Wiley (1930-2013)
Mary Ann
The Foundation would like to acknowledge the passing of a devoted and longtime friend of the Arboretum, Mary Ann Wiley. Mary was a member of our volunteer Unit 86 and was very active as a docent in the Seattle Japanese Garden—and in training new docents there. In 2007-08, she and her husband Bob led a campaign that raised about half of the private funds needed to create the new Japanese Garden Entry Gatehouse.
“Mary Ann was absolutely a driving force in making the gatehouse happen,” says the Arboretum Foundation’s Paige Miller. “She and Bob made a committment that the Friends of the Japanese Garden would raised $0.5 million and they did it—in about 7 or 8 months. It was remarkable.”
Mary was a native of West Virginia. She and Bob moved to Mercer Island in 1964 and lived there ever since. She worked in the travel industry from 1974 to 1994, organizing and escorting educational tours worldwide. After retirement, she volunteered at the Senior Services of King County, helping provide legal and medical insurance information for senior. Along with being a member of Unit 86, she was also a member of the Lake Washington Garden Club and served on the board of the Pacific Science Center, among many other local institutions and associations. Read her full obituary in the Seattle Times.
Mary Ann died on October 7 aged 83. She is survived by Bob, their two children Robert and Ann, and three granddaughters, Marene, Reagan, and Tory.
