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PLM Event April 15, 2015

Mary Ann Behm is the Program Coordinator for Launch Manistee. She brings over 20 years of experience working to improve the lives of children including a decade spent in variou

s roles within the Traverse Bay Area Intermediate School District (TBAISD) as a school social worker and special education service area director. In 2011 she began a new role as child welfare director for Child & Family Services of Northwest Michigan, a regional non-profit dedicated to helping strengthen and nurture children and their families. Since then Ms. Behm served as interim director of compliance for TBAISD and has been self-employed as a geriatric specialist.

Ms. Behm has a Master’s Degree in Social Work (MSW) from the

University of Michiganas well as an additional Master’s Level

administrative certificate in Special Education from

Grand Valley State University.

Mary Russ-DeMarz has been the photographer and owner of local business, DeMarz Studio, for over 20 years. Originally from Livonia, MI, Mary and her husband moved north and embraced all of the wonderful things that Manistee has to offer in small town life. Her love for photography developed during the film era but her career has evolved seamlessly with the digital world through dedicated hours of education and through traveling to seminars (in and out of state). Throughout her career and education, Mary has become very fluid in the arts of posing, lighting, and digital manipulation (when needed). She believes that these techniques are key to accomplishing a g

reat portrait. However, Mary also places great emphasis on developing a trusting relationship with her subjects- once this is established, everything fall into place.

Mary is not only passionate about capturing the beauty within life and her clients, but she is also moved to contribute to her community and recognizes the importance of giving back. For the past 10 years Mary has hosted food drives (in exchange for photography discounts) for the Manistee Senior Center during the holiday season and has also raised thousands of dollars for the Homeward Bound Animal Shelter.

Mary has five Children and four Grandchildren (with another grandchild on the way). She is also an animal lover. She and her husband have three small rescue dogs and one very large Great Pyrenees’ dog.

As a Service to Launch Manistee and the Professional Ladies of Manistee, the Alliance for Economic Success Announces

"HELPING OUR KIDS SUCCEED"

Mary Ann Behm, Launch Manistee Coordinator, to Keynote April 29 Forum

MANISTEE, MICHIGAN - If you want to learn more about a bold new initiative to help Manistee County children succeed, you'll want to be front and center at the April 29, 2015 forum sponsored by the Professional Ladies of Manistee beginning at 5:00 p.m. at the Manistee Golf and Country Club.

Mary Ann Behm, program coordinator for Launch Manistee, will talk about the Manistee county partnership that is united around dramatically improving access to quality pre-school and post-secondary programs under an initiative coined as "arguably the most important economic development project in Manistee County." Behm will talk about the facts behind efforts focused on making pre-school available to all 3 and 4-year olds and ramping up college completion from less than 30 percent to over 60 percent.

"We want everyone to have a stake and a role in Launch Manistee and we welcome every chance we have to spread the word," said Behm. "Launch Manistee is about understanding the reality of where Manistee County students are and developing ways to dramatically impact the trend. I look forward to sharing the thinking and direction of over 20 groups and organizations that are part of the Launch Manistee Leadership Team who have created a common agenda for support our students - from cradle to career."

"Manistee County is fortunate to have Mary Ann facilitating Launch Manistee," said Mary Kaye Wilkosz, Co-founder of the Professional Ladies of Manistee Organization. "She brings a wealth of experience in education, social work and program management to our community and is enthusiastic and energized about Launch Manistee. This will be a great opportunity for all participants to learn about this initiative as well as how they can become directly involved in positively influencing the lives of our children."

The April 29 event includes dinner; doors open at 5:00 p.m. with keynote remarks set for 6 p.m. Admission fee is $20; please RSVP by calling Mary Kaye Wilkosz at 231-510-1555 or emailing professionalladiesofmanistee@gmail.com.

The Professional Ladies of Manistee was formed in 2013 to help Manistee county women connect with other women in the community, learn about new and emerging business practices and achieve success.

More Pictures Coming Soon!


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