Mary Helen Glenn  July1, 1936 - November 19, 2015

Born in Vale, Oregon on July 1, 1936 and a resident of Los Altos for 45 years, Mary Mason died Thursday, November 19, 2015. After a 5-year struggle with cancer, Mary died quickly with her children at her side. Mary was a proud Vale High School Viking and went on to earn her BA in Business from Oregon State University in 1958. Later that year she married John Mason of Klamath Falls, Oregon and they settled with their two children in Los Altos in 1970. 

At Oregon State, she was a proud member of Pi Beta Phi Fraternity. Her life epitomized the Pi Phi core values of integrity, lifelong commitment, honor and respect, personal and intellectual growth, philanthropic service to others, and sincere friendship.

Mary described herself as an active community volunteer, but that doesn’t begin to cover the depth and passion with which she served. Mary was part of many community boards and councils such as the United Way of Santa Clara County, the Mid-Peninsula Child Advocacy Council, the Los Altos Community Foundation and the Community Foundation of Santa Clara. She is a past president of the Junior League of Palo Alto and was a very active member of Christ Episcopal Church, where she served nearly 40 years on the altar guild. Mary was employed as a paralegal and a college trustee.  

Mary’s love for education and her leadership abilities moved her to join the local PTA, which led to her election as PTA President and laid the ground work for two decades of service on educational boards. She was elected to serve two terms on the Mt. View-Los Altos High School Board, where she was twice elected president and helped oversee the challenging merger of three high school campuses into two.  Education was always Mary’s passion. She joyfully served three terms as a trustee for the Foothill-De Anza Community College District as well as eight years with the California Community College Trustees Organization, including a term as state president. Mary was also president of the California Community College League and a mentor with the Mountain View-Los Altos Scholars Program.

Mary fondly remembered riding her horse in parades as a child, the Shakespeare Festival in Ashland, Fourth of July at Shoreline, and golf -- anywhere and everywhere! An avid San Francisco Giants and San Jose Sharks fan, Mary also enjoyed reading, travel, family visits and duplicate bridge. Mary was a good friend and supporter of women’s golf in the Bay Area. Her contributions to the educational and local government councils are known to many. The generous gift of her time, leadership and expertise to support local causes will be missed. She was a fiercely independent and brave woman whose smiling face and kind words will be remembered by many.

Mary is survived by her daughter, Janet Wilhoite (Rick) of Ferndale, Washington; son Richard (Kari) of Irvine, California; grandchildren Caitlin, Brandon and Sara Wilhoite, and Matthew Mason. She was preceded in death by her parents Charles and Helen Glenn and her brother Bill Glenn.

A memorial service will be held Thursday, December 3, 2015 at 3:00 pm at Christ Episcopal Church, 1040 Border Road, Los Altos, California. In lieu of flowers, a donation to support the Endowment Fund of Christ Episcopal Church, the Foothill-De Anza Foundation, or the Pi Beta Phi Foundation will be appreciated.