Mary L. James, 59, Harrisonville, MO, died Friday, January 2, 2009 at the Kansas City Hospice House, Kansas City, MO. Memorial services will be held at 11:30 a.m. Monday, January 5, 2009 at the United Methodist Church in Harrisonville. The family will received friends from 10:00-11:30 a.m. Monday prior to the service at the church. Memorial contributions may be made to the Mary L. James Scholarship Endowment in the College of Education, University of Missouri Columbia, 114 Hill Hall, Columbia, MO 65211 or to the Kansas City Hospice House, 12000 Wornal Road, Kansas City, MO 64145.

Mary was born May 6, 1949 in West Plains, MO, the daughter of James W. and Wanda A. (Alston) Brown, Jr. She graduated from Harrisonville High School in 1967 and went on to receive a Bachelor of Science degree in Education from the University of Missouri-Columbia and a Masters of Public Administration degree from the University of Kansas. Mary was united in marriage to William E. James on February 6, 1971 at the United Methodist Church in Harrisonville.

Mary volunteered, worked and led in various public service roles, primarily in education and health care. In the area of education, she worked as a school teacher in 1971 in South San Antonio (Texas) Independent School District and from 1972 to 1975 for Cass R-IX School District in Harrisonville. From 2006-2008, she was the adult and community education coordinator for the Cass Career Center in Harrisonville.

Gov. Mel Carnahan appointed Mary as a member of the University of Missouri System Board of Curators in 1999, and she became board president in 2005. She also served organizations within the University of Missouri system – Chancellor's Fund for Excellence, the Advisory and Development Committee within the College of Education, and the Griffith's Leadership Society for Women and she was a member of the Jefferson Club.

The Alumni Alliance in 2005 recognized Mary for Outstanding Alumni Service to the University of Missouri System. She also served as a trustee for the Harrisonville Public School Foundation. In 2004, she was one of the first to be inducted into the Harrisonville High School Distinguished Alumni Wall of Fame.

In the area of health care, Mary worked for two years as the executive director of the Cass Medical Center Foundation. She also served as a member of the board of the Healthcare Foundation of Greater Kansas City and on the Cass Medical Center Foundation board, including serving as vice chair. In 2006, the University of Missouri recognized Mary as a Distinguished Friend to the School of Nursing.

Mary also showed her dedication to helping others by serving 12 years on the Harrisonville Park Board, including serving as chair. While serving on the Park Board, her public service pursuits included advocating for a community sales tax that led to building a pool and maintenance facility for the city of Harrisonville; wrote the grant and raised funds to build an outdoor theater; and helped in preliminary planning for a community center.

Many of these volunteer efforts and numerous others took place while James worked full time in the newspaper business at the family-owned Cass County Publishing Co. Her duties as the human resources manager from 1975 to 2000 included oversight for personnel, payroll and benefits.

Mary was a member of the Harrisonville United Methodist Church, the Harrisonville Chamber of Commerce, Chapter G.R. PEO, Delta Gamma Fraternity and the University of Missouri Alumni Association.

Mary was preceded in death by her father, J.W. Brown, Jr. She is survived by her husband, William E. James, Harrisonville; two sons, Alex James and wife, Sheri, Overland Park, KS, and Doug James and wife, Allison, Memphis, TN; granddaughter, Molly James, Overland Park, KS; her mother, Wanda A. Brown, Harrisonville; one sister, Jean Snider, and husband, Larry, Harrisonville.