Mary P. Walker earned her undergraduate degree in Technical Writing and Business from Carnegie Mellon University and a master’s degree in Religious Education from Duquesne University. Her professional life has been as varied as her interests: she worked for 14 years as a technical writer and systems engineer with IBM, dedicated 10 years as a stay-at-home mother, and later served for a decade as communications specialist at St. Mary’s Catholic Center at Texas A&M University. For more than 25 years, she was also a correspondent for the Austin diocesan newspaper, where she authored hundreds of articles.

An active member of St. Thomas Aquinas Parish, Mary served as Director of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults for 11 years. She is currently a Stephen Minister and chairs Habitat for Humanity’s local Faith in Action Committee, which builds bridges between Habitat and area congregations. In addition, she has been deeply involved in community service through leadership roles such as past president of the College Station Noon Lions Club, volunteer work with the National Alliance on Mental Illness, and as co-vice president and founding board member of Sweet Oak Collaborative, a nonprofit dedicated to addressing unmet community needs by bridging gaps among social service agencies.

Mary and her husband, Hank, are the proud parents of two adult children and the somewhat exasperated owners of two spoiled, chronically disobedient dogs.