Prior to that, she was a newspaper journalist. In 2003, after serving as the vice president of a full-service advertising agency, Mary founded StröngPOINT. An undergraduate marketing instructor, she holds a bachelor’s degree in communications, a master’s degree in business, and is nationally accredited in public relations. Mary is on the board of the United Way of Southern Arizona, a past chair of the Pima Community College Foundation, and vice president of the Tucson Advertising Federation Educational Foundation. She received the Sonoran Spirit Award from the Tucson Metro Chamber, Arizona Woman of Achievement in Communications, the Golden Pen and Hall of Fame from the American Advertising Federation-Tuson, and Women on the Move from the YWCA.