Mary Ann Peterson, a long-time secretary at what was then called the Graduate School of Public Health, died April 10, 2024 at 91.
Martha Ann Terry, associate professor emeritus in the School of Public Health, began to work with Peterson in the early 1990s, when Peterson was providing support for an HIV prevention research project and helped Terry figure out how the University system worked.
“Mary Ann was always cheerful, with a ready hello in the morning and a positive attitude,” Terry recalled. “Mary Ann never had a bad word for anyone, and she was always willing to help out where and when needed.
“I really appreciated Mary Ann’s smile, which she shared with everyone. The one word that comes to mind when I think of her is ‘light.’ I knew that if I was down, all I had to do was go next door to her office, and I’d feel better in an instant. The department wasn’t the same after she retired.”
“Mary Ann was a great person to work with,” said David Arndt, with the IT Support team at Pitt Public Health. “When she worked at Public Health’s Department of Behavioral and Community Health Sciences, she was the person to see if you needed anything — office supplies, help with travel expenses. She was kind, warm and personable, and she had a great laugh and smile. If you felt down, chatting with her would make you feel better. She was the glue of the department, and she made everyone feel welcome.”
Born May 8, 1932, Mary Ann Peterson grew up in Forest Hills, the daughter of the late Walter and Anna Szmyd Matusz, She was married to Edward A. Peterson Sr., from 1960 until he died in 2015.
She is survived by her sons, Edward A. (Heidi) Peterson Jr. and Glenn W. (Doug Kraushaar) Peterson, also a Pitt employee; grandchildren Christian and Elizabeth Ann Peterson; brother John (Camillia) Matusz; sister-in-law Dorothy (the late Al) Peterson; and many nieces and nephews.
Memorial gifts are suggested to the Humane Animal Rescue of Pittsburgh, Attn. Donations, 6926 Hamilton Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15208.
— Marty Levine