Mary Hofmann Holtschneider, MEd, MPA, BSN, RN, NPDA-BC, CPTD, was an exceptional advocate for the ANPD community. Even though I only had the opportunity to meet her a few times, each time I spoke to her, she carried on conversations with the focus and generous spirit of an old friend.   

When Mary taught nursing professional development certification review courses, she didn’t simply teach the answers to exam content; she challenged people to identify with their specialty. After she was last at my organization, I immediately noticed my team changing their email signatures to “NPD Practitioner” and “NPD Specialist.” My team said, “Mary taught me to call myself by my specialty, regardless of what the organization has labeled me. I will model to others how I want to be known.” Additionally, they started writing effective domain objectives because Mary taught them to integrate learners’ feelings that so often go overlooked. They integrated engagement tactics they had seen Mary model in classes, like gallery walks and videos. She taught them to be bold in their NPD joy. The day before she died, an NPD Practitioner on my team said to me, “Mary didn’t just change how I think about myself at work; she changed my life.”

When I was reflecting on my interactions with Mary and how she’d had such a positive impact on me professionally, I started thinking about what I would want my professional legacy to be. I imagined my obituary saying, “In lieu of flowers, please send an NPD practitioner to cert prep review class.” At first this seemed silly or morbid, but I approached the Board of Directors with the idea, and it resonated. So many folks who had known Mary had also reached out to ANPD asking how best to memorialize her. This is how the Mary Holtschneider Fund was started.

Mary had made an impact in so many ways—she was the “Interprofessional Learning Environments,” formerly “Simulation,” column editor for the Journal of Nursing Professional Development (JNPD) and has more than 50 author credits in PubMed. She was active in the Virginia and North Carolina ANPD affiliates. She presented last year at the ANPD Aspire Convention on "Leading Healthy Work Environments: Start with HEALTHY YOU!" and presented many times before that. She consulted convention planners on strategies to weave wellness throughout Aspire. She consistently advocated for self-care and individual well-being of nurses and was a certified Pilates instructor. She was a mentor in the ANPD Leadership Academy. She served on the ANPD Scope and Standards workgroup in 2015 and co-authored the “Simulation” chapter for the 5th edition of Core Curriculum for Nurses in Professional Development. In addition to her service to our organization, she presented extensively at the Association for Talent Development and the VHA Resuscitation Symposium. She proudly maintained her paramedic license throughout her career. This year, Mary has been posthumously awarded ANPD’s highest honor, the Marlene Kramer Lifetime Achievement Award. This award represents the highest level of impact and legacy within ANPD, which clearly aligns with the commitment to excellence, generosity, and leadership that Mary tirelessly displayed throughout her career.

Because of the limitless optimism and well-rounded skillset Mary brought to her NPD practice, the ANPD Board of Directors wanted to create a means for NPD practitioners to grow courageously in their NPD journey. We decided to set aside $100,000 in an investment account, and every year, we’ll reinvest the interest earned back into our members by supporting NPD practitioners through scholarships and grants for continuing education opportunities as wide-ranging as the life that Mary lived. We hope this will allow recipients to have the “ah-ha moments” that Mary gave to us.

This fund will serve as an avenue for remembering the NPD legends who paved the way for us to professionally develop throughout our careers. While specifics on applying for financial support from this fund are still being determined, donations can be made now to directly impact the growth and development of future NPD leaders, just as Mary did. This fund will provide scholarships and grants for NPD practitioners to expand access to professional growth opportunities and ensure they have the support needed to thrive.

Through this fund—and through our actions—we ensure that Mary’s influence continues, not as a memory, but as something carried forward by our NPD Community.

Editor’s note: Learn more about the Mary Holtschneider Fund on the ANPD website.