Mary Ellis Starling

After SGP, I attended Salem College for two years and graduated from UNC-CH in 1968 with a degree in Classics. In November, 1968, I married my childhood sweetheart (who attended both SGP proms with me!), Sammy(Sam) Starling. Sam's favorite SGP memory is when we were "warned" at the senior prom that we were dancing too close together! In our early marriage, we lived in NYC, Dallas, TX, and Sanford, NC. We have been in Raleigh since 1977. We have two daughters: Zoe, 33, who lives in Raleigh, and Anna, 30, who lives with her wonderful husband, David, in NYC. We have a sweet black lab named Lizzy(we lost Lucy in May).

I have worked off and on (mostly off) and have always been a community volunteer. In 1991, I completed a graduate degree at Duke and worked in the admissions office there part time. I also tutored for several years. My passions are my family, our extended family, our dogs and other people's dogs, reading( mostly non-fiction), picking the flowers Sam grows (roses, hydrangeas, and peonies are the best), friendships, and life's spiritual journey.