The Legacy We Leave Behind – Mary Luehrsen

At this point, no doubt, we have all returned and survived The NAMM Show, and most folks realize that they are truly glad they went. John Mlynczak and his team certainly did not disappoint.

As every business morphs at one time or another, NAMM currently is undergoing changes in leadership; at the Grand Rally for Music Education, we learned that Mary Luehrsen would be stepping down from her position at NAMM. Mary’s official role with NAMM has been Director of Public Affairs and Government Relations. Mary has also been executive director of The NAMM Foundation. Since 2007 I have had the honor of working with Mary Luehrsen on advancing and supporting music education in schools. Therefore, I thought I would reflect on Mary’s efforts and successes in forwarding the cause for music education. At this year’s Oscars, the Best Documentary Short went to “The Last Repair Shop,” a movie about the power of music and the importance of music education. When The Academy announced it as the winner, Mary was the first person I thought of because music and music education have been her life’s mission, whether when she was a music instructor or executive director of the NAMM Foundation.

I met Mary simply by chance. Years ago, I was at a NAMM Show and caught a moment with Joe Lamond on the show floor. In our casual conversation, Joe asked me about Contemporary Music Center, where my shop was located, and what we specialized in. I shared with him that CMC was in Virginia and was recognized primarily for our success with music education. As we spoke, Joe wrote something on the back of the card I had given him and put it in his pocket. It was then that he let me know that NAMM was in the second year of an effort they called the “Fly-In,” and for me to keep my eye open for an email invitation. Joe kept his word and two weeks later I received an email inviting me to join NAMM at the 2007 NAMM “Fly-in.” At that juncture, it was a much smaller undertaking and, for that reason, the participants benefitted from a great deal of face-time with everyone attending. Mary’s role, along with the NAMM staff, and Secretary Riley, was to teach everyone how advocacy really works. After a few days of intense training, the NAMM team hit Capitol Hill with a vengeance! Under Mary’s leadership, we shared with Congressional leaders our message of the importance of music education in schools, and that it should be available to every student.

Under Luehrsen and Lamond, the NAMM “Fly-In” grew in messaging, focus and size. Every year I watched as Luehrsen tweaked the music education message to have the ultimate effectiveness through well-crafted language. I also watched the harmony between Luehrsen, Lamond, and Secretary Richard Riley, whose law firm always made sure we were perfectly up to speed. Their “work harmony” was akin to Crosby, Stills & Nash.

Luehrsen led the charge with no apologies about the importance of NAMM’s music education mission. Her intent was simple: make music education a mandated part of every school’s curriculum and make music education available to every child. Every year it was Mary’s goal to spend one day at a different Title 1 school. We would watch students perform musically and after their performances, NAMM would host workshops shepherding students to understand that music was a language for everyone. Certainly, the past few years have brought unique challenges to NAMM’s ability to host the “Fly-In,” but thankfully they were able to rekindle the “Fly-In” last year.

Looking forward, NAMM has formed a search committee to find Luehrsen’s successor, however it’s a rare breed that understands education, politics, diplomacy, and language. Replacing a visionary such as Mary is not an easy task, but if it can be done, NAMM will find a way.

The cosmic collision of my world and the world of NAMM was clearly fortuitous for me. Because I lived near Washington, D.C., it made attending the “Fly-In” quite palatable. The epitome of this, though, was working beside Mary on her “passion project” and, truly, those who participated with her over the years received an incredibly special education. My personal thanks to Mary for giving my daughter, who at the time was a music major in college, the chance to participate in a “Fly-In” and the opportunity to meet Representative John Lewis. That evening was certainly a special night for our family.

Mary, from everyone in the NAMM “Fly-In” family, we wish you well on your new endeavors. You will never be forgotten!