Her Life

Mary Devonald Moorman Kennemur, 59, passed away Sunday, November 11, 2012. Mary was born July 3, 1953, in Frankfurt, Germany, the daughter of Bertha Wilson Moorman and the late Robert Moorman, III.

Mary grew up in Columbia and graduated from Dreher High School in 1971. After attending Sullins College in Virginia, she graduated from the University of South Carolina with a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration. While there, she was a member of Delta Delta Delta Sorority, played for the Women's Tennis Team, and made her debut at the Assembly and Cotillion Balls.

Mary's long and successful business career began with South Carolina National Bank in Columbia and Pawleys Island. Her career continued in Denver where she worked in the oil and gas business, and it was there that she met her husband, Dennis. Mary joined Merrill Lynch as a financial advisor in 1984 and soon moved into management. Her rapid rise at Merrill Lynch took the couple and their young son, Will, to Tampa, Fort Wayne, Rochester, and finally back to Columbia as the Complex Manager. Eventually, she became one of the seven national Managing Directors for Merrill Lynch, heading the Southeast region. Mary continued her work in the financial services industry as a consultant and financial advisor, most recently with JHS Capital Advisors and Vista Wealth Management.

Mary was an avid world-traveler. Her love of the West and its wide-open spaces took her to Sante Fe and Montana when she was young. She most loved spending time in her homes in Pawleys Island, SC, and Little Switzerland, NC.

Mary lived by her motto, "To whom much is given, much is expected." She gave wholeheartedly to her community, serving on the boards of the University of South Carolina, SC Chamber of Commerce, United Way of the Midlands, Girl Scouts of South Carolina - Mountains to Midlands, and Heathwood Hall Episcopal School. In addition, she was the first female member of the South Carolina Retirement Systems Investment Panel. She was also a member of the Regional Board of First National Bank of South Carolina, the Advisory Treasury Services Committee of Palmetto Health, the Governor's School for Science and Mathematics, and the Coastal Conservation League. Mary belonged to Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, the Assembly, Pine Tree Hunt Club, and Forest Lake Country Club. She was a devoted supporter of the University of South Carolina: as the Darla Moore School of Business Distinguished Alumna, former Executive Director of the Business Partnership Foundation, a member of the Business Partnership Foundation Board of Trustees, a member of the Development Foundation, and as a founding member of the Women's Athletic Mentor Program. She also established the Mary M. Kennemur Scholarship.