Year Honored: 1985
Birth: 1927 - 2007
Born in: Minnesota
Biography
Mary Jornlin Theisen devoted much of her life to public service – though she did have a professional modeling career in the 1940s. After she married DuPont Executive, Wilmington City Councilman, and State Representative, Francis M. Jornlin, in 1949, Jornlin turned her attention to volunteer work and raising the couples six children.
Throughout her lifetime, Jornlin volunteered with the Little Sisters of the Poor, Wilmington United Fund, Delaware Alcoholism Council, Delaware March of Dimes, Delaware Muscular Dystrophy Association, Wilmington Swim School, Junior League of Wilmington, NAACP, Ursuline Academy Association, Archmere Mother’s Guild, President of the St. Edmond’s Mother’s Guild, and was on the Board of Directors: Wilmington Trust Company, Tower Hill School, AAA, Greenville Country Club, Blood Bank of Delaware, Family Service of Delaware, and the Opportunity Center. Jornlin was also a foster parent.
Later in life, Jornlin turned to a career in public service. She ran, and successfully won, two successive terms as State Treasurer in 1972. Francis M. Jornlin died unexpectedly of a heart attack in 1975. Jornlin had been considering a congressional run at the time but decided instead to run for New Castle County Executive, in order for her to be close to her children. She was the first woman elected to the office in 1977.
Prior to her election, the position of County Executive had seen a corruption scandal by the previous candidate. Jornlin brought dignity and trust back to the position during her four-year tenure. She helped ensure that the “much-resented, court-ordered desegregation of the New Castle County public schools was peaceful,” and implemented the 911 alert system. Her colleague at the time, Donald R. Kirtley, said of Jornlin, “She was just a grand, grand lady. When she walked into a room, things changed. People looked. She was close to six feet tall and very handsome. She had a pleasant manner, and she could work a room.”
Jornlin only held the position of County Executive for a single term. In 1981, she became Vice-President at the chemical company, Hercules. That same year, she also married her second husband, Vincent Theisen.
Ronald Reagan appointed Jornlin to the Women’s National Policy Board in 1980. She also worked as Director of the Better Business Bureau of Delaware and as President of the Investment Club of Laird and Company.
Jornlin was named 1980 Woman of the Year by the Business and Professional Women’s Clubs, Inc., named a member of the American Society for Distinguished Citizens, and listed among the Who’s Who in American Politics.
_____________________________________________________________________________
Sources and Additional Readings
Delaware Grapevine. (n.d.). Retrieved January 10, 2022, from http://www.delawaregrapevine.com/8-07jornlin.asp
Jerome O. Herlihy Political Campaign Ephemera Collection. Manuscript and Archival Collection Finding Aids . (n.d.). Retrieved January 10, 2022, from https://library.udel.edu/special/findaids/view?docId=ead%2Fmss0896.xml%3Btab
Mary Theisen Obituary (2007) The News Journal. Legacy.com. (n.d.). Retrieved January 10, 2022, from https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/delawareonline/name/mary-theisen-obituary?pid=145590538
- Collections: 1985