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Dr. Mary Allen Porter Faculty Mary Allen “Doc” Porter was a teacher’s teacher, who gave unselfishly of herself and her tremendous talent to enhance the lives and abilities of her “kids”. They were her extended family and she devoted her life to making theirs better and richer. Porter graduated from Lake Erie College in 1972. Through her dedication to purpose, she earned her Master of Fine Arts degree in 1985 from Case Western Reserve University in 1985 and began work on her Doctorate of Fine Arts, which she was awarded in 1995. Dr. Porter spent her entire public school teaching career in Painesville Township, where she taught at both John R. Williams and Riverside High School. While at John R. Williams, Dr. Porter served as Art Club advisor, directed dramatic productions and produced the scenery for them. She also developed program designs, posters and banners for school events and performed many projects for the athletic department. She also became active in the CORE program as a counselor and served as Director of the school district’s Drug and Alcohol Prevention Program. In 1992, Dr. Porter became the art teacher at Riverside High School, where she served as Student Council advisor. In that capacity, she supervised the organization of the two annual Bloodmobiles, guided the students’ planning for Homecoming weekend and supervised fundraising for the council’s various benevolent activities. Under her direction, students raised funds for 911 and the Katrina victims and helped to organize Riverside’s “Relay for Life” to raise funds for cancer research and participated as a survivor. In 2006, she was the featured speaker at the Relay. After resigning as Student Council advisor, she assumed the advisorships of both Riverside’s yearbook and National Honor Society. Using her vast knowledge of the field of art, Dr. Porter made art history live for the many devoted students in her Art Concepts classes, inspiring many to go on to major in art in college. In her class, she provided the setting in which her students originated the idea, then spent hundreds of hours working on, the Pyramid of Remembrance project, which culminated in a tree planting and plaque at Arlington National Cemetery on May 11, 2004. In 2005, The Pyramid of Remembrance was named “The Non-Profit Organization of the Year” by the Painesville Area Chamber of Commerce and, in addition, Dr. Porter was named “VFW Teacher of the Year”. Dr. Porter passed away in January, 2007. “Take life one day at a time…one hour at a time…one moment of love at a time.” Mary Porter - 2006
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