Mary Michaels was a junior in high school when her family moved to Sault Ste. Marie in the summer of 1976. She began college at Northern Michigan University and later transferred to Lake Superior State University, where she earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing. While finishing her degree, she worked at Tendercare nursing home (then known as “Provincial House”). After graduating, she joined War Memorial Hospital and was later recruited by the Chippewa County Health Department, where she spent 26 years as a home health and hospice nurse. Following retirement, she became a school nurse for Sault Area Public Schools.

Married shortly after high school, Mary later discovered her first husband was struggling with alcohol and drug use. They had two daughters, and the family experienced firsthand the strain that substance use can place on loved ones. Leaving the marriage was a difficult decision—especially as someone who was Catholic and the first in her family to divorce. Her former husband passed away at age 60 in a VA center in Milwaukee, where he had been receiving treatment.

Mary has admired FAN since first learning about the organization. Before joining the board, she worked with FAN on school health fairs to help teach students about the risks associated with substance use.