Mary Katherine Ishee in the doorway of her original church home with her beloved first Golden Retriever, Scout, whom she named after her favorite character in the book “To Kill a Mockingbird.” (Photo/Courtesy)
Mary Katherine Ishee died July 13 on a Sperryville hilltop in the former Hopewell Baptist Church where she swung a hammer, sanded floors and painted walls to transform history into a home. She was surrounded by members of her large and loving family, including many of her nine brothers and sisters, who had been at her side throughout her last good fight, this one against cancer. Also at her side were Pippin and Clairabelle Rose, her beloved dog and cat. MK was just days shy of 67.
Hers is not a well-known family name in Rappahannock, her home since 2002, but few people have worked harder on behalf of the county and its inhabitants. MK was just too modest about her good deeds. She didn’t want the spotlight and she didn’t need to take a bow.
But she surely deserves a curtain call.
Herndon’s change was galvanizing
MK was born in Washington, D.C., on Capitol Hill, to Tommy and Maryclaire Ishee. The family moved to then-rural Herndon when she was eight. There, she and her close-knit pack of siblings grew up outdoors, adventuring all day in meadows and woods with their three dogs, climbing trees, inventing games, building tree houses and pretending to be part of the Swiss Family Robinson. But Herndon changed — and she watched her natural world disappear into Dulles Airport, endless subdivisions, high rise commerce centers and condo canyons.
The transformation had a profound impact on MK. A person of deep faith, “she found a higher power in nature and felt God there,” said brother Jim, who followed MK to Rappahannock and is now an attorney living in the First Washington. For her, the encroachment of development created a deep sense of loss no different from the destruction of a great cathedral or the little church in the wildwood. The experience ignited a passion for preservation that never left her.
Graduating with distinction from the University of Virginia, she earned a Juris Doctor from George Mason University’s School of Law. She followed her parents into public service, returning to Capitol Hill as an attorney for the U.S. Department of the Interior. Over a long and successful career focusing on environmental and energy issues, she was a consultant to private firms, counsel to congressional committees and federal policy director for a national nonprofit smart growth coalition. She retired as senior advisor on energy and natural resources for the Interior Department’s Office of the Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management.
A force of nature on The Hill
In page after page of praise posted on the tribute wall of Found and Sons Funeral Home, compatriots from MK’s years on The Hill told of “her unwavering commitment to the environment and sustainability,” “her sweet sense of humor and kind heart,” “her deep dedication to the public good . . . her work ethic, calm and gentle nature,” and “her kindness, intellect and support.” They described MK as “the consummate professional, thorough, smart and kind,” and “a uniquely kind and brilliant soul” who “spread sunshine wherever she went.” They wrote of time spent with MK in Rappahannock that helped them understand “what really drove her to be such a strong crusader of environmental protection.” Knowing their friend and what she would have wanted, they planted a veritable forest of memorial trees in her honor. Their conclusion was “Our Mother Earth had no better advocate,” one who “believed so strongly that her purpose was to serve humankind.”
Mary Katherine Ishee’s extended family in Woodville for her memorial service last month. (Photo/Courtesy)
Rappahannock gains a champion
She brought it all to Rappahannock — the smile, the intellect, the work ethic, the kindness and consideration, the experience in management, research, and analysis and the expertise in smart growth, environmental stewardship and resource protection. And she put it to use.
It began in 1962 with the purchase of 208 acres on Butler Mountain, where her parents introduced their children to the bucolic county at the edge of the Blue Ridge. For MK, it was love from the start, and over the years, she spent weekends, holidays and vacations at the family’s rural paradise. She camped, hiked, explored, tended her meadow garden and worked on a rustic cabin. “There was no renovation or repair project she wouldn’t tackle,” remembered sister Laurie Christesen. “MK loved Butler Mountain with great passion.” And that passion grew to include the historic Sperryville church that she transformed into a home.
MK was a fighter, but she did not fit the image. All who knew her described her as gentle, polite, empathetic and sympathetic, always and ever smiling, always seeing the best and the positive. She was “the smartest person in the room,” as coworkers on Capitol Hill described her. She was also indefatigable. She never, ever stopped battling for what she believed in.
First and foremost, she was a champion of the Earth and all its living things — and the tiny piece that’s Rappahannock County in particular.
Mary Katherine Ishee’s restored home, the historic Hopewell Baptist Church. (Photo/Courtesy)
Crusader for kindness
She was also a crusader for kindness to animals and help for those in need. “She was our conscience,” said Kathy Eggers, a Sperryville neighbor and friend who shared MK’s dedication to family, animals and Rappahannock. They belonged to the same church and both were active in Rapp at Home, the local nonprofit that provides support to elderly county residents. Eggers was an early member and she proposed MK for the executive director’s vacancy in 2017.
“MK addressed issues without being confrontational,” Eggers explained. She would calmly cite points that hadn’t been considered and potential outcomes that hadn’t been envisioned and suggest a better approach. “And she did it without giving offense or causing resistance,” Eggers added.
“Rapp at Home rooted MK in Rappahannock,” maintained Sharon Pierce, a founding board member and former president of Rapp at Home. “The executive director’s position was a natural, given MK’s dedication to meeting the needs of her community.” She described MK as an excellent administrator and an ardent supporter of outreach to the “hollow folk,” lifetime residents of Rappahannock who live tucked away on back roads that wind deep into the foothills.
Stepping up advocacy
Determined that the Herndon story would not be rewritten here, MK became a citizen activist on zoning and growth issues. Preserving the natural beauty and character of her new home meant paying attention to growth and development. She stepped up her advocacy for the protection of forests, green fields, blue mountains, quaint country lanes, stunning vistas and other resources vital to Rappahannock’s rural identity and accepted appointment to the county’s Planning Commission in 2019. With her usual thorough approach and total commitment, she prepared by completing the Virginia Certified Planning Commissioners’ Program.
Reminiscing about her friend, Sally Haynes said, “I learned so much from MK — about zoning, about ordinances, and about grace under fire. Whether addressing cell towers, the comprehensive plan, rezonings, special exceptions or ordinance revisions, MK stood her ground, refusing to be bullied or pressured into abandoning well-researched positions.”
MK Ishee speaking during public comment at a Board of Supervisors meeting in 2022. (Photo/uke Christopher)
“She spoon-fed us what we needed to make good decisions,” said Keir Whitson, the Hampton District supervisor. He praised MK for being a de facto consultant, researching “smart growth” policies that worked in other Virginia localities and reporting back on best practices. “She always came in so well prepared and respectful, and she was always quick to express her gratitude for public service, saying she knew it could be a thankless job.”
“She knew so much about land use,” noted Planning Commissioner Steph Ridder, who served with MK. “She was so precise and careful. She’d go from one end of the county to the other, inspecting the properties covered in applications for special use permits. She read the ordinances constantly, and she was always prepared. And she was fun.
“I didn’t always agree with her, but that never mattered,” Ridder continued. “We were so lucky to have her.”
“She loved Rappahannock and she understood the spirit of Rappahannock,” said Van Carney, lifelong county resident and Stonewall-Hawthorne district supervisor. “MK understood what it meant for development to take away something that you love,” he said, recalling their long talks about Rappahannock — what it was, what it is and what it could be. “She was always civil, even when she deeply and fundamentally disagreed. MK was an inspiring human being.”
Mary Katherine Ishee spreading egg shells in her garden. (Photo/Courtesy)
Unsuspected talents and passions
Her passion for preservation was well known, but even close friends were surprised by her other abiding interests. She wrote poetry, songs and a book about her childhood in Herndon. The family’s favorite MK original, “Give It to God,” was sung at her Mass of Christian Burial.
She was also an accomplished and original cook who made her own healthy recipes, creating yummy salads and soups with what she had on hand. Her kitchen skills had been honed early as THE cookie baker in a household that banned junk food but allowed homemade sweets. When her brothers gobbled more than their share, MK tried to slow them down by dumping a bottle of Tabasco into the batter. But the boys gobbled without a wince. So, MK just rolled her eyes, shrugged and baked more. In later years, she made gingerbread houses, turning out elaborate and personalized architectural wonders from dough and icing for the units of her extended family at Christmas.
She was a Mother Hen to her younger siblings, and if they complained about her well-intended guidance, she would deadpan, “Cluck! Cluck!” That became the family’s warning signal whenever MK’s mothering became too much.
And she was the good Samaritan, attested to at her funeral service by best friends of 45 years and newer friends in Rappahannock who told the family of MK’s many kindnesses and the meals, cakes, flowers and comfort she delivered over decades to those struck by loss, illness or calamity.
MK shared her Rappahannock home and her heart with her pets. Her partners for hikes, swims, gardening and other outdoor chores were, in turn, Scout, Maddie and Pippin, all golden retrievers with the same outgoing friendliness of their master. Waiting on the hearth at home were cats Clairabelle Rose and Finnegan.
Her love for animals also persuaded her to campaign for better care for cats. As a volunteer with RappCats, MK “helped us grow from a little rescue group to a shelter with best practices in management,” recalled Pat Snyder, a founding member of the nonprofit and MK’s across-the-street neighbor.
Always ready to combine fun with good works, MK donned a cat headband and wrapped herself in a pink boa to march with other RappCats supporters in the Christmas Parade, according to Sally-Anne Andrew, friend and fellow RappCats supporter. In another example of fun in the service of cause, the duo orchestrated Cat Café fundraisers at Andrew’s LeFay Cottage in Washington. And MK and the cat people collected hundreds of signatures on a petition that led to the county providing support to open a shelter for better cat care.
Mary Katherine Ishee hiking with friend Anne VorDerBrugge. (Photo/Courtesy)
MK was also ready to roll up her sleeves for the dirty work that’s often critical to making a difference. RappCats offers the best example of that level of dedication. When a ringworm outbreak closed the shelter — “No rescued cats in, no adoptions going out,” explained Snyder — MK dipped infected cats into a noxious mix of lime and sulfur, then rubbed the mix into their skin with a toothbrush. She kept up the stinking routine for six months on upwards of 20 cats, in heavy rubber gloves to minimize the damage from claws and teeth. That’s what it took to end the highly contagious fungal infection that’s so easily passed to humans.
She never did anything halfway. In between feline immersions, MK dove into research on ringworm prevention and then set up a quarantine system for intakes and the protocol for cleaning. “She put us on a science-based path to protect the health of our cats,” added Snyder. “It’s been five years, at least, since we’ve had an outbreak of anything. That’s MK’s legacy.”
Another legacy is Keep Rappahannock Rural, a broad-based citizens group formed as a voice for preservation and protecting scenic back roads from development. A July bulletin mourning her death begins with MK’s succinct and touching one-sentence reason for the founding of Keep Rappahannock Rural. It’s a benediction for her contributions and an exhortation to carry on her efforts.
“Because a billion years of viewshed is worth preserving.”
The writer is a longtime Rappahannock resident and reporter.
