Mary Katherine MacDougall

Mary Katherine MacDougall

A Visit With Dr. Catherine Ponder about Mary Katherine MacDougall

Mary Katherine MacDougall—a name many New Thought students will still remember. I would like to think I helped introduce Mary Katherine to her New Thought celebrity.

I first met Mary Katherine when she attended one of my lectures held by Unity of Austin, Texas in a ballroom at the Commodore Perry Hotel. My husband, Kelly Ponder, was very excited over her attendance. He said, "She is very well known here in Austin."

She had written articles for the local newspaper. She had also authored some children's books, and she taught at Austin High School. She had a Christian Science background but was interested in the Unity teaching as well.

After she had attended our Unity lectures for some time, I had dinner with her in order to learn more about her background. At the close of our dinner together, I found myself saying, "Instead of writing newspaper articles and children's books, why don't you write books for Unity? You have the background for it. Also, why don't you consider attending classes at Unity School and becoming a licensed Unity teachet? I could use some help in pioneering Unity here in the Capitol City of Texas."

In due time, she did both. First, she spent several summers studying at Unity Village. In the process, she also began writing books that were later published by New York publishers. I later asked her to teach classes based on her books for our Unity of Austin members. She later went on to found her own ministry.

Long after I had finished pioneering Unity of Austin and had moved on, I visited with Mary Katherine at a penthouse patty I gave at the Fairmont Hotel in Dallas. I asked, "Where is your husband?" "He's working and couldn't attend, so I came with a couple of friends," was her reply. After having been widowed for so many years, she remarried later in life. I thought, "Perhaps she should write a book on that subject: marrying later in life when most people assumed one was past their prime in that department." But I decided that was none of my business, so refrained from pursuing the subject.

"The rest of my life can be the best of my life" is a statement many of us have heard. I have the impression that at the end of a long and fruitful life, Mary Katherine MacDougall may have proved that statement to be true, to her ultimate satisfaction. Regardless, she was an inspiration for a long time to a great many people.

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Biographical information for Mary Katherine MacDougall