Mary Lou Putnam, a volunteer and fundraiser for many causes, particularly in the Catholic community, died Sept. 2 at her home in Woodside following a 15-month battle with ovarian cancer. She was 73.
Ms. Putnam, the mother of six children, was the wife of former Woodside Town Council member and prominent business leader, Joseph Putnam.
She was born on a farm near Gregory, South Dakota. Before marrying Mr. Putnam, her high school sweetheart, she taught in a one-room schoolhouse in Gregory. In 1965, the Putnams moved to California, where he opened Putnam Buick in Burlingame.
While raising her six children, Ms. Putnam graduated from Notre Dame de Namur University in 1979. She was active in the community, serving on the boards of the Pacific Legal Foundation, Sequoia Hospital Foundation and Notre Dame de Namur University. According to Sister Paula Butier, former president of Notre Dame High School in Belmont, in 1977 the Putnam Buick raffle, instigated by Ms. Putnam, put a new roof on the high school building.
Her most recent passion was raising funds for the St. Francis Center in Redwood City, a nonprofit foundation providing food, education and housing to the working poor. She was the force behind the center’s annual spring luncheon and auction, raising thousands of dollars each year. At the center, Ms. Putnam also taught English as a second language to the mothers of children who attend the St. Francis Center school and bagged groceries weekly for its food bank.
Ms. Putnam was a world traveler, horse woman, and master gardener, even during her last illness when she raised a bumper crop of heirloom tomatoes and beets, say family members. She opened her home frequently for fundraising dinners, doing all the cooking herself, with the aid of her daughter, Kathleen, a professional baker, they say. She served as a eucharistic minister at St. Pius Catholic Church in Redwood City and as a docent at Filoli.
Ms. Putnam is survived by her husband of 54 years, Joseph Putnam of Woodside; children Mark Putnam of Asheville, North Carolina, Dave Putnam of Woodside, Kent Putnam of Woodside, Marty Putnam of Portola Valley, Lisa Carlsmith of Woodside, and Kathleen Putnam of San Francisco; and 11 grandchildren. She is also survived by her brothers, Ken Kayle and Chuck Kayle, and sisters Maxine Meyers and Evelyn Albers.
Services were held Sept. 6 at St. Pius Catholic Church in Redwood City. Contributions may be made to St. Francis Center, P.O. Box 7134, Redwood City, CA 94063.
