Strategic Management JournalStrat. Mgmt. J., 35: 787–788 (2014)

DOI: 10.1002/smj.2276

IN MEMORIAM

Mary Lou Schendel1934–2014

Mary Lou Schendel, treasured wife,mother, and Nana died peacefully onWednesday March 26, 2014 at the ageof 79. May Lou was born in Chicago onDecember 16, 1934 to parents Vern andAlice Sigler and grew up in Crown Point,Indiana. She graduated from Crown PointHigh School in 1952 and attended RosaryCollege (now Dominican University) fortwo years before transferring to the Univer-sity of Wisconsin-Madison, where she mether husband Dan. In 1956, she receiveda Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Educa-tion from UW. Mary Lou and Dan weremarried at St. Mary’s Catholic Church inCrown Point, Indiana, on September 1,1956. Dan and Mary Lou spent the firstyears of their marriage in Dayton, Ohio,where he served in the U.S. Air Force andshe taught first grade in the Dayton PublicSchool system. They then moved to PaloAlto, California, where she taught first

grade at Ormondale Elementary School in Portola Valley while Dan pursued his doctoraldegree at Stanford University. Mary Lou returned to Indiana with Dan after he joined theKrannert School of Management faculty at Purdue University in 1965. During her yearsin West Lafayette, she was an active member of the Purdue Women’s Club, Chi Omegaalumni, the Kingston Elementary School (now Happy Hollow Elementary School) PTA,and the West Lafayette High School Red Devils Mother’s Club. Mary Lou was a devotedand exceptional mother to her three daughters, Suzanne (Jain), Pam, and Sharon (Kohn)

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Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

788 In Memoriam

as well as a loving Nana to her three grandchildren, Sabrina (14), Sofia (12), and Derek(8) Jain.Mary Lou was also a highly talented and invaluable professional partner for Dan. Her

long hours and dedication as executive editor of the Strategic Management Journal, whichDan founded in 1978, were critical in elevating the journal to the high status it now enjoys.She was always a caring listener to all the authors who submitted to and published inthe journal and was ever willing to guide them through the publication process. She alsooversaw the journal’s peer review as it grew from a quarterly publication to one that offered13 issues annually, and she poured over nearly every paper that appeared in the journalfrom 1980 to 2007 to ensure they were of the highest possible quality. In addition to herwork with the journal, Mary Lou served a key role in starting and building the StrategicManagement Society, a professional society that now has more than 3,000 members acrossthe globe.Indeed, inmanyways,Mary Louwas the heart and soul of the SMJ and SMS.Herwarmth

in engaging members, authors, editorial board members, editors, and all others made themfeel both enthused and proud to be part of the strategic management community.The SMS has recognized Mary Lou’s contributions with several awards. She received

the SMS Silver Service Medal in Vancouver in 2000, in honor of her distinguished serviceto the Society. In addition, in 2007, the Wiley award for outstanding publications in SMJwas renamed the ‘The Dan and Mary Lou Schendel Best Paper Prize.’ In announcing thenew name of the prize,Wiley and the SMS highlighted the fact that together, Dan andMaryLou “have been both the face and the voice of the Journal and the Society. This has been atrue joint effort, which could not have succeeded with only one member of this remarkablepair.” Far beyond the formal awards, Mary Lou valued the fact that her efforts and impactwere recognized and deeply respected by uncounted members of the Society and of theprofession globally as they worked with her.Mary Lou’s commitment to education was reflected in many of her activities, foremost

of which was her membership in the P.E.O. (Philanthropic Educational Organization)philanthropic sisterhood, which is in part devoted to providing financial resources to youngwomen who are in pursuit of higher education. Mary Lou served as president of thelocal P.E.O. chapter, and under her leadership, the chapter had great success in securingscholarship funds for their candidates. During the spring and summer months, Mary Lou’sexpert touch with plants was always in full evidence as she tended her beloved house’sgardens for nearly 50 years.Mary Lou’s generous heart and vibrant spirit will be sorely missed by her family, as will

her beautiful smile, which, as one of her daughter’s friends described it, ‘Could charm thebirds from the trees.’ If you would like to honor Mary Lou, donations may be made to theP.E.O. Foundation (www.peointernational.org) or P.E.O. Foundation, 3700 Grand Avenue,Des Moines, IA 50312.

Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Strat. Mgmt. J., 35: 787–788 (2014)DOI: 10.1002/smj