Mill Valley Mary McDevitt, a longtime Mill Valley resident, marriage and family therapist, and professor, passed away in the company of her family in her Mill Valley home on March 3, 2025, shortly after having been diagnosed with cancer. The daughter of Mary Jane and Daniel Rolfs, Mary was born on February 11, 1945, in Los Angeles and grew up primarily in the Richmond District of San Francisco, graduating from Washington High School in 1962. She then attended Stanford University where she met her husband, Ray, while they both were enjoying Stanford’s overseas campus in Florence, Italy during their semesters abroad. Mary and Ray were married in the Stanford Chapel on July 1, 1967.

After graduation, Mary worked for Fairchild Semiconductors, providing financial support for the couple while Ray attended Stanford Law School. Their first child, Jessica, was born in San Francisco in 1971. Shortly thereafter, the family moved to Washington, D.C. where Mary gave birth to their second daughter, Devon, in 1974.

Returning to the Bay Area in 1975, the family settled in Mill Valley, living there ever since. After working as a preschool aide, Mary earned a Master's degree in Counseling Psychology with a concentration in Marriage, Family &Child Counseling from Dominican University in San Rafael in 1987 and obtained her California Marriage and Family Therapist license the same year. After working at Family Services Agency of Marin, she led a successful private practice in San Rafael for over 36 years helping couples and individuals. In 2002, Mary joined the Dominican University Counseling Psychology Graduate Program as a professor and taught there for 26 years. She was instrumental in developing the Program’s overall curriculum, and was a favorite of students and faculty alike.

In her spare time, Mary enjoyed gardening, pampering her cats, socializing with friends, reading, and taking trips with her extended family. Mary will be remembered for her uncanny ability to connect with others, as well as for sense of humor, fashion sense, thoughtfulness, and wisdom.

Mary was deeply loved and will be missed by her family and her many friends. She is survived by her husband of 58 years, Ray, her daughter, Jessica McDevitt, and son-in-law Chris Houlder, of Piedmont, and daughter and son-in-law Devon and Hunter Marvel of Terra Linda, her four grandchildren, Blake and Jasmine Houlder, and Miles and Josie Marvel, her brother, Daniel Rolfs, and her five nephews, Jonathan, Zachery, and Jacob Wormhoudt, and Michael and Jesse Drucker.

In lieu of flowers, the family would appreciate donations in Mary’s memory to NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Health) Marin.