A 28-year Leland Resident, Marlis Mann holds the distinction of being the first female president of Sutton’s Bay - Leelanau County Rotary Club in 1996. Recently, she was honored by the Traverse Symphony Orchestra as an exemplary member of the board of directors.
Her service to our local community is clear, but the focus of Marlis’ presentation was the era in which she was raised and her remarkable experiences.
Growing up in Germany during the Nazi regime, and eventually traveling the world, provided such powerful situations that her book Becoming Marlis Mann promises to give insight into a unique journey from a very personal perspective.
One excerpt she shared from the book was a harrowing encounter in Germany in 1939. As a child, she recalled seeing a family being violently removed from their home; an image that many in our audience may have only known from movies. Marlis graciously shared moving stories of learning to survive during that time, and of family tragedies; along with compelling and charming interactions with American soldiers that traversed her hometown during the war.
From colorful details on life during World War II to her love of jazz music to marrying an American G.I., to becoming a stewardess in the early days of commercial flight, the lifetime of adventures told by Marlis were truly a treat to hear.
