Martha Ann McPhee

Martha Ann McPhee, age 51, of Minneapolis, Minnesota, died February 6, 2007. Martha was born to William R. and Mary Kay McPhee in Omaha, Nebraska May 11, 1955. She grew up in Kansas City, graduating from Sunset Hill School in 1973. She was married to John Godfrey Taft at Saint Paul's Episcopal Church, Kansas City, in 1978. A Magna Cum Laude graduate of Yale University and member of Phi Beta Kappa, Martha received her Law degree from Harvard Law School in 1981. She moved to Minneapolis to work as an Associate in the Dorsey & Whitney Law Firm. She served as Assistant County Attorney in the Civil Division of the Anoka County Attorney's Office from 1984-1989 before becoming General Counsel and eventually Chief Operating Officer of the Transportation Division of BRW, an engineering and consulting firm. McPhee served as Chief Operating Officer for Minnesota Public Radio from 2000 to 2003. She became President of Minnesota's Animal Humane Society in 2005, and recently orchestrated the merger of three Twin Cities humane societies to form one of the five largest organizations for animal care, animal protection and outreach in the United States. She was named CEO of the newly-merged Animal Humane Society in January 2007. McPhee also served as a Director of numerous not-for-profit organizations in the Twin Cities area, including the Trust for Public Land/Minnesota, Long Lake Hounds, Medina Horse Association, Graywolf Press, William Mitchell School of Law, Actor's Theatre of Saint Paul, Planned Parenthood of Minnesota and South Dakota, Yale Alumni Association of the Northwest and the Hennepin County Bar Association. She was National Treasurer of Pets Across America and also served as a Director of several large corporations including ShopKo Stores, Araz Group and RFC Asset Holdings. "Martha had many passions in her life, and most important to her were her children, travel and what she called the 'human-animal bond'," said her husband John Taft. "She pursued each to the fullest with intelligence, conviction, focus, loyalty and elegance." Martha is survived by her loving family, John Taft and their three children: Mary Allison Taft-McPhee of Brooklyn, New York, Lauren Taft-McPhee of Seattle, Washington, and Colin Taft-McPhee of Minneapolis, as well as her mother Mary Kay McPhee; stepfather William E. Pfeiffer, Sr.; brother Mark S. McPhee; sister-in-law Joy L. McPhee; stepbrother William E. Pfeiffer, Jr., and several nieces and nephews including Molly and Ian McPhee, all of Kansas City. A memorial service will be held at Saint Mark's Episcopal Cathedral in Minneapolis, at 1 p.m. on Friday, February 9, 2007. In lieu of flowers, the local family has requested donations to the Pembroke Hill School.