Mary Donovan McClellan
Vice President, Consultant & Special Events Planner
After leaving Pensacola for Tallahassee, Florida in 1985 where she attended Florida State University and began her family, Mary returned to her hometown with her husband and children in July of 2003. She and her husband, Jim, opened Southern Solutions, Inc. in Pensacola to create an alternative to the choices available in Northwest Florida public relations consulting.
Mary assists Southern Solutions, Inc. in managing all client accounts. She also creates computer databases and is proficient in several computer software programs. Her public relations experience ranges from government and civic organizations to education and non-profits. Mary previously worked in legislative affairs at the Florida Chamber of Commerce and the Florida Home Builder’s Association in Tallahassee and was a realtor for Armor Realty in Tallahassee.
While in Seminole territory, Mary served as Chairman for major fundraising events at Trinity Catholic School, where she raised over $200,000 for the school through her volunteer efforts. As Chairman of the Cookbook Committee for the Junior League of Tallahassee, she coordinated production and marketing of a CD-ROM cookbook, “Finding Thyme.” In 2000, Mary was the Volunteer Coordinator for the Loranne Ausley legislative campaign where she managed over 600 regional volunteers and created fundraising and volunteer databases.
She indulged her love of volunteering immediately upon her return to Pensacola by serving as Commications Chairman for the St. Paul Catholic Church Capital Campaign, overseeing production of all marketing and public relations materials and organizing fundraising efforts. As a Board Member for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, she chaired the annual Racquet Rally and has continuously volunteered for St. Paul Catholic School in chairing and participating in various special events and fundraisers.
Mary studied Psychology and English in the 1980’s at Florida State University and is currently enrolled as a Communication Arts/Advertising student at the University of West Florida.
She currently serves as Public Relations Chairman for the Baptish Health Care Women’s Board, and is a member of the Florida Public Relations Association and the Greater Pensacola Ladies Tennis League. Outside of her family, business and college courses, Mary enjoys tennis, boxing, stationary design, computer graphics, party planning and the creative arts.