OCEAN PINES – More than 100 community members gathered last week to honor a local legend as “The Anna Foultz Room” was dedicated at the Ocean Pines Community Center.
Elected officials, residents and community members assembled at the community center last Thursday to honor longtime Pines resident and tireless volunteer Anna Foultz, who passed away in September at the age of 93. Ocean Pines Association (OPA) officials unveiled a plaque Thursday renaming the space formerly known as the Marlin Room as The Anna Foultz Room.
“She set the example all of us can hope to aspire to,” OPA President Doug Parks said. “Even if we get halfway there we’ll be successful.”
Parks referenced the years of support Foultz had given the community through volunteer work as well as through Star Charities, the nonprofit she started with her husband more than a decade ago, and through her involvement with the Girl Scouts.
“Somebody with that level of volunteer spirit only comes along once in a while,” Parks said.
Sen. Mary Beth Carozza presented a Maryland Senate memorial citation to Foultz’s family while Del. Wayne Hartman presented a memorial citation from Gov. Larry Hogan. Carozza said Foultz was a true servant leader.
“Her endearing nature of pulling anybody and everybody into her service activities, at all ages, had the effect of reaching and assisting thousands and thousands of people on the shore, throughout Maryland and our country, even worldwide,” she said. “She truly made it fun serving others. As a result, I believe her true legacy may be her army of volunteers inspired by Anna who are living life and serving others.”
Worcester County Commissioner Chip Bertino described Foultz as one-of-a-kind. He shared his memories of Foultz’s penchant for taking photos at community events with her oft-malfunctioning camera.
“How many of us had to stand waiting with a frozen smile while Anna fiddled with her camera to make it work?…” he said. “We all did it and we did it because it was Anna.”
Bertino said that while Foultz was good at making telephone calls and asking for contributions to her various causes, she was even better at thanking those who supported her efforts.
“It didn’t matter how small the gesture was on our part because the gratitude by her was large and it was heartfelt…,” he said. “She always put service first, raising money for this cause and that cause. Boy did she get things done. Who wasn’t in awe of what she could accomplish?”
Others also described Foultz’s selfless nature and her countless efforts to help with programs such as the “Holiday Gifts for Our Soldiers” campaign. Paul Mazzei recalled how he’d met Foultz when he purchased tickets she was selling for a fundraising dinner and went on to find that she was involved in every community group he was involved in.
“She was the most energized senior citizen I’ve ever seen — put that damned bunny to shame,” he said.
Judy Boggs, a former county commissioner, said she remembered another side of Foultz. She recalled how Foultz had been upset to learn she’d received an award for “businesswoman of the year” because she didn’t feel she was one.
“I said, ‘Anna, just be calm and think about these things,” Boggs remembered. “Everything a businesswoman does you do, only you don’t take credit for it. You have lots of people who work for you.’ She said, ‘Well, they don’t get paid.’ And I said, ‘They get paid in love and in appreciation.’”
Ocean 98’s David “Bulldog” Rothner fondly recalled Foultz’s habit of leaving long occasionally off-topic answering machine messages. He added listeners had always been entertained by his radio interviews with Foultz.
“Every time she came in my studio she came in to help somebody else…,” he said. “She was always so much fun. Star Charities and everything else she did — Anna was great for our community, for the area. We’re better for knowing her and she had a real clear message, it was always to help others and do what you can.”
Star Charities volunteer Barb Peletier said the Kiwanis would be awarding a scholarship in Foultz’s name to a local high school senior in the spring.
Foultz’s son Gilly thanked the community for honoring his mother. He said she would be buried in Arlington National Cemetery with her husband.
