Mary Katherine Schmitz was born on January 30, 1962, in Orange County, California, into wealth and privilege, according to Biography. Her father, college professor John Schmitz, and her mother, Mary Schmitz, were devout Catholics. Mr. Schmitz made headlines in his corner of Southern California that year when, as the Los Angeles Times reported, he disarmed an assailant who was stabbing a woman (who later died). He became a local hero and, already known for the steadfast anti-communist views he espoused in the classroom, drew the attention of the local conservative political apparatus. Eventually, he wound up holding office, and soon enough, the family was in Washington.
Mary Kay’s mother was also politically active, according to truTV. She campaigned against the Equal Rights Amendment, her advocacy earning her the derisive nickname “West Coast Phyllis Schlafly,” after the Evangelical Christian woman who also famously opposed the amendment. Two of her brothers would also go into politics.
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Mary Kay herself also had eyes on a career in politics, but her career plans changed when she met Steve Letourneau and got pregnant (via Biography). Instead, the family moved here and there, and eventually, she got her teaching degree, and they wound up in the Seattle suburbs.
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