Accomplished Teacher and Enneagram Instructor Calls Waltonwood Lake Boone Home
April 3, 2019
RALEIGH, NC–Mary Ann Emmons, 91, has lived an accomplished life and ultimately found her calling helping people learn more about who they really are. The Waltonwood Lake Boone resident is a former public schoolteacher who taught at schools across the Southern U.S. and overseas.
Her husband was in the Air Force, so she and her family moved several times during his two tours abroad. One was in Turkey where she served as a teacher, and the other in England where she worked as an Anglo-American chairman for the U.S. Air Force. After her husband retired from his career in the military, the couple and their children moved to Raleigh in 1972 and opened their own success and motivation business.
They provided companies with motivational and individual employee training. After her husband died in 1975, Emmons continued to own the business. She became interested in left and right brain accelerated learning to understand how each side of the brain works and so she could better train employees.
“We were inspired to start the company while we lived and worked in England,” said Emmons. “We had a friend who retired from the business, and after traveling the world and meeting new people, we saw this as a tremendous opportunity to gain a better understanding of people. When we moved to Raleigh, we thought it was the perfect place to open the business, and we were quite successful when I retired from the company. While working, we looked at the bigger picture and what the universe had to offer. To be fruitful, you have to motivate employees, and I am proud we were able to make an impact on companies and individuals in the Triangle area.”
The business inspired Emmons to become a certified Enneagram instructor in 2005. Emmons says performing the personality profiles helped her succeed in recommending people for jobs at various companies. Her job made her look at the spiritual side of life with an understanding that people are all creations of God.
Now that is she retired, she doesn’t use the Enneagram as much as before, but from time to time she will perform profiles on individuals if asked. Since Waltonwood Lake Boone opened in January, Emmons is enjoying life there, reflecting on the positive impact she made on other’s lives and appreciating what she was able to accomplish in her career.
“I found it very rewarding to be an Enneagram instructor,” said Emmons. “It’s not something everyone is able to do, and I am proud of myself for continuing to use it to help others for so long. A lot of people don’t know who they really are, so I was happy to help guide them in the right direction. It gave me a purpose in life, and it helped me realize we are more alike than we think. I am still very interested in human evolution based on spiritual laws, so from time to time I will still perform an Enneagram profile, but nowadays you’ll find me at the senior living community enjoying my time here.”
“Mary Ann has a unique career, and we are glad she shared it with us and with other residents at Waltonwood Lake Boone,” said Allison O’Shea, executive director. “She raised a family, served people through an amazing career and made a lasting impact on so many in the Raleigh area. She is very motivating, and it’s warming to see. Who knows, she may even perform an Enneagram profile on associates at the community, which I’m sure we’d all enjoy. We are proud she calls our senior living community home, and we look forward to learning more about her life.”