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A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Aug. 7 in North Presbyterian Church, 300 North Forest Road, Williamsville, for Mary C.M. “May” Cadenhead, a 37-year member of the UB professional staff who died in her home in her sleep on July 8.
Born in the River Forth town of Alloa in Scotland’s historic County Clackmannanshire, Cadenhead moved to Bristol, UK, then emigrated to Kingston, Ontario, before coming to the United States in 1960.
She joined the UB staff in 1961, one year before it became part of SUNY. She earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology from UB in 1974 and a master’s degree in education from Buffalo State College in 1980.
At the time of her retirement in 1998, she was a staff assistant in Computing and Information Technology, where she is still remembered with great affection by colleagues.
In addition to tutoring international graduate students in English language through the Literacy Volunteers of Erie County and Buffalo, Cadenhead also was active in the American Association of University Women, Erie County SPCA, International Institute and various committees and clubs through the Amherst Senior Center.
She was a union activist and, after leaving the university, served until her death as retiree representative on the executive board of the Buffalo Center Chapter of United University Professions and as a chapter delegate to the state UUP Delegate Assembly.
“May was devoted to the university,” says Michael Behun, president of the UUP Buffalo Center Chapter. “She also worked diligently with the union to insure that her colleagues understood, appreciated and supported its mission on their behalf.
“We are going to miss her warmth, wit and hard work—always marked by intelligence and sensitivity—not to mention her great institutional memory, a very important and often underappreciated quality,” he says.
Harvey Axelrod, former UUP Buffalo Center Chapter president who worked with Cadenhead in CIT, says he will miss “this proud daughter of Scotland,” noting that she “was a pleasure to work with for more years than either of us would care to remember.”
Cadenhead’s daughter, former UB staff member Rhona Cadenhead-Hames, says her mother could talk to anyone and make friends with everyone. “Her extensive network of friends was one of her most prized possessions. She was always busy tutoring, speaking at a book club, preparing for a meeting, traveling internationally or planning a theater trip with friends.
“As a mother and grandmother, she was loving, caring and full of fun. She fostered confidence, independence and a love of learning in me that I will cherish always,” she says.
Cadenhead’s ashes will be returned to Scotland for burial with her parents and other family members in Alloa.
In addition to her daughter, Cadenhead is survived by her husband, David A. Cadenhead, UB professor emeritus of chemistry.
Donations in Cadenhead’s honor may be made to the Literacy Volunteers of Buffalo and Erie County or to the Erie County SPCA.
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