Mary Evelyn Previte (September 7, 1932 – November 16, 2019) was an American Democratic Party politician who served in the

New Jersey General Assembly The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature. Since the election of 1967 (1968 session), the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts f ...

, where she represented the 6th legislative district from 1998 to 2006.

Life and career

Born in

Kaifeng Kaifeng ( zh, s=开封, p=Kāifēng) is a prefecture-level city in east-Zhongyuan, central Henan province, China. It is one of the Historical capitals of China, Eight Ancient Capitals of China, having been the capital eight times in history, and ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

on September 7, 1932, Previte was the great-granddaughter of

James Hudson Taylor James Hudson Taylor (; 21 May 1832 – 3 June 1905) was a British Protestant Christian missionary to China and founder of the China Inland Mission (CIM, now OMF International). Taylor spent 54 years in China. The society that he began was res ...

, the founder of

China Inland Mission OMF International (formerly Overseas Missionary Fellowship and before 1964 the China Inland Mission) is an international and interdenominational Evangelical Christianity, Christian missionary society with an international centre in Singapore. It ...

. As a young girl, Previte was a student at the

Chefoo School The Chefoo School ( zh, first=t, t=芝罘學校, s=芝罘学校, p=Zhīfú Xuéxiào, w=Chih-fu Hsüeh-hsiao), also known as Protestant Collegiate School or China Inland Mission School, was a Christian boarding school established in 1881 by t ...

Yantai Yantai, formerly known as Chefoo, is a coastal prefecture-level city on the Shandong Peninsula in northeastern Shandong province of the People's Republic of China. Lying on the southern coast of the Bohai Strait, Yantai borders Qingdao ...

Shandong Shandong is a coastal Provinces of China, province in East China. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River. It has served as a pivotal cultural ...

and spent three years in a

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

ese

concentration camp A concentration camp is a prison or other facility used for the internment of political prisoners or politically targeted demographics, such as members of national or ethnic minority groups, on the grounds of national security, or for exploitati ...

Weihsien Compound The Weixian Internment Camp (), better known historically as the Weihsien Internment Camp, was a List of Japanese-run internment camps during World War II, Japanese-run internment camp called a "Civilian Assembly Center" in the former (), located ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, from which she was liberated by American

paratroopers A paratrooper or military parachutist is a soldier trained to conduct military operations by parachuting directly into an area of operations, usually as part of a large airborne forces unit. Traditionally paratroopers fight only as light inf ...

on August 17, 1945. Over 50 years later, in 1997, she began to seek out and thank, in person, each of the soldiers who had been involved in liberating the camp. At the age of 14, Previte lost her left hand in a revolving saw accident. But this did not hinder her from going on to attend Spring Arbor Junior College and later graduate with a

B.A. A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree ...

from

Greenville College Greenville University is a private university in Greenville, Illinois, United States. It is affiliated with the Free Methodist Church. Established as Greenville College in 1892, the institution was renamed Greenville University in 2017. History ...

and received an

M.A. A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

from Glassboro State College (now

Rowan University Rowan University is a public research university in Glassboro, New Jersey, with a medical campus in Stratford and medical and academic campuses in Camden. Founded in 1923 as Glassboro Normal School on a site donated by 107 residents, the scho ...

) in English / Education. She served on the Voorhees Board of Education in 1966 and 1967 and a trustee on the Haddonfield

Board of Education A board of education, school committee or school board is the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or an equivalent institution. The elected council determines the educational policy in a small regional area, ...

from 1972 to 1974. Previte was the Administrator of Camden County Youth Center for over 20 years and was elected in 1997 as the first female president of the New Jersey Juvenile Detention Association. In 1994, she published ''Hungry Ghosts'', the story of her experience as Administrator of the Youth Center. Previte was elected to the New Jersey General Assembly representing the 6th legislative district from 1998 to 2006. She served on the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Advisory Committee since 1995. She served on the Advisory Council on Juvenile Justice in 1994. Previte served in the Assembly on the Family, Women and Children's Services Committee (as Chair), the Federal Relations Committee and the Regulated Professions and Independent Authorities Committee. She did not seek reelection to the Assembly in 2005, and was succeeded by fellow Democrat

Pamela Rosen Lampitt Pamela Rosen Lampitt (born December 19, 1960) is an American Democratic Party politician, who is the current clerk of Camden County, New Jersey. She previously represented the 6th legislative district in the New Jersey General Assembly from 2 ...

. She died on November 16, 2019, at the age of 87 from complications of injuries sustained after being struck by a motor vehicle weeks prior.

Published works

*''Hungry Ghosts''

References

External links

Assemblywoman Previte's Legislative WebsiteNew Jersey Legislature financial disclosure form for 2004 (PDF)Haddonfield Sun article
August 4, 2004

book describing successful women (including Previte) {{DEFAULTSORT:Previte, Mary 1932 births 2019 deaths American amputees American women writers People from Haddonfield, New Jersey People from Voorhees Township, New Jersey Politicians from Camden County, New Jersey American expatriates in China American politicians with disabilities Democratic Party members of the New Jersey General Assembly Women state legislators in New Jersey School board members in New Jersey Writers from Camden County, New Jersey Rowan University alumni World War II civilian prisoners held by Japan Internees at the Weixian Internment Camp People from Kaifeng 20th-century American women politicians 21st-century American women politicians 21st-century members of the New Jersey Legislature 20th-century members of the New Jersey Legislature

Life and career

Published works

See also

References

External links