Leddy Maytum Stacy Architects has announced the passing of its founding principal Marsha Ann Maytum at the age of 69 following her battle with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). She is being remembered as a champion of environmental concerns and the holistic approach to architectural design. Her colleagues will also remember a quiet leader whose steadfast effort brought the firm national attention on the way to several major awards, including the 2017 AIA Firm Award and multiple AIA COTE Top Ten honors.

“Marsha’s vision, mentorship, and generative force to get things done lifted many of us, helping us to see and realize the positive change that is possible. She helped us understand what we — and architects together — can do to change the world and empower the next generation,” HKS Principal Julie Hiromoto wrote in a statement Leddy Maytum Stacy Architects published Tuesday.

The Bay Area practice was originally formed in 1989 by Maytum, business partner Richard Stacy, and her husband William Leddy, with whom she had two children. In the three decades since being established, the practice has grown to 38 employees. Maytum, who studied with Leddy at the University of Oregon, had stayed active in her role at their San Francisco office until early last year. Maytum was also elevated to the AIA's College of Fellows in 2001. 

“Marsha's selfless engagement and volunteerism made AIA a better organization. Her dedicated service on AIA's Committee on the Environment, culminating in her chairing the committee in 2019, showed her commitment to the profession and to the environment. She was instrumental in the adoption of the Framework for Design Excellence by the AIA Board,” AIA President Kimberly Dowdell said in a press release. “Our current strategic plan’s focus on mitigating climate change can be directly attributed to Marsha’s passion and leadership during the 2019 Annual Business Meeting.”

“Her quiet, tenacious brand of leadership is notable, especially in a profession where ego often proliferates. Marsha’s modeling that form of design leadership has powerfully influenced many people in the industry. It is as if her enormous humility gave her a change maker superpower, to the point that thinking ‘what would Marsha do’ is something others actually do,” friend and writer Kira Gould remembered finally.

Maytum also co-authored the title Purpose: A Guide to Mission Driven Design, which was published last year.