A fierce defender of liberty, Marie Campitell has spent most of her 85 years in Pennsylvania, though she lived in California for a while along the way and became a great traveler in Europe.

Her family came from Italy at the turn of the 20th century, and she well remembers the reverence and appreciation her parents and grandparents had for the freedom they gained here in America. Their love of America’s unique democratic system was apparent in everything they did and was passed down to Ms. Campitell.

Born and raised in Norristown, she graduated from Penn State in 1942 and later earned her Masters degree there while taking courses at Villanova to round out her education. In 1957, Norristown High School administrators entreated her to come back and teach English, and so she did. For thirty years, Ms. Campitell taught American Literature, and in that time she watched America’s educational system abandon its duty to teach the founding principles and history she loves so well.

“We have a responsibility to teach our children what we represent and what our heritage is,” Ms. Campitell said in an interview. “Teach them when ey are young, and they will take it with them for life.

Currently living in West Brandywine, PA, Ms. Campitell is one of many Americans who wishes to reverse the alarming trend of ignoring America’s founding principles in education.

Because she believes strongly in providing our youth with an understanding of the moral foundations upon which our great country was conceived, Ms. Campitell has decided to include TFAS in her will. Her generosity and vision will help TFAS sow the seeds of appreciation for a civil society, one rooted in the rule of law and history, for generations to come.