Mary Jeffries Bruce was born in Clinton, Kentucky and raised in Tennessee. She attended Peabody College in Nashville where she majored in Art and then Voice. Ms. Bruce taught school in Paris, Tennessee. She moved to Tucson in 1930 where she married V.T. Jeffries and became the mother of John Edgar. In 1942 she was appointed program chairman for a small Young Adult Discussion Group which met in the old University Catalina Methodist church (now known as the Catalina United Methodist Church). This small discussion group became The Sunday Night Forum and one of the nation’s largest nonprofit community forums under her leadership. The Forum grew and ultimately moved to a larger venue, University of Arizona Main Auditorian. At first the guest speakers were famous people wintering in Tucson or local notables, especially members of the University of Arizona faculty Auditorium. By 1945 the guest speakers included political leaders and some world renowned persons. Besides famous speakers, the forum also presented travel films, nationally known dance groups, theatrical groups, and musical groups. After 42 years as a Tucson institution the Sunday Evening Forum gave its final performance on April 8, 1984. The board of the Catalina United Methodist Church decided to discontinue the Forum at the end of 1983/84 season. The board had sponsored the forum since it began in 1942. The closure was attributed to high speaker fees, lack of interest by the public, and finally the announcement by the University of Arizona that the Main Auditorium would not be available for the next season of the forum while it underwent renovation. In 1952 Mary Jefferies Bruce was named Tucson’s 1st "Woman of the Year" for her work as director of the Sunday Night Forum. In 1969 she received the "Program Chairman of the Year" award, presented by the International Platform Association. Ms. Bruce was responsible for bringing many of the most prominent political and cultural figures of the time to Tucson. Ms. Bruce directed the Sunday Night Forum for 34 years before retiring in 1976. In her lifetime, Mary Jeffries Bruce was very active in the National Association for Mental Health and was voted a regional vice president serving on the National Executive Committee in 1954. She was also a past president of the Tucson’s Boys Choir,1949-1950, and arranged for the Chorus to sing at the New York Town Hall. Ms. Bruce was also the volunteer Executive Secretary for The Pima County Mental Health Association. She passed away on February 7, 1993 at the age of 89.
From the guide to the Mary Jeffries Bruce and the Sunday Evening Forum collection, 1942-1976, (University of Arizona Libraries, Special Collections)
