Jan. 2025 Alum Spotlight: Annette Ohlmann Mattingly '80

By KRISTIN BECK ‘05

Presentation Academy

Annette Ohlmann Mattingly ’80 and the Alumnae Board are working hard to bring their fellow Pres Sisters together in support of their alma mater.

“Contributing to Pres financially and through volunteering allows us to pay it forward,” she said. “For me, Pres was a gift! The place where I made lifelong friends, developed a sense of self-confidence, and a world view that pushes me to work for justice. By contributing in whatever ways we can, alumnae help to ensure the gift we were given is handed on to girls who are just starting out.”

Annette has served on the Alumnae Board for six years and has been the chair since May 2023. Her classmate and good friend Lynn Bouchard Edwards ’80 was already on the Board, and she invited her to join.

“It sounded like a good way to re-engage with Pres and other alumnae, so I agreed,” Annette said. “The thing I enjoy most is meeting and working with alumnae of various ages to help Pres. Through the Alumnae Board I have made friends with Pres Girls who graduated as early as 1953 and as recently as 2019. It’s a wonderful sense of sisterhood when we all work together to pull off a successful event.”

When she first joined the board, the focus was on raising enough funds to sustain the Sisterhood Scholarship. Events like Shop and Sip and dine out nights, plus generous donations from classes celebrating their reunions, have shored up the fund. Currently, four $1,000 scholarships are funded per year, and, this year the amount will increase to $1,500, Annette said.

Now the focus of the Alum Board has shifted toward sponsoring events to bring alumnae together, she said. “People seem to love our Party with Pres nights at Noble Funk, so we’ll be doing similar events,” she said. “We’re sponsoring Alumnae Nights at Pres athletic and cultural events, too.”

Alumnae are invited to cheer on the varsity basketball team on Thursday, Jan. 30, at 6 p.m. and enjoy the PATH Theatre production of “The Giver” on Saturday, March 22, at 2 p.m. In May, the board will recognize the graduating seniors, and on June 8, the Alumna and Young Alumna of the Year will be recognized at the All-Class Reunion Weekend event.

Pres welcomes volunteers to help plan events and spread the word about the positive things happening at Fourth and Breck. Annette said volunteering is an important way to give back and stay connected. “In this digital, post-Covid world where we all are increasingly isolated, I believe we need to be together and support one another. This is how we show our students that they come from a long line of strong, compassionate, can-do women who will work together to make a difference. I believe volunteering is the quintessential mark of Christianity. [We] are called to be God’s hands on earth.”

The seventh of nine children, Annette is the daughter of Mary and Tony Ohlmann and grew up in Shively. She attended St. Matthias and chose to come to Pres because she idolized her eldest sister, Sharon Ash ’67, who was also a Pres Girl. Her sister Paula Woods ’82 is also an alum.

Annette said she has “too many” great memories of Pres to share. She mentioned attending a class trip to General Butler State Resort Park freshman year, packing the old gym and cheering on the basketball team, and cherishing her memories of senior retreat, senior prom and graduation. “I loved participating in student government, choir and school plays,” she said.

After graduating from Presentation, Annette earned a Bachelor of Science degree in computer science from Eastern Kentucky University and a Master of Arts degree in political science from the University of Louisville. She earned her Juris Doctor from the University of Louisville Brandeis School of Law and the Kentucky Bar Association license in 2002.

Over the course of her career, she worked for GE Appliances, Jefferson County Family Court and Humana. She retired from GE Appliances in 2022.

In her spare time, Annette enjoys spending time with her husband, Gerard; son, Tony; daughter, Leah; and son-in-law, Justin. She volunteers at St. Bernard Church and sings in the choir. She serves as the Treasurer on the Board of Fern Creek Highview United Ministries (FCHUM) and as a member of the Franciscan Kitchen Board. She volunteers on Monday mornings at FCHUM Adult Day Center. She loves to travel and has several trips planned for this year.

Annette began substitute teaching at Pres in Fall 2022. “I enjoy meeting the students, faculty and staff; being in the building where I have so many great memories; and the feeling that I am helping in a small way.”

When asked for advice she would give current Pres Girls, Annette said, “You are in a safe space. Get involved, step out of your comfort zone and believe in yourself!”