Mary Ann and Brad Morse
photography by win wolloff
Who is your role model?
Mary Ann: First is my stepmother; she thought
all things were possible. Second is Margaret St. John
Andrews. She built a school for women over 115 years
ago with the desire to educate and foster women to
become self-reliant.
Brad: Dad was incredibly productive, and Mom was
the peacemaker.
Why do you do what you do?
Mary Ann: I like to feel that I am making a
difference.
Brad: It feels fulfilling to give back to the
community.
What don’t people know about you?
Mary Ann: I was a tomboy.
Brad: I was in the Army Reserves.
What are your favorite words of wisdom?
Mary Ann: Do all that you say you will do.
Brad: A man who knows what freedom means will
find a way to be free.
What do you consider to be your greatest
achievement?
Mary Ann: I was the first Alumna in 94 years to
become chairman of the board of The Andrews School.
Brad: Meeting and marrying Mary Ann Berens.
What is your motto?
Mary Ann: Family and friends first.
Brad: If it’s not broken, don’t fix it!
How do you think other people would describe you?
Mary Ann: Calm.
Brad: Interesting – conversant on a wide range
of subjects.
What would you like to do that you have never
done?
Mary Ann: Have a single digit handicap in golf.
Brad: Create a website to explain and illustrate how
to use liberty and private property to solve human
issues, from poverty to pollution.
How would you describe yourself?
Mary Ann: A good listener.
Brad: Somewhat intense.
9
Brad was raised in Cleveland, Ohio and attended the
University School before graduating as an engineer from
Lehigh University. He then joined his family’s business,
IMS Company in Cleveland, where he led its Engineering
Division. When his parents moved to St. Petersburg
with their Salvador Dalí collection, he remained in Ohio
to operate the business. He has served on the board of
trustees of the Dalí for 26 years and, since moving to
St. Petersburg, is also active with the museum’s Guild
and other local charities. He is interested in the use of
concepts of liberty and private property and is active in
organizations with similar goals.
Brad has been married to Mary Ann since 2007. She is
also a Cleveland native, but lived in the San Francisco
Bay area for 20 years. After returning to Cleveland, she
became a vice president and senior investment consultant
at Fifth Third Securities. During that period, she was the
chair of the board of trustees of the Andrews prep school
that she had attended. Mary Ann is now on the board of
trustees of the Dalí Museum and president of the Dalí
Guild. She is the chair of the board of directors and the
co-CEO of her and Brad’s business, the IMS Company, in
Cleveland, Ohio.
Why do you live here?
Mary Ann: To be near the Dalí Museum,
St. Petersburg Opera, The Straz Center and the
wonderful people in the Tampa Bay area.
Brad: Warm climate, sunny skies and so many great
cultural venues, from The Dalí Museum and Museum
of Fine Arts for visual arts to St. Petersburg Opera and
the Straz Center, to name only a few.
What provides you with pleasure?
Mary Ann: Friends, volunteering and opera.
Brad: I enjoy fixing anything that’s broken –
“Making things GO.”
How do you relax?
Mary Ann: Dining with friends, golf and opera.
Brad: I listen to great classical music, mostly of the
romantic vein, which depicts life as it might be and
ought to be. Think of Mendelssohn’s 4th Symphony and
Octet, Beethoven symphonies, Brahms symphonies and
their violin concertos. Don’t forget Beethoven’s Triple
Concerto, Dvorak’s and Tchaikovsky’s symphonies, etc.
146 TAMPA BAY MAGAZINE MARCH/APRIL 2016