Fort Lewis College Athletics

During her two-year skiing career at Fort Lewis College from 1974 through 1976, Mary Lee Atkins was atop the winner's podium at nearly every Nordic event sponsored by the Central Intercollegiate Alpine League (CIAL) and the Intermountain Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (IAIAW).

Her skiing career extended much farther than the boundaries of regional collegiate events. Ms. Atkins was part of the U.S. Ski Team from 1970 through 1974. Her career was highlighted by a trip to the 1974 FIS World Championships in Falun, Sweden.

She was also a member of the U.S. Junior National Ski Team from 1969 through 1973.

Atkins graduated from Fort Lewis College in 1977 with an associate's degree in secretarial science.

Her professional career took a different route as she spent most of her adult life as a carpenter at various locations. She began working in carpentry in Durango before moving to Cape Cod, Mass.

Her carpentry has taken on a scientific flare. She spent time in Antarctica building technical equipment such as plankton splitters for the National Science Foundation scientists. This phase of her career allowed her to work with different materials similar to plexiglass. Other projects in Antarctica allowed Ms. Atkins to set up the heating and structure for scientific camps in some of the most remote country of that continent.