Since the early seventies, Mary and her husband John have been involved in the performing arts in Milwaukee. Mary served as President of the Skylight Opera Theatre and the Friends of the Conservatory of Music, as well as on the Board of Trustees of the Conservatory. A fifty year volunteer for United Performing Arts Fund, she was Campaign Co-Chair in 1988 and in 1995 received the prestigious Stiemke Award for service to the Performing Arts. She served as Co-Chair of the Silver Renaissance Campaign in 1994 to renovate the Marcus Center for the Performing Arts. Her various volunteer activities with University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee led her to receive the Honorary Alumni Award in 2014.

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Her love of the French language led her serve for many years as president of the Alliance Française de Milwaukee. To recognize the organization’s growth under her leadership, the French Government named her a Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Palmes Académiques. Mary served for 6 years on the Board of the Federation of Alliances Françaises USA as Vice President and Editor-in-Chief of The Federation Forum and Le Magazine. She is a founding board member of the American Friends of the Musée d’Orsay. In 2011 she received the Médaille d’Or du Mérite Francophone from La Renaissance Française.

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Various other volunteer activities have included presidency of the Fox Point Foundation, Woman’s Club of Wisconsin, and Friends of the UWM Golda Meir Library, and board member of Malaika Early Learning Center and UWM Foundation.

George Sape is the President of The American Friends of the Cite du Vin (AFCV).

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He was the Managing Partner of the national law firm, Epstein Becker & Green in New York. Prior to that, he held a number of government positions in Washington, DC. After working for the U.S. Department of State and the Federal Communications Commission, he served on the White House staff under President Nixon.

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Sape is a graduate of University of Colorado at Boulder where he also earned his JD. George is active on many French-American organizations in the US including: French Heritage Society, American Friends of Blérancourt, and the American Society of the French Order of Merit. He was also elected as a Membre du Honneur to the prestigious l’Academie du Vin du Bordeaux.

He is a recipient of both the Ordre du Merite and Legion d’Honneur from the French Government.

Elaine Uzan Leary has over 45 years professional experiences in promoting French language and culture in Boston including the creation of the school of the Alliance Francaise in Boston, the French American Chamber of Commerce in Boston, the French Theatre in Boston, a founding trustee in the Boston Strasbourg Sister City Association, plus twelve years in foreign language publishing with Heinle and Heinle and later Houghton Mifflin Company. Prior to joining the American Friends of Blérancourt in July of 2008 in New York City, Elaine’s previous position was Executive Director of the French Library Alliance Francaise of Boston, considered New England’s most important French library, cultural center, and French language school. She was part of the New England Committee for the 400th Anniversary of Quebec, and launched the semaine de la Francophonie in Boston bringing together various francophone associations.

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For the Franco-American Museum, Chateau de Blerancourt, she created and has managed the traveling exhibition “American Women Rebuilding France 1917-1924” since 2010 in 17 cities in the U.S.  Raised bilingually in Auburn, Maine (nee L’Heureux of French Canadian ancestry) she graduated from Edward Little high School in 1965, and was educated in France, in Strasbourg and in Paris, a graduate of Stetson University in Deland, FL, plus a Master Degree in French from Middlebury College in Vermont, and a Masters in Communication from Emmerson College. Elaine Uzan Leary has received three French government awards:  Officier dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres,  Chavalier dans l’Ordre National du Mérite, and Chevalier de la Renaissance Francaise.

Sherry Johnson co-founded and was instrumental in building the American Friends of Musée d'Orsay (AFMO). A former professional tennis executive, Sherry and her family moved to London in 1990, where she became an active patron of several arts organization via American Friends support groups. 

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For ten years Sherry served on the AFMO Board as Vice-Chair - France. She identified and recruited the first full-time executive director, and as chair of the Nominating Committee she was instrumental in building, and strengthening, the AFMO Board and helped to secure key individuals from around the US to serve on the Board.

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She has been a regular and significant financial supporter of AFMO. She is also an active patron of other Paris organizations that are committed to building French-American ties, including the American Library in Paris, the American Club of Paris, the American Cathedral in Paris, and the American Women’s Group in Paris.